It’s said that yet another recession is coming, and if that happens, it seems the nation could struggle with more economic woes. Jobs are hard to find, and many large corporations have been laying off people left and right. Things may appear bleak now, but you can work through it. The advice you find below will give you the way to make money in good times and bad.
If your home business requires that you drive during work hours, make sure the mileage is tracked and collect your gas receipts. Any business trip, even only a one-day trip, is a deductible business expense. However, you need to be sure that you’re able to prove that the trips had to do with your business.
If you create and sell a product, calculate how much it costs you to create it, as you want to make a profit. Basically, wholesale markup is two times your cost. Usually, standard retail is double the price of a wholesale item. Try and establish a price-point that benefits both you and the consumer.
Always take breaks, but don’t get immersed in household tasks or personal activities. However, you should not let your personal issues take away from your home business. Take short breaks to exercise or work in the garden; this will refresh your body and mind.
Update your website if your inventory has run out on individual products. Customers do not like to wait, and you will seriously upset them if the items they ordered won’t be arriving for several days. Give your clients the option to chose other products and let them know when a product is on back-order.
A great money making tip is to provide lessons in your area of expertise. A lot of people enjoy the flexibility that comes with learning from an individual rather than a school. Some typical home lessons can be hobbies like singing, guitar playing, art or photography.
Make sure you have a separate business account so there are records of business transactions. Try to have all expenses and orders pass through this account. By doing this, you can keep your business and personal transactions separate. It is also important to obtain a credit card that you can use solely for your business.
Customers should be given incentives when they refer others to do business with you. That word-of-mouth is really powerful, as a trusted opinion beats a printed flyer every time. People love to get things discounted or for free, so reward your customers for helping your business grow.
Everyone should have business cards. There are many cheap, or even free, online offers for business card printing. Your cards should include all relevant information including your name, your business name and logo and your phone number. Adding your website and email are good ideas as well. This will make it easier for your customers to reach you in a variety of ways.
Ensure that you set aside money for taxes! You should put aside 20% of your income earned in order to have it when it comes time to pay your taxes.
As stated above, a recession is looming and we are currently in a depression. You might wonder “How can we get by?” This article has hopefully provided you with some great tips for surviving with this Great Recession.