There are hundreds of home based businesses out there. Which ones are the best? Which one is right for you? You can spend months searching on the Internet and off line of the many opportunities there are out there to start a home based business.
The following are important points to consider before choosing a home based business:
1- There are different home based businesses in various industries, such as health, finance, business, personal, communications, electronics, wholesale products, or in certain subject areas, or based around a certain product or service. It is highly suggested to get involved in something that “lights you up.” There has to be something about the business that excites you and something you can talk about passionately. It may be the product or service, the support and training the company offers, the people that surround you in the business, the compensation, the benefits, risks and rewards, etc…
Before joining a company, ask yourself, what excites you about this business opportunity? Can you see yourself talking about this business opportunity with other people? Are other people you are talking to can see how excited you are about the business?
2- Knowing what the start up costs are, is a very important factor when deciding which home based business to choose. Before you sign anything or spend any money, ask about ALL the start up costs. Start up costs for a home based business can range from $0 dollars to $10,000. There are also monthly costs or obligations, fees for a website and hosting, product fees, monthly spending requirements, distributor fees, annual fees, marketing fees, fees to your up line, fees for not meeting other business requirements, etc.. Ask these important questions to the potential business you are seeking.
Also realize there are fees to market and advertise the business. Remember after you join, then you have to market the business to get customers or distributors for your business. If you want to make the big time, talking to your friends and family will no be enough unless you have a personal network of over 1,000 people. Marketing can be very expensive and the priciest part of a home based business.
Some people have the start up capital to invest, some don’t. Knowing this information is very important.
3- The next important element is understanding the compensation program. Understand how much profit you will make every time you will sign someone up or make for each sale. Does the company offer multi level passive income or is it direct sales? Do you have to make a certain requirement in sales? How much money in advertising or marketing do you have to spend in order to make a certain amount of income? How realistic is for this business to be popular, so other people will be willing to join? Try to figure out how long it may take to make $500 a month, $1000 a month, $10,000 a month, etc… Create a realistic plan on how to achieve your goals. If your product costs $10,000, how realistic for other people to purchase the product?
Many businesses also offer additional bonuses when you earn a certain income or have a certain amount of people underneath you. Make sure when you join a company, that your time, efforts, and money you will put into it, will reward you for everything you give. Some businesses offer handsome rewards while others offer very little or nothing.
4- Learn after you join the business, how you will be able to market yourself? Advertising costs and marketing can range from anywhere from free to $10,000 a month or more. Be very careful, since you can easily spend thousands of dollars of your money without seeing any return on investment. It is very important to take your time and do your due diligence. Ask people who are successful how they market, how much they spend a month on advertising, search online for different lead vendors, print advertising, free advertising, and alternative ways or out of the box advertising. Some home based businesses offer training and support on how to market your business while others make you figure it out on your own. This is an important question to ask.
5- What is the staying power of the company? There are tons of companies out there, that come and go within a year. Ask your self, does the company offer real value to its customers or distributors? If not, you want to look elsewhere. Companies that do not offer good value or are too expensive will most likely not last long enough. One of the worst things that can happen, is you spend months or even years of your time, effort, and money into a business and then folds, leaving with nothing. Think why people will want to join your home based business? How you see the company in 5 or 10 years? How competitive is the industry? What are the competitors doing? Understanding the competition will offer you great insight into the industry.