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What is a mobile business, and are there any examples of some good ideas out there?

This is probably a big question you have as you click this article, wondering what exactly we’re talking about. Don’t worry, all will be explained throughout this post as you learn everything there is to know about mobile business ideas. If this is something you’re considering, then it pays to understand what the concept is all about!

What is a mobile business idea?

Contrary to what you may think, a mobile business idea has nothing to do with smartphones or mobile apps. Instead, we’re talking about mobile in the mobility sense. Specifically, this looks at various business ideas that are very mobile and can be taken around from place to place. 

A traditional business – like a business consultancy firm or restaurant – will have a fixed location where you conduct your work. You stay in the office/restaurant and that’s where you do all of your business. A mobile business differs in that you will actually move around and go directly to your customers. 

What are some examples of mobile business ideas?

There are so many that spring to mind, but we’ve picked a few to showcase in this section!

Firstly, a home care business is a mobile business. This means you provide care services to people directly in their homes, sending people out to provide assistance. As demonstrated on Home Care 101, this business can be very successful and lead to you raking in over six figures a month. 

Secondly, a car washing business is another mobile idea. Again, you will go directly to the customer, but this time you provide a car washing service. Instead of people needing to drive to a car wash, you come to them – it’s super convenient. 

The last example is a food truck business. This is a sub-shoot of the restaurant business, but instead of a restaurant, you have a truck with a kitchen that you can drive around to multiple locations. It can be highly successful because you bring food to people in busy locations – such as outside an office building where all the residents can get a quick bite to eat on their lunch break. 

Why start a mobile business?

As you can see from the above examples, mobile businesses have the benefit of being convenient for consumers. You make your customers’ lives that little bit easier by coming to them, which can give you the edge over similar businesses that aren’t as mobile. 

Not only that, but a lot of mobile businesses have low running costs, so they are often cheaper for you to start. From a more personal perspective, living life outside of a fixed location can be a lot more enjoyable. Instead of being stuck in an office all day, you are out and about – it can be a more invigorating experience. 

So, do you think that a mobile business is on the cards for you? It can be a great step for any entrepreneur to take, particularly if you want a low-cost idea that has the potential to be profitable. Consider what mobile business idea would make the most sense, and then get started!

Thanks to the huge popularity in food trucks, which have sprung up to great success in recent years, many businesses, even those not in the food industry, have started to think about the prospect of taking their businesses mobile, and many have done so successfully from mobile barbershops to dog groomers, and even mobile party buses.

If you run a business, or you’re thinking of starting one, you may yourself be thinking about taking your operation mobile Before you do though, you should take some time to think about the pros and cons because although it can work well for many businesses, it certainly isn’t for everyone.To help you do that, here are some of the advantages and disadvantages of taking your business mobile:

The Pros

Low Startup Costs

One of the biggest benefits of starting a mobile business is that it typically costs less to do so than setting up in a bricks and mortar shops. So, if you’re just starting out, or you’re looking to expand into new markets, it can be a good choice. Your average mobile more trailer or truck will set you back between $5000 and $20000  size, condition and finish and this is far more affordable in the long-term than the $10,000 per year that it would cost to rent just 1000 square feet of commercial space. That’s before you take into account other property fees and taxes that you may be liable to pay in your area.

More Potential Customers

If your business is based in a single location bricks and mortar unit, then you clearly have a limited number of potential customers. Only those people who live or work close by, and potentially tourists if you’re based in a popular area, will come into contact with your company and maybe pop in. If, however, your business is mobile, you potentially have an infinite number of people to entice in. You are only limited by your own efforts and how many locations you choose to take your company out to. If you don’t get much interest in one area, you can simply move and try somewhere else – you can basically find your target market instead of having them find you. This could save you lots of money on marketing dollars apart from anything else.

Smaller Inventory

Mobile businesses can typically get away with stocking a smaller selection of products because customers are well aware that trucks and trailers have a limited amount of space. This means that you can save money by not spending so much on stock in advance. Even more importantly, it gives you the opportunity to curate a really good selection of stuff. If you do this well and appeal to a particular niche, you could have customers queuing up to get their fix every single time you’re in town. Just make sure that you ask for and listen to customer feedback so that you DO stock the things that they really want to buy or your small selection could backfire on you and make your mobile business less appealing.

Payment is Easy

A lot of mobile businesses deal in cash, but these days, all you need is a card swiper and you can take credit and debit card payments on the go too, which means that you will never have to turn any customers away.

The Cons

Local Laws

One of the potential sticking points with a mobile business is the law. The laws and regulations that apply in one town or state may be very much different than those that apply in another area, which means you will have to do a lot of due diligence to ensure that you can, for example, park in a particular area or sell a certain product where you are.

Marketing

Since you won’t have a permanent location, you won’t be able to list your business space on Google Maps or similar tools that make it easy for customers to find you. This means that you may need to do a little more marketing to ensure that the right people can find you at the right time. This could be a headache, but with social media, it is getting much easier to market your company locally to the right audience, You will need to do this diligently to see results though, so hiring a social media manager could be a good idea. You need people to know when you will be around if you want them to pay a visit and spend some money with you.

Would your business suit going mobile?