Should You Start A Home Based Business?

Whether or not to start a home based business is probably one of the most important questions that you will ever have to answer. If you are even seriously pondering the question in the first place, then it probably means that there are circumstances in your life which are causing you to consider undertaking a venture which will have a significant and far reaching impact on your own life and on the lives of your immediate family memebers as well. Before you take a leap of faith into becoming a small business owner, there are a few areas of your life which will be impacted and which you should seriously consider before coming to any final decision as to whether or not a home based business is right for you.
FINANCIAL
Starting your own home based business can have many financial rewards and put you in control of your own financial future. However, there are a few things to consider before beginning your undertaking.
First, will you start your home based business on a part time basis and keep your day job until you are making enough profit to enable you to quit and devote your full attention to your business? Or would you rather quit your day job now so you can devote your full time and energy to building your business? There are pros and cons to both approaches and only you can decide which one you will feel most comfortable with in the long run. If you have enough savings to meet your living expenses for a good six months to a year then it might be worthwhile to quit your day job to focus on growing your business. You'll see results a lot faster and that will give you the momentum you need to keep going. Starting a home based business requires a lot of up front work and if you are doing it on a part time basis it is easier to get discouraged when the results don't materialize as quickly as you had originally planned. On the other hand, having a full time income will enable you to spend more on your business without having to worry about meeting monthly living expenses.
You will also have to set a start up budget for your business as well. Any home based business will require some start up costs, even if they are only minimal at first. For example, if you are going to be doing business on the internet, you will need to register your domain name and pay a monthly fee to have your website hosted. Domain names can be registered for as little as $7.00 and monthly hosting can be obtained for a minimum of about $25.00. You'll also need to determine how much money you are going to devote to advertising your new venture. While there are some very good ways to advertise your business for free, eventually you are going to have to lay out some money to advertise if you hope to see the kind of profits that will make your online business worthwhile. While we are not talking about massive amounts of money here, a few hundred dollars would be a reasonable sum to get some quality advertising to promote your business and allow you to start making some sales which will generate even more cashflow to reinvest in your business.
PERSONAL
Most people who are interested in starting their own home based business cite personal reasons as one of their primary motivations. It seems that more and more people are getting fed up with corporate America these days and it's no secret that the average workday continues to get longer and longer, lunch hours become nonexistent, and the financial security that once came with retirement is no longer a reality for most people. Not only does having your own home based business put you in charge of your own financial future, it also allows you to start spending real quality time with your family. Most people are so exhausted at the end of a typical workday that just getting through dinner without nodding off is a real challenge. With a home based business, you control the hours you work and you automatically add at least one or two additional hours to your day that you would otherwise spend commuting to and from work.
Of course, getting your family adjusted to having you working from home may take some effort in the beginning. If you have very small children at home it can be a challenge to keep them out of your office while you are trying to get work done. If you are the primary caretaker, you will need to work in small spurts throughout the day while the kids are napping or watching a video and then put in a few hours after they go to bed for the night. Once they are in school, the routine becomes a lot easier because you can adjust your schedule around their schoolday and have most of your daily work completed by the time they get home from school.
Life can sometimes be a series of tradeoffs, so spending all that quality time with your family also means that you'll no longer have the social interaction that was once a part of your 9 to 5 routine. Now that you have a home based business, you will have to go out of your way to gain some of that same social interaction. Joining local small business organizations is a great way to make new friends, network and have your business become known in your local community. A lot of these organizations have weekly or monthly meetings with guest speakers at either a breakfast or afer work social event. In any case, socializing will now become a great way to network and spread word of mouth about your new business venture.
MOTIVATION
You have to be motivated to start any home based business. This motivation is twofold. I am talking here about both the internal drive to take action and get your business off the ground, as well as the vision you have in your head of what your business will eventually look like once it is established and what it is you want to accomplish with your business.
A home based business can bring many financial rewards, but a lot of people will get discouraged with the up front work that is required to get any business off the ground. I have often heard an analogy used by folks who do business on the internet that I like a lot because I think it is so accurate. The analogy is that starting a home based internet business is like a rocket taking off. For those who are not NASA aficionados, a rocket apparently uses something like 80% of the energy that it will use during it's entire mission just during those first few minutes of liftoff. That momentum then helps carry it throughout the rest of it's journey. It's a lot like that with a home based business. It takes a lot of up front energy, but one day you realize that the hardest part is over and you've created enough momentum to help make it easier from now on in. You have to have the motivation to get through those early days, otherwise you'll never create the kind of momentum that you need to see yourself through.
You're also going to need to identify your motivation in terms of what it is you want to accomplish with this business of yours anyway. Do you have a great idea or product that you want to promote? Most people actually don't, and that's okay. Selling your own product is often thought of as the most lucrative way to make money on the internet, but you can still make quite a bit of money by finding other people's products and promoting those as an affiliate. That means for every sale you make, you get a commission. And you can also generate residual income for yourself by recruiting other people to become affiliates under you. But no matter which way you go, you have to like what you're doing and what you're promoting. Starting a home based business will not bring the financial rewards you are hoping for if you are not doing something that makes you feel energized, excited, challenged and, perhaps most importantly, that you are providing a worthwhile benefit to those people who are buying your product or service.
Well, I certainly hope those few points have given you enough to ponder as you go through the process of deciding whether or not a home based business is right for you. I hope you come to the conclusion that it is, because there is no better way that I know of to take control of your own financial future. If you don't take the bull by the horns and do it for yourself, nobody else will. But don't forget to have fun along the way. Pick a home based business that you'll look forward to tending to day in and day out and that benefits other people in some way, and I promise you that the financial rewards will follow......

