Retirement business planning: If you are thinking of starting a business in your 50s or beyond, here are 10 awesome tips from an article about two senior entrepreneurs: Cynthia Mackey and Judi Henderson-Townsend – from the USA PBS NewsHour project called “New Adventures for Older workers”:

1. You Are Never Too Old to Start a Business

Think it’s foolhardy to start a business because you’re a senior? People age 55 to 64 have a higher rate of entrepreneurial activity than those age 20 to 34.

2. Turn Passion Into Profit

No idea is too odd to find success, as these 10 off-the-wall entrepreneurs demonstrate.

Building a business ignited by your passion fuels the time and energy required to propel you to success. Yes, more than passion is a necessity, but without it, your desire to get through peaks and valleys will wane and that will affect your business overall.

3. Build a Community of Positive Influences

Being an entrepreneur at any age is daunting. Seek out people and resources who will encourage you to “go for it,” instead of naysayers.

4. Make Your Workspace Fit Your Lifestyle

Owning a business no longer requires leasing an office space or storefront. You can set up an online store with sites like Etsy, eBay and BigCommerce to sell your products online.

If your business does require an office, co-working spaces, are flexible and cost-effective options. As long as you have Internet access, you can connect with your customer, staff or sales data from anywhere.

5. Staff as You Grow With Freelancers

You can find talented independent contractors to do short- or long-term projects for your business on an as-needed basis. This helps manage your costs, while growing your business revenues.

If you can’t find the talent you need locally, you can use sites like airtasker or upwork.  

And don’t forget that Airtasker can be a good way for you to SOURCE business as well from new customers. They cover many categories. So it is worthwhile checking out if you can use Airtasker as a way to build your customer base as well.

6. Be Innovative with Your Funding Sources

Before you raid your savings, consider grants, contests and crowdfunding.

This 89-year-old grandmother used Kickstarter to finance her decorative walking cane business.

The Purpose Prize awards $100,000 to social entrepreneurs who start their businesses after age 60.

7. Go Back to Class

The idea of being a student again might seem like a drag. But if you need to beef up your business acumen, the good news is you can now learn from the comfort of your living room.

Podcasts, webinars, tele-seminars, ebooks, YouTube videos and slideshows are the new “teachers” enabling you to learn about any business subject.

8. An Internet Presence Is a Must

Even if most of your customers are by referral, you can give your business a boost by getting a website or blog.

A whopping 97 percent of Internet users look for local goods and services online. It is easier than ever to get your business online with tools like Wix, Weebly and WordPress.

9. Your Mobile Device Is Now a Pocket Office

Your smartphone or tablet now gives you the ability to receive an email order, contact a customer and take a payment all at once, changing the paradigm of what point of sale means. There are numerous applications you can download that are invaluable for running your business.

10. Use Social Media for Word-of-Mouth Marketing

Select the best network for your customers and one that you can maintain consistently. It’s better to be effective on one network, than ineffective on all.

retirement business

Link:  https://www.nextavenue.org/10-tips-senior-entrepreneurs/

Tags: ,