Starting a magazine or newspaper business at home
What to look for in you, your situation and your business model
The only factor common to any home based business model is YOU. You are the one common asset for any home based business you choose. So it is therefore important to ensure that you personally and professionally have what it takes to succeed in a home based business.
Qualities you personally want to score highly are:
* Self-discipline – ability to stay focused without constant supervision
* Time management – a week can look empty or overflowing, depending on how well you manage your time
* Passion – does the business quench your drives and needs? Or is it just something you think you might enjoy? Best to start with a lot more conviction than ‘might enjoy’.
* Confidence – you need to be ready to believe in yourself. A pay-check from a boss regularly affirms that we are doing well and that the world likes us. Generating your own pay-check, while incredibly more rewarding, is not so guaranteed and initially will be not so regular.
Qualities your situation should score highly are:
* Space – do you have a quiet space to do your business? Will you forever be fighting with housemates, children, partners or animals to etch out two lots of 2-3 hour-spells every day without disruption?
* Equipment – if the business model requires a refrigerated delivery van, do you have the money to buy one? What is the balance between what you need to purchase and what is provided for you?
* Safety Net – if you have to mortgage the house and failure to break all sales records within 12-months means certain bankruptcy, DON’T DO IT! You need to be able to give yourself 12-months to succeed, whether you are starting an ice-cream van business or a magazine.
Qualities your business model should score highly:
* Concept – 85% of business start-ups fail within the first year! Most of these are because the business concept was weak, there was little or no marketing to support the business, no business plan, not strategy, wrong skill sets or a mismatch of venture and operator. The strength of franchise type business models is that the model is more often proven.
* Support – good support, whether from a business partner, family, friends and/or headquarters is crucial to successful home based businesses. If you are looking at a franchise model, what sort of IP differentiates them from the competitors? Is it strong technology? Is training and collateral provided?
* Experience – how long has this model been around? Is it a passing fad? Is business heading the way they claim, or will they be old news tomorrow?
Above all else, talk to your friends, family and colleagues about the venture. If you are looking for a lifestyle change or sick of competing with all the rats for the dead-end jobs, a franchise business may be right for you. Buying a business is buying a job. You are guaranteed to get it, but how long it lasts depends entirely on you.
