by Daved Brosche

Created on: January 28, 2007   Last Updated: April 21, 2007

People tend to think that working from home is for the super small business owner that just doesn't make enough money to afford proper business location. The truth is , there are just some businesses that have no need for a traditional office. Some business are better managed from the comforts of a home office.

Before you decide to start converting your empty basement into a home office you need to make sure that your business is going to be a home business in the long run. Make sure you will have no need to spend money on expanding to new locations before you start spending money remodeling the basement.

Some factors to consider are:

Customers - Think about who your customers are and what type of professionalism they expect. Most people wouldn't want to go get a tattoo in someone's basement. So make sure that people won't look down on your business because it is based from the home. You also need to make sure that customers are allowed to come to your house. Some business licenses will only let you operate a business from your home as long as customers wont be coming to that location.

Brand Image - Make sure that because your business is run from the home that it won't hurt the image of the business. Some customers like the idea of a home based business because it brings your or your company down to earth. If you are in a business where image is everything and you live in a one bedroom house in the middle of suburbia you might need an outside office.

Company growth - Take some time to dream big and see what happens with your business. Is there a possibility you would ever want your little candle making company to go national? If so, you are going to have to start thinking about things like employees, product storage and more. Something a home office just couldn't handle. If most of your products or service are intellectual based or done on location, a home office is probably the choice for you.

Now that we have covered some of the factors to consider before creating a home office, lets look at some examples. Below is a small list of some businesses that are perfect to run from home.

Service Professionals - This is probably one of the easiest businesses to run from home. This is true because most service based businesses are done on location. Businesses such as photographers, wedding planners, massage therapists, Sports trainers, and more are perfect for the home office. The home office will give you a place to organize and conduct your business in a more professional manner.

Architect - Talk about a job where your home is your office. A architect is a perfect at home job. There is no real need for employees, you can work alone, and having clients come to your home would actually help your business. What better way for a client to see your handy work than in your own home?

Computer Professionals - Anyone from a graphic designer to an IT specialist is a great home based business. Graphic designer have no real need to work anywhere other than from home. Throw up a website and you can start designing ad for Japan while you are still in your underwear.

With the advances in technology even IT specialist can work from home. They can now connect to servers and computer right from their own home computer.

Interior designer - This is right up there with the architect. Having clients come see your home and office is a great way to show off your work.. In fact it would probably help for customers to see how you designed your own house. Why would anyone want to hire a interior designer who cant even design the inside of their own house?

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