Business At A Glance
Startup Costs: $2,000 – $10,000
Home Based: Can be operated from home.
Part Time: Can be operated part-time.
Online Operation? Yes
Business Overview
Nutrition is big in everybody’s minds these days–people want to livelonger, think smarter, eat healthier and weigh less doing it. As anutritionist, you’ll help your clients attain all these goals through avariety of venues–you can act as a personal diet coach or as aconsultant to restaurants and food manufacturers, give classes andseminars, or work with health clubs and health-conscious companies.
Ifyou like teaching other people about healthy lifestyles, cheering ontheir achievements and motivating them through plateaus, then this isthe business for you. The advantages to being a nutritionist are thatyou can tangibly measure your success through your clients’ successes,you can make a positive difference in others’ lives, and you can do itall for a small start-up cost, start on a part-time basis, and workfrom home. You’ll need a strong knowledge of health, nutrition andpsychology, along with sales and marketing skills to snap up clients.You can get (or you may already have) a registered dietician degree(called an RD) from the American Dietetic Association. This is adefinite plus but not a necessity. Since state licensing andcertifications for nutritionists vary, call your state Board ofDietetics and Nutrition.
The Market
Your clients can be just about anybody you care to target: individualsor corporations. You can coach on a personal level in your clients’homes or offices; you can also work as a consultant for health clubs,large companies or institutions. If you choose to work with clients ona one-to-one basis as a coach, place ads in local publications. Networkin your community. Offer your services to one lucky person at a charityauction or raffle in exchange for free advertising. Make up a brochureand mail it to people in the middle- to upper-income levels of yourtown. Send brochures and sales letters describing your services tocorporate, institutional and health-club prospects, then follow up withphone calls requesting appointments.
Needed Equipment
About all you’ll need is a computer, a printer and the usual softwarefor creating sales letters, brochures, menus and other materials foryour clients.