The Perfect Network Marketing System!

Network marketing is hard. Don't kid yourself and truthfully don't even attempt a network marketing venture unless you either have or plan to put into place a highly potent and highly duplicatable network marketing system
geared for 2005 and beyond.
Before I tell you what a perfect network
marketing system
should look like let's talk about what doesn't
work for most
network marketers. As I'm sure you probably
know, network
marketing is notorious for having a 95% failure
rate. Let's
talk about why.
Have you ever heard of Occam's razor?
Basically it states that the simplest
explanation for a
phenomenon is usually the best. We'll use this
theory to
explain why more than 95% of network marketers
fail.
Ready?
Most network marketers fail because the
marketing methods
that they are taught don't work 95% of the time.
Pretty
simple right?
So we're led to ask the logical next question,
what are most
fledgling network marketers taught?
Well, I can only speak from my experience, but
what I was
taught was to buy and cold call leads.

Now, I'm not going to say this doesn't work, but
I will say
is that after six months of cold calling leads
for 3 hours a
day with very little success this tactic doesn't
work for
me. Don't get me wrong some people are very good
at cold
calling leads, but most people aren't.
What happens to most people after they've spend
thousands of
dollars on leads with very little success after
months of
effort?
They give up.
Another factor contributing to why most network
marketers
fail is the type of leads they use. Why does the
type of
leads make a difference?
Business opportunity leads, the leads most new
network
marketers are told to use, are generic. These
leads answer
an ad that just asks them if they want to be
financially
free, or make money from home or something like
that.
Well . . . of course they do!
But that doesn't mean they want anything to do
with YOUR
network marketing program. When the average
network marketer
calls these generic bizz opp leads the leads
don't know
anything about the network marketer's business
and for the
most part honestly don't care. This leads to
the fledgling
network marketer hearing a lot of "NOs".
Hearing NO all the time leads to quite a bit of
self doubt,
both about the network marketers own ability and
the
validity of their association with their network
marketing
company. Negative feelings begin to harbor and
as I said
before eventually the network marketer gives up,
usually
with 3-6 months.
The fledgling network marketer's perception of
their
business goes from one of opportunity to one of
complete
doubt and negativity. Reality follows
perception, so because
the fledgling network marketer believes both
themselves and
their business as having little hope this
becomes TRUE.
That's basically why 95% of network marketers
fail if you
asked me.
So how do we change this paradigm?
We build a Perfect Network Marketing System!
Now we get to the good stuff! What does a
perfect network
marketing system look like?
For the average home based network marketer to
be successful
certain thing MUST be in place. I will list them
here:
o Lead capture page designed specifically for
specific
Network Marketing Company:
This page must contain strong sales copy that
tells the
prospect why he wants to opt in for more
information. The
best way to do this is to offer a High Value
Free Report in
exchange for there contact information.
o Free Report specifically designed for Network
Marketing
Companies Opportunity:
The free report must be highly informative. It
must explain
all of the features and benefits of joining the
network
marketing organization as an independent
distributor and
must focus on the support and resources
available to the new
recruit should they choose to purchase a
distributorship.
The company's products and compensation plan
must be clearly
explained here as well. If possible,
testimonials should be
used, as they are extremely powerful sales
conversion tools
in this portion of the sale process.
o Follow up Email System:
Attached to the Free Report there must also be a
follow up
system that continually markets through email
the program to
the lead. Most leads don't act immediately and
must be
marketed to at least 7 times before they take
action. The
email follow up system must have strongly worded
sales copy
and must have a system for getting through spam
filters.
o A Continual Feed Back System that uses the
Fear of Loss:
Along the with email follow up system there must
be a
feedback system that will alert the prospect by
email when
new prospects opt into the system and invoke the
fear of
loss during this process by telling the prospect
that if the
next prospect in line upgrades to a paid
position before he
does then he will forever loose commission on
that prospect.
This is an extremely powerful psychological tool.
o Strong Support:
It's one thing to get someone to buy a
distributorship, but
it's a totally different thing get them to work
the business
effectively. There must be an email follow up
system once a
new distributor signs on to ensure that he
receive adequate
training on how to market successfully. There
must also be
human support at this point. So, there must be
strong
relationships built between upline and new
distributors.
o A Good Product or Service:
In order for this entire marketing process to
work, the
system must be back by a strong and ethical
network
marketing organization that sells a high demand
product that
people need and would purchase even if there
were no
compensation plans attached to it.
o You:
You must be an active part of your business. You
must be
willing and open to learn new ideas and tactics
at all
times. You must have a passion for your business
and truly
believe in the product that you plan to build your
organization around.
In Conclusion:
I've listed the basic component's a of a perfect
network
marketing system. This system will involve NO
cold calling
because the prospect will opt in to request more
information
specifically about your business before you even
talk to
them.
Cold calling generic bizz opp leads and hearing
a lot of
