Home Business Information

I have read that it’s impossible for the home-based entrepreneur to keep business life and personal life separate. To the extent that no business or job can be kept entirely isolated from personal and family affairs, I agree. But it’s essential for the success of your business and the well-being of your personal life that you make every effort to keep the two distinct and apart.

If you have a family, your home-based business is going to affect it in some way, and vice versa. If your business is only in the preliminary planning stages, bring your family on board and make clear to them what your plans are and how they might affect family life. A spouse should be part of your planning from the start. You may want to postpone discussing the venture with young children until you’re ready to launch the business, but you should talk with older children early on.

And, you must make it clear to your family, friends, and neighbors that although you will be working at home in your new business, you are still working, and during work hours you are not available for chores, baby-sitting, ball playing, shopping, shuttle service, or anything else not related to your jewelry business.

For some reason, people tend to think that a person who works at home isn’t really working. Consequently, you can count on them to try to impose on you in every imaginable way. Friends, neighbors, and even family members will think nothing of phoning or dropping in during business hours just to chat, when they would never dream of doing such a thing to a chef, a physician, a teacher, or an auto mechanic who works away from home.

It’s also important for your business image and peace of mind that you establish a business routine. You must have operating days and hours, and you must make your schedule known to family, friends, and neighbors. Otherwise, they’ll be all too quick to assume you’re not really working.

We’ve probably all heard the cry- I want to stay at home with my children! But I need money!

Don’t despair; there are a few avenues for you to be able to realize this dream. The government has introduced incentives for a woman to leave the workforce and to have children- “to keep our population growing” The most talked about incentive is the ‘baby bonus’. Originally it was a lump sum payment of $A3,000 per child, payable on birth to cover the costs of having a baby. This payment has now increased to A$4,000 per child.

Well, this is all well and good, but what happens 12 months down the track when the costs of living are skyrocketing and staying at home with your precious ones, just isn’t working out the way it was meant to.

Putting your child into daycare to return to the workforce is the first option. So, you start looking for centres or even family based care. What you find is that there are waiting lists everywhere! Some for over a year, before you can get your child into the centre. You also find that the costs of childcare are absolutely ludicrous! Even though the government will subsidise these costs, for many, they are only working to pay transport and daycare costs.

So, what do you do?

You need money but you also need to be able to do something from home that will earn you the income you need. There are many options out there- but you need to ensure that you look into each one sufficiently to make sure it’s right for you. There are options in party plan, network marketing, mystery shopping and paid surveys just to name a few.

When enquiring into each field, ensure you ask the right questions for you-not what anyone else has told you, nor their thoughts or opinions. Don’t be put off by those concepts asking for a small fee for more information- this is only to determine how serious are about working from home- think of it as a pre-qualification interview. Just do ensure, however, that your money is able to be refunded, and that you can view the website owners’ contact details. Make contact with them first via email if you are still unsure- just to establish credibility.

Avenues such as mystery shopping and paid surveys take a while to build up income, however can pay within a couple of weeks- Just don’t expect a huge paycheck from these guys. Be very wary, of those offering you to make huge incomes from home by completing surveys- if it really were that simple, wouldn’t we all be doing it??

I personally entered into the world of network marketing when I was on maternity leave. Fortunately for me, I didn’t need a huge income straight away. For a few years of hard work and building my business from home, I will be able to set my family up for life.

Party Planners need to be outgoing people and have the time to go and do these parties. Some may be close to you, others you may have to travel for. A new concept is E-Parties where you don’t even go anywhere to host a party. However, the response rate is a lot lower that those traditional parties. You may need family or friends to watch your child(ren) when you travel to these parties. Ensure you look into the different commission structure that each company offers and choose a product you are interested in.

Whether it’s direct sales, or party plan, you must believe in the product you are selling- otherwise you are wasting your time.

Working from home isn’t for everyone- you need the dedication to separate your family time from work time. Once you’ve harnessed this skill, you have the opportunity to earn quite a high income working from home.

My wife owned and operated her own home based daycare business for many years. This is her post–

Starting a home based daycare business:

I will tell you it is a lot of work, but very worthwhile and gratifying. There are very important things you must know before thinking of starting a home daycare, here are 10 things you should know:

1. Licensing requirements– For a home daycare some states and counties do require licensing, but most don’t. If you live in an area without licensing requirements, but most states require or want you to be at least certified. I was certified. It is rather easy, you just need to find a place that certifies you, lots to choose from, just look online for child care information in your state. Here is a great site http://nrc.uchsc.edu/STATES/states.htm But where I lived in Wisconsin, because I was certified, not licensed, I could only have 3 children at one time, that is including yours.

2. Only take as many children as you can handle realistically. I took part time, full time, short time, everything, and I will tell you, from my experience, do not take part time kids, it only makes it harder, unless you are only going to have 3 or 4 kids. I mean if this is a source of income, it's hard to make up for the few hours you get from them.

3. There are many ways to find children. This is the fun of ruining your own home based business. The number one way for me was to make really catchy, cute fliers, I made lots of copies and took them to grocery stores, post offices, door to door, put them on cars, anywhere you can people to see them. The most popular place that people saw them was at the grocery store.

4. There are lots of things to take into consideration before starting a daycare. As a day care provider you will not only be the manager, but the secretary, bookkeeper, accounts receivable collector, bottle washer (literally!), organizer, planner, referee, teacher, and counselor, to mention just of few of the roles. You must be patient!

5. There are so many forms you need to have ready on hand for when you start to except new clients. For example, you must have forms that parents sign ahead of time, like prescriptions, you can not give prescriptions to kids unless it is on paper signed from the parents. Just think of what you would be in if something happened to the child, they might be allergic, might give the wrong dosage, might have more than one child taking the same medication and give it to the wrong child, things like that. I have a daycare kit that I am selling that has all the information you need to have and know even before starting to think about running a daycare, I also include many forms that parents will need to sign before you can let there child enroll.

6. You need to think about how much you are going to charge and what age groups you are going to take. This is another business descision. I called big daycares and home day cares to check out what they were charging, don’t tell them who you are, just pretend you have a child you want to enroll there. Great way to find out what the rate is.

