5 Ways I Set Up My Business For Free or With Little Money

In Late 2016 I was in an interesting place. I was feeling desperate and at the end of my rope about my business. I was looking up places to Vend when I stumbled across an article that suggested creating a website of my own on a free host. I wanted a website and a .com but it was hard trying to figure out how I could do all of the set up for it without a working computer, and without a lot of money so I often turned away from that being an option for me until this particular night. I said something only someone as desperate as me would say. "I'll do it if I can build it on my cell phone!" And that's when the journey began to go completely mobile!

1. Find where you want to build your website.
The first thing I did was research where I could build and update my own website by phone, and computer for FREE. I had no access to a computer a good majority of the time and I was trying to figure out how I was going to build my website even in my downtime at home. When I put in my needs in google I found www.freewebstore.com . I signed up for free, and got my free website after I designed it to my liking.
I also liked a lot of the features on freewebstore and one of those features was that they allowed me to link my website store with my Kana Wear facebook page to create a storefront. Now when I make a product update on my website it automatically links to my facebook page. If you'd like to see my storefront go to www.facebook.com/KanaWear. Most of the other features that I like are that all of my social media pages are directly connected to my website. I know that sounds kind of lame because mostly all create-a-website sites offer an option to hook up your social media, but after I hooked up my social media I had an option to make an Instagram gallery, and my instagram is filled with tons of pictures of my work and efforts. That took the hassle out of having to upload pictures for a gallery, and since I'm always posting my work on Instagram it changes and makes updates as I do so my followers can always see new content. There may be some features that are unavailable without having to pay, but it's always optional and you can continue using the free version until you upgrade to a premium account. You can click here to visit My Online Store. To build your own website using the free web host of Freewebstore Click here!

This is a screenshot of what my website looked like when I first started out. 

These are screenshots from what I did after I changed my template, and added a few things to the slide show. I took pictures of me and my oldest daughter (who acts as my assistant designer), and I found an interesting background to place our images on top of using Photoshop. Finally I uploaded these photo's to the slide show on my website therefore giving it a more professional look. 

My second website is more so for information and signing up for services since it costs a little money to add these features on freewebstore. Click Here to see my second website for services that I offer!

2. Buying your URL.
When signing up to make a free website you also have to have a free url, but that url is a backslash url. In order to have your own domain you have to pay out of pocket which is why those free urls are convenient if you happened to not have any money at the time. I used to have a domain for 14.99 with GoDaddy years ago, and because I couldn't keep paying to hold onto it I lost it. I was determined I wasn't going to pay that much, so I looked up cheap domains and came across google domains. Google Domains only charges $12/yr. That's $1/month if you want to be literal. I knew that $12 wasn't a lot of money compared to a monthly rate or anything so the next time I had money-(cash) I ended up paying my husband that $12 in exchange for him swiping his card. Having a .com was on my list for my Business Plan that year and I actually achieved that rather cheaply. So technically I only paid $12 for my whole website because I built the whole thing for free, and just paid for my url. I now have 2 google domains and I renew them annually and I even have the option of placing a renewal on there for much longer if I wanted to. 

3. Free Business Card Apps
When I first started out as a teenage entrepreneur I had vistaprint cards my mom helped me purchase. I still love vistaprint, however I don't always have the money to replenish my stash of cards, or to make my own anymore. I'm really good at Microsoft programs like Word and Power Point so creating them is not the issue, but having the money to buy the card stock is, as well as where I'd print them.
I wanted something I could share in emails, or with a simple text so I went and looked for an app that was FREE, and came across the Inigo Cards app. Set up was rather easy to do, and all I had to do is sign up with my gmail and they sent a confirmation email to confirm. At first I thought it was cool because the business card itself was through a link with my downloadable card which was then added to the persons contacts once downloaded! It had links to my websites and social media as well, and sometimes it helped me gain followers if I was speaking to someone and telling them about my business. What I didn't realize is that being redirected to a site to download something is oftentimes frowned upon because they may regard it as spam, or something that can cause viruses. 

This is a screenshot of my old inigo card.

Today I have a different business card app because Inigo no longer provides this free service after merging with another company. I downloaded Business Card Maker by Bhima Apps on the Google Play App. 

This is a more recent business card that I created using that app! I must admit the templates were very beautifully designed and practical😍. It made picking the perfect design that much harder because of it. 

It's just a regular 2D card that you can customize to your liking and share as a picture. Might not be as cool as downloading all the information about my business all at once, but it sure does come off less threatening. Not to mention that it gives the person my direct contact information and I can highlight only the social media pages where I post most often! You can never go wrong with a straight forward approach! Some things are just tried and true and you don't have to reinvent the wheel. You would probably snap a picture of a physical card to share anyway, so it's probably in your best interest to create a digital image to simplify things.

