Starting A Home Business: What Should You Consider

Making the decision to stop working and make a move into a home role as an entrepreneur takes not only courage and confidence but also a good solid plan. You need to be sure that it’s going to be worth your while trying to make a success of a business from home before you actually succeed. But for that to happen you need to make certain considerations and start putting things into place to get started.

Timing definitely is everything when it comes to starting this sort of venture. It’s not as easy as just quitting and fumbling through you should only quit the secure income of your job once you have the correct steps in place to start your business adventure.  

If you want to start your own home-based business there are several important things that you should be thinking about. To help you get off to the best possible start, here are some aspects you should be considering.

Your Company Name

One of if not the first thing that you should be thinking about is a name for your business. People are bound to ask for it and you will probably use it a lot when setting up things such as databases and files ready for other start-up aspects. It’s a good idea to have the tools up in front of you when thinking about a company that allows you to check if the name is available, the last thing you want is to settle on a name to later find that someone else is using it, it can be not only disheartening but it can cause legal problems. You should be thinking about what you want your name to stand for,  do you want your name to describe what your business does? What it stands for?, Who you are? or do you want it to be a little more unique and abstract? As soon as you know what you’re going to be calling yourself, you should look into creating things such as an email address and reserving a domain name to be on the safe side that no one else will take it before you.

Your Structure

When you first start out, chances are that you’re going to be a sole trader, to begin with, but this can change rather quickly, it depends on the company mission and the success rate. You should familiarise yourself with the different structures. And which one is going to be the best fit for you. Once you have decided this then you will probably start asking yourself where is the best place to start an LLC or what’s included within a Limited company. Try not to stress about it too much there is an abundance of information available to help you figure out the right direction and what it then means to choose a route such as how to do taxes, and what the responsibilities and liabilities are for each type of business.

Where Are You Going To Work

An essential part of starting a home business is to find that all important area to work from. You are going to need somewhere comfortable and quiet to work, working from your kitchen table with children running around isn’t going to cut it. You should try to find somewhere that you are able to spread out documents if you need to, and where you aren’t faced with distractions of normal life. If you find that you end up with too many distractions at home then look at renting a small office space, even if it is just a few times a week to get the ‘important’ bits done that require just that little bit more of your attention. Working from home to spend more time with family is often a major reason people set up a business from home however getting the setup process first is a necessity for it being successful.

Who Are Your Customers

In order for you to be able to make money from your business, someone is frankly going to have to buy your products or services. Completing market research is a necessity for starting a successful business, so it is essential that before you even think about investing any time or money into marketing that you know and understand who your customers are going to be. You should be able to clear a state who is going to buy your product or service and why it will be useful to them.

Your Prices

Now that you have thought about what you’re offering and to whom, you need to think about your prices. There will be things that will obviously play a role in this such as what the market rate is and what people are willing to pay for your products or services. So, again it’s time for the market research to come in and do what it does best. You should look at what competitors are charging or try asking your potential customers how much they would likely pay for your product. You could always try offering samples and sending around surveys to get honest testing and feedback. You should always make sure you price according to whether you are offering a budget or premium product. Having too low a price on a luxury item can be just as off-putting for a cheap and cheerful item being overpriced.

Equipment and Tools

Whatever your home business is it’s highly likely that you’re going to be needing some tools or equipment. Even if that equipment is just office things such as a phone, printer, desk and perhaps a laptop for taking out and about. It’s a good idea to make a list of every possible item you’re going to need in order to get set up and make sure that everything is in good working order. You don’t want to get 6 months down the line to then find that your PC isn’t going to play ball or your printer isn’t up to standard. If you need to buy again it’ll need to be added as expenses so make sure you keep a record of the purchases.

Bank Account

It’s highly recommended that you get a business account, it’ll make things easier in the long run! Especially when it comes to doing your taxes, it helps to keep your personal and business funds completely separate. When you first start you should think about having a separate second personal account but as your business expands you may need to open a business account. You can save money by using a business bank card for loans, and trade desks so it could be a good idea to set one up right from the start. Make sure you make use of comparison tools to gain access to the best rates and always compare them before settling.

An accountant

There’s nothing saying that you can’t take control of your own finances, in fact, begin with your will probably have complete control of every aspect of your start-up business. As your business grows through, an accountant can be a wise choice and a sound investment. It can free up a lot of your time, as the business grows so does the time needed to be spent on the money side of things. Not only will they save you many hours that could be used elsewhere in the business they also ensure that your accounts are legal and above board, and even save you money with being able to write off expenses and provide tax breaks.

How To Market

You might have the best product in the whole world in your business area, but if no one knows about you, chances are you’ll never make it a success. There are so many opportunities when it comes to marketing and it’s extremely easy to get lost in it all. Some things to consider could be:

• Simple- It’s still really easy and perfectly acceptable to use business cards or flyers to market your business. Try always having someone you so you can hand them out or leave them on a table where the opportunity arises. You could even hand them out to family and friends to help spread the word.
• Website-  It goes without saying that you should now have a website for any business, so once you’ve figured everything else out your website should be considered a priority. Everyone nowadays wants to see an online presence of some sort, whether it’s checked out reviews or because they want to purchases on the move, it has become an essential thing for a business to be successful.
• Social Media– you can also establish a web presence for free with a Facebook company page. Other social media platforms such as Twitter and Pinterest also offers the opportunity to target potential customers free of charge.

While starting your own business is an amazing and often rewarding experience – it’s also bound to be the beginning of ups and downs with several late nights thrown in. All you need to do is be passionate and give it the attention it needs to become successful.

Are there any other tips that you think you should consider when starting a home business? Please share them in the comments section below.