by EdBrooke | Dec 22, 2014 | Business, failure, Home
Fear is a very real thing, and it’s reasonable to be fearful when you take on something as daunting as running a home business. Being afraid doesn’t mean you’re not brave. However, fear that isn’t managed affects your actions and decisions, and can be detrimental to your success as a business owner. Here are four different ways fear influences your ability to run a business: You won’t take profitable risks. If you’re afraid, you’re less likely to be daring. Running a home business is a daring experience. Much like a stock trader who holds their stocks too tight, you’ll never prosper if you never take a chance. This can mean making investments you’re unsure about to improve your business, or reducing the prices of your products to draw in more customers, or changing the entire look of your website. This could all go very wrong, but it could also go very right. You must be willing to take risks. Your work will suffer from the stress. If you’re more worried about making your bills than you are making your business successful, your attention will be on the money and not the product. Consumers can tell the difference. If your product is suffering, then your profits are suffering, and you’ve fulfilled your own worse fear. You cannot let the stress of your needs affect the way you run your business. If there is actually something to be improved, then improve it, but make sure you’re doing so from a professional perspective and not a fear-based one. Your attitude will change. Say you’re intimidated by the thought of people not taking...
by EdBrooke | Dec 16, 2014 | Business, Home
People are leaving their 9-to-5 jobs for the comfort of home offices in masses. Some are met with failure and some are met with raging success. While it might seem ideal and comfortable, there are challenges that independent workers face every day. It may or may not be for you. You must have the nerve for it. Working from home is much like trading in the stocks. Some days you’ll make an outrageous amount of money and be sure all your problems are over. Then the following day, you’ll lose a fortune. It’s easy to fall into despair. Working from home is a very uncertain task, because you don’t have a boss to ensure you have work and steady pay. If you’re not comfortable with the limbo that comes without an office, a boss, and steady hours, then you’re likely not suited for working at home. You must have discipline. Working from home means you decide your own workload and hours; this is often what draws people in. However, it’s easy to become distracted and procrastinate until you’re missed your deadline. Many find this luxury more difficult than helpful. To combat this, you must be strict with yourself. If you have a deadline to meet, then you’ll have to accept working long hours. This can mean working nights, weekends, and holidays in order to fulfill your responsibilities. You don’t have a boss to blame or co-workers to pick up the slack; it’s on you. You must balance your time well and exercise discipline with your workload. You must be able to work without guidance. You won’t have a boss...
by EdBrooke | Dec 15, 2014 | Business, Home
More and more people are creating their own home businesses, and there are many benefits to be found in this venture. It may be the best choice you ever make, but choosing the right sort of business is vital. Here are a few things to ask yourself when brainstorming up business ideas: What are your skills? This is the most important, most obvious thing to consider when starting a home business. There are more services being marketed to the world than people know what to do with, so don’t start off your brainstorming with “What sells?” The best thing you can market is something you’re skilled at, have experience with, or are inspired about. This extra asset will give you drive, which will show in the quality of work you produce and in the attitude you address your clients with. Evaluate what unique things you have to bring to the table. What is on demand? Now you need something marketable. Open your eyes and look for what people are buying. What are the needs of consumers around you? If you’re looking to become a graphic designer, do some research to see how many websites and blogs are asking for graphics. If you’re looking to start a bicycle repair shop out of your home, first see how popular the cyclist community is in your area, and see what their biggest need is. Research the field Now that you’ve chosen a field, start learning more about it. The internet is a beautiful place for information, so read articles and watch videos about techniques, tips, and things to watch out for in...
by EdBrooke | Dec 15, 2014 | Advertising, Business, Home, Marketing
In the Internet age, it’s common to hear the question, “How are you supposed to make money with a website?” Unless you’re a company that sells products or a freelancer selling services, that can be a hard question to answer. However, there are indeed ways to make money with a website – and for those who are already making money, there are ways to make even more money. Banner ads If you have a large following or notable traffic on your website, the free space on the edges of your screen are valuable to businesses looking to get their name out there. Many websites will pay very well to display a sizable banner advertisement of their site or services where your visitors can see it. The only downside to this is your site has to be very popular before most businesses will search you out. They won’t want to pay money unless they can see a profitable return, which can only be accomplished through a great increase in traffic. However, should you score one such deal, it can be very lucrative. Product reviews. Many companies will pay handsomely to not only be promoted on your website, but to have their products showcased to your viewers. By making a short video or a small blog post about a service or product a company offers, it increases their traffic and sales, and they’re willing to reward through this method. Having a successful website is crucial for being sought out, however, it’s also acceptable for you to present the offer to the company. Google AdSense. By signing up with this network and...
by EdBrooke | Dec 15, 2014 | Business, Home
There are many things you must consider if you’re looking to make a market online. Many have tried and failed. Here are a few tips to steer you right. Decide what you’re selling. What are these products you’re hanging your hat on? Make some decisions about what stock you’ll have – will it be specialized, such as handmade crafts or paintings? Will they be a specific product, as in only books or shoes? Or will you sell a wide variety of things? Before you ever start your store, you need to know what your business is, what it focuses on, and what it can provide. Choosing your hosting service. Your online store is nothing without the “online” part, so choose a good place to set up your website. If your website acts unreliable and troublesome, then customers will be less likely to visit. Make a good impression with a good platform. Paid hosting allows you to have more security and freedom to do what you please with your store, adding features as you evolve with the market. Free hosting is cheaper and often easier; however, there is less security and your site will always technically belong to the original host. This can be a huge risk. Design your site. Presentation is everything. When designing your site, you must remember that your products are the main attraction – showcase them as often as you can. The more pictures you offer, the better. Make your site easy to navigate with proper tab placements and labeling. Make all the products and offers clear and easy to access. Don’t be afraid to offer...
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