NO's is what causes most network marketers to
fail. We want
to avoid this at all cost. This is what this
system is
designed to do!
By having your prospects opt in specifically for
more
information about your product and business plan
and then by
giving them a detailed report explaining all of
the above
before you even speak to them your chances of a
successful
sales conversion will greatly be increased. The
email
follow-up and fear of loss systems will increase
your
chances successful sales conversion even
further. These
factors will cut down on the number of NO's that
the you
must endure before success. This will increase
your home
business's duplicability vastly.
Further, having uniform training and exceptional
support are
the basics and must be present.
So,
Before you spend another dollar on your network
marketing
efforts ask yourself if you're using a perfect
network
marketing system. If your answer is no and you
aren't having
any success then ask yourself what you can do to
change your
system to one that will work for you and your
future
distributors using the principles that I have
detailed
above.
I struggled with network marketing myself using
the old
fashion methods, but as soon as I studied
internet marketing
and how to apply it to network marketing things
got a lot
easier. I was able to spot network marketing
organizations
that were specifically positioned for internet
marketing and
earmark what I thought to be the best of the
bunch. After
that, it was simple a matter of choosing the one
that with
what I though had the "best product".
You can view my choice here:
http://www.the1andonly.biz. As
a result of making this choice I recruited new
members my
very first day without having to call anyone or
hear
thousands of NOs. All I do is get traffic to my
website and
I make money.
Network marketing can certainly make you rich,
that is... if
you have the perfect system in place!

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/10589

Stay at Home Jobs and Home Based Businesses - Dream Come True or Nightmare?

Stay at home jobs and home based businesses have never had as much appeal as they have today. Chucking the nine-to-five grind to stay at home is a dream that appeals to most of us. Really, you think, what's not to like about not having to dress up, fight traffic, and endure bosses who lean over your shoulder every minute of the day?
It's easy to think a stay at home job or a home based business would be a dream come true, and for many people it is. Realistically, though, a stay at home job is just like any other job--you have to actually to work. And statistics show that people who have stay at home jobs and home based businesses generally work more hours per day than their counterparts who work in conventional businesses.
One problem that many people who work at stay at home jobs or who have home based businesses run into is what's often referred to as "feast or famine syndrome." They find their workflow is either too low or too high; in other words, they either have a lot to do or nothing. This makes it hard for people to budget their time and their money, and is especially hard for people just beginning stay at home jobs or home based businesses. It takes time to develop a steady base of clients for stay at home businesses, and even then there will be many times where everyone wants your product and/or service at the same time. This can be very stressful when there's only one person, you, to do everything. So if you're planning on starting a stay at home job or home based business, it's good to have a plan in place to help you deal with what can often be a roller coaster workload.
The feast or famine syndrome of a stay at home job or business leads to another difficulty. When you're feasting, you're making money--when you not feasting, you aren't. It's hard. One week you're raking in the money, and the next week you're barely squeaking by. This is where a stay at home job or home based business can, again, be more stressful than a conventional job where you're paid on schedule and know exactly how much you'll be bringing in every month. To deal with this, first of all, you need to have some money in the bank before leaving your regular job for a stay at home job or to start a home based business--or to focus on that stay at home job or home based business that you've been working at part-time. Experts recommend that you have enough money saved to cover six months of expenses before leaving your job for any reason. This is especially important for people who want to stay at home and work or to start a home based business because it can greatly reduce the stress that comes with feast or famine syndrome and give you some much needed breathing room.
Too, people who have a stay at home job or home based business often run into payment problems. You've done your work or provided your service and product, but you don't get paid. Collection can be a nightmare when this happens. And what many people don't know when they become stay at home workers or owners of home based businesses is that people who hire you may classify you as an independent contractor and pay you as far out as 90 days. To make sure you don't run into payment issues, always get everything in writing. It's hard to wait 90 days to get paid, but it's even harder not to get paid at all and perhaps have to turn to a collection agency in order to get your money. Because many stay at home jobs and home based businesses are Internet-based, you need to take special precautions to know you're dealing with reputable businesses with a good track record of payment. So do your homework and get all payment terms in writing before providing any stay at home work or home based business product or service. The headaches and stress this will save you is immeasurable--and ensures you're more likely to believe that your stay at home job or home based business really is your dream come true.
Charles Fuchs
http://www.charlesfuchs.com/
http://charlesfuchs.blogspot.com/
I grant permission to publish this article, electronically or in print, as long as the bylines are included, with a live link, and the article is not changed in any way.

