Why the Right Time to Start a Small Business Is Now

% of readers think this story is Fact. Add your two cents.

Many people are scared of their financial situation. For a lot of those people, the cause is witnessing the financial crisis of 2008. They saw companies of all sizes drop jobs left and right. The event has caused more and more people to want full control over their financials and, unfortunately, deters them from taking risks.

But today’s market is vastly different than that of the past. Instead of people exhibiting brand loyalty, consumers often seek to make their own brand. This can be a one-person job (like social media influencers) or a startup that shakes the industry it’s part of.

Whether you feel unsure about pursuing your dreams of starting a business due to the 2008 crisis or your own personal fears, you need to take a look at why you should start your business now. Here are the three reasons why now is the perfect time:

1. Tech Makes the Playing Field Even
Better technology is being created every day at affordable prices. Anything from online gaming sites to internet-only e-commerce stores are opening up every day. This tech gives small-business owners access to lower overheads and operational costs as well as quicker distribution channels. It doesn’t even matter where you set up shop—these new technologies can help you.
​
The use of technology allows you to quickly increase awareness of your brand and expand your customer base. With a wide range of options for web hosting, and numerous agencies specializing in targeted and competitive SEO strategies to help your business, the digital realm is making it easier than ever for small businesses to start and succeed.

2. Credit Is Becoming Easier to Access
Many entrepreneurs had a hard time being approved for credit after the 2008 financial crisis. And with things like DUI arrests or other issues impacting both the applicant’s financial position and background check, many people were simply locked out of starting their own businesses. While loans for small businesses are still hard to get, and community banks have continued to fail with helping recovery in lending, there is hope.

Financial advisors are suggesting that loans are getting better for businesses both big and small. While it was hard to get a loan after 2008, these last 6 months have shown things finally loosening up.

One of those reasons has to do with a new Concept known as crowdfunding. Crowdfunding is done typically through the internet. It raises funds for companies by allowing people to contribute small amounts of money to companies that they feel deserve it thanks to the service or product they promise to provide.

One popular website for crowdfunding has been Kickstarter. Since it was developed in 2014, it and other sites like it have grown into a 5.1 billion dollar business. There are also non-traditional lenders on the internet now that are more willing to lend money to small businesses than traditional banks.

Companies like Square, which began as a payment startup dedicated to putting credit card readers in more traditional spaces, started lending cash to the businesses that utilize their platform. Companies like Fundation and Ondeck are also diving into lending money to small businesses.

The federal government is also doing its part to ease the woes of small businesses seeking credit. They are doing this by expanding the access that entrepreneurs have to US-backed loan guarantees. The signs are pointing towards improvement in the marketplace for small businesses. You no longer have to be afraid of the 2008 financial crisis.

3. The Economy Is Back Where It Was
Inflation is low, stocks are reaching highs never-seen- before, unemployment is at the levels it was before 2008, and all signs point to the fact that the US economy is growing. This means that the number of new businesses is settling in, and the launch of new businesses is starting to decline. Research shows that only an average 0.28 percent of adults created their own business in 2013. In 2011 that number was .04 percent higher.

The improved economy is showing in consumer behavior. People are once again expressing interest in buying up real estate, and spending on luxury mattresses and other luxury goods is going up.

A thriving economy means that there is less competition for you to start your business. It also means that there is a better financial climate. This means that those who are starting their businesses now are doing so to fulfill their dreams, not just because they recently lost their job and are looking for ways to scrape together some money.

There are those who worried that the US is overdue for their next recession, but the factors that are laid out now prove otherwise. Right now, the winds of the economy are blowing favorably, and the seas are calm. There hasn’t been this fine of financial weather in over a decade. Take the chance to pursue your dreams now.

If you start your business now, you will have low-interest rates, a rebounding economy, affordable technology, and favorable conditions for regulation. If you don’t do it now, who knows when the next chance you’ll be able to will come about.