Like
it or not, there is still a segment of the population who will
erroneously conclude that you and your business are less than
professional and competent just because you run your business
out of your home.
Dumb?
Obviously. Narrow-minded? Yes. Wrong? Absolutely. Unfair? No question.
Want their business? Well ... yes. OK, then you're going to have
to play the game and beat them at it. Here's how to do it. It's
a little sneaky, but hey, all's fair in love and home-based business.
HARMLESS FICTIONS The
name of the game is creating the right image ... employing a few
harmless fictions, in other words. First off, incorporate or register
a fictitious business name. Nothing screams "PROFESSIONAL!"
to Potential Client as an honest-to- goodness corporate or business
name on your letterhead and business cards. Never mind that anyone
can spend ten bucks and register a DBA, it at least *looks* professional,
and that's what counts.
OFFICE ADDRESS The
next problem you have with Potential Client is that you don't
want your home address to give you away. What
do you think looks more professional in Potential Client's eyes:
123 Cherryblossom Way, Apt. 103, Suburbia or 123 Major Blvd, Level
37, Big City? The
answer is a serviced office. These don't have to cost a lot of
money if you use them pretty much as a post office but they CAN
give your business all the big-city prestige your potential client
is looking for. You can also use a post office box for this purpose
but many a Potential Client will be on to you in a flash. They
didn't just fall off the turnip truck, you know. (Right.) An
additional advantage is that you can use your serviced office
to meet with Potential Client. After all, the last thing you want
is to have him coming to your REAL office. Heaven forbid! Most
serviced offices will make meeting rooms available for a flat
fee.
TELEPHONES This
is probably the trickiest part of all. How do you know it's safe
to answer the phone in your home office even though the sounds
of your young children playing just outside your office door will
be heard by the caller? You simply don't.
There
is a simple way of dealing with this. Only give your home office
number to existing clients. They already know you are professional
and competent and should therefore have no issue with the fact
that you work from home. For
anyone else, give out the number of an answering service that
will answer the call in your business name and can tell callers
that you're in a meeting with another client and take a message.
Your serviced office will offer this service as well. You can
then return the call at a time when you know tell-tale background
noise won't give you away. In
fact, a trick some people who work from home use when returning
calls is to run a tape of office background noise. This both gives
the impression you are working in a large office AND it masks
any slight tell-tale household noises that may, despite your best
efforts, give you away. Once
Potential Client becomes an actual client and you've proved to
his satisfaction that you are professional and competent, you
can tell him that you've decided to start working out of your
home to reduce unnecessary overheads and give him your direct
phone number. No
matter how enlightened your client-base is as a general rule,
it is imperative that the telephone be answered in a businesslike
manner. I don't care how sympathetic, supportive and admiring
your clients are of your decision to balance your work and family
commitments by running a successful business from home, there
is nothing cute about a five year old answering your business
line. It's unprofessional, not to mention downright annoying.
| It is of course not full article. You should login first to show full article. If you have not account, please register. It is FREE!!! |
Elena Fawkner is editor of the award-winning weekly ezine,
A Home-Based Business Online, a down-to-earth publication
containing practical home-based and online business ideas,
telecommuting job listings, original articles, free e-books and
much more. She also runs the A Home-Based Business Online
website at at http://www.fawkner.com.
You can subscribe to her newsletter at the site.
|
