Starting a business with very little capital is very challenging, but it can be done. Many of the best small business ideas for 2022 involve an online business model mainly because people have discovered the power of social media and how many people spend their time on social apps,  making it a profitable market place.  In order to make a profit, you have to Choose a business idea that you are knowledgeable and passionate about and develop a detailed business plan.

Starting a business takes work, but with the right tools and guidelines, your company will be up and running in no time. Although your specific business journey will be unique to you, we identify Four business ideas that you can venture in with little capital.

1.    Errand/concierge service

Between caring for their children and handling their professional responsibilities, most working parents have very little time to take care of personal errands like grocery shopping, making returns at the mall or mailing packages. A driven individual can take care of these time-consuming errands for clients and free up their days for the important things in life. Account for travel expenses when determining your rates, which can be hourly or by the task. Likewise, venturing into delivery service business is equally profitable,  Delivery services can be some of the most successful small businesses. While the major players like Uber and Door Dash take the lion’s share of the delivery service revenue, the industry is expected to grow to $192 billion by 2025.

According to Ubers Annual Report:

• Delivery service gets 18% of the total bookings for each delivery. Drivers pay Uber, so their earnings are excluded from revenue. They spend 33% on marketing (approximately 3X what most businesses do).They spend 15% on research and development (unnecessary for most small businesses).

If you start something similar, focus on the local area only, and find a better way to market the business. You can reach around a 17% net profit margin. That’s why delivery services are one of the most profitable business ideas.

2. Social media consultant

A consulting business is focused on helping other business owners solve their problems. You can choose a niche if you have a specific area in which you are an expert, or you can be an all-in-one solution. Larger companies can hire an agency or full-time staff member to run their Facebook and Twitter accounts and blogs, but small businesses often have to take care of their own social media marketing. With so many other responsibilities, business owners may be too busy or overwhelmed to come up with a great social media strategy. As a consultant, you can help them determine the best tactics, posting schedules and content for their target audience. As their follower counts grow, so will your business. Business consultants can make anywhere from several hundred per day to billions per year. Consultants that specialise in mergers and acquisitions can earn huge commissions.

In addition, Social media and the 24-hour news cycle have created the perfect storm of opportunity for creative professionals like writers and graphic designers, who can use their talents to create high-quality, shareable content for businesses and media outlets. Thanks to a growing gig economy of freelance and contract workers, it’s easier than ever to market yourself as a professional service provider. A content creator produces entertaining or educational material that caters to the interests and challenges of a target audience. The content he/she produces can take many forms, including blog posts, videos, eBooks, photos, and infographics. Today, businesses employ content creators to engage new and existing customers on the brand’s behalf. Social media marketing is a vast industry. According to Statista, it is a $153.7 billion industry. All you need is a computer, some software, and to find some clients. Fair warning: Like all good things, it’s not going to happen overnight. And it shouldn’t, because you’re trying to get good at it, not just simply do it. But the sooner you start working these five habits into your routine, the sooner you’ll be well on your way to becoming a high-quality content creator.

3.    Create an online fashion boutique

If you love fashion and sharing your sense of style online, you can consider creating your own online fashion boutique. You don’t need to become a fashion designer—you can simply curate items from other vendors into your own online store (using the drop shipping model we discussed earlier).

Dresses, shoes, swimwear, accessories, and more—you can build your own fashion brand using one of the several product sourcing apps, model them on your own with product photos and social media posts, and build an online following as a trendsetter.

4.    Sell print-on-demand posters, greeting cards, and prints

If you’re artistically inclined or know your way around a camera, you can drop-ship using a print-on-demand business model to let others physically own a piece of your work. Just be sure you have the rights to the content you want to print or are using public domain assets you can freely monetise.

If you’ve already got an engaged online following—say you’re a cartoonist or an urban photographer—you’re in an especially good position to give this small business idea a try.

Depending on the printer you work with, you can turn your work into products such as posters or framed wall art, even greeting cards. There are plenty of low cost digital templates and mockup generators like Place it you can use to showcase your products without having to print out each item and conduct your own photo shoots.