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Are you looking for the best type of business to quickly start your own company and finally ditch your traditional 9-to-5 job? The market is growing and expanding due to changing trends, so if you have the ambition to start a new business in 2023, we’ve wrapped up the five types of business that will be trending this year.
However, it doesn’t hurt to say that all of these types of business, as well as their niches may require specific skills, business licenses, training and certification. If a type of business listed here sounds interesting to you, make sure to do your own research of what’s needed to set up or register a business in that area.
1. Mental Health
Mental health is an aspect of our emotional, psychological health, and well-being. It helps to determine how we can handle stress, and anxiety, relate to others, and make choices. Our mental health impacts what we do, think, feel and say.
Why is it important?
The pandemic shed light on the importance of creating and cultivating good mental health so that we can prevent diseases and mental conditions. Addressing mental health in the same way and degree of importance as physical health is crucial to breaking bias and fighting the stigma that those who struggle with mental health conditions are ill or problematic.
According to the World Health Organization, in the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, anxiety, depression, and stress increased by 25% among people. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that one in every five adults has at least one mental health condition. The use of prescription medication and counseling also spiked during this time, which made mental health a concern in many countries around the globe.
Who is it best for?
There are many opportunities within the mental health and wellness industry to explore. The wellness market alone is at more than $1.5 trillion, with 5.1% annual growth. This type of business isn’t limited only to larger corporations but also small businesses and independent workers. The industry is very extended, and the areas to explore are the following categories:
- Health: It includes medical devices, apps, teletherapy and telemedicine, remote healthcare services, and personal health trackers
- Fitness: Personal trainers, fitness instructors, bodyweight training, gyms, fitness apparel, fitness and yoga studios, supplements, and weight loss
- Nutrition: Supplements and vitamins, nutrition apps, diet programs, juice cleansers, and subscription food services
- Sleep: Sleeping tracking apps and devices, blackout curtains, and gravity blankets
- Mindfulness: Meditation-focused apps, yoga and meditation props, and apparel
2. Cyber Security
According to the National Cyber Security Centre in the UK, “cyber security’s core function is to protect the devices we all use (smartphones, laptops, tablets and computers), and the services we access–both online and at work–from theft or damage.”
Why is it important?
Our lives are so connected with our smartphones, computers, and other devices that it is hard to imagine how we’d function without them. Nearly all fundamental parts of our modern life are digital–from real-time payments to online banking to shopping and social media.
The number of cyberattacks also increased 50% year-over-year – it’s estimated that, on average, 30,000 websites are hacked every day. That said, it’s more important than ever to protect our data from malicious attacks.
Cybersecurity’s market growth is attributed to the growing need for strict compliance with regulatory requirements and complexities in digital security due to the increasing number of cyberattacks on both individuals and enterprises. From 2021 to 2026, the cybersecurity industry is expected to reach a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 9.7%–from $217.9B in 2021 to $345.4B in 2026. This may be one type of business that will see continual growth rate, as it’s always changing to stay ahead of cybercriminals.
Who is it best for?
The cyber security market is broad and it offers various verticals with a number of opportunities, however, initiating a business in this area requires some level of expertise and skills.
Professionals in the area can work both B2B and B2C, but opportunities and high-ticket projects are likely to happen in the business-to-business model. In this case, there are many opportunities, such as:
- Consulting (both independent contractors and agencies)
- Cyber security specialist
- Cyber security writers and freelancers
- Security auditor
- Vulnerability researchers
3. Financial Services
Financial services describe all areas within the finance industry, including everything from money management to payments and digital banking technology. The financial firms involved in this sector include banks, insurance companies, fintech, lenders, and financial institutions.
Overall, these firms are responsible for managing money in various degrees and responsibilities. For instance, a payment service provider accepts and transfers capital between payer and payee.
Why is it important?
The financial services industry is one of the most critical sectors of the economy, leading the world in earnings and equity market capitalization, including all types and business sizes within the market.
The strength of the financial sector is so vital that it dictates a nation’s economy, which means that if the financial services sector fails, it can drag a country’s economy down.
Who is it best for?
Most financial activities are migrating to digital, and many other finance-related business opportunities are surfacing. If you’d like to venture yourself into the finance sector, here are some career opportunities in this type of business:
- Financial advisor business
- Bookkeeping service
- Business brokerage company
- Stock day trader
- Money lending company
- Accounting software business
- Auditing firm
- Payment service provider
- Cryptocurrency exchange
- Day trading crypto
4. Elearning
Education has changed with the advance in edtech and elearning platforms. The modern education process will never be the same again, as the internet has changed the way we learn for good. Learning and formal education are no longer only a thing for kids and college-age students.
Elearning is a type of business that’s an excellent way to deliver learning through digital resources. The pandemic accelerated this movement which is now widely adopted by corporations, institutions, and schools all over the globe.
Why is it important?
Elearning breaks the stigma that knowledge is restricted to school education and it can be done anywhere, at any time and it accommodates everyone’s needs. Other benefits of elearning are cost reduction, consistency, effectiveness, and scalability.