7. Think about the things you will need and where you can get them. You don’t have to purchase all new items, garage sales or good wills are great, just make sure to clean and sanitize them really well before giving them to the children.

For example:
* child-sized table and chairs
* individual sleeping places
* diapering area
* art materials
* assorted toys and blocks
* children’s books
* games, puzzles, vehicles, dolls
* props for pretend play
* music
* baby furniture
* storage area

8. Another thing to consider, have the parents bring, and supply you with items, like diapers, wipes, food, (unless you want to include this in the price). That’s what I did, so much easier, because you might have different age groups and lots of different wipes and diapers, that can get expensive. As far as the food, its up to you. I had the parents bring there food, they know what they will eat more than we will.

9. Remember if you have children of your own, this would be a great opportunity for you and them, you can be a stay at home parent and have friends for your kids to play with. You will never have to worry about where your children are or what they are doing.

10. Make sure to review everything and make sure you are ready to make the investment. It is really a life changing opportunity, but again worth while. I loved every minute of every day. I would do it all over again…

Here is a great daycare kit, its rated #1 on clickbank. It Includes:

* what is required to start the business

* determining what to chargesetting

* policies and procedures

* attracting clients

* establishing your daily scheduleplanning

* activities for children

* billing and accounting

* managing your cash flowrecord

* keeping your clients happy

* growing your business

* plus much, much more!!!

Affiliate Marketers are constantly looking for products that will produce BIG profits. Many affiliates begin marketing online thinking that you can just put a few banners on a website and Bingo... Cash will magically flow into their bank account. Unfortunately, this is not quite how it works. Making affiliate marketing a success is an attainable reality but it takes a combination of good marketing practices, hard work and dedication. Here are three simple strategies which should produce the results that will enable you to gradually increase your sales, and become highly successful as an online affiliate.

Successful Affiliate Marketing Strategies:

=> 1. Promote each of your products or opportunities using unique web pages. Build a well laid out, highly focused website. Give each product a clearly well documented page. Include a review of each product or opportunity and of course, testimonials from people who have already tried the product or signed up for the opportunity. This will give your customers confidence in the products or opportunities you are offering on your site and make them want to find out more.

Write articles featuring the positive aspects of each or your products or opportunities and include the pages on your website. Use headlines that will attract your visitors and entice them to continue reading and of course, buy your products.

=> 2. Get visitors who are precisely targeted to your products or opportunities. If a person who visits your site has no interest in what you are selling they will probably leave and never come back. However, when you write articles targeted to your products and opportunities for inclusion in e-zines or other online and offline publication, your visitors should be precisely targeted to what your are offering on your website. You can use this method to generate a continuous flow of readers.

Write at least one 300-600 word article every week. By continuously writing and submitting articles you can generate as many as 100 targeted website visitors daily. If just 1% of your visitors bought a product, you will have sold 7 products each week just from that source alone.

=> 3. Offer free reports, ebooks or software to your readers. People love free things! Position your free offers at the top of your web page where they attract the most attention. Then create a minimum of seven autoresponder messages to be emailed to the visitors who give you their personal information. According to research, a sale is closed usually on the seventh contact with a prospect.

When people visit your web page, your prospect either leaves your page or goes on to buy your product. When you give them valuable information over a period of time, you continually remind them of your product. Try to direct visitors to your site and article content without making it sound like a sales pitch, while giving them specific reasons why they should sign up for your opportunities and buy your products. Once you have gained their trust with your autoresponder messages, web pages and article content they will make a purchase.

Try to focus on the important points like how your opportunities and products can enrich their lives. Make the subject lines of your emails compelling and avoid using words that will trigger the spam filters like "free" or "money". You want your email to arrive in your prospect's mailbox, not be classified as junk and deleted. Convince the people who have signed up for your free gifts that they will be missing something huge if they do not avail themselves of your products and opportunities.

Try using these three simple strategies with all your affiliate programs. It will of course require some time, planning and action on your part to put them into practice, but that is not difficult to accomplish. Once these strategies are set in motion your source of income should gradually increase and you will on your way to achieving your goal of becoming a well paid affiliate.

Thinking of starting a home-based business? Do research before you making any decisions, because misinformation can put you face-to-face with some very costly surprises. There are a lot of myths surrounding home business opportunities, and if you are not careful, you may fall into the same trap. Here are some of them.

"A home business opportunity is the ticket to quick money."

This cannot be more wrong. A home business opportunity is only as good as you make it, and that means having to put in more hours of hard work - more hours than you would in a regular office job, in fact.

"You cannot go wrong with any home business opportunity."

This is another misconception that many people still believe, unfortunately. Just because a home business has lower overhead costs does not mean it runs a lower risk. There are many home business opportunity scams out there, especially on the Internet, and if you are not careful, you could lose a lot of money and a lot of time. How do you know if an opportunity is fake? If it is too good to be true, it probably is. Work-at-home programs should never have to cost a lot - if the company starts to ask for hefty membership fees and ridiculous investments, do not participate in it. Check the Federal Trade Commission's report on "Work at Home Schemes and Scams" before signing up with a work-at-home company.

"Being your own boss means less work."

Wrong. Now that you are your own boss, you need to put in more work taking care of everything from administrative work to business strategizing. And while it's true that you never have to commute to work anymore and that you can work in your pajamas, you will probably find yourself getting up earlier to start work, and staying up late to finish up.

Case Study 1

> The Advert <
4 packing studs £4.50 per card
handmade clockface £6.85 each
Achievement Awards £6 per 16 awards
Envelope Making £4.90 per 50 envelopes

> The Truth <
"They sent me the envelope making kit, even though I had asked for something else. When I returned the kit they returned it to me. I asked for my money back and they said they would have to keep £10 for administration fees. Still haven't seen any of my £30 (I think it was that much).The envelopes they ask you to make aren't normal envelopes, they are like bags and it would take at least 2 days to make 50 with all the cutting and folding and scoring you have to do!!!"

