|
||
When you work from home, it's easy for clients to infer that you run a Cousin Jim-Bob operation. By acting like a professional, delivering top rate service, and communicating clearly with clients, you'll come across as a true businessperson.
Contrary to what some “experts” may tell you, I don't believe lying to clients and putting on a false air of big corporate is the way to go. I have found that the more up front I am about who I am, how I am, and why I am that clients are more accepting of work on my terms. By being very up front about the fact that I am a professional who chooses to work from home and be with my kids, I attract clients who are very supportive of my endeavors and are a joy to work with.
Here are some general guidelines for maintaining professionalism in your home-based business:
Email – If you have a business web site, then see if you can set up a POP email address that matches your web site address. For instance, rather than being Betty@aol.com, you should try to set up Betty@plantsRus.com. It looks more professional and it reinforces the branding of your web site address and business name.
Telephones – Pay the extra money to have a second dedicated business phone line installed.
Answering machine – Set up a phone with an answering machine that can pick up if you are busy or tending to the kids. A money saving idea is to get a phone/fax machine. That way you get the functionality of two office machines for the price of one. It also takes up less office space. Also, consider purchasing a head set for added portability and free hands during client calls.
Get a PO Box – Using your home office address publicly potentially dangerous, but it doesn't come across as very professional. Keeping your home address confidential can help protect your privacy and keep unintended guests from visiting unexpectedly.
Create an office “suite” - If you must use your home address or if you live in an apartment, make your address appear to be more business like by adding Suite 101 to your regular address or using it instead of your
apartment number.
Equipment – Get the right equipment for the job. If you need a high quality copier for your line of work, make the investment. If you can't pull off professional looking work, you may lose clients.
Communication – Working from home can offer lots of life's little interruptions, causing you to miss calls or work crazy hours. Your clients need to know that they are important. Returning phone calls and email quickly will reassure them that although you are home with the kids that you will still be very responsive and available to meet their needs. If you work “mom” hours such as 6 a.m. until noon or something different than the norm, be very clear with clients about that. It helps manage their expectations and it helps you to not be interrupted during family time. If you are clear about your work hours, clients will respect that.
Client Meetings – If you are in a business that requires client meetings, consider your league of clients and if it is wise to meet in your home. While kitchen table meetings may do for some businesses, a more sophisticated level of clientele might not go for that. Off-site meetings either at a hotel conference room or a coffee shop can offer the atmosphere and professionalism for the executive class of clients.
Autoresponder – An autoresponder acts as a highly effective automated sales tool. It can respond immediately to standard email inquiries when you are away. By setting up different emails and using several email responders, you can allow customers to get customized and automatic responses to various questions. For example, you could set up a frequently asked questions (FAQ) responder. OR you could set up another for pricing information. Still others could be set up with various tip sheets and articles.
Email Signature – An email signature is like a mini ad that is attached to the bottom of an email. Its message could be as simple as your name and email, or as elaborate as a flashing animated gif. And with a just few mouse clicks, you can add your signature to the bottom of your emails automatically. To sum it up, an email signature is a FREE MARKETING tool, with the power to reach MILLIONS about how your products could BENEFIT them.
What do you include in an email signature? An email signature would include the following elements: your name, title, web site URL, phone number, email, teasers about product specials, mini bio about yourself, moniker, slogan, or catch phrase, affiliate product information, and a subscribe instructions for your email newsletter.
With the recent growth of social networking sites such as My Space and Facebook, online self expression has become the latest trend. Many individuals dedicate countless hours, days, and even months trying to create social networking pages that give outsiders a bird's eye view of their thoughts and personal beliefs. While on one hand, social networking sites can be used to promote a positive cause or professional business, too much of a good thing can be detrimental to one's career and professional image.
Gone are the days when social networking meant exactly what it stands for. These days, social networking sites can be used to promote professional businesses, organizations, and other causes. Members of these sites have also begun creating pages that contain pornographic pictures and other offensive imaging. If you are 18-20 years old and a member of the, “Girls Gone Wild” group, it may be fun for now, but what about your future? For example, a recent news story describes how a police officer was fired because of offensive imaging on his, My Space page, which consisted of pictures of women being tortured in a satanistic manner. Although, these social networking sites take preventative measures, it is still up to the individual to take responsibility for themselves and the images and content that they post on their webpages. In this particular case, this is especially true because of the type of value system and beliefs, police officers in the local community strive to represent. A police's professional image plays a huge role in the public's opinion of that individual and the police department.
The same holds true for other professional companies and organizations. In order to prevent being embarrassed by prospective employees, employers have begun doing background checks on these individuals. Many employers have refused to hire individuals that post offensive pictures and other material on their personal webpages. While some critics disagree, the reasoning is simple: employees are apart of the organization, therefore, employees represent the organization. This not only applies during work hours but after work as well. When an employee working for a major company embarrasses themselves, by disgracing themselves in public, it is also embarrassing for the company or any other organizations that individual is associated with.
How can this be avoided? As an individual, it is always important to remember the importance of a good reputation. It is said, that it takes years to build a good reputation and only moments to ruin it. Credibility and reliability are key aspects of building a good reputation. Understanding the importance of weighing the consequences of our decisions and considering our long term goals is especially important when trying to project a professional image. The solution is simple, when creating personal webpages, think of the consequences that may result from posting images that may be offensive to others. No one wants to lose the opportunity of a life time because of pictures from their spring break in college. Before you post these images consider your future and how others will view you as an individual and a professional.