First of all, you need to identify the industry you’d like to start your business in. And then you’d have to conduct proper market research in order to decide whether this idea will bring you fruitful results or not. Moreover, you’d have to talk to a few friends that could help you in pursuing your goals.

Usually, people are afraid of starting a business due to fear of failure. But there is another thing that can become a hurdle, and that’s a lack of money. Some people have enough money in their savings account to fulfill their start-up dream. But many people don’t have enough money to pursue their goals. Fortunately, there are several ways you can fund your start-up.

In this article, we’ll take a look at four of the most useful ways you can fund your start-up. And you won’t have to make any sacrifices if you consider these methods.

Crowdfunding

Start-ups and creative people have been using crowdfunding as a valuable option for years. These individuals don’t waste their time finding angel investors for hundreds of thousands of dollars. They use a creative approach to raise money through smaller contributions from the masses. If you want to launch a product or design without knocking down the doors of venture capitalists, crowdfunding can be the ideal solution for you.

The advantage of using this technique is that it helps in marketing your product way before you officially launch it. You can analyze the feedback and consumer interest to decide if your idea will work in the industry or not. Indiegogo and Kickstarter are the most common crowdfunding websites you can raise funds for your startup business on.

However, you need to understand the terms and conditions of these websites before sharing your idea. For example, Kickstarter only accepts the ideas of individuals that belong to a limited number of countries. Unfortunately, the residents of Singapore cannot avail of this opportunity. However, you can take help from a business partner that belongs to a country that is allowed by Kickstarter.

Grants

Getting a grant can be a great way of funding your business in Singapore. The Singapore government is continuously helping SMEs that are willing to bring change to the industry. The first-time entrepreneurs must consider going for the Spring Singapore ACE grant. For every S$3 raised by the entrepreneur, the Spring Singapore will match S$7 for up to S$50,000. In other words, you’d have to raise around $21,429 if you want to receive the maximum grant of S$50,000.

Spring Singapore will give the grant over 2-3 tranches, and they won’t take equity in your organization. The most remarkable benefit of using this scheme is that it also helps in finding a suitable mentor for your start-up in the first year. Depending on the sector or industry, you can use several other local grants that are particularly designed for start-ups. For clean and high-tech companies, the Spring Singapore offers additional funding schemes while the social enterprises can take advantage of the ComCare enterprise fund.

Grants like these, often offered by governments worldwide, can help in giving a great financial boost to your start-up. However, you must carry out the proper research to find detailed information about any grants available.

Incubators and Accelerators

The chances of obtaining seed funding can be increased if you consider getting into a business incubator or accelerator. The major difference between an incubator and an accelerator is that the incubator starts with organizations that are at an initial level of the development process. On the contrary, the accelerator requires you to work with the mentors for a set period before graduating.

Although there are only a few seed funding programs available nowadays, you can get the targeted resources and support for your startup by joining an incubator or accelerator. The chances of growing a startup business are ultimately increased when you work with successful entrepreneurs.

Loans

If your friends and family members are unable to provide financial help, you could get help from a bank or licensed money lenders to get a loan. A loan can be the right option if you want to retain full control over your company, as it makes you feel free from giving equity to investors.

OCBC has designed a collateral-free loan program that is available for start-ups. The loan is known as the OCBC Business First Loan. It provides you with access to $100,000, and this loan is particularly available for companies that have started around six months ago. The only problem with this loan is that it can only be approved if you have a guarantor. If you have a completely new and untested business model, you must be very careful about taking out this loan.

Similarly, you must think carefully before taking out a loan if you are not expecting revenues in the short to medium term.

Another useful option to fund your startup is taking out a personal loan. Some banks like Standard Chartered CashOne offer a low minimum income requirement with attractive interest rates. Similarly, the ANZ MoneyLine Term Loan comes with the interest rates of as low as 6.6% per year.

Entrepreneurs can now fulfill their start-up dream with the help of these funding options. You should do some research to find out the funding option that will better accommodate your needs. We recommend going for the options that come with lower risks. Thus, you’d be able to focus on the growth of your business thereon.