Running Business From Home? 20 Tips on How to Succeed

With the pandemic, work from home has become the new normal. Many small business owners emerged in the last year starting their business from home. Although there is a minimal cost to set up and no encounters with traffic, they struggle to organise their day and usually experience burnouts. This article is all about business tips for beginners that can help them become more productive and manage their business efficiently.

Let’s explore 20 small business tips for beginners who are starting a business from home.

1. Have a clearly defined workstation/home office

Working from home can sometimes become stressful, and it feels like you are on the job 24/7.  To avoid this burnout and increase productivity,  create a workstation or home office with all the furniture required, segregated from the rest of the house. This helps in bringing a structure,  improving focus, productivity, efficiency, and most importantly a positive work environment.

2. Set clear expectations to the people around you

Working from home interferes with the lives of various people who reside with you. It is very important to set clear expectations regarding the time of work.

3. Have a definite work–life balance—maintain a proper schedule

Be organised and maintain a proper structure and schedule every day. Have a clear to-do list and pre-plan meetings and stay proactive. This is one of the great business tips to stay productive.

4. Don't discount the importance of networking

Despite the work environment, networking is a great way to market and be among the stakeholders that can help in providing necessary assistance and also can connect with prospective investors, clients, and customers.

5. Keep up with the skills in the market

Be versatile and update your skills from time to time. When you are a sole business owner operating from home, being multi-functional and a generalist is a must.

6. Keep up with the product changes in the market

The market is very dynamic and new innovative products emerge with great technological solutions. It is critical to keep up with the market dynamics that can help in the go-to-market strategy.

7. Take your business online

Online presence is mandatory in the millennial era and having a catchy and strong brand name and presence is equally important. Design an appealing and attractive brand logo, create a website, and gain brand visibility.

8. Develop a dynamic business plan

Develop a business plan if you are someone who’s starting new. A very clear understanding of unit economics, demand and supply growth, marketing and sales channel strategy, and a financial model encompasses a good business plan. Digital ledger applications such as Okcredit can help you manage your finances seamlessly.

9. Focus on building the right team

Hiring is another critical piece you must not neglect. Having the right team is having everything. Do not rush the hiring process. Have a clear vision of the requirements, skills, and qualifications required for the role and set a very robust hiring process around them.

10. Create a positive and motivating work environment

Creating a positive and motivating work environment is necessary for a virtual work setup. Have periodic reviews and updates. Further, establish small milestones for the team and celebrate the success. Incentives and rewards can help in motivating and uplifting the team.

11. Focus on your marketing strategy

Along with your business plan, develop a detailed marketing strategy and allocate the budget accordingly. The strategy involves the channels, partners, and activities that can help you achieve your demand targets.

12. Leverage social media

There’s no business without social media presence especially if you are a business that runs virtually. Building an attractive website, publishing interesting blogs, partnering with influencers, and creating interesting and useful content around the product can augment your business to the next level. This is one business tip that cannot be ignored.

13. Advertise, advertise, and advertise

In this digital era, advertisements are everywhere. If you are not advertising effectively, you are missing out on great demand.

14. Engage with the team outside of work

Along with the business owner, the team or the company gets exhausted with work and very commonly experiences burnouts. One of the great business tips that many leading businesses give out is to conduct employee engagement activities regularly. This will help teams bond and exchange synergies outside of work and help them perform better over the long run.

15. Do not neglect the taxes

Many small business owners discount the importance of tax filing when they plan for their business. It is extremely important to understand the tax laws applicable for your business and know which expenses can be tax-deductible and which ones are not. This will help in navigating the capital effectively through different business channels.

16. Home-based businesses—license and insurance

Despite the business being operated from home, it still needs a license and insurance. The insurance coverage varies depending on the industry and the type of business you operate. Moreover, a license and GST certificate are required to file taxes and sell goods to customers. Hence, understand the local laws in your city and plan accordingly.

17. Minimise your expenses—optimise on your bottom line

Since the business is being operated from home, there’s a great scope to minimise expenses and keep up with your margins. Cut down on rent, utilities, and other indirect expenses as much as you can that can help you navigate capital to other functions that can help in augmenting the revenue of the business.

18. Have clear incentive structures

Incentives drive the productivity of the employees naturally; however, striking the right balance is important. Devise performance management and incentive strategy that works for your business. Implement it gradually and keep tracking the right metrics until you strike a balance.

19. Host online events

Hosting online events is a great way to connect with your potential clients and customers. Host webinars or live events where you talk about the recent product developments and how you create value in the market. You can also explore co-hosting with other business partners with whom you have a lot of synergies.

20. Don’t burn out

Lastly, it is very important not to get burned out with the day-day activities. Managing the entire business virtually, sitting at home, spending most of the time in front of devices, generally leads to burnout. Take some time in the day to engage yourself in physical and mental activity that can help you keep up with the work schedule.

Also Read:

1) 10 Tips for Network Marketing Success
2) 10 Money Lessons for Businesses from the Covid-19 Crisis
3) 8 Simple Steps To Pay Employees Of Small Business
4) Top-10 Oldest Small Markets in India with Great History

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FAQs

Q. What are some of the profitable business ideas to start from home?

Ans. There are many remote businesses that you can explore that require little or no capital. Some of them are virtual consulting (mental health, fitness, business consultants, etc.), online tutoring, web and app design, etc. You can also explore food delivery or catering businesses if you have a niche and attract demand.

Q. What is the approximate investment that goes into starting a business from home?

Ans. Certainly starting a business from home is cheaper than setting up an office and other logistics. However, the amount of investment depends on the type of business and varies accordingly. A service business costs less than a retail one since there is no need to set up a warehouse, logistics, etc. Freelancing, marketing, web designing are some examples of businesses with zero net investment.

Q. How many years of experience are needed to start a small business?

Ans. There is no specific ground rule for experience needed to start a business. Anyone with business acumen, structured thinking, marketing, and sales abilities can start and run a business.

Q. How impactful is social media for businesses?

Ans. Social media is everything in today’s world. If your business has no social media presence yet, it is high time that you create a website and be online. Social media is one channel that creates great visibility and can attract great demand for your business.