Nothing beats the rebellious feeling of working whenever and wherever you want and no longer sticking to a nine to five. But, of course, you’re your boss, and that’s great! But it also comes with great responsibility.
Running a home-based business requires a lot of time and effort to succeed, in addition to ongoing expenses that can in many ways be avoided. However, a home-based business still saves you tons of money that would have been spent on renting an office, equipment, inventory, and other expenses.
But now that you have the wheel running and things are starting to look up, how do you improve it? What steps will you take to improve your business and turn it into a well-driven, money-making business? Let’s go through a few of these steps and find out!
7 Steps to Improve Your Home-Based Business
1- Set up a Business Phone Number
It is essential to set your personal life and belongings aside when working. Even if your business is home-based, you need to specify an area for work to focus uninterrupted on your business and get things done.
The same goes for your phone number. Don’t use your cell phone or the home number for business purposes; purchase a line just for work where your customers or business investors can easily reach you.
It can be a local number if your business is focused in your city, a toll-free number (preferred) so you can easily be reached nationwide, which is also great when expanding your business, or an international number if your business requires overseas contact. Your customers will appreciate the direct communication option, and it will help you build good relations and gain their trust.
2- Set Goals for your Business
It’s easy to overlook your business’s vision when you get sidetracked with financial issues, managing operations, and other business concerns. But setting goals for your business, 5-10 year, or even annual, is essential.
Your goals will help you make the big business decisions about your capital, product, sales, or operations. With a vision in mind and clear steps to follow, your business will be organized and have a purpose.
3- Stick to Online Tools
Technology wants you to succeed and is there to lend you a helping hand! Today there are online tools for almost everything you need, like documenting, presentations, tasks, time tracking, reminders, and so much more.
Google alone offers a variety of free online tools to take advantage of. For example, it can be used as cloud-based storage, providing you with 15GB of space on Google drive to keep important documents like legal papers, contracts, or anything that needs to be stored safely. In addition to Google Calendars to schedule meetings and get reminders, Google Sheet keeps track of sales, profit, and whatever else needs tracking, plus many other features.
You can choose one of these services, Tsheets, TimeDoctor, Toggl, or Hubstaff, to smartly track working hours for yourself and any remote employees like independent contractors, writers…etc. This guarantees accurate payment for their work and allows them to clock in breaks, add shift notes and keep track of their timesheets. Try the free trial before deciding on pro plans.
Communication apps like Slack and Skype will easily connect you to your employees, creating a smooth workflow. For collaboration on projects, check out Asana or Basecamp and Teamviewer to induct presentations and access remote computers.
The options are endless! Online tools help you run your business efficiently and get things done faster.
4- Improve your website
Building a website is no longer the tough task it used to be. Many web hosting sites are available to guide you through simple steps to create your own website.
Whether you’re selling your products online or just advertising your business, your website is vital to your business. When customers look for products online and reach your website, they expect an easy, fast experience.
Be sure to entail clear, easy-to-read content with pages that upload your contact information quickly so your customers can easily navigate the website and get what they want.
5- A Strong Marketing Strategy
The power of the internet cannot be underestimated. Marketing your products or services is how you sell. The better you market, the more you sell. A strong marketing strategy doesn’t necessarily require spending a lot of money on online or newspaper ads; however, putting money into marketing can always help.
Social media can be an effective marketing strategy that isn’t pricey and reaches a larger customer base; you can also send newsletters through email and automated delivery systems.
Brainy entrepreneurs are smart with their marketing and know-how to make their products stand out using clear and catchy descriptions and highlighting special product features.
6- Modify and build up your idea
Your product/ service should always be under construction. Every day technology becomes more advanced than the day before. Use this to modify your product and make it the best it could be. Your competitors won’t be resting to beat you out of the game, and you need to be just as competitive, always thriving for more.
By keeping close and good relations with your customers, you can always get their feedback on making your product better and more helpful. Constant modifications to your product will make it more suitable for a bigger market.
7- Get a Virtual Street Address
All customers want to believe they’re getting the best quality, and knowing they are dealing with a respectful, professional company with a commercial address is always a relief.
A stable business location that isn’t your home separates the amateurs from the professionals. You need to reserve your spot in the market by establishing your business’s address. This doesn’t mean you have to rent an office or even a virtual office in a prestigious location; you can get that simply by signing up for a virtual mailbox.
Virtual Mailbox providers offer hundreds of addresses nationwide to choose from for your business. By signing up for a virtual mailbox, you get a real street address and a mailbox with many advantages to enhance your workflow.
All business correspondence with customers, partners, or investors will be done digitally without costing much or wasting time. You’ll be able to log into your mailbox and control and handle your mail. Once you send out mail requests (mail scanning, mail forwarding, mail shredding…etc.), you will get on it instantly.
Running a home-based business is no walk in the park and can get tricky. But, by following these simple steps, you can take your small, home-based business and turn it into a viable, professional business.
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