Blog Archives - Online Marketing Advice

Top 3 Tips When Starting a Home Business

12/9/2009

If you have decided that you wish to run your own UK home business what do you need to think about when you first get started? Below is a short article listing some of the key points that you should try to carry out to make your business a success.

Research

It is important to carry out a lot of research before deciding to set up your own home business. You need to make sure that there will not be too much competition and more importantly that there is a market for whatever it is you will be offering. Failure to do so could result in your business never taking off and a lot of wasted time and money. You should also make sure that your new business will provide you with enough of an income for you to survive and that you will not be making a loss.

Make sure you market your business

When you first set up your new business it is likely that no-one will know who you are. For this reason you need to spend as much time as possible promoting and marketing your UK home business. This could include setting up a website and then trying to drive as much traffic to it as possible. Or you could look at free methods of advertising such as be writing articles about your business, creating pages on social networking sites or by making press releases. Make sure that you always include a small section about your business and any contact details to enable those interested to make enquiries.

Plan your time well

If you are going to have a successful UK home business then you need to make sure that you plan out your day out so that you can incorporate everything that you need to get done. As with any standard job, keeping your working hours as normal as possible is a good idea but this will of course depend greatly on the type of business that you have. The benefit having your own home business is that you can choose these hours and start and finish whenever suits you best.

It is however advisable to keep your hours reasonably standard as this will make communicating with your clients and finding new work much easier. Just make sure that you can commit to and work the hours that you have set yourself.

Learn more about how you can make money online by visiting this home business advice site.

Important financial considerations when Starting a UK Home Business

12/9/2009

Making the decision to set up and run your own UK home business is something that requires an awful lot of thought. For many it just may not be a financially viable way of living. If you have an expensive mortgage or maybe young children then the instability of running the business may not be for you.

Work out how much you need to live

This is perhaps the biggest area you need to consider, could you earn enough to survive? To do this you will need to ascertain exactly how much money you require to comfortably pay your mortgage and bills etc. Initially and perhaps even for some time you may find that running your own UK Home Business will involve a sharp cut in wages, so it is vital that you really think about this first and if you are prepared to cut back on luxuries until you find your feet.

One area that many do not really appreciate is that in order to build a successful business you need to have good feedback and recommendations. When you initially begin your home business you may not have this and you need to decide if you have the time and money to be able to survive whilst building up your profile.

Work cannot always be guaranteed

When you first set up your business you will need to market and promote as much as possible to get your name out there. Failure to do so could mean little or no work which you cannot afford. It is therefore important to be aware that you will need to invest a lot of your time, but not necessarily money, into making sure you get as much traffic to your site as possible.

Remember that it is important to keep initial expenditure to a minimum so look for forums and social networking sites to help promote your business. Be prepared for the fact that many areas of business are extremely competitive and sometimes you can go for several weeks, if not longer, without work.

It is also worth taking into account any overheads you may have for supplies or materials to get your UK home business started. Make sure that you factor in every cost so that you are always aware of your financial situation and can avoid getting yourself into financial difficulties.

Learn more about how you can make money online by visiting this home business advice site.

Great Tips for Setting Up Your UK Home Business

12/9/2009

This is just a short article to explain just some of the key areas that you will need to consider when setting up your UK Home Business.

Investigate ways you could find work

One of the main things you need to think about is where and how you will go about finding potential work and customers. Depending upon the area of your business it may be worthwhile looking on the internet to see how much competition there could be either online or in your local area. After all there would be little point in running a business if there are already a number of other successful businesses as you may not be able to gain enough work.

It may also be a good idea to join as many relevant websites as you can find and ask questions and generally have a browse around. This can give you some ideas on how to conduct your business and marketing which should mean that you are fully prepared for when you start your business and you will not get any nasty shocks.

Make sure that you make enquiries

It is always a good idea to work out what the going rates are for the work you will be doing. Often you may be surprised to find that you cannot earn as much as you originally thought. It also means that you can work out if you can survive financially on your new wage and generally if your UK home business would be viable.

If you have never set up or run a business before then you might find that contacting a marketing expert or business mentor could help teach you how best to conduct your new business. This way you will know exactly how best to approach your advertising campaign and be given some useful tips to help get your business up and running successfully. By doing this you could avoid months of unsuccessful and expensive marketing campaigns.

