quickbooks

If you are looking for a great program to help you with your bookkeeping needs for your work-at-home business, I suggest that you take a look at Quickbooks.

Quickbooks is such a valuable tool for me. I use it to do all of my invoices. I can even email the invoices directly to my clients through Quickbooks or I can print them out to be mailed. I can then enter my payments received. I also use Quickbooks to keep up with business mileage. This is great when tax time comes around.

I can even put my bank account and credit card information in Quickbooks and keep track of all of my transactions.

I could not begin to go over all of the Quickbooks features. It has so many, but if you are starting a business, Quickbooks can definitely be a valuable tool for you as well.

start your own blogging business review

I have previously mentioned Start Your Own Blogging Business by the Entrepreneur Press and J.S. McDougall, but it is worth more time than I have given it.

Start Your Own Blogging Business is by far the most informative book that I have read in a long time. I feel like most books are usually so vague, and tell me things that I already know, when I am usually searching for answers. That is not what this book does. It gives answers to all of the questions that I had about blogging.

The book is divided into five chapters, which are as follows:

• Chapter 1: "Planning Your Blog"
• Chapter 2: " Publishing Your Blog"
• Chapter 3: "Profiting from Your Blog"
• Chapter 4: "Becoming a Business"
• Chapter 5: " Final Thoughts"

Every chapter is very informative to me, but the most helpful is chapter 3. It gives information on how to begin your blog, generating traffic, and creating revenue. These are the things that people want to know about most often, and it does a great job addressing each topic specifically. It tells you where to go and what to do! Finally!

The book is not too long, only 88 pages (excluding the glossary and index), and it is an easy read. It took me no time to read at all, mostly because it kept me interested. For only $12.21, this book is well worth the money. So, if you have an interest in running a blogging business, grab this book. You won't regret it!

business in a bad economy

You may be asking yourself how you could possibly start a business with the decline of the economy. How could you possibly make any money?

Well, you can. Have you ever heard the terms cyclical and non-cyclical? I learned about these terms when I was learning about investing. Cyclical stocks are simply stocks that usually go up and down with the economy. These are stocks that are often times "luxury" items. They are items that people do not need. Therefore, if the economy is bad, they may give up these items for a little while.

For example, if you have been considering purchasing a new boat, but the economy goes down and your money gets a little tight, you will probably hold off on buying that boat for a while.

On the other hand, non-cyclical items are things that are considered a necessity. A few of these things include: food, water, electricity, prescription medicine. These are things that people must have and are not likely to stop purchasing.

So, how can this information help you? Well, apply this information to your business. The economy is not looking very good right now. In turn, you may want to consider focusing your business on products or services that people have a hard time living without.

Think about what you can do to help people in this bad economy. What is something that people really need that you are able to provide? Not only will you be helping people, hopefully, you can make a little money at the same time.

search engine optimization

Are you wondering how to obtain that top spot for your site on the big search engines? Well, I can assure you, it is not easy. Actually, unless you've got lots of money to spend, that top spot may just be impossible.

I know. I should be encouraging!

I am not saying to quit trying. You may be able to do it, but something that you can definitely do is get on that front page of listings! That is still VERY good.

My first words of wisdom to you on this is to do your research, and when you think you know everything there is to know about search engine optimization, start again. Why? SEO changes constantly. There seems to always be something new - a new way of optimizing or a new way the search engines rank sites.

There is no way possible for me to tell you everything about SEO in this blog. With that said, I am going to give you a few tips:

• Create quality site content.
• Research good keywords for your site (Use keywords that people search for, but keep in mind how many other sites already have these keywords. I love www.keywordtracker.com. They even have a free trial).
• Use these keywords often in your site, but don't get ridiculous. Use them in your page titles, file names, image names, etc.
• Do not run your words together in your file names. Use a hyphen (not an underscore).
• Try to get other sites (relevant to your topic) to link to your page.
• Finally, submit your site to directories and search engines!

There is so much to say about search engine optimization. I could go on forever. The most important thing is to just to your homework. Good luck!

starting your work-from-home biz - yikes!