The future of education is digital and the global edtech market is set to grow from $152 billion in 2018 to $342 billion in 2025. In other words, it is a highly profitable sector with much potential.
Who is it best for?
The five main industries utilizing elearning the most are healthcare, education, corporate business, computer and IT, and retail/ecommerce. However, nowadays, you can provide an online course basically about anything, from cooking to digital marketing, to financial advice.
For professionals in one of these industries who wants to explore the e-learning realm, opportunities lie as:
- Course creator
- Learning Management System (LMS) providers
- Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) providers
- Cloud hosting
5. Ecommerce
Simply put, ecommerce is the buying and selling of goods or services via the internet, and the transfer of money and data to complete the sales.
The ecommerce industry is growing exponentially, and more ecommerce businesses are emerging while the digital economy is expanding and reaching every corner of the globe. More and more people are turning to their computers and mobile phones to shop for their goods, search for reviews, compare pricing and look for market trends.
The most traditional types of ecommerce are B2B (Business to Business), B2C (Business to Consumer), D2C (Direct to Consumer), C2C (Consumer to Consumer), and C2B (Consumer to Business).
Why is it important?
Besides the fast-growing pace, consumer adoption, and how it has changed the way we shop for our goods, ecommerce is quite convenient and it offers a wide range of options. Businesswise, ecommerce creates brand awareness, increases the company’s reach, and gives marketing opportunities.
Who is it best for?
Everyone from independent freelancers to small businesses to the largest corporations can benefit from this type of business. You’ll gain the ability to sell goods and services online at scale. Here are some examples:
- Retail: The sale is direct to the final consumer with no intermediary
- Dropshipping: The sale of products that are manufactured and shipped to consumers via a third party
- Digital products: Digital assets such as templates, courses, ebooks, software, or media that must be purchased for use–these represent a large percentage of ecommerce transactions
- Wholesale: Products sold in bulk. Wholesale products are usually sold to a retailer, who then sells the products to consumers
- Services: Skills like coaching, writing, mentoring, consulting, and influencer marketing, are purchased and paid for online through an ecommerce shop
- Subscription-based: Subscription services are the recurring purchases of products or services on a regular basis–they can be weekly, monthly, and bi-monthly.
4 Software to Help You Start or Grow Your Business
When it comes to starting a small business, it’s crucial to have the right tools at hand, in both work performance and results. The key, however, is to find the right software you need to start–especially for a small business. Whether you’re a freelancer, startup, or entrepreneur, we’ve listed the most important tools and best options in each category.
A project management platform will help to deal with both easy and complex tasks, as well as plan, organize, delegate, and manage all resources between you and your team. Asana is user-friendly and offers some of the best project management tools available on the market. It fits businesses of any type and size and it helps to manage even the most complex projects.
- Automatically generate reports, graphs and charts
- Easy to use and beginner-friendly
- It works for both small and larger teams
- The premium version is more expensive than overall competitors
Best Payroll Software: Gusto
Pricing: Starts at $39 per month, plus $6 per month per person + free trial for small businesses
Whether you work with a small team or intend to hire more people, you should consider a payroll software solution to manage your payroll and taxes for your workers. Gusto simplifies and automates the entire payroll processing. The company has an excellent UX and UI, easy payroll processing, and benefits for numerous employees. It’s quick to set up and run, and it’s mobile-friendly.
- Free trial option for small business owners
- Unlimited payroll
- Automated taxes and filings
- No international payroll
- No household employee expenses
- No mobile payroll app
If you decide to start an online store, we recommend Shopify. The ecommerce platform is an all-in-one hosted solution mainly focused on first-time users. The built-in features offers an easy to use interface, with drag and drop capabilities. Also, Shopify helps your online store to leverage your marketing by helping you to boost campaigns on social media platforms and create unique URLs.
- Multichannel selling
- Extensive payment options
- Sell around the world with local language support
- High transaction fees
One of the first steps to set up a business is to have a website up and running. In this case, you’ll need a web host, a domain and a website. Hostinger is the best web hosting provider out of all the web hosting sites because it’s easy to use, it’s affordable and it provides a high-performance website to its users, even on entry-level plans.
- Performance-driven
- Affordable
- Beginner-friendly
- Customer support could be better
Bottom Line on the Types of Business
Do you want to start a business in 2023 but aren’t sure where to start? The good news is that nowadays you don’t need lots of funding, and investment. With little money, lots of focus, drive, and a good internet connection, you can launch a successful business from the comfort of your own home.
We’ve listed the top trending business ideas to get you started, from the mental health and wellness industry to financial services. If one type of business isn’t quite right for you, consider one of the others. They’re all growing rapidly, so be sure to also arm yourself with the right software to help you succeed in business.
Camila Santiago is a content writer and strategist specializing in health and wellness, but she also has a foot in technology. She’s an eclectic writer, so she’s written various articles across the financial technology realm and wellbeing. Besides, Camila is a yoga teacher, she’s been in 35+ countries and speaks 5 languages. She also has a background in Business and Marketing.
