Working From Home has Never been Easier... Why YOU Should Consider Starting Your own Business

[Sue Copening]

Working from home has never been easier… NOR more essential, than it is today. With 65% of American’s worried about losing their jobs, the number of home based and small business start-ups has dramatically increased over the past year. Some reports indicate an increase of as much as 12,000%!

Whether replacing income due to a job loss, or simply creating another income stream to provide greater financial stability, more and more American’s are getting the “entrepreneurial spirit” and launching their own business.

Financially it’s a smart move, since just starting a business increases your bottom line instantly. Why? Because owning your own business is the ultimate tax shelter.

“The No. 1 way to reduce your taxes is to convert your personal expenditures into allowable deductions. Turn yourself into a business owner. This is not complicated, expensive or difficult to do, and incorporation is not necessary.” Says Jeff Schneppe from MSN Money (more at: http://bit.ly/schnepper )

Just starting a (full OR part time) business produces, on average, about $10,000 in tax deductions out of money you already spend. Depending on your tax bracket, that is thousands added to your bottom line before you have even made any money in the business.

The key is to find the business that is right for you, and to “fill in the gaps” in your skill set to increase your success level.

“A successful business is like a 3 legged stool,” says Sue Copening of the Connections Groups, a business networking organization based in Central Florida.

“One leg is your product or service, the 2nd is your marketing and the 3rd is management, which includes financial management and educating yourself on the tax deductions avail to you as a business person.

All three legs need to be strong, for obvious reasons. No matter how great your product or service is, you must market effectively in order to get it in front of potential clients. On the management side, taxes can eat up 20-40% of your gross income, so it’s essential to take every deduction you are entitled to.”

The great thing is… this IS truly the best time to be starting your own business. The internet is right at your finger tips and is a huge resource for everything you need to get started.... from knowledge & learning resources to avenues for marketing your business.

Want some ideas for what kind of business to start? Try “Googling” a phrase like “best business ideas” and you’ll come up with articles like this one in Entrepreneur.com: “Need a Business Idea? Here are 55” (at http://bit.ly/bizideas )

Think your favorite hobby could be a good business? Make sure you are thinking of all the angles by googling “turning your hobby into a business” and you’ll turn up this article in StartUpNation.com: http://bit.ly/hobby

If you have start up capital you might look at a franchise or even purchasing or buying into an existing business. While this can be riskier, the trick is to fully investigate, choose wisely and use an experienced attorney. It’s a business, so don’t get emotionally attached, and be ready to walk away if there are too many “red flags.” That said though, there are many successful business owners that want to retire at some point and are often willing to stay on at the business for a period of time to assist the new owner with the transition and help introduce you to their valued clients.

If you don’t have much start up capital, consider becoming part of an MLM or direct sales company. The advantages to that are that you step into a “turn key” business where you are generally provided with low cost marketing materials, a product (or products) that may have a proven track record of sales, and the ability to create “passive” or residual income by building a team and bringing others into the business also. Don’t get caught up in a company’s “hype” though. Use common sense and a check-list when evaluating each opportunity.

“I want to see several things with any business opportunity I look at. Whether it’s an MLM, a direct sales opportunity or some hybrid,” says Sue Copening an entrepreneur who has merged 4 businesses into an integrated income stream.

“First, if it’s an MLM I want to know where the money comes from. Is the majority of it from sales of the products and what percentage of the products are sold to consumers versus the companies own reps or agents?

I want to know the products either have long term success, or the potential for it. How are they priced compared to their competition? Is there a lot of competition? Is the market for the product oversaturated? What is the ‘market reach’ for the product or service? In other words, out of 100 random people, how many are good prospects?

What does the company charge to get into the business and are there mandatory monthly fees or a requirement to buy product? What will your marketing costs be? Will it be necessary to spend a lot of money on samples?

What does the compensation plan look like? Realistically, how long will it be before you make decent money, keeping in mind that it’s an 80/20 world out there and, generally speaking, less than 20% of your clients, or your new reps will “stick to” your product, service or business.

Finally, how does this particular product or service “fit” with your other business, career or lifestyle? For instance, if I’m an out of shape couch potato, selling a nutritional or fitness product would be a challenge, but if I’m a Doctor, or “gym rat” I’m already in a “target rich” environment surrounded by many people who will be receptive.”

