Tips for Making Your Home-Based Business Successful

By Eva R. Marienchild

The majority of home-based businesses are relegated to an avocation. They're seen as hobbies or "stuff I do when I get home from my real job." Well, let me tell you: With that attitude, you're not going to succeed.

Ready to take the brave leap? (It's worth it!) All right, then. Here are seven tips that, if implemented, will leave you no choice but to succeed with your home business.

1. State of mind is everything. Other people are making a bundle at it; why not you? If you are sitting at your desk every day with a can-do mindset, and answering the phones that way, and your pitches come across as ultra-confident, you'll sell more times than you will not.

Nobody relishes getting telemarketing calls, right? Wrong! Start with that misconception, right there, and turn it around. There is no doubt, in your mind, that there is a need for your service, and that you will be met with a fair amount of relief by your prospects. "Where have you been?" they'll want to know.

Never-been-known-to-fail advice: Put a smile on your lips and in your voice when you speak to your clients-to-be. You'll strike out far fewer times. And even the times you are turned down can be construed as an opportunity to remedy what you might have done better.

2. Put in the hours. Set your alarm for 8:00, so you have time to putter around, and take a shower (or, better, exercise, to wake up your internal alarm, and then take a shower). Be at your desk at 9:00, on the nose, and don't quit until after 5:00.

3. Make sure you're focusing on the right aspect of what you're selling. You have to slant what you do, to make it fit what will sell. If it's a service that you do really, really well, but that commodity doesn't happen to be "hot," you won’t have any takers. So make sure you tweak your passion to make it palatable to the world at large.

For instance, if you run focus groups really well, but you can't for the life of you coordinate the darn things, sell the running-focus-groups part. Either get a partner for the coordinating aspect, or market yourself to a marketing group with a broad client base that already has a coordinator. Either way, you're filling in the gap, and providing a much-needed service. And you're still running your own business, as a freelancer or a contractor.

4. Go to great lengths to establish the most polished presentation that is humanly possible. Start with your phone message. Splurge for voice-mail; no one but the poorest artist has answering machines anymore. If you can't speak in a clear tone with clearly enunciated words, or, if your voice doesn't project, hire an expert. Look under "voices" online, or check out your yellow pages under Voice Talent.

5. Return calls and e-mails ASAP.

6. Handle disputes immediately.

7. Do both word-of-mouth and standard advertising.

So, get real, get busy, and get serious. That's the only way to run your business when you're working at home! With a no-nonsense, comprehensive approach and hands-on effort, you will make your home-based business successful beyond your wildest dreams.

Eva R. Marienchild is an accomplished communicator: an author, editor, poet, artist, speaker, and life and career coach. Eva's specialties are health, home, nutrition, environment and spirituality.

© Doityourself.com 2006