Copyright © 2006, Charles Fuchs, President of Vision Management Enterprise Inc., is an established online marketer who specializes in helping people start their very own Work at Home Based Business.

Stay at Home Jobs and Home Based Businesses - Dream Come True or Nightmare?

Stay at home jobs and home based businesses have never had as much appeal as they have today. Chucking the nine-to-five grind to stay at home is a dream that appeals to most of us. Really, you think, what's not to like about not having to dress up, fight traffic, and endure bosses who lean over your shoulder every minute of the day?
It's easy to think a stay at home job or a home based business would be a dream come true, and for many people it is. Realistically, though, a stay at home job is just like any other job--you have to actually to work. And statistics show that people who have stay at home jobs and home based businesses generally work more hours per day than their counterparts who work in conventional businesses.
One problem that many people who work at stay at home jobs or who have home based businesses run into is what's often referred to as "feast or famine syndrome." They find their workflow is either too low or too high; in other words, they either have a lot to do or nothing. This makes it hard for people to budget their time and their money, and is especially hard for people just beginning stay at home jobs or home based businesses. It takes time to develop a steady base of clients for stay at home businesses, and even then there will be many times where everyone wants your product and/or service at the same time. This can be very stressful when there's only one person, you, to do everything. So if you're planning on starting a stay at home job or home based business, it's good to have a plan in place to help you deal with what can often be a roller coaster workload.
The feast or famine syndrome of a stay at home job or business leads to another difficulty. When you're feasting, you're making money--when you not feasting, you aren't. It's hard. One week you're raking in the money, and the next week you're barely squeaking by. This is where a stay at home job or home based business can, again, be more stressful than a conventional job where you're paid on schedule and know exactly how much you'll be bringing in every month. To deal with this, first of all, you need to have some money in the bank before leaving your regular job for a stay at home job or to start a home based business--or to focus on that stay at home job or home based business that you've been working at part-time. Experts recommend that you have enough money saved to cover six months of expenses before leaving your job for any reason. This is especially important for people who want to stay at home and work or to start a home based business because it can greatly reduce the stress that comes with feast or famine syndrome and give you some much needed breathing room.
Too, people who have a stay at home job or home based business often run into payment problems. You've done your work or provided your service and product, but you don't get paid. Collection can be a nightmare when this happens. And what many people don't know when they become stay at home workers or owners of home based businesses is that people who hire you may classify you as an independent contractor and pay you as far out as 90 days. To make sure you don't run into payment issues, always get everything in writing. It's hard to wait 90 days to get paid, but it's even harder not to get paid at all and perhaps have to turn to a collection agency in order to get your money. Because many stay at home jobs and home based businesses are Internet-based, you need to take special precautions to know you're dealing with reputable businesses with a good track record of payment. So do your homework and get all payment terms in writing before providing any stay at home work or home based business product or service. The headaches and stress this will save you is immeasurable--and ensures you're more likely to believe that your stay at home job or home based business really is your dream come true.

