Every penny counts when you start a business. Effectively utilizing your venture capital can make the difference between success or failure in those crucial first years. Although it is always a good idea to seek advice, when you are just starting out, it may not be possible to afford a coach. If you know where you look, you will find great startup advice.

It can be difficult to distinguish good from bad advice. How can you tell which advice is good and what is merely nonsense?

Take a Look at Other Entrepreneurs

You can look to the advice of other successful entrepreneurs if you are ready to tackle the business world alone. Entrepreneurs are excellent sources of information and will often share their knowledge with budding entrepreneurs. It’s great to ask someone in the same industry as you, but it’s best to take what you can and stick to a general formula.

• Always ask. Ask for advice from other business owners whenever you have the chance. Every opportunity is an opportunity to capitalize. Although you may not always get the best tips, it is important to collect as much information as possible.

• Get to know your company. Consider the biggest challenges that your startup might face. What strategies have others used to tackle similar problems? You only have a few minutes to grab someone, so you will be limited in the questions you can ask.

• Meet face-to-face. Although email is great for many things, startup advice is not one of them. A personal meeting is a great way to get the nuance that a personal meeting can offer. Even if it’s impossible to arrange a meeting in person, email is far better than nothing.

• Be aware of what to ignore. Even though they may have good intentions, advice will not be applicable to your particular situation.

Ask Smart People, Not Self-Proclaimed Gurus

Many people claim to be startup McGyvers and business experts. These people are more often than not selling nonsense. You will find experts who exude confidence and reserve. Smart people are more likely to give sound advice than loud people. It doesn’t cost a lot to get the brain of a smart person. You can read their memoirs, transcripts of speeches, and interviews to find out where they are going. It’s an advisory board that you can use to help your startup.

Go Online

There are options for those who want to get advice right from their home computers or mobile devices. Skype offers a workplace function that allows you to chat with small business owners free of charge. These conversations last ten to fifteen minutes and can cover anything from how to grow your company with Pinterest to filing articles of incorporation. You can expect to pay for additional services, as they offer free consultations.

Just Answer might be the right choice for you if you are looking for an affordable solution to a particular question. You can ask a credentialed expert (doctor or lawyer, business owner, etc.) using this service. A question can be asked for around $30. Although it isn’t free, a coach for a business can charge up to $200 per hour. This makes it a very affordable option.

The Small Business Administration’s Community and Discussion Boards are great resources for general business questions. These boards can be used for general topics, and anyone can post to them. This can affect the quality of the responses you get and it’s impossible to know if the experts you are consulting are qualified. Use LinkedIn to find answers to your most common questions and connect with other business owners.

Check out Community Resources

Local community events are often overlooked by people. However, they can prove to be a huge help for cash-strapped startups. Over one million budding entrepreneurs can access free, low-cost services from small business development centers (SBDCs). These include face-to-face consultations and workshops that deal with marketing and regulatory compliance. SBDCs can help you find local networking events so you can meet experts.

SCORE can be another option if you are looking for free advice. SCORE has 13,000 volunteers in 62 industries and can give you the tools you need for getting your company off to a good start. SCORE also offers low-cost online training seminars through local chapter affiliations.

The Small Business Administration sponsors a portion of these SCORE/SBDC offices and has over 50 offices across the country. These offices can be used as a starting point to connect you with local resources. These organizations won’t offer you an exhaustive list of business services. They’re only meant to help you get started.

Get Tailored Services

There may be a service that is free for you if you are a specialist in your business niche. Women’s Business Centers are an example of a national network of offices dedicated to supporting the pursuits and goals of women business owners. You will find advice, training, consulting, and loan servicing advice all from your local office, or online.

You can also benefit from free advice and training if you are a veteran through the Veterans Business Outreach Center. Get free advice from experts and connect with mentors. A Comprehensive Feasibility Analysis can be done to assess your business’s strengths, weaknesses and potential threats.

Think Legal

Legal advice is essential if you are looking to start your business. Startup PerColator offers free legal services. Legal services are not cheap. Although the website targets high-growth industries such as tech and life sciences it is open to all. The website allows you to create legal documents that are specific to your needs. This can save you up to $25,000 in legal fees.

This website addresses simple legal issues, such as filing paperwork to form a corporation. You can still seek the assistance of a live expert if your needs are more urgent.

Keep an open mind

You can find free advice if you look around. You can take advantage of many options and be open to all possibilities.

When fundraising, see criticism as an opportunity for improvement. DealDash founder William Wolfram suggests that you take negative feedback as a positive learning opportunity. A founder should leave a meeting knowing what they need and what they should do. Even if the Venture Capitalists don’t want you to invest, you can still get valuable feedback and value from them.

However, you should only include the information that makes sense to your situation. While some will say that pay-per-click is the best way to advertise in your app’s app, it might not be applicable to your innovation. You can use common sense to filter out any guidance that is not relevant to your situation.