10 Business Ideas For Now And Post COVID-19

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The world has been traversing a paradigm shift ever since the advent of the COVID-19 pandemic. In many ways the pandemic adversely impacted many but of course not all. For some it has been the perfect operating environment to spur their enterprises even farther. The key highlight of the pandemic has been lockdowns. Ever since 2018 I have always underscored the importance of people to take digital operations seriously. Those who were well-positioned regarding this were unperturbed once lockdowns came to the fore. Anyways, going digital is now more imperative than it is a luxury. In this article I will share with you some business ideas for now and beyond.

Online Shops

The list of things to sell is infinite – really up to your discretion. The pertinent feature now and beyond is that you must sell online. Thus you can open an online shop. The concept of an online shop is so broad because the approaches are several. An online shop can be as simple as a comprehensive WhatsApp Business catalogue. Then it can be as intricate as an ecommerce website. I recommend that you have a multi-platform approach. This can work for pre-existing businesses or brand new ones.

Online Listing Or Marketplace Platforms

I have noticed that there is serious shortage of detailed business information online about business products. For instance, I need to be able to go online and find a detailed list of farming businesses in Zimbabwe. I should be able to find a platform that comprehensively lists and compares accommodation packages. I should easily find a robust platform where I can list my business in order to market it. Such platforms are now needed more than ever. There are appalling gaps regarding this in Zimbabwe.

Online Errand Services Platforms

I will discuss this from one particularly relatable angle. There are over 3 million Zimbabweans in the diaspora who financially cater for their loved ones back here in Zimbabwe. Most of them cannot freely come this side to do some of the things they want to do for their loved ones. How about you create an online errand services platform where diasporans can engage your services for virtually any errand? For instance, it could be grocery shopping, surprise events planning (e.g. birthdays) – the list is endless. Such a business would even get clients locally here in Zimbabwe too.

Online Teaching Services

By ‘online teaching’ I am referring to a broad spectrum of things e.g. academic classes, tutoring, master classes (on anything really), coaching, training, and so on. It depends on your area of specialist expertise or your ability to put together a program where experts teach and people pay to be taught. For example, I know someone who is conducting Digital Marketing Master Classes every month in Zimbabwe and they are making lots of money.

Online Consultancy Services

If you are well-versed or a guru in a particular field then you can become a consultant. Even better, you get to do it online which presents to you an inexhaustible pool of potential clients. For example, if you are an exceptional hair stylist you can start doing consultancy where you advise and mentor budding hair stylists. You can be a chef and you can do the same. You can be well-versed in business and finance matters and begin offering consultancy services such as general business advisory, business documents formulation or assessment, product testing, and so on.

Content Creation

People now spend more time online than ever before. This implies that the demand for relevant and engaging online content is now sky high. Content creation spans across so many disciplines that you are actually spoilt for choice. Some examples are blogging and vlogging. Simple example – you can start a business that does electronic gadgets reviews. You can do this in the form of a blog or you can start a YouTube channel. You can start one where you explore and review home grown Zimbabwean products. There is so much money that can be made from this.

Digital Marketing Services

I can never emphasise this enough because digital marketing is now a hotbed for the business world now. For a business to effectively reach and lure customers they now have to do it digitally, online. This entails using platforms like Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and so on. The idea is for you to master how those platforms work and starting offering businesses and individuals services where you do or help them with digital marketing. Essentially you can start a digital marketing agency – we need those in Zimbabwe from now, moving forward.

Home-Based Agriculture

This is somewhat of an odd one out on this list but it is a haven of tremendous business prospects. There are remarkable innovations that have now revolutionized agriculture. I am talking about things like greenhouse farming, hydroponics, and vertical farming amongst others. These have made it possible for one to do agriculture on small spaces, at times without even the need for soil, but with bumper harvests. Basically you can now turn a backyard space into an agricultural enterprise. Organic farming, especially vegetable farming is now a big deal. This is because people are now big on eating healthy – leverage on that! You can even choose to focus on just agro-processing businesses.

Courier Or Delivery Services

Obviously since ecommerce is continuously on the rise, courier and delivery services are more sought after now. You can provide the services for other businesses as a B2B service. Alternatively you can simply start a business where you cater for clients requiring the movement of goods from them to elsewhere or form somewhere to them. Endless possibilities!

Virtual Assistance

This is one of favourites and is a potent business idea from here on out. A virtual assistant is someone who offers online services mainly focused on administrative operations (but can go beyond that). For instance, some of the virtual assistant’s duties entail email management, social media management, billing and invoicing, scheduling management, file management, and so on. There are many clients looking for people who can help them with that. There is so much to talk about regarding all these 10 business ideas I have shared with you. Probably in the near future I will do more articles exploring other key talking points. It is now time to think outside the box or as if there is no box. Entrepreneurship is the pursuance of monetizable activities aimed at fulfilling the needs and wants of people through innovation. Remember that!

by Clive Masarakufa.