The Benefits of Starting A Home-Based Business

The U.S economy continues to grow and corporations are enjoying large profits, but the majority of Americans still struggle with finances. This is one of the main reasons many people are looking into the benefits that a home-based business can offer. There is no stressful morning commute, extremely low overhead, fewer restrictions, and few or no employees. Many laws don't apply to small businesses with no employees or only a small number of employees. It has been estimated that 95% of home based businesses are successful their first year with an average income of over $50,000. The general benefits of starting a home based business are many when you consider the tax advantages, money making potential, and savings on transportation and clothing.
Small businesses, including home-based businesses, receive numerous tax advantages. They can deduct their home, spouse and children (if you employ them), business vacations, cars, and business meals. You can even set up a pension plan while operating a home-based business. In addition, any losses you incur can be tax deductible and may even be refunded by the IRS, depending on your particular circumstances. To make your home-based business a success, you need to determine the factors that make one business succeed and another identical business to fail. Taking the incorrect actions can mean a failed home based business. Wanting the benefits of a home based business but taking no action at all surely means failure as well.
The fact is, most people who start a home business do so without the proper knowledge. The need for a continued cash flow forces them to quit before they can acquire that knowledge. The best way to succeed in your home-based business venture is to benefit from the experience of others. This is much easier than trying to learn the hard way and then giving up in frustration.
Starting a home-based business is an excellent financial opportunity. The tax benefits alone can make starting a business from your home the best financial move you'll ever make. The degree of success you have in your business is directly related to the amount of pleasure you get out of the business and the amount of work you put into it.
Choose a home-based business that you enjoy, that you can comfortably finance, and a business in which there is a large market in need of your service or product. Will your business require you to invite clients to your home? Do you need extra insurance coverage to operate a business from home? Will you need an extra office or workspace to conduct your business?
What about a second phone line, fax, or Internet connection? Some research and planning done ahead of time can save you time and money after your business is established. The benefits of starting a home based business are many, but be sure you have the time and energy to devote to your business so that you'll enjoy the financial and personal freedom you are searching for.
Keep in mind that you may have expenses for bookkeeping unless you plan to keep your books yourself. Keeping accurate, up-to-date records is critical in operating a successful business. With adequate research, common sense, and a passion for your job, you can enjoy the many benefits and potential profits owning a home-based business brings.

Home Based Business Marketing - Getting the Word Out

Marketing your home based business is vital to its success. So one of the first things you should do when starting your home based business is to develop a marketing plan.
For your home based business marketing plan, you need to know what your business is really about and what separates you from the other guys in the same type of business. When you have an idea about this, you want to develop an unique selling proposition statement (USP). This is different from an advertising tagline, although you may end up using it as one. A USP, however, is usually a one-sentence statement that sums up who you are and what the purpose and mission of your home based business are.
After you develop your home based business USP, you want to think seriously about your target market. Who are they? Where do they live? How much education do they have? What are their buying habits? What's their gender? Asking questions like these help you know your customers inside and out, which will be of tremendous benefit in allowing you to talk to them in their own language and in understanding the best way to get the message about your home based business across to them.
Once you know these things, it's time to think about advertising. You will, of course, want to have business cards, letterhead and envelopes for your home based business. You may want to hire a graphic designer to develop a special logo just for your home based business and have it printed on all your business and marketing materials, from envelopes to television commercials, if you decide to run some to advertise your home based business. A logo is an excellent way to brand your business so that the minute people see it, they automatically think of you. If you don't think this is true, consider Nike. Without the swoosh, Nike just wouldn't be Nike.
You will definitely want to have a website for your home based business, whether you're doing business online or off. Even if you're not marketing your product or service to the online community, a website gives your home based business more substance and credibility. Web developers and writers can have your website up and running in a day, but it's better to take some time and plan the look and feel you want your website to have before going live with it.
Some other ways to market your home based business offline that are quite inexpensive are flyers, circulars and posters. You can make these types of marketing materials on your own computer, then post them around town and leave them in places where there are likely to be people who want your product and/or service. Marketing materials like these are much more effective than you might think and are a great way to reach an untapped market for your home based business. However, if you're leaving flyers in a business or office be sure to get permission first. You don't want them to just get chunked in the trash!
Other home based business marketing materials that tend to be a bit more costly are brochures, radio commercials, billboards and television commercials. But they might not be as expensive as you think, especially if you're focused on a particular small area. For brochures and billboards, you will want to hire a good graphic artist to create them, and you'll also need to buy media placement for the billboards. For commercials for your home based business, both radio and television, you'll need a copywriter to write a script unless you plan on writing it yourself. You'll also need a producer to record or shoot your commercial. You'll also have to buy the media placement for it. Many small local advertising agencies in your area can do all of this for you at a moderate charge. Some agencies that are just starting out themselves may be willing to give you a discount to help advertise their own service. Just make sure their agency has a reputation for quality--like the one you're developing for your own home based business!