Starting a business from home is a great option because it reduces the risk and helps you to keep your overheads under control. If things don’t work out, you won’t be left with huge debts after paying for an office space and lots of employees. It is also a very flexible option for people that have family responsibilities to manage while they are running their business. However, there are some downsides to running a business from home. A lot of people assume that a home business is less professional and some people worry that your products and services will not be as good as those of a large company. Even though you know that isn’t true, you need to find a way to convince potential customers. These are some of the best ways that you can make your home business look more professional.
A Dedicated Address and Phone Number
If your business number is just a mobile number and your business is registered to a residential address, that immediately makes you look unprofessional, so a dedicated address and phone number for the business are the most important things to sort out. There are some great services that give you a self employed virtual LLC address that you can register the business to. All mail will go to this address and then be scanned in and forwarded on, so anybody that looks your business up will assume that you are operating out of a large office building rather than your front room.
You should also pay for a dedicated business number that is separate from your personal phone. That way, the number looks professional and you always know that you are getting a business call, so you can answer in an appropriate way.
A Good Domain Name
When you use a free tool to build your own website, you will get a domain name but it is usually very long and wordy, and potential customers will be able to tell that you are not paying for your own domain name. It’s only a small thing, but it can send the wrong impression. It does not cost that much to buy your own domain name, and it will make you a lot more professional. Just make sure that you choose something short and easy to remember.
The Right Space For Meetings
If you need to meet with clients for any reason, that is a big problem when you run the business from home. It does not look professional if you invite somebody over to your house, so you need to find the right space for meetings. In some cases, inviting people out for lunch is fine, but it depends on the customer as some people may still view this as unprofessional. It may be better to use coworking spaces that allow you to rent out meeting rooms instead.
These are all simple ways that you can improve your image and make your home based business look more professional, so you can convince potential customers to take you seriously.
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