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By Kristie Tamsevicius
While working from home can afford you the luxury to work at
home in your pajamas, I wouldn’t necessarily recommend it. It
may be nice to sit with your feet on the desk, munching on
Twinkies, and twirling the cord while you speak with your
client on the phone, but it’s not very professional.
When you work from home, it’s easy for clients to infer that
you run a Cousin Jim-Bob operation. By acting like a
professional, delivering top rate service, and communicating
clearly with clients, you’ll come across as a true
businessperson.
Contrary to what some “experts” may tell you, I don’t believe
lying to clients and putting on a false air of big corporate
is
the way to go. I have found that the more up front I am about
who I am, how I am, and why I am that clients are more
accepting of work on my terms. By being very up front about
the
fact that I am a professional who chooses to work from home
and
be with my kids, I attract clients who are very supportive of
my endeavors and are a joy to work with.
Here are some general guidelines for maintaining
professionalism in your home-based business:
Email – If you have a business web site, then see if you can
set up a POP email address that matches your web site address.
For instance, rather than being Betty@aol.com, you should try
to set up Betty@plantsRus.com. It looks more professional and
it reinforces the branding of your web site address and
business name.
Telephones – Pay the extra money to have a second dedicated
business phone line installed.
Answering machine – Set up a phone with an answering machine
that can pick up if you are busy or tending to the kids. A
money saving idea is to get a phone/fax machine. That way you
get the functionality of two office machines for the price of
one. It also takes up less office space. Also, consider
purchasing a head set for added portability and free hands
during client calls.
Get a PO Box – Using your home office address publicly
potentially dangerous, but it doesn’t come across as very
professional. Keeping your home address confidential can help
protect your privacy and keep unintended guests from visiting
unexpectedly.
Create an office “suite” - If you must use your home address
or
if you live in an apartment, make your address appear to be
more
business like by adding Suite 101 to your regular address or
using it instead of your
apartment number.
Equipment – Get the right equipment for the job. If you need a
high quality copier for your line of work, make the
investment.
If you can’t pull off professional looking work, you may lose
clients.
Communication – Working from home can offer lots of life’s
little interruptions, causing you to miss calls or work crazy
hours. Your clients need to know that they are important.
Returning phone calls and email quickly will reassure them
that
although you are home with the kids that you will still be
very
responsive and available to meet their needs. If you work
“mom”
hours such as 6 a.m. until noon or something different than
the
norm, be very clear with clients about that. It helps manage
their expectations and it helps you to not be interrupted
during family time. If you are clear about your work hours,
clients will respect that.
Client Meetings – If you are in a business that requires
client
meetings, consider your league of clients and if it is wise to
meet in your home. While kitchen table meetings may do for
some
businesses, a more sophisticated level of clientele might not
go
for that. Off-site meetings either at a hotel conference room
or
a coffee shop can offer the atmosphere and professionalism for
the executive class of clients.
Autoresponder – An autoresponder acts as a highly effective
automated sales tool. It can respond immediately to standard
email inquiries when you are away. By setting up different
emails and using several email responders, you can allow
customers to get customized and automatic responses to various
questions. For example, you could set up a frequently asked
questions (FAQ) responder. OR you could set up another for
pricing information. Still others could be set up with various
tip sheets and articles.
Email Signature – An email signature is like a mini ad that is
attached to the bottom of an email. Its message could be as
simple as your name and email, or as elaborate as a flashing
animated gif. And with a just few mouse clicks, you can add
your signature to the bottom of your emails automatically. To
sum it up, an email signature is a FREE MARKETING tool, with
the power to reach MILLIONS about how your products could
BENEFIT them.
What do you include in an email signature? An email signature
would include the following elements: your name, title, web
site URL, phone number, email, teasers about product specials,
mini bio about yourself, moniker, slogan, or catch phrase,
affiliate product information, and a subscribe instructions
for
your email newsletter.
About The Author: Kristie Tamsevicius, is the author of "I
Love
My Life: A Mom's Guide to Working from Home"! Thousands of
aspiring entrepreneurs have used her step-by-step home
business
system to earn money working from home. Get a free ecourse
Home
Business Success Secrets at
www.webmomz.com/ilovemylife1.htm
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