How will you "market" your product? It better be in a way that you enjoy... because you'll spend a lot of time doing it. If you enjoy playing golf, consider selling promotional golf products. Look for products or services that "sell themselves" simply by using them. For instance "Bizpack" is a "business in a box" service that offers 6 marketing tools and tax tracking software for ANY small business. When you use the Bizpack email and drip campaign tools to market whatever your "core" business is... you are also marketing Bizpack virally, so your Bizpack business will grow organically without you putting a lot of extra effort into it.

Another angle might be to choose a business that compliments another. For instance top, world famous, sales trainer, Brian Tracy, recently launched a learning and training company called iLearningGlobal, offering world class training 24/7 through high definition internet video, via subscription. Because your top business people and earners are also the ones who are continually upgrading their skills, iLearningGlobal could be "added" to almost any business, as a "training arm." From small business looking for top notch training for their staff, entrepreneurs looking for sales skills, training in public speaking and business expertise, and large corporations looking to trim training budgets while still wanting to provide world class training, iLearningGlobal "fits" with almost any other business or professional endeavor. Subscribers can be resellers and earn residual commissions for a one time marketing fee of just $20.

Once you have decided upon a business (or businesses), you very much need to access your own strengths and weaknesses. There are few people that automatically have the skill sets needed to run a successful business.

You need good sales and communication skills in ANY business. Consider joining a group like “Toastmasters” (http://www.toastmasters.org ) where you will learn and get support from other members as you improve your speaking, communication, persuasion skills and body language. As you develop your skills you have the added benefit of building new business relationships with the other members (any environment, event or social gathering is an opportunity to “network” for your business too!).

Design a solid marketing plan for your business. How many phone calls will you make each day? How many face-to-face events will you want to attend each week? WHO are your customers? How can you most effectively get in front of them? How will you market on the internet? What about the new “social media” craze? How is your time best spent? For your business, will it be “Twitter” or “Fritter?” Educate yourself on marketing strategies for small business through books (public library) and the internet (new technologies) and “target” your market like you’re using a laser scope, not a shotgun.

Join networking groups, associations and “get out there” and meet people. An event doesn’t have to be a business event to be a good networking environment. Depending on what you do, events like (for instance) a charity golf tournament might be the ideal way to meet new clients. Think about who will be there. A charity golf tournament is usually attended by business men, but not just any business men, because they are usually held during a week day meaning the players are generally decision makers, owners or executives. If your product or service fits this demographic… buy a ticket to play… or just to attend the luncheon or dinner portion.

Networking groups are a great way to hone your presentation skills, refine your “elevator speech” (a 10-30 second introduction of your business), and develop long term, mutually beneficial, business relationships. Keep in mind the key is to develop relationships, not “sell” at the event. It’s a “Kevin Bacon” world… “6 degrees of separation” …everyone knows everyone. While “Bob” might not be a good prospect for your product or service, Bob knows lots of people and some of them will be.

To find networking groups just google/search for “business networking” and your city name. If you are in Central Florida, your first stop is ConnectionsGroups.ning.com where you can set up a free profile for yourself and check the calendar of events.

In closing… the opportunities, possibilities and resources for those wanting to start a part or full time business have never been better than they are right now and, depending on the length of time we will be facing a challenging economy, there has never been a time when starting that new business, or income stream, is more necessary or helpful.

"I personally believe that you only need to know two basic things to be successful in business," says Ms Copening. "The first thing you need to know is that you don't know everything. The second is that whatever you DON'T know... you can teach yourself, or learn from those that have gone before. And... a lot of that knowledge can be picked up for free from your local public library."

So get going… start reading… googling… learning and planning.

"Go for the moon. If you don't get there, you'll still land among the stars.” …Willis Reed







Copyright (c) 2009 Sue Copening, Connections Groups

[Sherel Daniels]

Good advice. I find that I accomplish much more and stay focused longer whenever I have a clear plan of my goal. If I want to advertise in 50 new places, I divide 50 by the number of days I'll be able to devote to that; then, how many can I do per day. By the end of the week I've achieved my goals and have progressed and not wasted time floundering around wondering what I should do next. I know where I started and where I ended up.

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[Sue Copening]

[Jon Lightbody]

Sue,

Great article. I'm the guy that decided to so exactly what your talking about a couple of months ago. Your words are encouraging and right on the money! Thanks.