This article stresses the importance of doing your homework before embarking on an internet based home business. So many people waste money because they forget that the same rules apply in the online world that work offline. Due diligence is necessary to avoid the many scams and sharp practices that try to part us from our cash! Remembering the 7P's helps prepare us properly for a suitable business opportunity.
Copyright (c) 2009 Steve Cowley
Running a business from home may seem like a great idea. After all, you get to be your own boss and lose the commute!
The temptation is to look at the opportunities available on the Internet and think "this is easy, let's go!" Before you know it your credit card has taken a hammering and you've got several half finished projects on the go. I know - I've been there!
It is almost as though we think that an Internet based business runs on a different set of rules to an offline business. It all looks so simple and the earnings that some people seem to make just boggle the mind!
While it may be true that the Internet provides increasingly new ways of doing business there are certain constants that must be observed if you are going to succeed. .
Before you go into any kind of business you absolutely must do your homework first. It is really important that you know how to recognise the attributes of a good business idea and understand fully how it will work.
Ask yourself what makes a business successful?
A successful business is one that meets customers' needs better than they are met elsewhere. It doesn't have to offer something completely new - it just has to have an element that makes people think. "That is something good. I will try it". Specifically, a business has to solve a problem for the customer.
The problem with so many so called "opportunities" on the Internet is that they are not businesses - not really. They are simply kicking the same old rubbish and half baked ideas around and somehow parting the gullible from their hard earned cash. The promise of easy money, that you don't really have to work for, is just so alluring....!
In among all the cons, scams, and sharp practices there is gold to be found! Once you strike on something that feels genuine, do not rush in without first evaluating it thoroughly - no matter how cleverly the ad copy talks of closing deadlines and imminent price rises! If it is a genuine opportunity it will still be there tomorrow, after you have done some serious due diligence.
One of the great things about the internet is the ability to search huge volumes of information quickly. If there are problems with the business you are looking at a simple web search should be able to turn them up. Do your homework before you start and you may save yourself a lot of grief further along the path.
When you are evaluating your potential plan try to be objective. It is very easy to be carried away by emotions and "overlook" the obvious weaknesses of the idea. Enthusiasm is important in any business endeavour but try to temper it with good old fashioned common sense. If something seems too good to be true it probably is!
Not every business is duplicable! Something that has worked for one person in one time may not work in another set of circumstances. On the internet things change very quickly and many of the strategies that worked 18 months ago may be old hat now!
You don't need to reinvent the wheel but you do need to make full use of the old grey matter between your ears. The eventual business you settle on should be something that people will spend their money on. Always remember that the idea of doing business is to make money! If you are not making money then it is not a business, merely a way of entertaining yourself! The pertinent question is always, "What am I selling and to whom am I trying to sell it?"
The seven steps I spoke about in the title? One on the most important phrases you can ever hear:
Prior Preparation & Planning Prevents P*** Poor Performance.
Learn it well because it is so true!
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