Think about any additional expenses

Depending upon the type of business you have you may need to think about any additional expenses when you start up. This could be an initial outlay for materials or supplies, finding somewhere suitable to work and also if you will need any assistance with the day to day running.

It is worth taking into account all of the above before you make the financial commitment to begin your own UK home business.

Learn more about how you can make money online by visiting this home business advice site.

How to Use Free Press Releases to Market Your Business

12/9/2009

Press releases can be a really great way to promote your UK home business online and advertise the work that you can do to a wider audience.

Simply put, a press release is a way of announcing a product, an event or in this case a business to the press and other areas of the media. They have a more professional look to them then some other forms of marketing and can be a good way to catch a potential customer’s attention. However one of the advantages of using this as a way of promoting your business is that it is often completely free and gives you a great platform from which to target potential customers.

Writing a press release

If you have never written a press release before then they may sound a bit scary but once you have created them a few times you will realise just how easy they are. When it comes to writing a press release you will need to use a professional manner as they are seen to be an official statement and therefore must be well written. Make sure that you give it a catchy title and summary to draw people into reading the release itself.

It is a good idea to make sure that the article contains only what is necessary and is to the point. You will also need to make sure that you provide all of the relevant contact details needed in case anyone would like to contact you further. Including a section on what it is your UK home business involves in further detail and a bit of background as well as any links back to your site are also useful additions.

How would I place a press release?

When it comes to placing the press release you will find that there are number of sites available that allow you to do this for free. Normally a press release would be sent out or posted in advance of the event or the date that the information is required for. If you are using this as a form of advertising for your UK home business then you may like to submit your press release to a number of different sites to enable you to gain a wider audience.

Learn more about how you can make money online by visiting this home business advice site.

Why Building a Client Base Is the Key To Business Success

12/9/2009

Many people assume that working for yourself is easy and that you can spend your time leisurely working. They are surprised to learn just how much hard work is actually required to run a successful UK home business. To begin with finding work can take along time and is unfortunately not always going to be regular.

For this reason building up a client base is vital. It means that you should be able to receive work on a more regular basis and hopefully receive some recommendations to extend this client base even further. As a result this should mean that your business will become more profitable.

It is important to remember that creating a suitable client base is not something that will happen over night. You will need to dedicate a lot of time and effort to create your client list and this will be based upon the marketing and promotion you carry out as well as the standard of work that you produce.

Creating a profile for your business

When you first set up your UK home business you will need to create some sort of profile for yourself. By doing so you can effectively market yourself to your potential customers and provide them with information on what it is you offer and how they can contact you.

You will no doubt find that there are many relevant websites, forums and blogs that could enable you to reach out further and spread the word of your business directly to those interested. Depending on your line of business, you may find that you have more success by going straight to your customers.

Maintaining your profile

In order to keep and further expand your client base you will need to make sure that the work that you carry out is of a high standard and that you maintain the deadlines you are set.

You should also never take for granted the custom that you have and should continue to promote and advertise your UK home business as it grows. Often offering discounts or special deals can be a great way to attract new customers as well as enticing the old back

Remember that the more jobs you successfully finish and the more good feedback you receive, the easier it should become to obtain further work and you will slowly accumulate a client base of happy customers.

Learn more about how you can make money online by visiting this home business advice site.

How To Make a Lot of Money Using Very Few Words

12/2/2009

If you are looking for a way to promote your UK home business for free you would be a twit to ignore Twitter!

Twitter is a relatively new social networking site and one which often causes some confusion. However for those in the know it can provide you with a great way of networking and also promoting your UK home business. It allows you to provide information on what it is you do, what products or services you have to offer and any promotions or special discounts that are available.

Tweeting?

If you are new to twitter you may find some of the terms slightly confusing at first. A ‘tweet’ is essentially text written by the owner of the account with a maximum total of 140 characters. This is then displayed on your profile. By creating these tweets anyone who follows your status updates will be informed of any promotion for your business and can reply if they feel necessary. This provides a great source of advertising for your business.