Case Study 2

> The Advert <
Variety of jobs available. All that is required from you is the ability to read and follow simple step by step instructions and basic practical ability. The majority of the work available is simply assembly and adding finishing touches to products e.g gluing, cutting, painting etc. If you have access to a typewriter, word processor or computer, there is also a choice of clerical work available, including addressing envelopes and inputting data. There is no set time in which the work has to be returned, simply complete the product and return to the sender. No minimum or maximum work hours required. Payment usually within 3 working days of receipt of satisfactory completed work. Payment rates of between £2 and £20 per hour, depending on ability and work chosen. A registration fee of £20 is required (£15 if prompt reply received) which is refunded if there are no current vacancies for the job of your choice, or if you are dissatisfied with the product of your choice.

Options include:

Assembly Sewing Basic sewing/cutting £10 per kit
Circuit Boards Basic cutting/fixing £6.35 each
Collage Basic cutting/sewing £20 per kit
Envelope making Basic cutting/gluing £7 per 50
Computer Covers Basic cutting/gluing £9 each
Dart Cases Basic cutting/gluing £5 each

Waist purses Basic sewing/gluing £7 each
Craft Decoupage Cutting/gluing/steady hand £12 per kit
Woodwork - Door Plaques steady hand £20 per kit
Finger puppets Basic sewing £5 per set
Addressing envelopes £5 per 100
Recruitment £30 per 100

> The Truth <
"What I actually received from them was yet another directory, with a select number of companies providing work and all wanting more registration fees. The clerical work doesn't exist - only as a business opportunity and most of the other work comes from a very few other companies."

Case Study 3

> The Advert <
A chance to earn up to £20 per hour working in the comfort of your own home. This company have been making and selling a variety of craftwork for over 12 years but now concentrate on miniature cottages and buildings. You need only a small table or workspace and do not require a kiln or specialised equipment. No fumes. All materials provided free of charge.

Other craft work may also be made available to you. Payment varies from 70p for very tiny cottages to £8 for the larger ones, whilst cottages made from their original designs can earn between £15 and £70 each, rising to £150 for your own designs. With practice you should be able to produce between 3 and 8 of the smallest models and 1 or 2 of the originals in an hour. No set number of hours required. Continuous year round work.

Option to run your own business selling these same products yourself. £35 starter kit includes training and information manuals, paintbrushes, paints, primer, stonepowder, varnish, reusable moulds, sandpaper, baize etc. £150 business kit also available if you wish to go into business yourself - includes sufficient materials for 200 items.

These fees are refundable (less small admin fee) if packs returned in pristine condition within 10 days of receipt.

> The Truth <
"For £35 the say they will send you several manuals to aid you plus enough materials to produce the cottages as they want them. What you get is an Foolscap envelope. In it is a small amount of stonepowder (used to make the cottages), two moulds (both defective), a childs waterpaint box with a brush in it that could paint the walls of your house, a small pill bottle of varnish (which is so watery it makes the paint run on the house when you try to cover it), another brush for "fine work" which is just an average brush that has been butchered with a knife or a pair of scissors, a small amount of felt (for covering the base of the cottage), a small pill bottle of primer (used on cottage before painting) and a couple of three inch square pieces of sand paper (for smoothing small faults).

The original offer states that you can earn 70p for smallest type up to £20 for largest and should be able to produce between 3 and 5 an hour. The manuals supplied are well out of date. One does tell how to produce the cottage but this only covers about 3 pages. The rest lists places to obtain moulds (of 6 addresses only 3 still in business) which you have to get the brochures and then tell the company which ones you want to make when they are happy with what your producing. A second manual tells how to make mould holders, but with no pictures it's impossible to understand. Then there is another with ideas and lists of homeworking firms. Again most are out of date. I finally found that they were produced in 1986!!. Total cost probably about £6 in total (including the postage).

I did send off a couple of cottages that I made (86p postage) and they sent me back a letter stating they enclosed a new mould (they didn't), what was wrong with my efforts - which believe me could not be done how they stated (especially with what they supplied - which was supposed to be enough to complete all work to their satisfaction) and then they had the nerve to tell me that I must ALWAYS enclose a self addressed envelope for them to use."

Case Study 4

> The Advert <
The company claim that by registering as a homeworker (£25 refunded upon completion of first batch of envelopes) you can select the type of work you wish to do from craftwork, assembly work, packing, envelope filling and typing. You will also receive a regular free homeworkers magazine, and have the option of having your name and address circulated to businesses requiring homeworkers, so that they can contact you directly.

> The Truth <
"I have received their pack and it is not as it claims. They are not offering work, but a list of companies offering work. Their only work is placing ads to get SAE's for which they pay £45 per 150. I received no response from circulating my name to companies wishing to employ homeworkers, nor have I ever received any homeworking magazines."

Case Study 5

> The Advert <
Address envelope labels £5 per 100
£30 one-off payment required, refunded after correct addressing of 500 labels.

> The Truth <
"First they say they have home jobs for you and to get their details to send £20. When you do so you get a short list of companies that provide jobs for a small fee. They themselves offer addressing envelopes (which sounds very easy, You address 100 labels and get paid £5.........Simple isn't it) well you have to pay £40 for this. What happens is they send you 100 labels and a list of companies. They ask you to address the labels in such a way that the size of each letter is 3 mm/something similar. I did it wrong once so they send the thing back saying that it was not 3mm. Fine agree my fault. Then I devised a means by which the letters I drew were 3 mm and send it to them (not once but twice) and they returned it saying that it was not 3 mm. This I know is false. I still have the labels and if you measure each letter it will be 3mm. Well that was it for me. Total Disillusionment."

Case Study 6

> The Advert <
The company offer work from home posting advertising on the net. You are asked to pay them £98.00 for info and part of the agreement is that you, in effect, have to buy a PC from them in order to work for them. Pay them another £895.00 for the PC, get receipts and a delivery date for the machine.

> The Truth <
"The PC didn't arrive, then it is to be re-scheduled. The long and short of it is that they will send you a standard letter to say that they are in financial trouble and at the moment cannot either refund you or supply the machine for which you have paid. They then offer envelope work (which they condemn in their literature), paying £100 (although at some point they said their rates of pay were £300 per batch) per 1000, but you have to buy the stamps (£200) and they say they will pay your stamp expenses with your £100 pay per batch. Needless to say I have my doubts about ever getting paid. They won't reply to your letters, faxes, e-mails and their phone is constantly engaged or off the hook."