Starting a work-from-home business can be very difficult. You still have the other exciting elements of your life, such as laundry, cooking dinner, PTA, driving kids to school, and my personal favorite - paying the bills!

While you may not want to give up these thrilling components of your life, you may have to be kind enough to share them with other members of your family. Remember, no matter if you are man or woman, you have certain responsibilities in your life, but it is okay to ask for help. Your family and friends care about you. I am certain that they want you to be happy. They want you to be fulfilled.

Just ask for help. Call a family meeting, and explain to your family what you want to do. They will love to fill included. Then tell them that you are going to need a little extra help from each person. Make a list, and assign everyone with tasks. Hopefully, they will be ready to pitch in and help.

Just remember - Even though you sometimes believe you have superpowers, you are not superwoman (or superman). Besides, you will need those powers for other things, such as MARKETING!

your business site

It is very common these days to have a web site if you work from home. Do you have a web site, or are you considering creating a site for your biz? If you answered yes, there are a few things that you want to keep in mind:

• Is your site user-friendly? Nothing is more annoying than visiting a web site and not being able to locate the information that you need (especially when you know it is there.....somewhere...buried). How many links would a user have to go through to find information? Consider all of the elements of your site. Now count the links that a user would have to go through to get to each element.
• Make sure your text is easy and large enough to read.
• Make certain that links are easily located.
• Display your contact information, especially if you are selling products or accepting payments. I understand not wanting to post a physical address if you are working from home. (You don't want a weirdo showing up at your door.) In this case, a post office box is perfectly suitable. (After all, you have to be careful these days.)
• Is your site visually appealing? Do your colors go well together? Make sure they are not too flashy or overwhelming.
• Does your page load easily? Some people do still connect via phone lines, and they will not wait for hours for your page to load. They will simply go somewhere else. In my opinion, a simple web site is best. Flashy is not necessary. People usually just want to find the information they are searching for, and they want to do it as quickly as possible.

Friends are great for assistance in checking your site. Sometimes they will think of things that you did not. Have them help you with your site evaluation, and ask them to be honest. (Yes, you have to listen to them.) That is the only way it will work.

work from home - be creative

Do you ever have an idea that you think is a little out there, but you just can't get it out of your head? Why not give it a shot? Be creative.

Some of the most "out there" ideas are the ones that really succeed, because of their uniqueness. No one is looking for the same ol' same ol'. Take a chance.

If you have a talent or skill that you can develop in some way to begin making money as a business, maybe that is something you should consider. Why not make money by doing something that you love?

For example, today while doing a little research, I a came across a site that I thought I would check out, and I am so glad that I did. The site is called Entrepreneur's PhiloSophie's: A weekly comic for women entrepreneurs. It is very unique and creative. I love it. It is a wonderful idea that would not cross most people minds. It made me think how much more creative we should be.

working as a private investigator

In a previous blog, I mentioned private investigations as a work-from-home job idea. After going through my files, I found an article that I had published in the PI Magazine a couple of years ago that I wanted to share. It discusses some of the difficulties of conducting surveillance in rural areas. I think that it is something that anyone considering private investigations as a work-from-home job might want to read and consider:

Rural surveillance can be very tricky. Most would agree that it is more
difficult than conducting surveillance in the city.

When you conduct surveillance in a heavy populated area, it is easy to park your surveillance vehicle on side streets or in business parking lots. You can also utilize vehicles that are parked on the subject's street for cover, in order to establish a surveillance position in proximity to the subject's residence. In a rural setting, people will notice an unusual vehicle parked near their residence. You could make up a good reason for being there, but this rarely works. Subjects of investigations are often of a suspicious nature.

In rural surveillance, you may be able to park your vehicle on the subject's route of departure, but this is not always an option. In areas that are sparsely populated, subjects are often aware of unusual vehicles on the side of the road.

In rural areas the subject often lives near surveillance even more difficult. Even if the subject may not be aware that an investigator is there, someone closely associated with the subject will. This also makes it difficult when canvassing a neighborhood to gather information about the subject.