Choosing your target audience

It is important that you make sure that you select your target audience or ‘followers’ carefully and choose only those who may be interested in what your business has to offer. There is no point in spending time and effort promoting yourself to someone who has little interest or need for your UK home business. Once you have built up a list of followers you should do your best to interact with them on their posts and build up a relationship. In this way they will become familiar with you and your reputation will hopefully increase.

Do not spam

As with any form of business promotion it is important to respect your client base and avoid spamming them. This will only lead to alienating your potential customers and they are then unlikely to use your business or mention you to friends or family. You should therefore make sure that you do not over ‘tweet’ and that you mix up your posts a little to avoid it sounding like constant promotion. After all, Twitter is essentially a fun social networking site.

Remember to keep all of your ‘tweets’ professional and informative as you only have a limited number of characters with which to promote your UK home business. Include keywords and links and perhaps from time to time offer discounts especially for your followers so that they can see that you value their friendship and business. Overall you should treat Twitter as any other type of business promotion and make sure that you take your time to do your research and build up business contacts slowly and carefully.

Click here to receive FREE online marketing advice and tips to help you run a profitable home business.

Do You Know Where To Find Your Customers Online? Read This and Find Out.

12/2/2009

When you are looking for ways to promote your business online it’s important to know where to find your potential customers. In most cases there will be an online chat forum dedicated in your particular subject and these forums can be a fantastic way of promoting what you have to offer.

Using online forums to promote a business may not be an area that you have considered, but it should be. Forums can provide you with the perfect platform to gain ideas, subtly carry out some market research as well as for promoting your UK home business. Not only is this free but it also saves you a lot of effort and allows you to speak to and interact with potential customers.

Research is important

However this does not mean that this type of promotion is completely quick and easy. It will require you to do some prior research to find forums that are relevant to your business and also for you to slowly become a part of the community. Trying to find larger forums that are very active and have a number of members is a great way to ensure you have a wider audience.

It is important to remember that forums are not specifically designed as a way for people to promote their business and by doing this you can quickly alienate yourself. You may find that some forums have a marketplace or trading area but even so you are not advised to just jump straight in and promote your business. More often then not many forums will have rules preventing you from spamming or promoting your business so tread carefully.

Interact with members

In order to get the most out of the forum you should interact with other members, post on threads and become better known and trusted before you mention your UK home business. In this way you can build up a good, solid reputation with other members and you are more likely to be listened too and gain more custom. Often those who just join up to a forum and make no effort to contribute will be ignored.

Making sure that you spend some time on the forum will not only allow you to become a genuine member but will also allow you to ask questions and be given useful answers that could benefit you in the long run.

Using signatures

One of the great features of forums is that the majority will allow you to have a signature of some sort which will automatically show up every time you make a post. This can consist of words, links or pictures and could be a very useful way of linking to your business without having to mention it straight out. However you should make sure that it is not too long or too fussy and does not make it seem like the reason you joined was purely for promotion.

Overall forums can make a really great free addition to promoting your UK home business. Just make sure that you abide by any rules of the forum, slowly build up trust and respect and do not over promote.

Click here to receive FREE online marketing advice and tips to help you run a profitable home business.

Did you know That Facebook Can Be a Fantastic Way To Promote Your Business?

12/2/2009

Facebook is perhaps one of the biggest social networking sites around at the moment and as such can provide you with a great way to promote your UK home business. It provides you with a way of building up a contact base and keeping people informed of everything you are doing. If you are unfamiliar with Facebook it may take a little time for you to get to grips with it but is worth the effort. All that is required is some time invested on your part.

Using Facebook Groups

Facebook has an ever increasing number of groups and these can provide you with access to like minded people who are likely to be interested in your business and what you have to offer. The main way in which people use Facebook is by setting up a group page for your UK home business. This will then give you a platform in which to explain what it is you do. You can then choose to add existing friends and contacts or ask them to invite anyone they feel may be interested. Facebook also allows you to look for similar groups and invite members to join yours from there.

One of the advantages that Facebook has over twitter is that you can directly email members of your group. It is however wise to remember that you must keep this professional at all times and do not send too many emails as you may end up alienating people.

Status Updates

Another way of keeping in your contacts up to date with everything you are doing is via your status updates. This enables you to post updates and information for all of your contacts to see and can be a great way to get them to engage with you by commenting on your status updates.