Case Study 7

> The Advert <
Home based work doing watercolours painting, decoupage, finger puppets etc. Registration fee is refundable after first batch of paintings/craftwork completed. The rate for watercolours sized 9" x 7" is £10 per completed painting. We provide all materials.

> The Truth <
"The advertisement was in a local paper. I badly needed cash to pay my gas bill, so I phoned them up. They told me that it was £39 to register (refundable) after first batch of paintings/craftwork was completed. The rate for the watercolours (that I was interested in) was £10 per completed painting, size 9" x 7" and they provided 5 watercolour pencils, a board with a trace outline printed on, 1 small brush and a very small print of how the finished picture should look, not £39 `s worth!!! More like £3 - £7`s worth!!

I was only allowed to do one at first "so they could evaluate the standard". Anyway, I did it (very well if I say so myself), sent it off, and heard nothing for two weeks. When I did get through to them on the phone, they said it was being processed. Another week went by, then in the 3rd week, it was returned saying it needed "some attention". I myself nor anyone I knew could find fault in it. I went over the colours slightly more and sent it back again. They returned it again saying it required more "depth". So I went over the colours a bit more, sent it back, and guess what - it was returned, now saying "too much depth". This scenario went on twice more, and I was told that there was no work coming in at present, so not to rush to get it finished!!

I got my mother to phone them enquiring about some homework, and they told her that there was an overload of work available! This is when I knew they were rip-off merchants.

After nearly six weeks, they told me they were sending a payment. When I got the cheque, it was only for £5! They said that they could sell it as a "sub-standard" version, and they would give me £5!! They also told me that I had to complete eight paintings before I could get my deposit back, but £10 was for administration costs so I would not receive this part back!

After all this messing! I was so angry that I drove to the address advertised (about 30 miles away) to demand my money back. The place was like a large static caravan and had other "businesses" in the other rooms. There were two young girls in charge, the ones that had been answering my telephone calls. They said that the manageress wasn`t available and to come back another day. I was so mad I said I wasn`t leaving until I had my deposit back and sat down in the small reception part.

Whilst there I looked at the projects as advertised on the walls. To my disbelief in the watercolour section was the "ideal model painting" - what people should be aiming to produce, and it was MINE !! My painting was the example shown to others, and I was not even being paid for it !

After a lot of ranting and some dishonourable threats (I couldn't`t help these at the time), I managed to talk the two girls into letting me have some decoupage pictures so I would go away. These hardly amounted to the outlay and anxiety I suffered, but they came in handy for presents later on. I wonder how many people and good artists have been ripped off by this company?"

Case Study 8

> The Homeworkers Directory <
"I sent £4.95 for a 'Homeworkers Directory' which they promised to refund if I didn't get a job offer. There wasn't a lot in this so-called directory but I spotted what would be a great job for me - working for their 'Data Control division' using my computer to input names and addresses onto floppy disc. It cost £9.95 (refundable on completion of 5000 names and addresses) for a floppy disc and a trial list of names. But after sending the disc back I got a letter saying 'due to lack of contracts on our behalf we are unable to send any more work to you at present but your name and address will be kept on file' (yeh, sure!) I also sent S.A.E. and 6 stamps for a booklet 'Essential advice and Information for Homeworkers' but surprisingly got no reply. I shall know better next time. I thought I'd let you know so you can warn others about them on your website."

Homeworking Scams are easy and fun to spot - providing you haven't fallen for one.

A quick check through any home business news group, or the classifieds of most newspapers reveals many "Make Money Fast" (MMF) schemes. Whatever the 'product' these schemes are mainly based on a chain letter. Statistically speaking, it is impossible to reach the levels and amount of money promised as this would mean the number of people that would have to be involved would be as much as the entire world's population! The United States Postal Inspection Service states the legalities (or rather illegalities) and quite simply a "chain letter is simply a bad investment".

For everything you ever wanted to know about Pyramid Schemes and Multi-level Marketing Companies see www.ag.state.mn.us/consumer/fraud/bottomline/pyramid.htm. For a positive view see our page in defence of legal Multi-Level Marketing schemes.

The UK's ASA (Advertising Standards Authority) has worked with the Office of Fair Trading to update their Homeworking Schemes Action Pack (more about this to be posted soon). Meanwhile see Employment & Homework Schemes at the ASA. Visit the ASA site at www.asa.org.uk who you can also complain to about misleading advertising for homeworking schemes.

It is not surprising to know that according to the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, "In practically all businesses, envelope stuffing has become a highly mechanized operation using sophisticated mass mailing techniques and equipment which eliminates any profit potential for an individual doing this type of work at home. The Inspection Service knows of no work-at-home promotion that ever produces income as alleged."

If you haven't already, check out the Soapbox for more about Internet Scams.

Bogus Job Offers

Although there are genuine jobs working at home, many are bogus. You should not have to pay to get work. Never send money in advance to people or companies who claim they can offer you work at home. These con tricks may start with an advert in a newspaper or a shop window, or on a local bus, or with a leaflet through your door.

Examples:

Adverts about addressing and stuffing envelopes: these are generally followed by a demand for a registration fee. All you get for your money is advice to place adverts like the one you saw.

There is no real job.

Just a scam to con you out of the registration fee.

Adverts asking for money for home assembly kits: these scams promise pay for making up the goods or your money back. You won't get your money back.

You will be told that the goods are not up to standard or given some other excuse.

You will not get paid.

The people behind the scheme never intended to pay you from the start.

Medical Claims Processors Wanted!!

Have you seen those ads? A reader from the States wrote to tell us about a common scam taking place:

In a nutshell, basically, legislation was instituted here mandating that all doctors in the U.S. submit their claims electronically (as of February 2001). Interesting, because 50% of all claims are now submitted electronically via clearing houses. Seems to save the physicians considerable amount of money, allow their nurses/workers to do other tasks.

However, these claims NEED to be processed by someone. (Now, I attempted to contact one of these "outfits." However, before I did, I did extensive research and discovered on a consumer watch webpage that this business was a SCAM). Back to the story: the claims need to be processed electronically, thus requiring medical claims processing software! Yes, you guessed it. The software companies (I suspect some unsavory outfits) put together a group of these packets, along with 500,000 names of doctors, etc. and are selling these software packages, along with lists, etc., how to become a medical claims processor, etc. to the public.

