Great Ideas for 2014
New year, new chance to jump on the entrepreneurial bandwagon and start the business of your dreams. Based on recent data, research and anecdotal evidence, these 14 business ideas have great potential in 2014.Recycling pickup
Most homeowners have pick-up bins for standard recyclables like paper, glass and plastic, but they often don't make the effort to properly recycle electronics and batteries, which can be extremely harmful to the environment when left in landfills. Offer to pick up all the e-waste that's been collecting in their garages — old televisions, broken laptops, defunct cellphones — and bring them to your local electronic recycling facility. Charge per item, by weight, or a flat fee plus travel to and from the location.
Software trainer
Healthcare Consulting
Food Truck
Freelancing
Companies are increasingly turning to freelance and contract workers to fill the skill gaps in their staff. It's not hard to imagine that you could build a whole company around providing freelance services of one sort or another. According to Freelancer.com, which lists more than a million freelance projects on its site, the most in-demand freelance services are: data entry, academic writing, Excel projects, data processing, Web search and Facebook-based jobs. Hourly rates start at $30 an hour and stretch into the hundreds.
Mobile consulting
It's
been said before, but it bears repeating: mobile is now a
non-negotiable for almost any business. Finding ways to go mobile is a
challenge for many business owners. If your company can provide
affordable mobile solutions to businesses that need them you'll find
mobile consulting a rich business opportunity.According to Jamie Turner, founder of a company called "The 60-Second Marketer," there will be ongoing need for mobile assistance.
"Research from the 60-Second Marketer indicates that there are more people on the planet who own a mobile device than who own a toothbrush," said Turner, who co-authored the new book "Go Mobile" (Wiley, January 2012) with Jeanne Hopkins. "So it's safe to say that your prospects are using mobile. If you're in business, it's your job to be where your prospects are. Your prospects are in mobile right now."
Translator
There's
no denying the global marketplace is growing and reaching beyond the
borders of China and Mexico. All that cross-cultural communication is
creating a growing need for translators, according to the U.S. Bureau of
Labor Statistics’ Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2010-11 Edition. It
predicts a greater demand for interpreters and translators resulting
from the broadening of international ties and growth in the number of
non-English speakers in the United States will result in a projected 22
percent increase in the number individuals employed in this profession.
This translates into a big business opportunity for entrepreneurs who can bring foreign-language speakers together with businesses in need.
Employee-monitoring services
Employees
are increasingly mobile. In fact, it is estimated there will be 1.3
billion mobile workers by 2015. So how are employers supposed to keep
track of what their workers are doing? The answer provides myriad
business opportunities for entrepreneurs. One company, Exaktime,
recently debuted a mobile time clock. There are also vehicle-tracking
time clocks and time-clock apps. But employers often don't have the
staff or the time to manage all this new data and distill it to what is
needed for payroll and billing.
A company that could provide employee-monitoring services, as well as some additional outsourced human resources functions, would be in great demand right now.
Traveling salon
As
people live longer, there's an increasing need for senior services of
all sorts. And not all are related to health care. One such service, a
mobile salon that travels to customers' residences to do their hair or
nails, has nothing but growth potential. As aging baby boomers move into
the senior citizen category, there will be a growing need for these
mobile services that help keep boomers looking good without requiring
them to make a trip to the salon.Vending-machine business
Increasingly,
health-conscious and time-strapped Americans are looking for quick food
on the go that is healthier than the soda and chips you usually find in
vending machines. This has spawned a whole new industry of
health-oriented, unique and specialized vending companies that offer
franchisees the chance to own and service as few as one or two machines.
One such franchise has had big success putting healthy vending machines
in schools, offices, public buildings, etc. Owning a vending-machine
business offers franchisees the opportunity to start small and test the
waters. Smartphone repair
Smartphones
have become indispensible for both business and personal use. But have
you ever tried to get one fixed? It can cost as much to as it does to
buy one. Smartphone-repair services are starting to crop up around the
country, but for now, this market is wide open.Contracting
If
you've tried to hire a contractor lately you probably already know that
something odd is going on. Anecdotal evidence suggests that many
contractors went out of business during the height of the recession and
those that survived got lean and mean. Now, as the economy improves and
Americans are spending money to improve their homes, they are having
trouble finding contractors – electricians, plumbers, roofers, painters
and more. Contractors say they are facing a shortage of skilled labor and having trouble finding employees to rebuild their former skeleton crews.This creates an opportunity for skilled workers who are ready to take the leap from being an employee to owning their own company. Starting small is probably the best way to test the waters. You can grow after you've proven your success.
Testing business
Apps,
websites, e-commerce…they've become must-haves for any business. But
often, they don't work. The reason is that businesses don't test their
applications or software carefully enough. Testing services are in hot
demand. One company, SOASTA, offers
cloud testing services for clients. There's room in this market for
growth. A service that specializes in niche testing would have an edge
over broader testing services. Business services
A
lot of companies cut back on support staff during the recession and
many are reluctant to rehire, even though they need help. This is
creating a business opportunity for anyone who can provide marketing,
human resources, healthcare management or any other service a business
needs.According to Stephanie Scott Harbour, owner of the New York Mom Corps franchise, there is a big demand for services in marketing, finance and human resources.
"We are seeing increased client demand for specific functional roles – particularly marketing, finance and human resources. We are hearing from our clients that these departments have been downsized over the past few years, and are now in (sometimes desperate) need of additional support," she said.
SOURCES: http://www.businessnewsdaily.com/1999-great-business-ideas-2012.html
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