Those that do respond in this way are often interested in your business and you could then think about providing subtle links to your site or your products or services. You may also like to run special promotions or discounts for members of your group to make them feel that you value their business.

It is important to remember that Facebook does not offer a quick way of promoting your UK home business and it can take much time and effort in order to build up a suitable contact base. You should never under any circumstances spam your contact list as this could well be detrimental to the overall perception and success of your business.

Click here to receive FREE online marketing advice and tips to help you run a profitable home business.

How To Show Your Customers You Are An Expert In Your Field.

12/2/2009

Articles can be an incredibly useful tool when promoting a new UK home business. They can be used to set yourself up as an expert in your field & are generally a great way for people to see that you know exactly what you are talking about and that you are professional.

Perhaps one of the greatest advantages to using this form of promotion for your business is that it is free and can help to generate traffic to your website.

Writing your article

It is easy to be put off at the thought of writing articles if you have no experience in this area. However with the expert knowledge you have of your UK home business & niche you may find that the process is in fact much easier then you thought, so it is worth giving it a go. If you really feel that you still cannot write then you should be able to find someone who can do this using information provided by you. However this will normally mean paying a small fee.

Once you have written the articles and are happy with them you can then post these to a variety of online sources such as article directories, or send them out to your existing client base or post them on a blog if you have one. You could also link to them in your status if you have a Facebook or Twitter account.

The benefit of submitting your articles to article directories is that they can easily be found and may in some cases be re-printed by others.

Keywords are important

You probably already know from searching the internet yourself that the more keywords and phrases you can pack into an article the easier it will be for people to find you. After all, one of the main purposes for you to write these articles is as a form of marketing. Once your target audience has then read your article they may wish to contact you, so leave an email address at the bottom of the page so that people know how to get in touch.

In most cases you will find that you get a very quick response to your articles and it may be worthwhile submitting to as many directories as possible to maximise the audience. Either way, articles are a great method for promoting your UK home business.

Click here to receive FREE online marketing advice and tips to help you run a profitable home business.

5 Great ways to advertise your UK Home Business for FREE

12/2/2009

This is a quick article highlighting a few ways to advertise or market your business online for FREE.

When you first set up your UK home business you will need to find a way to get yourself noticed with minimum expenditure. With the popularity nowadays for working from home as well as social networking sites, there are now a number of ways that you can actually get your business noticed for free.

Twitter Marketing

Setting up an account on Twitter is completely free and will allow you to add contacts or for them to search and find you. You can then update your status or ‘tweet’ regularly with new deals or promotions for your business and keep everyone up to date instantly.

Facebook Marketing

Another great way to get your UK home business noticed is to set up a free account on Facebook. This is possibly one of the biggest social networking sites available online and can offer you a great way of building up a contact base and keeping people informed of everything you are doing.

The best way to use Facebook is often to set up a group page for your home business and explain exactly what it is you do with a list of contact details. You can then either add friends and contacts and perhaps ask them to invite their friends to join. Or if you prefer you can search for similar groups and invite members from there.

The benefit of this over twitter is that any updates or offers can be emailed to every member of the group guaranteeing that they will see them. However remember that it is essential to keep this professional and not to bombard people with emails.

Article Marketing

Articles can be a great way to help you build your reputation and get your UK home business noticed. If you are not used to writing articles you may find that it can take a while to complete, but the benefits are definitely worth the time spent.
Producing a written account of your business and what it is you do is likely to help you spread the word quickly and efficiently. You can also give detailed information regarding promotions and any other information you feel is relevant and that may encourage people to use your business.

Forums Marketing

Once you have set up your business it can be a good idea to search online for forums that are relevant to your line of work or that may have members interested in what you offer. Many forums will have an area for people promoting their businesses or a section where members request services. This can be an ideal way to spread the word about your business and find custom.

If you do a good job then you may find that others will be more inclined to use you if someone else reports good feedback on the forum.

Free online classified ads

Using classified ads is possibly one of the most well known methods of getting your UK home business noticed online. You simply create an ad that provides adequate information on your business, what it is you offer etc and leave your contact details. You can then place the ad in the categories that you feel are most relevant. Make sure that you include plenty of keywords so that your ad can be easily found by those looking.

Click here to receive FREE online marketing advice and tips to help you run a profitable home business.