Archive for the ‘Work Tips’ Category

Many home business owners use email as one of their primary forms of communication with their customers and clients. On one hand this is great: it cuts down on phone time, your customers can easily send a request at any time of the day and, emails are much “greener” than traditional faxes.

However, there is a downside. If you overlook one email from a regular client or customer the relationship could suffer. Therefore organizing your email inbox is as essential as organizing your desk, if not more so.  Here are a few ways you can manage your emails more efficiently:

Set up regular times to check your inbox: Checking your inbox twice an hour wastes precious time that could be spent far more productively. Set a schedule for checking emails and it’s not a bad idea to let others know what it is, so they know when to expect a reply.

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Establishing a lively forum can be a great promotional tool for your  home business but, many have a problem getting their forum noticed. Here are a few ideas for a successful forum:

As usual, content is king – Before you begin creating the categories and topic areas for your new forum think carefully about what your target audience’s interests really are. Begin with the most pressing and popular issues then expand as your forum grows.

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Everyone loves to get gifts for the holidays, whether they are 9 or 90. Many business experts agree that giving clients and customers a small token of appreciation for their business during the holiday season makes a lot of sense. The simple act of giving a gift conveys how much a business owner values their clients and how they will continue to do so going forward.

For many home business owners though money is rather tight. Especially around the holiday season; they may not have the available budget to send gift baskets to all their clients, or the time to hand select individual gifts. This does not mean they should give up on the concept altogether, it just involves a little more creative thinking.

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The holidays are fast approaching and believe it or not amidst all the excitement it can be a great time to rev up your home business marketing efforts. During the holiday season chances are you will be attending a number of festive occasions which can provide a great opportunity for networking and subtly promoting your home business.

A question commonly asked at any holiday gathering will be “What’s new? “. This s perfect opportunity to talk about your home business venture without any obvious selling (which may not be appropriate for a light hearted occasion). Carry a few of your business cards just in case and follow up with anyone who has a genuine interest.

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If you run an at home e- commerce business ,one of the risks you run every day is falling victim to credit card fraud.  When you accept online credit cards transactions you have no physical card to swipe, no customer to look in the face or signature to review. In short you have very few ways of knowing if the person making the purchase has the right to be using this credit card at all. Unfortunately banks canl hold you responsible for these charges, even if they approved them.

So what can a home business owner do to cut down the risk that they fall victim to credit card fraud? It would be easy to say do not accept them at all, but online shopping is all about convenience so your customers will expect you to.

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