Sometimes when conducting rural surveillance, you may be able to get
a good viewpoint from a wooded area near the subject's residence. However, if you are trespassing on the subject's or someone else's property, any evidence that you obtain may be inadmissible in court. At the extreme end, you could be arrested for trespassing. If you do decide it will be possible to conduct surveillance in the woods, make sure you wear camouflage and use your natural surroundings to hide. Make certain that your vehicle isn't left in a suspicious area. Plan your way out before you go into the woods.

Rural surveillance is different. If you haven't tried it before, get some advice from an experienced investigator, and make sure that you think things through thoroughly. If you are hiring an investigator to conduct surveillance in a rural area, make sure that you ask about his or her experience in rural settings.

customer service

No matter if you are working from home (Yay!)or from an office (Oh well, it pays.), you want your business to be a success, right? Well, in my opinion, one of the major components of making your business a success is EXCELLENT customer service.

As I said before, one of the main avenues for gaining new business is through word-of-mouth. If a customer has a bad experience with your business, you will not have that benefit of word-of-mouth, at least not good word-of-mouth. So, do your best to keep your customers happy.

There are a few ways to do this. Most of these tactics are based on customer service.

• If you have a customer complaint, do your very best to resolve it. You may not always agree with the customer, but sometimes it is best to agree anyway and resolve the situation. Take a loss of you must. Hopefully, it will save you some trouble in the future.
• Ship out products or perform services as quickly as possible. It has been my experience that the sooner a customer receives a product, the better. If they recieve it earlier than expected, you make them very happy. If they have to start searching for their product, they begin to get aggrevated.
• Take returns if necessary and possible. It will save a lot of hassle in the longrun. Besides, you can hopefully resell the item. If not, you may be able to donate it or auction it for a small profit.
• Make it easy for returns. Have return labels if possible. The less hassle, the better.
• Let customers know by email when you have received their order, when products have been shipped, and let them know how to contact you if they do not receive it.
• Always respond to emails/questions (nicely). I do not understand businesses that have email, but they never respond to it. This is a huge annoyance. It also shows that I probably don't want to conduct business with you.

A good rule of thumb is to always consider how you like to be treated when you are the customer. Try to see things from the customer's point of view. If you still don't agree with the customer, try to save yourself a lot of hassle, and try to make the customer happy.

never eat dinner alone (unless you're in a bad mood)

One of the biggest challenges when starting a new business is always getting enough business to keep you up and running. It is very difficult to get customers in the beginning, but one of the most enjoyable ways is often overlooked.

I am referring to socializing (also referred to as networking). I have found in my business ventures that that most of my customers have come via word-of-mouth. It is almost unbelievable to me. I did previously know that word-of -mouth was important, but I had no idea how important it actually is. If you think about it, it really makes a lot of sense. How often do you rely on the opinion of your friends, coworkers, or other professionals? If you need a product or service, are you more likely to use that of a company that you know nothing about or a company that your friend loved?

So, the first step, of course, is becoming that company that people love. Make sure you do things the right way. Deliver the best product or service possible. Be kind to your customers, and provide excellent customer service.

Next, NEVER (unless you're in a bad mood) eat dinner alone! In other words, be sociable. You need to make as many friends and associates as possible. You need to let them know about your business and what you are doing, but don't be too pushy. You don't want to come across as a salesperson or as if you are trying to sell them anything at all. Just be sociable, super-friendly, and let them know about your business.

If you do this and do it right, I am certain that your company will benefit from it. Good luck!

count me in

I found a great new site today that I want to pass along. It is count me in for women's economic independence.

I found the site this morning after seeing a story on my local news about more and more women working from home.

The site is basically a site for women entrepreneurs. It has some great information for women who are considering starting or even those who have already started their own business. According to count me in for women's economic independence, they can help women in the following ways:

• All woman business owners can join our online community and attend our live events throughout the country for access to education, networking and inspiration.
• Woman-owned business at least two years old and at $250,000 dollars in annual revenue can apply for the Make Mine a Million $ Business award-- up to $50,000 in financing, plus coaching, marketing, mentoring, technology and more.
• Woman-owned businesses under two years old and/or under $250,000 in annual revenue can apply for the Micro to Millions award-- up to $10,000 dollars in financing, plus coaching, marketing, mentoring and more.

