Between hanging out with your friends, updating your status on Twitter, and logging in hours at your day job, you’ve probably dreamed about being your own boss. After all, when you work for yourself you can make as much money as you want and have the free time to enjoy it. While many entrepreneurs have started their own home based business for those exact two reasons, going into business for yourself is not as easy as it sounds. After all, even Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg struggled a few years before his baby became the social phenomenon it is today.There are thousands of home based business opportunities out there that claim to have the perfect system that will make you rich. The truth is, very few of them actually do. It is important to your personal and financial goals that you learn how to tell the difference between home based business opportunities that are golden and which ones are bogus.Industry SaturationIn theory there is room for everyone in the business world. If you have a good product that people are willing to buy, then you could start a home based business and become very successful. In practice, however, industries become saturated as people piggyback the success of others and offer similar products that are the same quality and value as their competitors.When everyone is trying to get a slice of the same pie, the size of that slice gets smaller and smaller. Some people are able to carve out a bigger piece for themselves and some are only able to get a few crumbs. The point is, unless the product is going to revolutionize the industry in some way, you should avoid starting a home based business in an industry where there are already an overabundance of players. Instead look for an opportunity in an industry experiencing major growth.Product PricingMost home based business opportunities sell decent products. Make no mistake. There are some stinkers out there. But on average the products work as advertised. The problem many work at home entrepreneurs run into is that the products are overpriced.Your sponsor will encourage you to overcome your client’s objections by trying to convince them that the cost of the products is the same as similar ones in retail stores. However customers today are savvy and resourceful and will see right through that sales tactic. Your best bet is to find a home business opportunity that sells a product worth the price or, even better, doesn’t require customers to alter their shopping habits at all.The Marketing SystemThe heart of any home business is the marketing system. Without a good marketing system, your business is toast to put it bluntly. Even if you have an average product, if you partner it with a great marketing system then you’ll experience success. However, a poor marketing system will tank your home based business faster than an inappropriate status update on Facebook.When sourcing home based business opportunities, check out how they are marketing their products. It’s the 21st century. Are they taking advantage of modern day tools, such as social media marketing outlets, to find and capture the attention of customers? Or are they using outdated tactics, like encouraging cold calling or stalking prospects down in parking lots? If it’s the latter, run far, far away.Choosing the best home based business opportunity can be a challenge but it doesn’t have to. If you are ready to pursue the personal and financial freedom you’ve been dreaming of, visit my business website where you will find information about a business opportunity that combines two fast growing industries with a state of the art marketing system that will propel you to successful heights.
The Significance Of Expert Guidance To Succeed In A Home Based Business
A traditional business usually has people with different expertise coming together to cater to specific jobs. A home based business is most commonly a one man show. It is your business and you are the sole owner. You may or may not have many employees and you would certainly not have expert help readily available. When you work from home, it is similar to being self employed. You are on your own. If you do well then you shall succeed and if you yourself cannot do well then you wouldn’t succeed.Since a lot depends on you and you have very little help available, it is necessary to get some expert advice on how to make money online and on different ideas and strategies to succeed in a home based business. Any business depends on innovation and effective planning. To innovate, there is a need to stay informed with all that is happening in the world, in a specific industry and what the successful players are doing in a given niche. The same applies to a home based business. When you work from home, you are physically cut off from the corporate world and your target market but you are connected to the whole world through the internet. It is through this platform that you can get the expert guidance that you need to make money online or with your home based business.Apart from the expert guidance delving into generic market information and specific updates pertaining to an industry, you also require advice on your home based business. Your business may be unique, when you work from home you may have a certain approach and you will have a goal to make money online that may not be the same as that of others. Thus, you also require specific expert guidance pertaining to your nature of home based business, your work from home strategy and to realize your goal to make money online.These are just some of the snippets of what you can expect to get from me. You would be equipped with all the latest information, updates and details that are specific to your business, industry your business is in and to suit your work from home strategy. You can refer to all such guidance and formulate every strategy for your home based business and script the path of success.When you work from home or start a home based business, do what you can do and succeed in and do it differently from others.
