50 Small Business Ideas for Beginners

Not every entrepreneur starts out with a specific business idea in mind. Some might start out as employees or apprentices for other businesses and then gradually build up the skills, experience and potential client base needed to set out on their own.

Some businesses are a bit easier to manage than others for those who have never actually owned their own businesses in the past. Here are 50 potential business ideas for beginners.

Business Ideas for Beginners

Home Contractor

If you have the experience working for a company that does home repairs or contracting work, then you can fairly easily start your own contracting business where you offer various services to homeowners.

Lawn Care Specialist

Starting a lawn care business mainly just requires some equipment, transportation and a steady base of clients. So you don't need to have business experience to get started.

Freelance Writer

If you have some writing skills, you can get started with your own writing business fairly easily by offering your services to businesses on a freelance basis.

Blogger

You can also fairly easily start your own blog where you post about topics that match up with your own experience and expertise.

Virtual Assistant

Virtual assistants can offer a variety of different online services to businesses and professionals, including email organization and communication, social media scheduling and bookkeeping. So you can start a virtual assistant business even if your experience in those areas comes from working for other companies.

Accountant

If you're trained as an accountant, you can build up your own base of business or individual customers and build your own accounting business.

Home Cleaning Service

For those who enjoy cleaning, or at least don't mind it, starting a house cleaning business can provide a pretty straightforward path to business ownership.

Child Care Service

If you're a kid person, you can start a child care business out of your home or even offer babysitting services where you go to the family's home.

Courier

A courier simply provides a service that delivers messages from one person to another. So you don't need much in the way of supplies or experience in order to get started.

Errand Service

You can also start a business that offers various errand services like picking up dry cleaning or groceries.

Housekeeper

Or if you prefer working out of a home instead, you can start a business as a housekeeper that provides various homemaking services for families.

Social Media Manager

If you're knowledgeable about social media, you can potentially offer your services to various businesses managing their social media accounts.

Social Media Influencer

Or you could focus more on building up your own social media accounts and eventually build your business as a social media influencer who earns an income from posting about various brands and promotions.

Etsy Seller

If you have any crafty skills, you can put them to good use by making various items by hand and then selling them on sites like Etsy, which make it fairly easy for beginner business owners.

Flea Market Vendor

You can also focus more on selling your goods in person. Flea markets and similar events provide a pretty simple way for new business owners to get started selling various items.

Ecommerce Reseller

Even if you don't necessarily make your own items, you can purchase and resell goods on sites like eBay or Amazon without any prior business experience.

Web Designer

If you have knowledge or experience in web design, you can offer your services to clients and build your own business as a web designer.

House Painter

You can also take a more low-tech approach and offer services as a housepainter for local homeowners or even businesses.

Dog Walker

If you enjoy spending time with four-legged friends, you can start a business that just offers dog walking services to pet owners who don't have enough time to walk theirs regularly.

Baker

Starting a food service business can be pretty involved for a beginner. But if you enjoy making food and want to build your first business around it, you can start a baking business where you sell specific items or custom creations for events out of your home kitchen.

Event Planner

For those who have some strong organizational and communication skills, you can build up a client base and start a business planning weddings or various other events.

Hairdresser

If you're trained in cosmetology, you can start your own business as a hairdresser or hair stylist that travels to clients for events or other occasions.

Makeup Artist

Likewise, you can build up a client base and offer makeup services for events, photoshoots or special occasions.

Musician

If you're skilled as a musician, you can build a business where you play at events or venues and earn a portion of the ticket sales or merchandising.

Photographer

You can also fairly easily start a business offering photography services for events or local clients who want to schedule portrait photoshoots.

Car Washing or Detailing Service

Car washing or detailing services don't always need to involve lots of complicated equipment or business acumen. You can set up a simple location where you provide services to customers or you can even travel to clients with your detailing supplies.

T-shirt Designer

Online services like Redbubble and CafePress make selling custom t-shirts fairly simple. So you can create your own designs and sell them online or even order a supply of them to sell on your own.

Coffee Cart Operator

Coffee shops and cafes can be complicated operations. But you can simplify the process and make it more attainable for a first-time business owner by opting for a coffee cart business instead.

Meal Preparation Service

You can also prepare single-serve meals and sell them to consumers out of your home or a simple commercial kitchen as long as you have the supplies and necessary licenses.

Antique Refurbisher

For those who enjoy working with antiques, you can start a business where customers can bring you their items for repair or refurbishing.

Public Speaker

If you have expertise in a given topic, even if you've never had your own business in that niche, you can start a business by offering public speaking services at events or conferences.

Personal Trainer

For those who have a lot of experience in physical fitness, you can build up a client base and start working as a personal trainer out of a home gym or even connect with a commercial gym.

Yoga Teacher

Or you could get certified as a yoga instructor and build a business teaching yoga classes.

Dance Instructor

If you want to teach more of a variety of movements, you can start your own dance classes out of your home or a local studio.

Music Teacher

You can also work one-on-one or in small groups to offer music lessons or classes in various instruments or styles.

Tutor

Or you could opt to teach in a one-on-one setting in a variety of different subjects. Providing tutoring services to students can be a fairly straightforward way to start your first business.

Graphic Designer

If you have any design experience, you can work on attracting your own clients who need things like logo or branding design elements.

Tech Support Business

You can also start your own tech support company where you provide assistance to people over the phone or online when they experience tech issues.

Affiliate Marketer

If you're able to build up your own online network or audience related to a specific topic, you can start working with different brands as an affiliate and earn a portion of each sale you send their way.

YouTube Personality

YouTube also offers a popular platform for people to share information related to a number of different topics. And you can earn a share of ad revenue by posting and promoting your own videos.

Podcaster

You can also start your own podcast and sell advertising space or work with brands to earn an income from your show.

eBook Author

Writing a book isn't exactly an easy undertaking. But it doesn't require any official business experience to get started publishing and selling your own ebook online.

Interior Decorator

You can also start a business as an interior decorator without a lot of expensive equipment or complicated business knowledge.

Pool Cleaner

If you want to spend time outside and provide services for local homeowners, pool cleaning is another pretty straightforward service around which you can build a business.

Furniture Maker

You can also build or re-purpose your own furniture and then sell it to local boutiques or even at art fairs or similar events.

Proofreader

If you want to work from home or even just build a small side business, you can offer proofreading services to businesses, authors or individuals who want to pay someone to look over their work.

Resume Service

You can also focus on helping local job seekers who need some help putting together their resumes or cover letters.

Scrapbook Maker

If you enjoy scrapbooking, you can actually build a business doing that for customers who want to preserve their memories in a creative way but don't want to do the work themselves.

Clothing Alterations Service

For those who are skilled with a needle and thread, clothing alterations offers a potential business opportunity that doesn't require a lot of equipment or prior business knowledge.

Translator

As long as you know multiple languages, you can build a business by offering translator services to individuals or businesses in need of assistance converting conversations or documents from one language to another.

Contractor, Accountant, Housekeeper, Ecommerce Seller Photos via Shutterstock

This article, "50 Small Business Ideas for Beginners" was first published on Small Business Trends