The site is somewhat incomplete in a few areas. It looks to be a work in progress, but that definitely does not negate the wonderful information that is there. It is going to be an awesome site when it is complete, and it is a wonderful idea. I applaud Nell Merlino, Co-Founder/President & CEO 0f count me in, and the entire organiztion for putting assistance out there for women entrepreneurs.

work-from-home ideas

Are you thinking of working from home, but you just can't think of that "perfect fit?" Don't be discouraged. You are not alone. (I still don't know what I want to be when I grow up.) This is tough for everyone, but it is not impossible.

You will find the right business. Just do your research and brainstorm. Get a piece of paper and make notes of your different ideas. Write down areas in which you excel or have a little more knowledge about than most people. Then write down your strengths and weakness in those areas. After you narrow it down a little, write down the different possibilities for each different idea.

If all else fails, ask friends and family which areas they think you excel. Below are a few ideas that I like. Hopefully, they will inspire you.

1) Consultant.
If you found an area in which you are more knowledgeable than most, maybe you can share that knowledge with others. You can be a consultant in that area. You can offer private consultations with businesses/individuals. You can hold seminars or offer training. You may even want to hold your seminars over the Internet.Webinars are becoming increasingly popular.

2)Party Planner.
Party planning is a growing field. A lot of people don't have the time that is necessary to throw that perfect party. Besides, sometimes it is a big hassle, and people would rather have someone else deal with it anyway. You could also consider selling products that your clients might be able to use for their parties. It is a great way to save time and money for your client, while making a little extra money for yourself.

3) Wedding Planner
Weddings are a very important part of people's lives. Therfore, they are willing to spend as much money as possible. If you think you have the knowledge or the ability to learn about wedding planning, you may want to give it a try. Start out by offering your services to friends (at cost or for a small profit) in order to start building your portfolio. Talk with other wedding professionals (florists, photographers, etc) about possibly cross-promoting with them. Again, you may even want to sell some of the products that your clients may need or want. This could save a lot of hassle and make you a little more money. You ight even want to go that direction alone and sell or rent wedding accessories.

4) Private Investigator
Private investigators are used now more than ever in several areas. A few of them are as follows: insurance fraud, domestic situations (cheating spouses), accident reconstruction, background checks, people locates, and much much more. It is not an easy job. I would not go into it without a little training first, but it can be a profitable business if you do things the right way. I would reccomend that you first work for another company for a little while until you learn the business.

5) Virtual Assistant
Virtual assistants are becoming really popular. Afterall, it is the age of the Internet. Almost everything can be done from a remote location. There are people out there who may not be able to afford or do not need a full time assistant, or they may need an expert for certain temporary projects. That is where a virtual assistant may be utilized. A few of the services that you could offer (depending on your skills) include the following: report writing, invoicing, web design, bookkeeping, project managing, and basic secretarial services.

Remember during your business search, do your research. Consider your budget, and don't underestimate your knowledge and skills. The right business is out there for you. Be patient and you will find it.

blogging for money tip

I have to say that for anyone who wants to earn money from his or her blog, Steve Pavlina at www.stevepavlina.com wrote a very informative blog on the topic. It is a long blog, but all of the information is useful. Also, it was written in 2006, but still applicable if this is a topic of interest to you. The title of the Article is How To Make Money From Your Blog.

coping with working from home

Working from home is definitely wonderful for most people, but it is not always easy, and everyone is not cut out to work from home.

Working from home will have its distractions. The phone will be ringing. The kids will be playing, screaming, and calling for you. The dishes will need to be done. Supper will need to be cooked. Your spouse will need your help with this or that. You really have to set some ground rules if you are working from home. Set your working hours, and stick to them. Ask your children and spouse not to bother you during these hours, barring an emergency of course. Ask for help with chores. It is like working any other job. You cannot be expected to do everything if you have a family. You need help with the cooking and cleaning. You can still do some of it yourself. Hopefully, working from home will allow you to work fewer hours, but you will still need help on some days. Turn on your answering machine or let the voicemail pickup your personal line if no one is available to take messages for you.