Sounds good? Well, try establishing yourself with some physicians after you've purchased the software and sent out hundreds of letters explaining that you can process claims electronically (this package provides you with technical "training").

The consumer watchdog said that this is a SCAM and not to bite. One can spend thousands of dollars (or pounds) attempting to establish a business. I don't know how these people get around it, but -- legally -- they do. So, be wary of "medical claims processors" software. You can learn this, but can you work at it?

It seems that there are large companies already doing this. Incidentally, the software sells in the range of $325 U.S. up to $500.00 U.S. or more!!! Too bad we've lost our integrity and honesty -- some of us.

What is a free home based business? Is there really any business that can be created for free? Well, that depends on your perspective. A free home based business means you take the resources you already have and use them to create your own business. This way you are not putting any new money in to your business. Finding a free home based business is not that difficult. You just need to know where to look and how to spot the right one for you.

Starting a free home based business can be very rewarding. You can be your own boss and set your own hours. You can do something you love and feel good about it. This is where setting up your free home based business starts – finding something you love. Make a list of your passions. What types of things can you do all day long and not really think about it being work? Think about your hobbies, past jobs, and more. Somewhere in this list is your free home based business.

Now take this list and think about how you could start up a business without having to put out any money. Now is where the list gets a little narrower. Probably several of your ideas will take some overhead, but others may not take any at all. For instance, let’s say you love writing. All you really need to start your business is your computer, which you most likely already have.

The key to a successful free home based business is to use your resources, and luckily the number one resource needed is your computer. Many home businesses are designed to work online. You can run a business using a simple blog or creating a website for very little each month. Some other businesses offer pre-made websites that you can use for free. Just make sure that the websites load easily, because slow download times often turn off customers.

Beware of companies that promise you a free home based business, but then have hidden costs. These are scams and beware, because you can lose a lot more money. Many companies allow you to start selling their products without having to buy any inventory. Instead you take orders and then order your wholesale products from the supplier. If you are looking for a free home based business, this may be the place to start.

Also, if you are looking to run a free home based business, you need to find ways to advertise your business for free. The easiest way to advertise is to use the internet to its fullest advantage. You can start by writing articles for article sites and e-zines. These sites allow you to put an “About the Author” box at the bottom of your article to send people back to your site. These articles could be a great asset.

You may even try writing an e-book to offer as a bonus to your site. This will draw in more traffic, and it will only cost you time. When you are running a free home based business, you can even try to trade space on your site with other websites. Many other home based business owners are looking for places to advertise for free, and trading can be an excellent way of minimizing costs.

If you are looking for a free home based business to start, the best thing to do is research companies and be safe. Avoiding scams can keep your free home based business truly free. However, also be aware of low cost ways to advertise, like pay-per-click. While they may not be free, you can set your monthly allotment to fit your budget.

The Internet has become a very powerful means of instant communication but unfortunately a large segment of the Seniors who have plenty of time in their hands are not making the best use of it. Hence they are missing a lot of fun, entertainment and the opportunity to earn a full time or part time income by operating an Internet Home Based Business.

In the US alone there are over 50 million Internet users who are over 50 years of age and of these over 34 million are Senior Citizens. It is estimated that 2/3 of the adults between 50-65 years use the Internet.

In spite of the tremendous advantage the youth of today have over the Seniors in handling the computer, the internet and the website, there are great Internet Home Based Business opportunities that can be taken up and operated successfully by the Seniors and mature internet entrepreneurs along with the younger entrepreneurs.

The experience, expertise, maturity of thought and academic qualifications of the mature entrepreneurs are often sought after by individuals and specialized agencies and in fact they are often considered to be the right people for certain types of jobs.

Given below are some of the Internet Home Based Business Ideas suitable for all entrepreneurs irrespective of age if they possess the knowledge and expertise.

1. eBook Publisher.

One of the items that are very popular in the internet world is eBooks. Mature and experienced people often have specialized knowledge in their own field of activity. A great opportunity is open for them to publish eBooks in their field of expertise and market them along with the younger entrepreneurs.

2. Freelance Writer/Copywriter.

Many top executives need vital information such as intelligence gathering regarding competitors, statistics, etc. for the preparation of reports and for Presentations but unfortunately they do not have the time to gather this information and hence require the services of Freelance writers and Copywriters. In addition there are great opportunities for writing articles for Magazines, as Ghost writers and writing Content for Websites, Newsletters, and Press Releases,

3. Virtual Assistant.

There is a great demand for people who posses top organizational and administrative skills to work as a Virtual Assistant. You can work from your own office as an independent contractor and help other businesses to succeed. Quite often the services of a virtual assistant are required during after-hours or weekend hours for the last minute completion of a project and your availability is what matters most.

4. Personal and Business Coach.

Personal and Business coaching is a fast growing profession. Personal and business coaching is an ongoing professional relationship that helps people produce extraordinary results in their lives, careers, businesses or organizations. You can make use of your own experience and expertise and start a career as a personal coach.

5. Online Surveys.

The development of the internet in recent years has spawned several internet business opportunities. One that is very popular among the younger entrepreneurs and suitable for the Seniors is online surveys. Knowledge of the internet is sufficient to participate in online surveys and generate an additional income.

6. Online Auctions.

Online Auctions like eBay is another great internet business opportunity available for the seniors to actively participate in. Unlike most young entrepreneurs who participate in online auctions on a Part-time basis, the Seniors have plenty of time in their hands to play an active role and generate a substantial income by buying and selling products.

The above Practical Internet Home Based Business Ideas are there right in front of us. Age is no barrier. The money is there to be made either Full-time or Part-time. Your decision to get started and succeed is what matters now.

Because paid surveys have been around for a while there are now many websites offering paid surveys. The popularity of paid online surveys has been on the rise over the past couple years because of an increase in unemployment and people just want an easy way to make some extra money.

Getting started

It is very easy to get started on a paid survey website. Many of the websites do not charge a sign up fee and their commissions are very good. The registration process usually only takes several minutes so you can be on your way to some extra money in no time.

The role of location

One thing that is commonly not considered is the location where the paid survey website is based out of. For example if you live in the U.S. And the website location is in Europe you need to make sure that you will be able to receive your commission. It is always better to find a website that is based out of the same country you are, just to ensure a good experience.

