Running a small business often means that you have to pay for supplies or staff before you get paid by the clients. Sometimes waiting for thirty, sixty, or even ninety days for payment can stretch your finances. There are ways to make extra money to help get you over the hump, short- or long-term.
Sell Your Stuff
When you need to raise funds—and raise them fast—selling your stuff may be your quickest solution. If you have collector's items just gathering dust in the front hall closet, get them sold. Online auctions sites like eBay, online garage sales, and even Amazon's FBA program may all be good solutions to your cash flow problem.
Pawn Your Stuff
Can't bear to part with those collector's items? Consider pawning them instead. Pawn shops are no longer seedy businesses of ill repute. In fact, theses days pawn shops have gone mainstream. Know that when you pawn a possession, you are letting the pawn shop hold onto it while you borrow the cash. The amount you can borrow is just a percentage of its value, not the entire amount. You are required to make payments every week or month. If you do not, the pawn shop assumes that you are choosing to sell it and keep the money. To get an item back from the pawn shop, simply pay off the balance.
Contact businesses like Wimpey's Pawn Shop for more information about working with pawn shops.
Work a Side Hustle
If you work a 9-to-5 job and need money to start a business, work a second job. Whether it is waitressing at a local diner, working the craft show circuit, or babysitting for a neighbor, get out there and hustle. Nothing changes unless you get up and make it happen.
Take on Additional Clients
If you already run a business and need cash for the next piece of equipment or a new computer system, take on more clients. Offer a special price or service to bring new ones in and to encourage existing clients to give you more work. Being an entrepreneur with a new business does not mean you get to binge watch Netflix all weekend. It means that you are hustling for every dollar seven days a week.
Try Crowdfunding
If you sell a product or want to, consider crowdfunding. There are several online sites where you can pitch your product to the general public and offer pre-sales of it exclusively to members of that site. Think of it as a small version of venture capitalism.
Look into Microloans
If you need just a few hundred for a particular project, consider microloans. Originally developed to fill loan needs in third-world countries, microloans, or loans of usually less than $500, are moving stateside. There are both angel investors and online sites that offer microloans to small businesses specifically in an attempt to fill this short-term, small loan need that many entrepreneurs have.
When you have a dream but need money to make it happen, be creative about finding a way to fund it.
Share