While most people around the world continue to work in factories, offices, restaurants and warehouses, there are a growing number of people that work from the comfort of their own homes, largely due to the wide availability of internet access and personal computers. Below are seven tips that will show you how to work from home successfully.
Choose Work You Can Do Remotely
The first thing you’ll need to do is decide what type of work you want to perform. Since most people who work from home are independent contractors, you’ll essentially be self-employed. Most people perform a skill that involves computers, the internet, or information technology but this isn’t always the case. It is also possible to do light manufacturing or culinary work where you prepare food for a restaurant. If you are skilled at software and coding, there are companies that can hire you to work freelance on their behalf, and your services can be provided over the web. You want to choose something that you’re passionate about that will bring you excellent income.
Carefully Transition from Your Current Day Job
Many people who dream of starting their own home based business are currently employed at a traditional 9 to 5 job. Ideally, you don’t want to quit unless you have enough savings and or a separate income to cover your living expenses while you start the home business. It is important to note that 80 percent of businesses fail within the first five years so it may take a few tries before you begin generating profit, but never give up no matter what.
For example, if you’re starting from scratch, and want to transition from your current 9 to 5 office job to become a computer programmer, it is recommended to spend at least 5 to 8 years learning the programming language on the side (while still working at your day job), and then quit once you’ve accumulated enough experience and savings to cover your living expenses for months (preferably years) and you’ve become so proficient in coding that you’re already receiving multiple freelance job offers.
Setup Your Dedicated Work Area
To maximize your productivity, you want to setup a workplace which is dedicated to work. This means it should be free of anything that might distract or disturb you. Many freelancers choose to setup a home office that includes things such as a desk, cabinets or shelves where you can store documents and space for a computer, printer, cables and other equipment. If you can sound proof the area so you’re not disturbed by the family or neighbors that is definitely a plus.
Build a Website
Regardless of what work you perform, whether it is light manufacturing, culinary services, computer animation or programming, it is important to establish an online presence that way people can find out more about you. For instance, if you’re a musician you can distribute your music over the web, or if you’re a talented painter you can create paintings at home, then take pictures of them and showcase them online. In both cases, you’ll want to setup a website.
A professional website is one of the best ways to attract clients. It gives you the opportunity to showcase your work and is the central hub where people can see what you offer. All you need to do is open an account with a dependable hosting company for an affordable monthly fee and then you can register a domain name and build the website. If you lack the knowledge, skill or inclination to construct the site yourself, you can always hire someone to build it for you. And while there are free hosting services on the web, it is highly recommended to get paid hosting as the service tends to be better plus you’ll be able to develop a fabulous website that is free of advertisements.
Learn SEO or Hire a Firm
To succeed with your home based business, it isn’t enough to know one skill; you must know multiple. One of the most important after building and maintaining a website is SEO, or search engine optimization. Knowing how to optimize your site so it caters to the search engines will drive targeted visitors to your site when they speak or type in certain keywords and phrases.
As with website design, if you lack the time or inclination to learn the finer points of SEO, you can hire a company that will do the work on your behalf. While they will charge a fee, you should consider it an investment that can pay dividends down the road.
Learn How to Use Social Media
The next step beyond building a website and using SEO to promote it is social media. There are a number of social networking sites where people gather to socialize, and getting your business listed on them will give you an edge on the competition, especially when you increase your number of followers. Social media followers are people who are fans of your work, and they willingly subscribe to your channel to receive updates from you. The more followers you have, the more influential and successful you will be, because this will often lead to business requests and opportunities.
Figure out How You’re Going to Get Paid
Anyone who has worked at home as a freelancer long enough knows that payment issues will inevitably come up. While many clients are honest and pay as promised, there are others that will try to jerk you around. You must anticipate this and be prepared in advance. Some home based workers charge a deposit, where prospective clients must pay them a percentage up front before they will begin the work, with the rest being paid upon completion.
The deposit acts as a security guarantee, and if you’re using a popular site such as Guru, they have a dispute resolution service that is built in. Finally, you want to have multiple options for payment, including crypto currencies like Bitcoin, PayPal, wire transfers and even Western Union or Money Gram. The more payment options you have, the better.