Making a selection

It is very easy to find a good paid survey website, just use your favorite search engine to lookup “paid survey website” and chose the first few pages on the top of the list. Choosing one form the top is always safer because they have generally been around longer and have had a good amount of traffic use their service. It is a good idea to compare several different websites commission and reward programs to make sure that you will be getting the most for your time spent completing an online survey.

Having fun with it

The key to success with online surveys is to have fun, signing up for surveys on topics you enjoy will make the time go much quicker and you will look forward to doing them.

Extra bonuses

Many paid survey websites also have affiliate programs that offer you a bonus for getting your friends and family to sign up for their services. This is usually a very easy process and often times is as simple as sending an email invitation to your friends or family.

Something that is often times not realized is there is no limit to how many paid survey websites you can sign up for, so don't limit yourself to just one. Make an account on several websites will greatly increase your paid survey income.

Are you frustrated or downright-fed up with all of the hoopla about having a home based business?

Well once upon a time, I was too!

So much in fact that I almost threw in the towel and called it quits.

I mean when I really got into learning how to start and build a home based business, I found all of these snake-oil peddlers who were just selling me B.S. product and services that were either useless, unnecessary or the latest money-making gimmick.

I have to admit though, I didn’t really understand at the time what was happening so I spent thousands upon thousands of dollars on things that just never worked for me.

So one day I said to myself, “STOP buying all that crap and start learning the real secrets!”

You see, I came from a long line of entrepreneurs and having that mind-set had helped me over come being homeless and abused.

So once that thought stuck in my mind things began to change.

It was only then that I uncovered the truth about how to successfully start, build and profit from my own home based internet business!

Man…was I happy when I finally made my first sale and then my first 100 sales and then I started acquiring high-end clients and it was all done on autopilot.

Heck, I was asleep most of the time when I made any money!

Now the secrets that I’m about to share are just 7 among hundreds of secrets that I could share but, these are what I like to call the “Critical 7.”

Here are the “Amazing 7 Lost Secrets Of Home Business Success”:

1. Passion: You MUST find a topic that you have a passion or interest for. If you can’t find one look for something that others are passionate about solving. In other words, if there is a desire or a need that a person has to solve this issue (a market), you can easily tap into this market and make money with it.

Now if you already have a home business that you’re passionate about then you should look for this element in your market as well. Remember this… Passion = Profits! Forget what you’ve heard because I’ve mentored many people over the years and the most successful one all had this in common.

2. Persuasion: The next secret is learning how to persuade! Yes, this is step two because understanding how to persuade in person or in print will catapult you to the heights of success so fast you won’t even know where the fame and fortune came from. Many of the most successful people in the world are masters of this one skill. You must use this skill with the highest degree of business ethics.

Notice how politicians quickly become lower than garbage when they persuade well and then don’t deliver? Two GREAT books on this topic are “Persuasion: The Art Of Getting What You Want” by Dave Lakhani, and “Influence – “The Psychology of Persuasion” by Robert B. Cialdini.

3. Copywriting: The next secret is one that many successful home businesses have in common. Or rather their owners have in common. It is the skill that has been coined, “the most lucrative skill on the planet!” When you learn how to write persuasive copy, (your persuasion studies will come in handy) you will be now be able to quickly and efficiently generate money and sales on demand.

The reason is simple. Words whether written or spoken have the power to persuade and sell your product or service FAST! Learning how to write effective direct response copy will help you make money with ease.

4. Website: In the new millennium not having a website is like committing suicide! Yes it’s that bad. Now I’ve come across many clients that believed that they didn’t need a website to attract business because their business was ‘special’. Well these people ‘were’ very special because, even with a poorly performing website, their competition looked a heck of a lot better than them by giving a better impression to their prospects and clients! Not only that but despite their personal beliefs, they were leaving money on the table.

Bottom Line: Build a website using the first three secrets.

5. Marketing: Most people who start a business at home believe that there is some magic pill that they can take and WHAM instant business. Wrong! Despite what the “Gurus” would have you believe, if you’re serious about building your business then you have to take on the mindset of a CEO. How would the CEO of a major corporation think? Of course…they would focus on techniques used to attract and persuade consumers.

Not only that but, they would also focus on the process of planning and execution of their marketing concepts, pricing, promotion and distribution of products and services to satisfy their customers. Think of it as every element of your business that touches your customers. Seems complicated but guess what? With a website you can automate most of that and virtually sleep your way to riches!

6. Advertising: Now here’s an interesting thing that often gets confused with marketing. Advertising is just one element that is part of marketing. Using what you’ve learned in the previous secrets, you can dominate any niche or target market you choose! Yes, you don’t need a huge budget to advertise effectively IF you know how to write copy, persuade and leverage technology and a website.

There are so many types of advertising you can do from newspaper ads, classifieds, pay-per-click, contextual advertising, radio, podcasting, web video, magazine ads and more! Just because you’re a small business doesn’t mean you have to think small. Start on a small budget and grow.

7. Sales: You’re probably thinking, “Well I’m no sales person and I hate sales!” Well the fact of the matter is that I know you don’t believe that because if you’re working at a job or freelance right now, well, you’re selling yourself and your time for money. Seems a little, “Pretty Woman”-like don’t you think? (get my point?) Wouldn’t it be better if you were selling a product or service? Almost EVERYTHING in the world is sold.

Time, food, clothes, medicine, internet access, air…geez everything is! Now you probably work for a company that sells something too. Except you don’t really get the lion’s share of the profits right? Changing your perception of sales is the quickest way to change your life and your income as well. I know, because I’m living proof of it. A great book on that is, “How I Went From Failure To Success In Sales” by Frank Betger

8. BONUS Secrets! Self Educate and Set Goals! As you noticed I gave you some books to read and websites to visit. Well the two things that will tip the scales in your favor REALLY fast are, self educating yourself and finding mentors to guide you along the way to reaching your goals. Simple as that --

Now please understand that these are not all inclusive secrets but when you’re starting out in business for yourself, you need to start looking at these things differently. Changing your perception will change your reality at breakneck speed.