“The Small Business Success Guide” by Margie Sheedy
We all hear about the alarming statistics stating spectacular rates of failure for small business in Australia. The numbers are enough to scare off most budding entrepreneurs. Surprisingly, we hear little about the key success factors. Those things, which done well, could help your small business flourish.I talked to Margie Sheedy, author of The Small Business Success Guide, to discuss the keys to the successful operation of a small business. Her insight, as both an entrepreneur, and a small business journalist with more than 20 years experience under her belt, will prove valuable for all small business, regardless of the industry.KP: What do you believe are the keys to owning and operating a small business?Margie Sheedy:Owing a small business is a spectacularly individual adventure. You’ll have different levels of entrepreneurial experience from the small business owner next to you. What is universal is that you’re expected to know a lot about everything in business, from marketing and managing staff to cashflow and customers, often straight away.So one of the major keys to being a successful small business owner is opening yourself up to finding trustworthy, practical ideas, and then putting them into a plan. As a business owner myself, I know how time-consuming this can be. That’s why I wrote The Small Business Success Guide in a question and answer format, so that all the information you need is in one easy-to-understand resource.KP: Why are these ‘success keys’ so important to the running of the business?Margie Sheedy:Getting the right advice means you don’t have to reinvent the wheel. You can hit the ground running. You also will be giving yourself the time to think strategically about your business (working on, not just in your business). That way, you’ll know exactly why you do certain things, and how you could do them smarter, not harder.KP: From your experience, where do you believe most business owners get it wrong?Margie Sheedy:Most people start a small business without having anything written down. They think that having a vision in their heads is enough. But when your business playing field changes – for example, there could be a lull in sales, production prices might go up or your customers’ tastes may change – you won’t have any articulated strategies to help you and your team weather the storm.On the flip-side, when things are going well you will also have problems. You might need finance to grow or you may want to sell your business. Even the most generous bank manager or business purchaser will want to see why your business is worth the investment. And they’ll need more than your word to seal the deal.KP: Many entrepreneurs are wearing many hats, and can feel overwhelmed, what can they do to overcome this situation?Margie Sheedy:Realise that you can’t do it all. Start to think of yourself as the brain surgeon of your business, and value your time. Would you pay a brain surgeon to mop up after an operation? Consider enlisting the help of others to do some of the more menial tasks in your business.If you think you can’t afford to outsource anything, or you like wearing all your hats, you will burn yourself out. Instead, learn to delegate so that you have time to seriously look at your business’ future direction.Another way to take the stress out of wearing many hats is to plan your day in chunks of time. Allocate several times a day to answer calls. Stick to your schedule, not someone else’s. Then at the end of the day, you’ll feel a sense of achievement because you’ll have actually got a few things done and not spent it chasing your tail.And finally, be aware of your stress levels. Recognise how stress affects you physically. When things feel overwhelming, make a conscious effort to stop, take a deep breath and calmly go for a walk to clear your head. It will be time well spent!KP: Despite many claiming the Global Financial Crisis to be over, many business owners are still facing challenges, what is your advice to them?Margie Sheedy:Address the worst things first. In The Small Business Success Guide, I quote Dr. Graham Godbee of the Macquarie Graduate School of Management: he calls this your ‘triage strategy’. What sort of injury (major challenges) is your business encountering? Are you bleeding internally or just in need of a band-aid solution? Look at what’s caused the injury, and how you can fix it. Here are a couple of tips.* Keep a firm eye on your cash flow so that you know exactly where your business is at financially, and how much time you have before any financial challenges make things more serious.* Nurture your existing customers. It’s six times more profitable to sell to an existing customer than to find new ones. So foster relationships and give great customer service: after all, it’s your customers, clients and suppliers who will sustain you through tough times.* Talk to your team. How do they think your business can do things better? Use their brain power to help you work out some solutions to your challenges. By engaging them, you’ll be motivating your team. A healthy business, after all, is somewhere people like to go to every day.* Be honest about your own strengths and weaknesses, and commit yourself to doing things differently if your management style is part of the problem.* Ask for outside help from advisers you trust, such as your accountant or solicitor or business adviser. Remember, a dumb question is only dumb if you don’t ask it.