Start a Small Online Business at Home in 5 Easy Steps

2020 has been the year when many people have started their own small online businesses right from their homes. It seems like everybody has turned their hobbies into a supplementary source of income. Some cooked italian pasta, others created artisanal shampoo, and yet others perfected their homemade bread recipes. And that is just a very minuscule sample of all the types of businesses that popped up during the pandemic.  

But how did those  businesses get started at all? What should you know before you start an online business at home?

To answer these questions, we have prepared this guide to help you on your quest to start a small online business at home.

1. Assess your idea

Although it is considerably easier to start an online business from home than to start a traditional business, you still need to think about whether the business idea you have is a viable one. Even if you have a great idea, there might not be a considerable market for it, or maybe your product would be to expensive for what your target market is willing to pay, or there is a well established competitor within your niche who will be all but impossible to dethrone or take away even a percentage of their market share. This is a crucial step for any business, and before you spend any time on anything else you must consider if your idea is good from a business perspective. 

2. Make a Business Plan

Once you have decided that your business idea is a viable one, and likely to succeed, then it is time to sit down and write a detailed business plan for your venture. Making such a business plan will ensure that you have a clear idea of what your company will look like in terms of sales, marketing, finance, human resources, etc. A business plan is also an important tool if you are looking for external investors. 

3. Choose a name

Choosing the perfect name for your business can be a very daunting task. After all, this might be a defining factor in your eventual success (or failure). That is why it is important for you to take your time and evaluate carefully what name you want your business to have. Remember that nowadays your name will be reflected on URLs and search engines and so it must be something that is easy to find and easy to remember. 

4. Choose your marketing channels

Whether marketing through facebook, instagram, twitter, pinterest, or via a mailing list on your website, it is important that you choose carefully which channels make the most sense to your business. This will depend mostly on your target audiences and where they can be found hanging out online. 

5. Image is everything

Once you have taken care of the previous steps you are almost ready to launch your small online business from home. But one last thing you must take into account is the fact that you must be in control of how your company is perceived. This is where things such as a custom domain name, email addresses and such play a vital role. Or you could further cement your reputation as a legitimate business through a virtual office. A virtual office enables you to effectively conduct your business from wherever you choose to while being registered to a specific business address in a relevant city, etc. With a virtual office you can add a few services on top that will help boost your professional image, such as hiring a virtual receptionist, booking a meeting room whenever necessary, having your company name on the directory, etc. It is important that you make sure that your business is being perceived as professional and well taken care of. 

About Andrés Sanjose

Andrés Sanjose is a writer and editor based in Guatemala. He previously lived in Berlin for 10 years where he witnessed the birth and amazing evolution of the Virtual Office phenomenon, while working as a freelancer in the german capital. He is very interested in what the future holds for this exciting industry and loves to write about it.