Your Home Business Education Centre

Archive for August, 2009

When you run a home business you will find that sometimes you need help from an accountant, a lawyer or maybe just an advisor.

But which ones do you need and how do you choose the right ones?

Word of mouth is, in my opinion, the best way to find reliable, trustworthy people. Ask the people in your life that you trust who they would go to.

If that isn’t an option you should spend bit of time comparing people and services. Start with a short list.

Research them thoroughly and check your local Better Business Bureau. Seek out their clients and find out how long they have been in business.

First let’s talk about advisors. You may not realize that there are different types of advisors.

For instance you may need a Financial Advisor if you are trying to manage a lot of debt. They can help you structure your business so that it will easily pay your business debts as well as paying your salary.

There are also Business Advisors. They can help you if there is anything you are unsure about when it comes to running your business. They also can be more affordable and extremely helpful if you run into trouble.

Having good advisors can take a lot of weight off your shoulders.

Find a Mentor. They are usually volunteers who have had great business success and will be glad to help start up new businesses. They often have years of experience and can be really helpful.

Visit your local universities. Business students can be a great source of free help and advice. They spend all their time learning about business, and many of them would just love to help get a real one off the ground.

Business Associations. Remember whatever industry you’re thinking of entering probably has some kind of trade association, society or union.

You should join as soon as you can, and take advantage of all the resources that are offered to people getting started in the industry.

Look for Investors. There are people who back businesses for a living.

If you think your business would be attractive to investors then you can try going to an investor with your idea.

If they like it, they will often have a quick process set up to get your company up and running as soon as possible.

It’s a good idea to have a Lawyer on your side. Whenever you are dealing with the law you really shouldn’t try to go it alone.

When you own a business the day may come when you will need a lawyer to help you with licenses, permits, regulations, contacts, or employment.

You need to get one straight away if someone violates your trademark, copyright or patent, or someone threatens to take legal action against you for some reason.

Accountants are a necessity for saving on your taxes. Accountants know the tax laws inside and out. They will be able to point out all the savings you might be entitled to.

A good accountant is one who will keep in contact with you. They will remind you of tax deadlines and changes in the law.

Advertising Agencies. A good one can create professional looking advertisements and place them in ways that WILL produce results.

Advertising your business can be confusing and costly if you don’t know what your doing.

If you aren’t sure how run your advertising campaign you may want to check into advertising agencies.

Look for one that specializes in home businesses, and will let you start with a small budget.

So you see with a little time and effort you can carefully choose the right advisor, accountant or lawyers to help you make running your home business much easier and less stressful.

Getting advice when you start a home business is important. Each business type has its own requirements.

Knowing the kind of business you want to start then is the first question you need to ask yourself.

Do you want to run a traditional business from home?

(eg. pool cleaning and use the internet for advertising your service)

OR

Do you want to run an online business?

(eg. sharing information about your favorite hobby or topic, selling your handmade crafts online, be an affiliate selling other people’s products)

It can be easy to get confused while looking for information. Chances are you don’t know anyone else that has started a home business so where do you go for help?

A good first step would be to go to your local library and talk to the librarian.

Libraries contain all sorts of home business books and resources. Your librarian should be more than happy to help you start your research.

Depending on where you live, you might find local government agencies that will give you free help and advice. Check your listings for a small business center in your area.

The Internet is a great resource for people who have or want to start a home business. You can find articles and newsletters filled with information and advice.

There are also many message boards, forums and blogs where you can read, ask questions and get advice from other home business owners.

Here are some country based starting points for you :

Australia – Business Entry Point (BEP) – Home based business

Entry point to discovering Federal, State, and Local government information and services for business in Australia, including regulations, licences, codes, …
www.business.gov.au

United States - Small Business Administration (SBA)

Programs and services to help you start, grow and suceed. The Small Business Administration provides a multitude of material on starting your own business.

Lawyers know all about starting a new business.

It can be well worth paying for an hour of a lawyer’s time and just asking them every question you can think of. Look around you may even be able to get a free consultation.

Accountants also know all about business and can be less expensive alternative to lawyers.

If you want your business to be profitable you should take the advice your accountant gives you and if you don’t have one, you should get one.

Your bank should have been the first place you went to for advice if you were thinking of starting a business.

While they’re no replacement for accountants or lawyers, most banks will have a business advisor on staff to help you open a business account. They can be especially helpful with the technical and financial elements of starting your business.

There is an endless supply of help and advice out there. Just don’t be afraid to ask for it!

I’m not just being mushy! I don’t mean literally.

What I am saying is customer appreciation is the best way to create customer loyalty.

Good customer service is the surest path to success in any business.

Lets face it without customers your business is dead. Repeat customers are the life blood of any business.

It’s a proven fact that happy customers make repeat purchases and not only that they tell all their friends. Which means more customers.

Tell me…

When you are happy or excited about a product or service what is the first thing you do? You tell everyone you know. Right?

If you have a great experience with the staff at a store or restaurant what do you do? You go back again!

What if you had a bad experience? Do you go back?

NO! and that’s not the end, you make sure you tell everyone you know you had a hard time and never, NEVER to use that company or service.

Have you ever walked into a store and been snubbed or totally ignored at the check out?

What do you do? You walk out without making a purchase.

Now, how about the times you have walked into a store with no intention of making a purchase.

You were greeted by a friendly face and a warm courteous atmosphere, then you end up walking out with a bag full of goodies. It’s happened to all of us.

Good customer service will never go out of style. It’s so simple but it is where most businesses fail.

Show your customers that you appreciate them.

It’s the little things that matter. Like a friendly voice and prompt courteous service. Going that extra mile to make them feel special.

You can create a huge following of loyal customers just by being nice.

But don’t stop there. The possibilities are endless.

Have you ever been to a hotel where they leave a chocolate on your pillow?

Now that chocolate only cost them a few cents but it made your experience just that much better. It made you remember their hotel above others.

How about customer reward programs?

Sales will soar when you tell your customers that they will get one free after they purchase three.

A free gift with every purchase. Every one likes presents.

Customer appreciation days, sales and specials.

Hold an event throw a party just for customers that you have done business with before.

Make them feel special, like they matter, that they are important to you. Then watch your business reap the rewards.

Working from home is a big dream for many of us. But fear holds many of us back.

Here are a few reasons why people think starting a home business is a great idea :

You Have A Great Business Idea – This is the number one reason that most people go into business from home.

Remember the kind of ideas that are good for a home business are ones that can become real quickly, and start bringing in an income almost immediately.

You Can Do What You Love – Most people have something that they really love to do. Getting paid for doing what you love is a dream come true.

You Get To Be The Boss – No more working your fingers to the bone for someone else. You will be the boss and you will reap the rewards.

You Want More Time With Your Family – No more missing out on weekends, family occasions or Holidays. You will be home for every special moment.

No More Wasting Time and Money Commuting - With the high price of gas and the average commute to work being thirty miles one way just think of the time and money you will save when you work from home!

Knowing WHY you started your own home business helps to keep you motivated when times seem tough.