User:Vtaylor/SCORE/Home business/imagine

IMAGINE what your home business will be like in more detail.

In this section we are going to look at business ideas and envision how your business would develop. What would it be like to run this business? Perhaps there is even an opportunity to prototype how this business will work.

There are hundreds of businesses waiting to happen.

As we are focusing on your home business, the types of businesses are narrowed down somewhat.

For the purposes of this discussion, we are talking about you with your home ase your base of operations. Are you going to do all your work from your home? From an office space in your home? Or is this just your home address?

Consider location, zoning, legal restrictions, licensing, work style, personality, and your family's needs. A lot of clients coming and going may not be practical from a home office. comply with organization and licensing requirements (State, County, City).

Service businesses - electricians, handy men plumbers, sub contractors in trades: They have a home office and conduct their business administration from their home - often storing materials they use at their residence - their service is not performed from their home.


 * Grant does boat maintenance services from his truck. most of the boats he services are in the water at a marina. He takes parts home to his workshop if they need something that he can't do on site. His wife answers emails and does the bookkeeping and billing.

Internet businesses - all of their sales are generated from the home office including but not limited to Web marketing and sales, emails, social media promotions, customer support. Maybe even product inventory, shipping and receiving.


 * A college student runs a business that sells trendy printed shirts. He creates the designs and has the manufacturing done in India. He does all the online marketing, sales and fulfillment from his home.


 * Mike decided to sell off his collection of science fiction paperback books. Amazon maintains lists of books that people are looking to buy. Several of this books sold to people on the list. Others he listed and sold. Everything shipped USPS for a fixed rate, and he was paid when the shipment was received.

Consultants - your business records are at your home. Meetings and working with clients would normally take places at the clients' location (or remotely since COVID). Additional billable work could be done anywhere including at home.


 * A professional personal organizer joined her trade association and is listed on their web site. Her clients contact her and they meet at the client's home or office. The organizer prepares some of plans, checklists, etc. at home and works with the client on-site to set-up the changes.

Some "manufacturing" - Crafts, Cottage foods can be made at home for sale. There are farmers' markets, craft shows, and street fairs where local producers are encouraged to come and sell their wares. With the rise of web sales marketplaces, these opportunities have expanded beyond a limited travel radius.


 * a New Orleans baker only makes "King Cakes" for Mardi Gras. He only works 2 weeks a year. He makes enough in that time to see him through the rest of the year.


 * While they watched TV at home, a couple of school teachers made attractive glass lamps and similar small hand crafted items. They made enough money selling these at spring and fall fairs to finance nice summer vacations.


 * And the example from How I Built this podcast - a couple hauling their kettle corn equipment around to local sporting events to make and sell their product.

In-person sales - For some specialty products, selling is limited to several major conventions and shows per year. There can be follow-on sales after these events but the bulk of the sales take place at the events.


 * There is a company that only sells specialty boat coatings. The owner has his unique formulation manufactured for him. He goes to all the major boat shows and sells directly to boat owners at these events.

In-home services - Bed & Breakfast, Airbnb, VRBO (Vacation Rental By Owner). Not permitted everywhere. These have been the most enduring of home businesses. They are more popular than ever. Online booking has extended the whole business sector to a new level.


 * The kids are gone. There are plenty of spare rooms. There aren't any hotels for miles. The owners love to meet new people. Airbnb has been a terrific opportunity to fulfill a long held dream of having a successful home business. They are ok with the occasional cancellation - an opportunity for one of the few days off in their short busy summer season.

Opportunities - There are still plenty of opportunities within this range of options. If you have experiences with specific products or services, you may identify customer needs that your business can address. Nobody makes strawberry jam like your mom. There are no bookkeepers available on Saturdays. A reliable handyperson could do well in this neighborhood. There is a big demand for customer service reps who work online from anywhere.

Aspirations, expectations - What is it that you want to get from the business? Different lifestyle?

Financial goals - Do you have specific financial goals that you want to achieve? How long are you prepared to work for little or no "pay" until your business can start to show real profits? Adequate funding is essential to get a business up and running. Some can be in business for less than $1000 while others require a significant amount of expensive equipment and startup expenses in the $100,000s or more to bring in the early revenues.

Need some ideas? There are web sites with ideas. We will go over some more thinking things - location, delivery and Examples

You may need to iterate a number of rounds to fine tune your business concept. Here's where templates and checklists can be helpful.

