Is Self Employment Really for You?
So you want to start your own business and be your own boss. You’ve got the ideas, maybe a little cash tucked away and you’re looking forward to giving your boss the news that you are about to leave. That’s all good but do you really have what it takes to be a successful work at home or small business owner? Let’s take a look at some of the traits of successful self employed people.
They are passionate about their businesses, this really helps them to remain committed
They are resourceful and always generating new ideas
They are great at multi-tasking often juggling several tasks at once
They are quick learners of new concepts and quick adapters to changes in circumstances
They make decisions wisely and quickly
They have willpower and self discipline
They are self motivated and energetic, setting high goals and living up to them
They are committed to working hard and often do so for long hours
They are emotionally strong and resilient to the inevitable disappointments
They have the ability to take big risks and deal with uncertainty
They enjoy marketing and selling to the new people they meet constantly
They enjoy competition in their business niche
They enjoy strong family support
These are very common traits among home business owners, whether in the areas of services or product marketing. Take a look at your own position and ask whether you too have most if not all of these traits, if not maybe think again before giving up your regular job!
Boost your Online Credibility
Many home businesses and small businesses have websites, either to promote the business or to sell products but overlook the fact that there are millions of people out there who are slow to trust websites and even slower to use their credit cards on one. If you have a work at home business it can be especially important to improve your credibility online. Here are a few tips to help you boost your online credibility.
- Professional Looking Design
The more professional looking the website, the more likely people are to trust it. Don’t use counters, pop-ups, avoid the comic sans font and have a good menu structure. Ensure the site is easy to use and read by avoiding garish backgrounds.
Include an ‘about us’ page along with a privacy statement. Inform your customers how Read more…
Marketing a Work at Home Business
So you’ve decided to proceed with the dream, you’ve set up the workspace or home office and you’re ready to get to work at that great idea. Now what? The marketing that’s what!
So what exactly is marketing? Well in its fullest sense it includes every step from the business concept to the pricing, the promotion and the delivery of the product or service. For the purpose of this post let’s just look at the promotion and advertising side of the equation. You were probably thinking advertising anyway!
How can you market a home business effectively? The answer will vary according to the business itself and the target market. First steps might be to think hard about who your likely customer is, then you can start to plan around that. Once you know who the customer is and how they can benefit from your particular service or product, you can then think about the message you want to get to them and where to reach them. For some businesses, placing ads in local newspapers may be the best approach, for others it may be network marketing, while others will be best off marketed on radio, in specialist magazines or the many flavors of online marketing. Read more…
Why Home Businesses Fail
OK so we know that most small businesses fail within a short time but do we know why? There are several factors to look at here:
Unrealistic Expectations
Think you’re going to make millions quickly? Think its going to be easy? Get real, building a business requires hard work and it can take a long time to get ahead of the breakeven point.
Lack of Planning and Preparation
You can’t just dive in and start a business without a proper plan. Planning and preparation are absolutely essential if you are to have any hope of beating the competition. If you don’t have a plan and have some milestones to mark out the little successes along the way, then how are you going to make it? Read more…
A Home Business Plan Outline
A home business plan like any, encompasses several aspects of the business from its establishment and its goals to the methods it uses to achieve them and the anticipated results. The business plan may vary from business to business but an outline might look something like the following.
First an introduction, setting out the aims of the business and what it does. This section would normally also talk about the ownership and structure of the business (whether a partnership or limited company etc).
We might then expand the plan to talk about the business environment, for instance what is the level of demand for your product or service? How heavy is the competition in the market and how will you overcome it? What is it that you will do better or differently? How will your business be marketed and advertised? How will your pricing be perceived? Read more…