Unfortunately, when some people find out that you are working from home, they assume that you are sitting on the couch, eating bonbons, and watching soap operas all day. They are unaware of your working world. Therefore, they assume it does not exist. They will ask you to do things for them during your workday. Trust me. I definitely know about this one from personal experience. You will be asked to babysit children, pick up children from school, sign for packages, drive people to the doctor, act as the friend's or family's technical support, and SO MANY other things. You just have to learn to say no. This is something that I have struggled with, but I am finally getting the hang of it. I don’t feel like I have to explain my job to people. If they think I am lazing around all day, so be it, but I must politely decline from taking care of their errands. I am not trying to be rude, but if I am going to run a successful business, I must treat it as such.

Finally, make your work environment one that is easy and comfortable to work in everyday. Make sure you have all of your necessary equipment: computer, printer/scanner/copier/fax, second phone line if necessary (I will blog about your other options in another blog in the future), billing software, filing cabinets, and more and more and more! Make sure you have a quiet work area. Make sure you have good lighting. Make sure you are able to heat and cool as necessary. Just make the best possible work environment. Make yourself feel like you did leave the house to go to work.

Does it sound like a lot? Well, it is a lot to consider, but don’t get stressed. Hopefully, it will all be worth it. Get a pen and paper. Now, sit back and make a list of everything you need for your office.

work from home scams

Working from home can be a wonderful opportunity, but it is not always easy to get started. You have to be very careful, and do your homework. There are so many work-from-home scams out there just waiting for you.

So, how can you avoid these work-at-home scams? Well, just follow a few simple rules.

First of all, do your homework. Don’t ever jump into anything to fast. A lot of these scammers want you to buy into their sales pitch without taking the time to think about it. That is why they want your contact information, your e-mail address at the very least. That is also why if you try to exit the site without signing up, you will get pop-ups trying to sway you back to the site. So, my suggestion to you is not to give out too much contact information or other personal information, and Do Your Homework!

Secondly, most legitimate work-from-home opportunities, do not ask you to send them money. How many real jobs do you apply to that ask you to send them money before you start work? Exactly – NONE! Please do not fall for this. I know sometimes it is hard. Sometimes the sales pitch is hard to resist, but remember, that is what it is – a sales pitch. I do realize that people sometimes charge you for information, and I personally think that is okay. It does take time and effort for someone to share his or her knowledge with you, and they should (in some cases) be compensated for this. Just make sure that you realize what you are getting, and don’t pay too much money for it.

Also, if it seems too good to be true, it probably is. I know that you have heard that before, but it is still true. If you have a bad feeling about something, then move on to something else. Most of the time, your hunches are correct. I know that these “opportunities” are sometimes difficult to resist. You may feel desperate. You may be tired of struggling, and this could be your chance. That is how scammers want you to feel, and you will not be helping your situation by sending your money to scammers.

Finally, check with the Better Business Bureau (BBB). It is easier for these “fly by night” online scammers to get by the BBB because they can change their business name so quickly and really with very minimal (if any) loss. It does not hurt to check. You may find something useful, so give it a shot. I also found a site for the National Consumer’s League’s Internet Fraud Watch. It gives some good tips for avoiding work-from-home scams. Check it out!

Remember, the right opportunity is out there. Just be smart. Do your research, and you will find it. If you know of any specific work-from-home scams, send me an e-mail. I’d love to hear about it.

work from home blog introduction

Hi, everyone. Welcome to my blog, and thanks so much for reading.

Let me tell you a little about myself and why I am writing this blog. I have a master's degree in Information Technology. My husband and I work together. We own a business that we run out of our home. I have also branched out and had a couple of Internet businesses myself.

Why am I writing this blog? Well, it is not because I have a lot of free time on my hands. I just feel like that I have a lot of knowledge when it comes to starting and running your own business. Sure there are people who know more, but there are people who know less. I want to use this blog as an outlet to share my knowledge with those who know less. Hopefully, I can learn more from those who know more. I think learning and growing is such an integral part of running a business.

My friends are always asking for my advice about business. They are always curious as to how I have the answers to their questions. Well, I'll tell you what I tell them. Research. If I don't know the answer to something, I will not stop until I have the answer. I advise you to do the same. There is so much information out there. There is so much money to be made out there. So, let's do it together!