For now we will limit the business ideas for Home - you, your home, your base of your operation

Product business - . make - needs work . buy - ready to sell, from supplier or wholesalers . stock - have on hand, maintain inventory, order fullfillment

. dropship - your product is stocked elsewhere and you pay them to keep your inventory and ship your orders - you handle all the orders, billing, returns and customer service as well as marketing and advertising

. affiliate program - you promote products and get a percentage when your referral makes a purchase from your partner. Amazon is one of the major providers of affiliates programs. Others

Service . f2f . your place . their place . remote . provider . manager

customers - Who do you want for customers? Where are they? How do you reach them? https://www.score.org/blog/11-ways-find-your-first-customers We will discuss this in more detail in the planning and building sections

Learn more Research DuckDuckGo Library Industry groups, associations Call a friend Work in the business Volunteer Courses, certification, credential, training

Examples

home / office cleaning personal organizer answering service coffee importer / roasting bookkeeper ecommerce reseller toy designer / seller shelf stable food products glass decorations tutor, life coach caregiver, companion, assistant notary, officiant farm, garden

Specialty foods is another popular business. https://score.app.box.com/s/gvrne49q9tuhnapcchz3l7n1ds9qaylm

These can be distribution of products purchased in bulk or in quantity and sold locally in small er quantities to consumers. These can be as exotic as import resell like Dang Thai coconut chips. Another option is to provide value add - importing raw coffee and roasting for consumers sales. Homemade - jam, candy, local honey and baked good are also possibilities. There can be some requirements and regulations - must be shelf-stable, cooking facility must be inspected and meet health standards.

Personal / professional services

personal organizer, life coach cleaning handyman trades - plumber, electrician hauling, yardwork, tree removal accountant, attorney, insurance, notary social media, SEO, web developer resume, freelance writer

certification insurance license zoning

starting point hobby friends, family certification, licensing franchise, purchase experience - work, volunteer

Existing business - business for sale listings broker assets


 * bizbuysell.com The Internet's Largest Business for Sale Marketplace . The Most Buyers 100,000+ successful sales . The Most Sellers 65,000+ businesses listed annually . The Most Traffic 15m monthly page views

BizBuySell.com has over two thousand home-based business opportunities listed for sale. The most popular types of home businesses are: .   Home Based Business Services – Over 400 .   Home Based Personal Services – Over 200 .   Other Home Based Services – Over 450 .   Home Based Consumer Services – Over 150

To find the right home-based business for you, visit www.bizbuysell.com/buy/, select the business location and industry that you have the most interest in, and then select the button that says "Only Show Home-Based Businesses". You can search from home businesses by industry, state, and even county to find the ideal fit for your interests and needs.

Once you've reviewed the various opportunities, you can view specific business opportunities (both established businesses and start-up opportunities), and even contact the seller of the business.

We suggest you conduct a rigorous analysis of the business, making sure the business's income and stability are as advertised, and that you're entering into a business arrangement where you have confidence in your ability to succeed. Then, negotiate a deal and you're on your way.

Franchise https://smallbiztrends.com/2020/10/home-based-franchises.html - When deciding on the best home-based franchise, consider if a franchise is right for you. Make sure to understand the pros and cons of franchising. Also consider the track record of the franchisor and the level of franchisee satisfaction.

franchise factors uniquely affecting those who work at home or part-time:


 * right for me?
 * pros and cons
 * under $10,000
 * most profitable
 * Franchise Disclosure Documents (FDD) provide hundreds of pages of information on franchise systems. This federally mandated document helps the reader identify systemic strengths and weaknesses while also outlining the legal relationship between the Franchisee and the Franchisor. Required by law, the Franchise Disclosure Document, or FDD (formerly known as the UFOC, or Uniform Franchise Offering Circular), informs prospective franchisees of their rights and obligations before they sign a franchise agreement.

Critical Success Factors

Before we go any further, let's do our first reality check.

One big consideration will be - Can you make enough money? How much to you need? Are you planning for this to be your ownly source of income? Is this just a side hustle to make some money doing something you enjoy - selling your photographs at local craft fairs?

Basic math


 * cost $20 per unit to have made. You sell them for $50 each. You expect to sell 100 per month in the 3 month farmers market season. You have fixed cost of $50 / month to rent a table. You need to be there ? hours per day - setuo, selling, packing up plus driving to and from the site. You are making ? or x/ hr.


 * affiliate program. You spend ? hours per week writing and promoting your advice column on social media. For every purchase that you generate by someone linking from your site to the seller get you ? percent. In a good month there are ? in sales, so you get ?. Some months there are few if any prurchases so your revenue is zero.


 * you develop business web sites. Your usual fee is $5000 - $10,000 for a new site. You can create 3-5 per month. Most clients continue with monthly hosting and update agreements of $1000 per month. You usually have about 30 monthly clients.

Myths, misconceptions - common myths about having your own business and being your own boss.

Critical success factors - Startup businesses that are successful share a number of common critical success factors

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=06WwH9D_ZCw

Well thought-out idea Realistic expectations Demonstrated customer need Comprehensive overview of entire business operation Money enough to start, emergency fund Record keeping, cash flow, taxes, withholding, sales tax