I am a work at home mom who used to struggle just to get by. It's hard for me to believe it, but I finally found a real opportunity that is everything that I wanted in a work at home job.

Even though working at home is a dream come true for me, there are still some things that those who work at home need to remember in order to be successful.

Here are some tips to help you make the most of your work at home job.

1. First set a schedule for your work time. This can be anything that works for you and will accommodate your goals. Setting a regular work schedule will really make a difference in your productivity.

2. Create a work area that is pleasing and organized. I love my workspace because I can look out a window into the forest while I work. This makes working fun for me. Try to create a kind of space that is conducive to your work as well as a space that you enjoy being in.

3. Even though you enjoy your work, don't forget to take regular breaks as well as regular days off, including vacations.

4. Set short and long term goals. This will help you to keep track of your progress and prevent you from putting off important tasks.

5. Don't forget to network and socialize. Some people who work at home can miss the social interaction from an outside job. Be sure to continue to network as well as maintain your current contacts.

6. Don't allow daily distractions to prevent you from focusing on your work. Schedule your work time when you will experience the least possible distractions.

Hopefully these tips will help you to be successful in your work at home job. I know that they have helped me to create a very successful work at home career.

They're not the first thing people see when they start searching for ways to make money online. However, free resources do exist, although you may have to do some searching to find them. So, in the interest of making your online income search a little less expensive, here's a list of some of the free things I've used to help reach my goals.

1.) Submit Express: They have paid services, but they also have a free link popularity checker, a free meta tag checker, and free submission of your web site to a small group of search engines.

2.) The Warrior Forum: This is a free forum to join and one of the largest internet marketing forums on the net. You can post topics, ask questions, and comment on other posts. I've learned a lot from visiting there, and highly recommend an account to anyone serious about working from home online.

3.) Free Article Sites: I can't speak highly enough of these. You can do two things with a free article site. The first is to get articles and RSS feeds for free for your web site, although their terms will apply. The second is to write articles and submit them to drive traffic to your web site. This method is arguably the best no-cost marketing tactic on the Net today.

4.) Web Site Directories: These are good for boosting your site's page rank, although they don't usually generate traffic. These are sites like Abilogic.com, which allow free submission into their directories for a reciprocal link pointing back at them.

5.) PRchecker.info: A simple little site that not only will allow you to check your web site's page rank, but will give you a box you can put on your web page that lets your visitors check theirs too.

6.) Pingoat.com: If you're a blogger, this site is an invaluable tool. You can let a lot of blogging services know at once that you've made a change to your blog and mass ping it. It allows you to pick which services you want to ping, then set up a bookmarked page to ping your blog simply by going there.

7.) The free report "How To Make a Six Figure Income Online": This is a handy report that lays out a way to make six figures a year online. It goes through a general strategy and tells you what you need to do to make this income level a reality. The link takes you straight to the PDF file.

If you're interested in making money online, these free things are a good way to help you get it without having to spend more than necessary.

Is a Home Based Business truly the way out of the 9 to 5 unfulfilling J.O.B. (just over broke) nightmare? Can it be lucrative and really set one personally and financially "FREE"? The answer is YES, if persued professionally, diligently and properly. Like any business, it must be managed efficiently and cost effectively for maximum growth and profitability. Success is dependent upon how well the business is marketed, who is involved, how credible and reliable the company is and what it has to offer to others. What benefits will others receive from being involved.

Having a home business is NOT like all the "hype" and "scams" on the internet. If a program says "You can make $10,000 in a day", etc, etc, BEWARE, this is not reality. Reality is that generating quality traffic, a strong clientele base and the long-term relationship basis with clients is a painstakingly arduous task that requires knowledge, understanding and proper marketing tools. To be truly successful, one has to work hard at building the business reputation, credibility and prove worthiness, as does any business in operation today.

When a business has accomplished their credentials, success is imminent and long-term relationship marketing will continue to flourish, therefore leading to long-term success and profitability. No one wants to be lied to, manipulated or used for the benefit of someone elses prosperity. The reason the home business was started was for the individual entrepenuer to be successful. By being honest, dependable and valuing other's beliefs and goals, this will encourage others to verify the reputation one is trying to create.

Once a strong relationship is formed, the rest will simply follow, continuing to positively influence and assist others in effectively marketing the business will lead to new business and keeping current clientele content and secure. The goal is to gain respect, worthiness and trust. Once this is accomplished, success for everyone will develop.

Internet Marketing is NOT just about "you" and what "you" can get. It's about everyone involved in the business venture. Without the others being involved, there will be no success. Laying a ground foundation of success will not only benefit "you", but everyone involved, leading to personal and financial freedom for all. The best way to succeed is to help others succeed. The old saying, "Pat my back and I'll pat yours", is so true. One helping hand leads to another and another, each hand helping one another, thus generating the success and motivation needed to create business profitablity and success. When everyone works together success is created faster, more efficiently and becomes the driving factor for continuing to expand the business. Motivation generates positive, productive results because everyone is successful, thus wanting to work harder to gain more, to be "personally and financially "FREE".

The main key to successfully marketing the business is not only the other members involved, but the Marketing Tools and Training available to accomplish this. The business is in place, now, generating the much needed traffic is the next task. How can this be accomplished? Simple, research. Research Marketing Systems or Companies that state they have everything within the system to effectively market and promote a business. Google the system and/or company claiming to have the "best" system and verify what it has to offer. Is it cost effective, will it "truly" generate traffic, will it launch the business to top google rank positions, is there support available at any time if a problem arises? These are just a few questions one needs to ask before committing to the Marketing System or Marketing Company. DO NOT waste time, money or energy on something that will not work for productivity and successful marketing, this will only hinder success and leave one frustrated, angry and disheartened.

Upon researching some marketing systems and companies, a few ranked #1 in this area. A "complete, all-in-one" system that contains everything needed to successfully promote any business is called, VERETEKK. "IT'S FREE" for all to use. This Marketing Tool is the cream of the crops, the icing on the cake, "truly", it has and will guarantee, top Google rankings, if utilized to it's fullest potential. This tool will not only generate massive traffic, but allows businesses to honestly prosper, it's an incredibly powerful business building tool, an all-in-one marketing and a major business office. Using this system with diligence and persistance will not only allow for success, but better time management as well. This is one tool any business should have and keeps everything organized.