4. Google Voice
Google voice may seem like a very old program, but it's worth a shot especially since it's FREE. If you're that kind of person who wants to separate clientele from personal friends and family then this might be a great option for you. I can easily call and text my clients as long as they are within the US, and I don't have to pay unless I'm calling long distance. I usually send my cards to my clients using this app, and even though it seems like that's just a whole lot I'd rather keep my personal life and business life separate. What I like about Google Voice is that I can use the same phone and service but have a different number without having to pay extra for new service. All I had to do was connect it to my email, and my device number and that was it. I did need to do this on a computer since the option to sign up with a mobile phone is unavailable at the time.

5. Pay Pal Here
I've always had a FREE Pay Pal Account, however I did not have a FREE Pay Pal Here, and that's different. First I had to register for an account and then be called by a consultant. This person probably called maybe a day later and asked me a series of questions about my business like "what product are you selling?" , and why do you want a Pay Pal here?" So after I was done with all of this they then told me I'd receive my FREE credit card reader in the mail in a matter of days. When it came in the mail I was so elated because they not only sent me 1 but 2. So some of the features of the Pay Pal Here app consists of listing your products, and sending a receipt to your customers after a sale. Your card reader can hook up to your cell phone, and now you will be able to process payments right on your mobile phone. They do make their deductions for swiping a card but it's a rather small deduction, and I'm sure your customers wouldn't mind having a little "tax". Now if you happen to have to process a card that should be swiped manually then it's a little more that comes with that. Not only will they be taxed but your money won't come onto your card until 3 days later. You can also sign up for a business debit card with Pay Pal here, and your money can go directly to that, but you cannot accept direct deposits or anything from an employer on this card or anything like that. You'd have to sign up for their Prepaid card in order to set that up, and any of your cards can connect to your Pay Pal account so you can send your money to whichever card you please, and it doesn't have to be a Pay Pal Card.

Conclusion...
There is no better way than starting off the new year with a doable plan, and by doable I mean S.M.A.R.T. (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, and Timely) I was on a live broadcast with Mrs. Keischa Bradley one Monday for Millenial Masterminds. What I liked about this live broadcast was that she applied spiritual principles from the Word of God to entrepreneurship and business, then she he began putting people on the spot asking them questions about how they started and what practical advice we could give to others. I didn't know if what I had to say was relevant or not, all I knew is this is what worked for me. Since I didn't have much time to give people much of a breakdown of how I started I decided to make this a post with detailed steps on how I set up. You can view the facebook replay below if you'd like to hear some of my comments as well as the other entrepreneurs ideas click the video below.



You can also follow Keischa Bradley on facebook or Instagram (@keischabradley) who is also an entrepreneur herself and has founded several ministries including the girls group PUSH (Position Ur Self Higher), and she also has a ministry where she feeds the homeless. She sells real estate and has a plethora of different skills you could learn and benefit from.

I hope that this post has helped someone get an idea of simple steps they can use to start their own business. My goal is for you to see that your dreams are possible and you can do it from right where you are.

Please tell me in the comments which of these 5 Steps helped you take flight New Creatures! And remember to subscribe to my blog for more content like this! 

How to Write a One Page Business Plan

You probably have a great idea for your business, and you've come to realize that you need a business plan. If you know anything about business plan writing then you know you don't only have to write out the purpose and your vision but your marketing plan as well. You also have to keep any accounting records and bookkeeping that is connected to your business which is not a factor for most businesses that are just starting. You still need a business plan but how are you going to write one without all of those financial records that you have yet to grow? It is still possible to create a business plan without all of those things and in this post I'm going to show you how.

In this method of writing a one page business plan, you find out 5 things, which is your Vision, Mission, Objectives, Strategies, and Action Plan. This type of one page business plan is my favorite, because it is an easy way to jot goals, and follow through with them. I also use this business plan to also follow goals for the year in my personal life. I usually make a vision board to coincide with the written plan just to make it more visual. Below I have the way you write down a plan like this with the description in each box! 

Here is the basic template:

Vision: This is your vision for yourself .Where do you see your business in the span of a year?

Mission: What is the purpose for writing this plan and why is it important you fill this purpose?

Objectives: List the things must you do to be successful in completing your mission?

Strategies: What is your strategy for each objective? This part of the plan that shows how you will do each objective.

Action Plan: Write in detail what you must do to achieve each strategy for every objective, and put a date on it if you would like.

