We can tend to think of home-based businesses as somehow being โleft outโ or distinct from the rest of the business world, and itโs an impression that has been somewhat falsely cultivated, at least to a certain extent. While running a business from home certainly does have a particular set of idiosyncrasies, there is at least one area where we could all learn a thing or two from, the digital and online experience.ย The fact of the matter is simple, if you mean to turn a consistently growing profit from your business at home, then youโre going to have to learn how to engage with the online community.
We know that for some, it can seem quite intimidating to transact in the online environment especially if itโs not something that comes particularly naturally to you, but the truth is this: if you are not doing business online, youโre simply not doing business.
Far from being an insurmountable experience, here are a few tips to get you started.
1. FIRST, KNOW THYSELF
As with any process of change, it is critical to know who you are as a business. What is it that you manufacture or supply and who are your current clients? This may seem like a no-brainer, but many home-based businesses started as a vehicle for filling a specific need, more chance than planned. This means that those owners may not entirely understand who their clients are and this could cause you to miss out on many additional opportunities.
2. KEEP IT SIMPLE
If youโre just starting in the online world, it makes more sense to grow with your online business, than to have it grow outside of you. Take it slow, find a decent agency to help you get your website planned, designed and launched and while youโre at it, take the opportunity to learn about the online environment.
3. LEARN, AND THEN KEEP LEARNING
Whether youโre just starting in business or you are a seasoned home business operator, you can never know everything there is to know, and you can never know enough. The online environment is exciting and is constantly evolving and if youโre meaning to grow the online side of your business, youโre going to want to learn as much as you can about it. If youโre just starting in this exciting field, there is a whole new language you need to learn.
Websites donโt just happen and if youโre not a developer yourself, youโll need someone to help you grow, have a look at SEO companies, for example, they can help you optimise the content and quality of your web page to help you be more searchable and findable on major websites like Google.
Working from home is more attractive now than ever before and youโll find entire networks that have been set up in local communities to support, promote and grow local businesses, so if your community doesnโt yet have a network like this, consider setting it up yourself. Itโs a great way to get into the guts of a business and meet some interesting people besides.

David Greenhalgh
December 22, 2021Good article and sensible advice for new starters
Kirsty Charleston
December 23, 2021great advice, i dont have my own business yet but id love to start one up!
fiona d
December 23, 2021My daughter has an etsy shop as well as working across all socials as an sfx makeup artist so lots of this very apt to our situation ๐
Margaret Gallagher
December 27, 2021Certainly is the way forward – learn and keep learning