Another wonderful system to help promote any business is TopSurfer, a networking, free advertsing system and is very inexpensive if one upgrades for more tools. This also truly exposes one's business.

There are many other wonderful tools, just finding them is the key. Research and make good decisions.

Look for credible, honest, and legitimate businesses that are of interest. If one is not excited about the business involved in, it will prove to be uneventful and unsuccessful. When researching companies that say they are S.E.O. Specialists or offer services in promoting and marketing businesses on the internet, make sure there is proof of these claims, check them out thoroughly, make sure there is always a way of contacting a member of the company and assistance is always available. Don't be "scammed" or "hyped", research all the information before getting involved. A highly reviewed company that is ranked high on Google is Butch Hamilton's SEO Service. This one has proven results displayed online and contacting information. It's easy to see if something is legitimate and credible, research it on the net, the better business bureau, etc. Find credentials, testimonials and productivity results to back up their statements. DON'T always believe what you read, thoroughly check everything out first. The best business decision is a smart one.

Finding legitimate, honest and productive marketing systems, tools and assistance is not hard. Always research FULLY all the information before getting involved. If it has nothing of benefit or something just doesn't feel right, BEWARE, DO NOT get involved, don't be bullied or manipulated, go with instinct or proof of validity, it's the best defensive tools one has to protect oneself. Call or email the company, validate information by pulling up information on the company and make sure someone is actually available to speak to by phone at all times. DO NOT TRUST anyone, at least initially, trust is earned, don't just assume it's legitimate, make sure it is. Research, research, research on Google, Yahoo, MSN, any search or all search engines. Dig deep, don't loose hope, true, legitimate assistance is out there. Finding the right one is the key.

Filling out online surveys online has proved to be one of the few tried and true ways to making money in the comfort of your own home. There are many research companies who will reward you with money for supplying them with your opinions.

You can find surveys on just about any topic. This enables you to pick and choose the surveys you want to fill out, while still making a nice income from doing so.

While you may not be able to retire on the money you make from filling out online surveys, you can make a decent amount. You could even fill the surveys out here and there just to save up for that vacation you have wanted to take.

There are many websites out there that claim to have access to these companies, and can give you access for a fee, or even free. What most people do not realize is that these websites mostly contain small directories of research companies, some which do not even exist anymore. It comes down to you get what you pay for. It is suggested you find a website that contains at least 200 resources for research companies. The more research companies you have access to will allow you to take more surveys. This of course means you will make more money! Make sure the research companies in their directory are up to date. Don’t be afraid to ask! Any reputable website offering access to such directories will be more than happy to answer any question you may have.

You can take a free survey and get paid. It is easy and available from your computer. There are a variety of survey companies online and not all are reputable, but once you locate a good reputable company, it will be easy to earn some extra money. Surveys are quickly becoming a great way for people to make quick cash, just for giving their opinions.

After completing a survey for money, you can continue working on other surveys and continue making money. Every questionnaire is going to be different and interesting to fill out. You will not get bored filling out paying surveys.

Once you develop a system for your surveys, you will have a constant survey pay day. Many times you will hear statistics that say, "a study of 100 married women says..." or something similar. Those statistics usually come from a paid survey, like the ones you will be doing.

Surveys are available for a variety of different types of people. Usually before you complete a long survey, you will be asked a few short questions to see if you fit the need for a study. If you match what the company is looking for, they will explain the pay you will receive for completing the entire survey.

A cash paid survey career is a great way for a person to earn some extra cash while working from home. Often it is hard to find a flexible job that pays decent money but filling out surveys online is one of those jobs. If you can find a good company to register with, you will quickly get all the surveys you can handle.

It is important to choose the right online survey company to sign up with. Some companies require a fee to join their service and that should be a red flag that something is wrong. Most reputable companies will offer a free way for you to connect with companies that will pay you to take surveys.

If you can find someone close to you that has done a paid survey before, they can be a great resource for finding a reputable survey company. Getting started in the business of cash paid survey is easy and exciting. You will quickly become hooked on filling out surveys when you see the cash start rolling in. Many surveys pay between $10 and $100 to fill out. But the possibilities are limitless as to how much money you can earn.

To get started today, simple start looking for a reputable survey company that you can register with. Once registered, you need to complete the individual registrations for each of the companies that are looking for people to take their surveys. You will then be contacted when a survey is available. After filling out a short demographic questionnaire, you will be ready to start earning money with paid surveys.

Start earning your living by taking paid survey's from the privacy of your own home. It is easy and you can start right away!

Many people have either looked into starting or have started a home-based business at one time or another. Reasons? Suddenly being needed to care for children at home and leave their outside employment; needing to care for an elderly parent; needing to increase their present salary to cover unexpected expenses; or just looking for some much needed time freedom from the normally long work week. Whatever the reason, many have tried the usual home-based businesses, but many have failed.

Why? Most home-based businesses are set up to sell someone else’s product: makeup, jewelry, kitchen products, lingerie, etc. “Reps” then buy these products and in turn find customers to resell these products to either by going door to door or having a “party”. The “reps” soon learn they need to do a lot of work only to receive a very low return on their investment.

But that time has now changed!! A company has emerged that has changed the look of the home-based business! This business is set up to be automated and simple, the Compensation Plan is “Rep” friendly, plus what they sell helps give people a much brighter, more positive outlook on life. This company is called Advantage Conferences and holds Millionaire Mindset Conferences. The speakers at these conferences are already millionaires, not “millionaire want-to-be’s”. The company has been built on principles of honor and integrity and has prepared every detail for a prospective “rep”: all the setup work is done and ready, successful Christian mentors are ready and eager to help, plus it gives the greatest return of investment. The mentors help online, through email, over the phone and even in person. Advantage Conferences is using the power of the mentor. On March 9, 2006, on First Business Morning News, “power mentoring” was being discussed about how important it is to have a network of mentors to help us succeed and that we should have at least three types (Advantage Conferences incorporates all three):

· inspirational mentors
· e-mentors (online)
· reverse mentors (younger)

Yes, the look of the “home-based business” world has changed and so much for the better. Advantage Conferences has truly brought the home-based business into the twenty first century.