Anyone who even just tried being vegan for a few days knows that it requires a lot of research and learning to be a health practitioner of this lifestyle. If you have a few years of being a vegan under your belt, you’re probably not only confident enough but also educated enough to help other people with their smooth transition to veganism. Plus, there are many recipes you perfected and even created on your own. 

But if you want to become a vegan nutritionist and actually offer advice and create menus for money, you need to know more than just what to eat—you need to know how the body benefits from the changes and how the food needs to be prepared to achieve the best effect. It needs some extra education! If you’re still in, here’s how you can start your vegan nutritionist business venture: 

Get registered

If you want to legally offer advice and practice nutrition, you need to become a registered dietitian (anyone can call themselves a nutritionist). If you just want to consult, you can use your current knowledge. However, with an RD title, you can get a license for your practice and even get reimbursement through insurance companies. 

Becoming a registered dietitian requires intense schooling and exams. It also requires you to learn about animal content and practice food service and clinical rotations with animal foods. If you can push through that, it will be more than worth it in the end. 

Find your niche

Before you sign any legal documents, it’s important to take a look at your vegan nutritionist business and consider what is it that you can offer clients that is unique. Are you offering plant-based diet schedules? Are you focusing on a vegan diet for weight loss or offering vegan supplement tips for athletes? Or maybe you specialize in raw diet plans that focus on health? Find your niche, stick to it and expand your business later. 

Work on your business plan

Developing a business plan is crucial for any business, vegan nutrition included. A business plan is a written document that describes your business, together with your sales and marketing, paints a picture of your financial background, and contains predictions about profit and loss. As an entrepreneur, your business plan helps you with your vision and goals. Sure, there will be obstacles no matter how well you prepare, but knowing that you have your business plan to turn to can prepare you well. 

Create a good website

In today’s climate, your vegan nutrition business needs to have a digital home. Your website will serve as your virtual waiting room, so make sure to create a space that’s pleasant, comforting, and helpful. Use your website name and combine it with a .me extension which is perfect for creating memorable website names and personalized pages. With a website name like this, you’ll stay in everyone’s mind. The rest you can leave to professionals. Today, having someone educated and experienced create your page is very cost-effective. If you don’t know what you need to include on your website, just pretend you’re a client looking for vegan nutrition consultants and include all the info you would want to see. 

Define your brand

Your brand is what your company is all about—in your case, veganism, health, longevity, fitness, and care for Mother Nature. But your brand also allows your business to be seen by the public, so you want to create a strong image that will stand out from the competition. Opting for the right logo and company colors can be crucial, so pay attention to these. There are free logo generators you can use online, but if you want a logo that truly represents your vegan business, it’s best to consult with designers and get something unique. When choosing your company colors, consult the Psychology of Colors for inspiration. 

Form a legal entity

For your business to be legit, you need to establish a legal business entity like a corporation or LLC to keep you safe in case your nutritionist business gets sued. When it comes to different legal business entities, the most common structure types are the sole proprietorship, partnership, limited liability company (LLC), and corporation. When it comes to LLC, you can start it yourself, paying on the minimal LLC costs to the state, but it’s also possible to hire LLC services for a small fee if you’re not the business type. 

Start networking

If you’re starting your business from scratch, you will need to create your own network by joining your local chamber of commerce, attending wellness events, or attending vegan conferences and cooking demonstrations. It’s also smart to create separate social media accounts for your business and start creating relevant content. You can also do some real-life networking by introducing yourself to local gyms or health food stores. When you find your audience, explain what you do and how it can benefit service users. Be direct that you’re looking for clients, provide them with a way to reach you, or ask if you can follow up with them. 

Offering vegan nutrition services can benefit so many people, so don’t hesitate to start a business that will make veganism more available to everyone. Plus, the profit you make will allow you to spread your business and hopefully create even more vegans.