What to watch out for in home based businesses...
You should STOP and proceed with caution if you come across any of these signs. Take a closer look at the opportunity before you proceed any further...
Check List
Work at home opportunity
Resources & Links
-Are they REGISTERED with the Better Business Bureau (BBB)?
Pyramid Schemes are illegal and not allowed to register with the BBB.
-What do others have to say about them? Have there been any newspaper articles or magazine write ups about them?
-What other businesses are they involved in? Are they known to you? You want to know what kind of reputation they have. Find out if they have a good honest reputation before signing up with them.
- How long have they been in business? Find one that is established before investing your money. Many companies fail in their first 5-7 years.
-A home business usually requires an investment of some kind. Ask questions about what the investment is:
Will there be any further costs? ~Materials, software, or equipment needed to be purchased.
Find out about any little "extras" that will be necessary to build your business and what the costs of these "extras" would be.
If a particular company is licensed in only one area, it may be because they are a small business. It is up to you to check them out properly.
-When you first ask for more information about this business, are you charged for this information? There should be NO OBLIGATIONS for just hearing or receiving initial information.
-Has this company or the founder been awarded any prestigious awards or recognitions for performance, work ethics, or anything to do with the type of person they are, or business they run?
-Besides being registered with the BBB are they a member of any organizations that you can check up on? (i.e. Chamber of Commerce.)
-What types of training and support does this business offer and are there any costs involved? Some companies charge you for attending a training session where you are supposed to go and learn more about them. (Personally that puts up a little red flag with me.) You should check these companies out more thoroughly before proceeding any further.
-How many hours will you need to work in a day or a week? Do you really think it is realistic to earn $10,000 a month if you only worked for 5 hours a week? No one is going to pay you for doing nothing. An at home business takes a lot of hard work and effort in order to get off the ground.
-Will there be any travel involved with this business? Or is it 100% home based, and who has to pay the travel expenses? Know what is expected of you before you begin. -What training will you receive? Is it free? Do they have a proven plan for training and support? Will they help you reach your goals? Do they just give you information and expect you to take it from there, or will they help you when it is needed? Do they have easy access to their training?
If training is only available to you from 100 miles away and 3 days a week it can be quite inconvenient.
-Do you get any kind of support from the company? Many businesses offer a support network of some kind. Is it available at all times or only certain hours out of the day in certain time zones?
-Do they have real people available to speak with you or is it all auto response?
An answering machine or automated email is not much help if you just deleted that file you needed and don't know how to find again. There will be times that you need to speak to a real person.
Follow your instincts. If this home based business sounds too good, it probably is. Just because they say they are the best business to earn money with, doesn't make it so. Don't get caught up in the hype they throw at you to get you to sign up and spend your hard earned money.
Check them out, and proceed with caution.