The Great thing about having a One Page business Plan is that it doesn't have to over extend beyond your means. When I write a One Page Business Plan I only think about the near future or short-term goals that can be achieved within 1 year. My Business Plan is "Doable" as I call it, because it is made up of SMART goals which are Specific, Measurable, Actionable, Realistic and Timely!So let's begin! 

1. Focus on 1 Year Only (Vision)

Start by asking yourself where you want to see your business within a year. Let me give you a good example of a well written Vision statement...eh-hem! Okay..."Over the course of a year legitimize and launch my online business by creating an online presence and getting all legal documents for start up." *applause here* 👏👏👏👏. Okay! Okay! I cheated, that is my Vision Statement from a while ago.

2. State What You Are Doing This For (Mission)

The second thing you're going to write is your Mission. Ask yourself, "What is the purpose of this business plan? The only appropriate mission for the vision statement above would be to "Create an online presence and get legal documentation for business start up." That's almost a no brainer, because all you are doing is repeating yourself! Keeping it short and sweet takes away the guess work if you have to do an emergency elevator pitch to a potential investor!

3. Make A Bulletlist of Goals Plain (Objectives)

Your Objectives should be a simple bullet list of things that you need to do to get your mission accomplished. A good bullet list for the objective above would be to possibly get your business registered with the secretary of state, apply for an EIN for your business, build a website, create social media pages for your business. These are all things that you CAN do, within the time frame of a year whether you have to make a simple online transaction using your bank card or save money over the course of months to get to that particular objective. That's where Strategies come in. 

In a vision board I draw pictures of my objectives or cut out images from a magazine so I can visually capture my goals for my business!

The Blue Circle is around the image I used for 1 of my objectives! I choose to record prophesies spoken over me in church and I include prophesy dates on my vision board, because some of them come with instructions. Some people get excited about the words spoken but omit the instruction given to accomplish the goal.

4. Break Down Goals into Small Steps (Strategies)

Strategies are simply the "How" of every objective. How will you carry out every objective? This isn't to rain on your parade, but to make you think critically about your strategies. In order to do everything on your bullet list you have to tell how you are going to do it. In the Objectives Section I talked about possibly saving money over the course of time to be able to execute a goal. That's well within your right to do, you don't have to have everything at once. Remember to give yourself breathing room in your plan, because that's a part of making your goal realistic. Remember this is your plan and no one is rushing you. 

When I am vision boarding, I usually make a small bullet list of my strategies under the images of my objectives. It serves as a check list so I can see my progress over time and not make the mistake of discrediting myself or losing focus if one of my goals has to be done in multiple steps. 

The Check list or bullet list of items serves as my Strategies on my vision board!

5. Pin Down a Date and Execute!

The Action Plan is my favorite part! Do you know why? This is where you hit the ground running. This is how you're going to do what you have to do because this is when your faith meets your works. The Action plan tells WHEN you will do the things in your strategy. So, no more procrastinating! Pin down a Date and Follow Through! If exact dates intimidate you then maybe you should just give yourself a time frame to do it in. For an example, if you want to apply for a loan, what month would that be in? Finally when you confirm your appointment  for the month you picked you can then pin down an exact date!

After I get an exact date, I might put them next to that strategy on my vision board, so I won't forget. After completing an entire objective I usually reward myself with a sticker 😍. This might seem juvenile but there's honestly nothing like getting a sticker. It worked on us as kids for a reason! When we become adults sometimes we get too serious and get away from the simple things that kept us motivated to stay focused such as having a goal and reward system. 

A JOURNEY shouldn't be mistaken for a RACE! You don't have to run on a journey, you can just take one step at a time, and be in the moment as you take in the experience. Try scrap booking your journey to building your business so you can remember the moments or just take tons of pictures and put them in an album!

Thanks for taking the time to read! Tell me in the comments below what you found helpful, and don't forget to subscribe so you can be notified about the latest updates and see new posts similar to this one! Thanks for Reading New Creatures!

How to Write a One Page Business Plan

Lately I've been thinking about other simplified methods I used to run my business effectively. In my last post I discussed ways that I started my business for free or with little money, and I expressed how my simplified thinking saved me a lot. One thing I did not talk about is how my desperation lead me to the One Page Business Plan.

I was trying to reconstruct my business plan on Power Point about 4 years ago, and I pulled up a template that they had created already with all the necessary things in it. Honestly I didn't understand half of those terms and I had to research them anyway. When it became too difficult to understand I looked up simple ways to construct a business plan, and stumbled across a blog post on Entrepreneur Magazine about how to make a 1 page business plan and you can read about that here:

https://www.entrepreneurmag.co.za/advice/business-plans/how-to-guides-business-plans/keep-it-simple-how-to-write-a-one-page-business-plan/. 

