A home business has
different stages that you should monitor closely to increase chances of
success. Passing each stage gives you one level of assurance, and it determines
how fast you fall or rise in the competition, and essentially, how fast you can
lose or enjoy your investment.
Learn how to wade through
problems by learning more about the four different phases that you have to go
through as you move on with your home business.
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| Home Business: Connecting to the world from home (Image courtesy of www.freedigitalphotos.net) |
1. The Planning Stage
The planning stage involves
formulating your home business concept,
conducting feasibility study, formulating marketing and sales strategies, planning
the production, packaging and distribution, writing down the system and
mechanics, and basically everything essential in starting the operation. This
is where everything starts to materialize. Trial and error can still happen at
this stage as you are basically at a stage full of questions rather than
answers.
It starts in you choosing
the type of business to adopt. You then learn if this is practical and worth
your full time. Possible clients, dealers and other sources of raw materials
start to come in as you conduct studies. Planning on the strategies comes next.
It is the most important part of this stage as it will be its end point and the
starting point of the next stage. Failure to finish it will keep the door for
the next stage closed.
Strategies include
promotional techniques, marketing tools, price setting, and distribution
process.
2. The Implementation Stage
This is the start
of your operation and hopefully, of your revenue. A trial operation is
sometimes called soft opening and it is totally acceptable. To minimize
possible losses and increase public awareness at the same time, some home business owners conduct a mock opening
to ensure that their business is welcomed by the public. Manpower comes in here
as well, with growth rate usually depending on the demand of the market and how
fast your business grows within a specified time frame (usually according to
your own time table).
What is good in
paper is not necessarily good in implementation. You may see your plan as a
brilliant idea but may still crumble if not implemented the best way possible. Adjustments
should also be accounted for. Make sure that you know how to handle all the
stress, problems and premature losses so you can move on to the next stage.
3. The Earning Stage
Taking care of your
home business until it returns
your investment is very important as a business remains a liability unless you earn
your capital back. A home business
is said to be at its most crucial time before the ROI (Return of Investment).
You can feel the real assurance of an income once you pass this stage.
How long will this
stage be? It really depends on your projection, which in itself depends on the
entire capital, operational cost, revenue, etc. The bigger your initial capital
is, the longer it might take for you to reach ROI. However, the bigger capital
you invest also means the bigger chance of earning more in the shortest possible
time. That is because higher capital usually means higher production, higher
value, and more efficient machinery (which includes production, labor,
distribution, etc). It doesn’t always follow, but it’s likely. Restaurants
normally have an ROI of two years, while small home businesses that thrive on
daily production and sales can get their ROI immediately after every sale.
4. The End Stage
There are average life
spans for businesses, whether they are home businesses or large enterprises. A restaurant,
for instance, is said to have a life span of seven years. You should try to
reach ROI before that time, but surpassing that period means longevity and
stability. It is important to know these limits beforehand, so that you can
take them into consideration as early as the planning stage.
Predicted life
spans don’t dictate the actual operation of a business. You can still operate
and be more successful after the predicted end for as long as you manage your
business well, and the market continues to patronize you. The end stage is only
based on market volatility and not on the actual operations.
#stages of home business
#how to start a home business
#home business
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