Small Business Ideas: Start a Business and Make 2024 Your Year

Getting a business off the ground can be challenging. Despite the challenges that come with entrepreneurship, Americans are starting local businesses faster than ever before. In 2022, over 5 million people flexed their entrepreneurial muscles.

With increasing numbers of layoffs from large employers like Google and Meta and a greater desire for flexibility at work, more people are looking to become their own bosses. In fact, these days most American businesses are small businesses. 

Keep reading to find (and get started on) your next great business idea.

8 Small Business Ideas to Start This Year

The world is truly your oyster when it comes to starting a small business: anything is possible! But it’s also important to pay attention to small business trends and create a solid business plan.

Choosing a successful business idea looks different for everybody. It’s worth thinking about why you want to start your own small business in the first place, what your strengths are, and what you want the final product (your business) to look like. 

Most business owners have very different reasons for wanting to run their own small businesses. Maybe you like the idea of having total creative freedom at work. Maybe you’re obsessed with innovation and love the thought of creating the very best product or service possible in your small business. Maybe it’s really important to you to have total control over your working hours so you can prioritize other pursuits or time with family.

No matter your reasoning for starting a small business, choosing the right type of business model is crucial to survival. 1 in 5 small businesses fail in the first year; make sure you don’t become a statistic.

Service with a Smile: Service-based Business Ideas

If the idea of working remotely is your jam, consider starting an online business that’s based on providing personal services. A desk job doesn’t have to be torture when you get to choose your own hours and projects. The best part about this small business idea? Work in your pajamas—no one has to know.

Personal Concierge: Making Lives Easier, One Task at a Time

If you’re the type of person who knows how to make life run smoothly, working as a personal concierge may be one of your best business ideas.

People are busier than ever. With full lives and never-ending task lists, you’ll be working with a target market that’s more than ready to hand over work to you. Personal concierges take care of a variety of tasks, including booking travel, handling personal and business finances, coordinating house/office maintenance, and scheduling appointments. 

Whether you like the idea of working with busy parents trying to keep their family life oriented or executives with no time to think about their personal lives, there’s plenty of demand in this area.

Virtual Assisting: Helping Businesses Stay on Track

One of the most popular online business ideas is virtual assisting. Businesses everywhere, both in person and online, need support in order to grow. This is likely to be a successful business idea if you have good technological, logistical, and communication skills.

As a virtual assistant, you can take over the logistical, marketing, and/or financial tasks for business owners. Depending on your area of expertise, you could even run it like a consulting business and offer advice.

Online Tutoring: A Growing Demand in the Digital Age

The education industry is in high demand in 2024. From teaching vacancies that need filling to professionals looking to upskill to students trying to earn better grades, there’s a lot of demand. A good business idea in this realm is online tutoring.

There are many business model options for online tutoring. One way to leverage this online business is by creating online courses on popular topics. You could also charge premium rates for individual appointments. Not only does this free up your time, but it also provides you with dual income streams.

Social Media Management: Making a Mark on the Online World

Social media for marketing large and small businesses is the trend that won’t die—it’s been all the rage in past years and that’s not going to change in 2024. Having a social presence online is not optional; business owners can’t afford not to have social media accounts for their small businesses. Social media management is one of the best digital marketing services you can offer. 

Hiring someone who knows how to manage social media properly is an investment that more and more small businesses are becoming willing to make. While many people know how to run personal social media accounts, social media marketing is a different ballgame. If you have a background in social media strategy, you can knock it out of the park with this business idea. 

Products that Pop: Product-Based Business Ideas

Selling products people want is a great way to start a small business. Whether you sell in person, have your own online store, or offer a combination of both, starting a product-based business can be highly lucrative.

Sustainable and Eco-Friendly Products: A Future-Forward Investment

In 2022, 57% of Gen Z’ers said they’d consider purchasing a product if part of the sale went to a worthy charitable cause. Consumers like paying it forward and doing good for their communities when they make a purchase.

Potential customers in 2024 are likely to lean towards purchasing products that are good for the environment. If you can show that your products offer high value and align with consumers’ values, your small business is more likely to make the sale.

Health and Wellness Products: Helping People Live Their Best Lives

Out of all wellness spending in the U.S., about 70% is devoted to purchasing products. This bodes well for small business owners looking to capitalize on a lucrative business idea. 

With health and wellness products currently in high demand (the global health and wellness market value is expected to reach over 7,656.7 billion USD by 2030) this is a great market to enter if you’re looking for a high number of potential customers.

Tech-savvy Businesses: Technology-based Business Ideas

Mobile App Development: The Future of Business in Your Hands

If you know how to code, then you have the perfect small business tools literally at your fingertips. Many people in today’s market hold a wealth of new app ideas but don’t have the skills necessary to bring those ideas to life. Enter: your services!

Although you may have to begin by taking on any app idea that’s presented to you, eventually you could grow to have complete control over which clients to work with—meaning you can focus solely on building apps that are meaningful and enjoyable for you.

Website Design and Development Services: The Online Face of Your Business

Nearly every business needs a website. If you have an eye for design and experience designing compelling, user-friendly sites, web design may just be a great business idea for you.

Many businesses leave website design and development on the back burner in favor of focusing on other objectives. And most small business owners don’t have the skills necessary to create their own websites. Not only is this an opportunity for you to create a business; you can support other local businesses at the same time.

Take the Leap into Small Business Ownership

There are many ways to build a very lucrative business. Whether you choose to build your own online store, offer digital marketing services, run a food truck business, or a dog walking business, there are plenty of successful small business ideas just waiting to be actualized. 

As a small business owner, you’ll find yourself tasked with a lot of new responsibilities. Podium products make it easier than ever for small businesses to grow, communicate with customers, get reviews, and collect payments—all in one place. Get started with a free trial of Podium today.