There were 2 methods listed and I used the one that was easier for me to comprehend. If you can't understand your own plan then how is it easy to tell others or even carry out the plan? Remember my objective was to simplify it so I can understand. I knew that I was just starting out so I didn't need to make it complicated or "too cooperate" as I'd said, because I wasn't at that level yet. 

Anyway I went onto take their advice and I created my own template on Microsoft Word. As I said in my previous post, I am very good with Microsoft Word, and Power Point so constructing a template wasn't hard for me to do at all. This way I designed it to my liking instead of pulling up different templates that I just didn't like. I also downloaded a copy of my plan into google docs so that I could edit it on the go. If you don't have google docs go download it now in the google play store because it is a life saver. I don't know how many homework assignments I edited on the go while I was in college and had no access to a computer. 

I will leave an attached document of my template at the bottom of this post for anyone trying to do their own. It is an outline for someone trying to figure out what to write, so feel free to delete all of the stuff I put in there and insert your own plan.Your business plan should consist of your company name, it's vision, the mission, objectives, strategies, and an action plan. 

Your Company Name should go at the top of the template of course and you can include the year if you'd like. I don't include a year on my business plan because I've come to realize that accomplishing certain goals are sometimes meant for later, or that you may take longer than expected to do something in your plan. There are even some plans I've scratched all together because I just changed my mind. If you feel like you're getting something out of putting a time frame on it then that's up to you.

The First part of your Plan would be your Vision. I honestly don't have any qualms about keeping the vision statement short or long, but what I don't advocate are vague or broad statements. Your vision is what you see for the business in the future after you've completed the year, or whatever time you chose to create a new plan. If your vision is to be the best online retailer on the face of the earth then that should be written as your vision. As I said, it can be short or long but the basic concept is that it can be understood when it's read.

The Mission is the part of your business plan that tells what your business is for. Everything is here for a purpose, and you most certainly had an intention in starting the business. Somewhere you saw a need for change and you felt like you could provide that change, so in this part of your plan your statement should include what problem you are solving by introducing your product to the client. How will they benefit from doing business with you? That's what your mission is. 

The third part of your plan are your Objectives. What are some things you must do for your business to grow and see success? Do you have to grow clientele? Do you have to get an LLC? What are your goals. You can list as many of your goals as you would like. Don't worry about being too simplified here because this is where you would start your alphabetized list. I recommend at least 3 so that you won't get swamped in a ton of objectives and make yourself confused. Here is how your business plan should be looking so far.

Company Name/Year:

A) Write your objective here.

B) Write your objective here.

C) Write your objective here.

The fourth part of your plan is the Strategy. Your strategy explains the how of your objectives. How will you accomplish each objective? What will you do to make sure that it gets done? If your first objective is to grow clientele your strategy should show your method of how you will do that. Are you going to advertise? Will you have a contest to draw attention to your product? How are you going to accomplish each goal? Usually for my strategy I use a Numbered list under each objective.

Company Name/Year:

A. This is your objective

1. This is your first strategy

2. This is your second strategy

The Action Plan is the part where we really get to the nitty gritty of things. This is not only your how but several different ideas you have for how you will go about your strategy. Using the example objective listed above to build clientele, and your first strategy being advertising, then your bullet underneath this should include every method you know on advertising such as online marketing, in person marketing, etc. Some people recommend putting a date on it but things are always subject to change. As long as you know for sure that you will do it, and it can be done in real time that's all that really matters. By the time that you are done with each bullet then your business plan should look like this:

Company Name/Year:

A. This is your objective

1. This is your first strategy

• this is the first step of your action plan.
• this is the second step of your action plan

I don't consider myself to be any type of expert, but I do hope that the information that I've provided can somehow help someone who is just starting out like I did. Editing your business plan on the go with Google Docs will actually benefit you because you just never know when that wave of inspiration will hit you. I generally like to update my business plan every year, but I say to pay your business plan a monthly visit. It will keep you aware of your progress, and help you to stay focused.

This year I reviewed my old business plan from 2017 and I noticed that I had actually done everything I'd planned except some of those things I just changed my mind about. I hadn't done my routine visit in several months and I had actually become really discouraged about my business. I was being so hard on myself until I noticed that my objectives didn't even state anything that I was upset about. All the things I was feeling discouraged about were things that I needed to add to my updated business plan for 2018 and that's exactly what I did. 

Here is the link for my version of the One Page Business plan. It includes a breakdown of everything so you can create one of your own, and design it to your liking. I hope it helps!!! Thanks for reading.

One Page Business Plan Outline:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1kbK_FtR9OXt4K-IjLBJGfKimId99l2DlZnEc_mFTww0/edit?usp=sharing