Resources for Running a Home-based Business

Starting your own home-based business is an exciting and scary time. It also often means lean financial times, too.

With limited funds, a beginning businessperson can turn to friends and family for help and cheap, or free, labor, along with other inexpensive resources.

A quick check on the internet or your local community center will help you find a multitude of products and services to succeed with your new start-up. Let’s take a look at some of the resources available for working from home.

Free Websites

You can find inexpensive or free templates to set up your website. Some have a small annual fee so you can access certain features and keep unwanted ads off the page. Sites like Blogger or WordPress are great for this.

Accounting and Income Tax Help

There are a lot of programs available for keeping track of your sales, income, payroll and filing your income tax, such as Intuit^®, QuickBooks^®, and TurboTax^®. Also, there are other bookkeeping programs available for nominal costs.

Small Business Administration

The Small Business Administration can help you out in many ways. The agency has financial help available, business coaching and guidance, as well as assistance programs for everyone from women entrepreneurs, veterans and those living with disabilities.

Besides loans, there are grants and other incentives if you are providing jobs for others. They offer a mentoring program, business assessment and assistance with a contract.

Marketing Tools

There seems to be an endless list of places to advertise. So why not take advantage of the free sites? They include platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, LinkedIn and many more. It’s amazing how many potential clients and customers you can reach through these platforms.

Shared Offices

Shared or coworking places are great resources for remote businesses. They not only provide you with office equipment, but you get a workplace address that looks professional. You can get your mail and packages delivered there, have access to office space, equipment and conference rooms.

These are services you pay for as you use them. It’s perfect for those working from home who wish to maintain a business address and those with limited resources, space and equipment.

Legal Advice

As more and more people decide to work from home and start their own companies, there are just as many resources available. Companies like LegalZoom provide all kinds of advice and services for a flat fee.

This is great if you need a simple contract, some advice or help with licenses or permits. They can help with trademarks or copyrights, setting up your corporation or even planning a will.

Shared Resources

Just a quick check online will help you find blogs, articles, newsletters and websites for helping out people just like you. There are plenty of directories geared toward whatever your business: cooking, pet-sitting or remote contact center services.

You can also use helpful forums to ask questions, find answers and even network with like-minded people like yourself. You may feel a bit overwhelmed at first, but you can find any information you need.

Talented Temporary Labor

Websites, such as Upwork and Freelancer, have plenty of professionals looking for work. You can pick and choose who you like and find someone to help you out with almost anything. Virtual assistants, writers, marketers and designers are all there, representing any skill you need.

You also can find workers on college job boards, local community centers and even family and friends. Often, college kids are more interested in gaining experience than making a lot of money.

Home-based Success

With a little ingenuity and some research, you will have no problem locating all kinds of resources for your home business.

Many times, you are finding your resources from people just like you. They have years of experience and have decided to branch out on their own. Support them is supporting the whole home-based business community, including you.