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Creating a Professional Image For Your
Home-Based Business
© 2001 Elena Fawkner
Like it or not, there is still a segment of the population who will erroneously
conclude that you and your business are less than professional and
competent just because you run your business out of your home.
Dumb? Obviously. Narrow-minded? Yes. Wrong? Absolutely. Unfair? No question.
Want their business? Well ... yes. OK, then you're going to have to play the
game and beat them at it.
Here's how to do it. It's a little sneaky, but hey,
all's fair in love and home-based business.
HARMLESS FICTIONS
The name of the game is creating the right image ... employing a few harmless
fictions, in other words. First off, incorporate or register a fictitious
business name. Nothing screams "PROFESSIONAL!" to Potential Client as
an honest-to- goodness corporate or business name on your letterhead and
business cards. Never mind that anyone can spend ten bucks and register a DBA,
it at least *looks* professional, and that's what counts.
OFFICE ADDRESS
The next problem you have with Potential Client is that you don't want your home
address to give you away.
What do you think looks more professional in Potential Client's eyes: 123
Cherryblossom Way, Apt. 103, Suburbia or 123 Major Blvd, Level 37, Big City?
The answer is a serviced office. These don't have to cost a lot of money if you
use them pretty much as a post office but they CAN give your business all the
big-city prestige your potential client is looking for. You can also use a post
office box for this purpose but many a Potential Client will be on to you in a
flash. They didn't just fall off the turnip truck, you know. (Right.)
An additional advantage is that you can use your serviced office to meet with
Potential Client. After all, the last thing you want is to have him coming to
your REAL office. Heaven forbid! Most serviced offices will make meeting rooms
available for a flat fee.
TELEPHONES
This is probably the trickiest part of all. How do you know it's safe to answer
the phone in your home office even though the sounds of your young children
playing just outside your office door will be heard by the caller? You simply
don't.
There is a simple way of dealing with this. Only give your home office number to
existing clients. They already know you are professional and competent and
should therefore have no issue with the fact that you work from home.
For anyone else, give out the number of an answering service that will answer
the call in your business name and can tell callers that you're in a meeting
with another client and take a message. Your serviced office will offer this
service as well. You can then return the call at a time when you know tell-tale
background noise won't give you away.
In fact, a trick some people who work from home use when returning calls is to
run a tape of office background noise. This both gives the impression you
are working in a large office AND it masks any slight tell-tale household noises
that may, despite your best efforts, give you away.
Once Potential Client becomes an actual client and you've proved to his
satisfaction that you are professional and competent, you can tell him that
you've decided to start working out of your home to reduce unnecessary overheads
and give him your direct phone number.
No matter how enlightened your client-base is as a general rule, it is
imperative that the telephone be answered in a businesslike manner. I don't care
how sympathetic, supportive and admiring your clients are of your decision to
balance your work and family commitments by running a successful business from
home, there is nothing cute about a five year old answering your business line.
It's unprofessional, not to mention downright annoying.
So have a separate phone line for your business and lay down the law to your
household that no-one, NO-ONE, is to answer it but you (unless, of course,
you're employing your teenage children in your business in which case they
should be instructed on how to answer the telephone in a professional manner).
If you're away from your office, divert your calls to your answering service.
EMAIL
Something else to think about is the image of your email address. Which is
Potential Client to consider more corporate/professional: maryann@isp.com or m.entrepreneur@mycompanyllc.com?
It's worth spending $35 a year on your own domain name just for the professional
email address, even if you never intend to create a website. Mind you if you're
going to have your own domain why NOT create your own website? But that's
another article ...
STATIONERY AND PROMOTIONAL MATERIALS
It goes without saying that your stationery, business cards and other
promotional materials should reflect a professional image. If you have
incorporated your business or registered a fictitious business name as
recommended earlier, this is a good start. A company or business name on
letterhead and business cards can't fail to convey a professional image provided
they are professionally printed on quality stationery stock.
OFFICE EQUIPMENT
There's no point having quality stationery if you're going to use a cheap and
cheerful inkjet printer for your correspondence. Invest in a medium quality
laser printer instead. They don't cost a lot of money these days and you can get
a unit that triples as a fax machine and photocopier for only a few hundred
dollars.
So, what do you think? You may be thinking "I wonder whether it's really
worth the effort to try and please just a small number of potential
clients". Is it worth it? Well, look at it this way. Are these suggestions
really anything more than basic, common sense, professional business practices?
Regardless of what your potential and existing clients may think about the
concept of businesses run out of their owners' homes, first impressions DO
count.
Elena Fawkner is editor of A Home-Based Business Online ... practical home
business ideas for the work-from-home entrepreneur.
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