So You Want to Be a Work-at-Home Mom

Home-based businesses are estimated to be a $427 billion-a-year industry. In recent studies it was found that as many as 105 million people in North America alone were working at home. Considering this information, it is obvious that home-based businesses can be successful and authors Jill Hart and Diana Ennen will help you succeed with your own. So You Want to Be a Work-at-Home Mom details all the basics of starting a business in a spiritual, motivational, and comprehensive manner. From deciding what type of business to start to keeping your family and faith first, this helpful tool details every aspect of establishing a business. With proven success tips utilized by the authors and others who own work-at-home businesses, this inspiration approach will provide you with the resources you need to start your own home-based business. So You Want to Be a Work-at-Home Mom includes: * Detailed information on types of businesses to start * Ideas and assistance for setting up, operating, and marketing your business * Definitions and descriptions of work-at-home terminology and processes * Help for developing your Website * Explanations of the business nuts and bolts, including bookkeeping, taxes, and more About the Authors JILL HART is the founder of Christian Work at Home Moms, CWAHM.com. Jill is a co-author of So You Want To Be a Work-at-Home Mom. Jill has published many articles and is a contributing author in Laundry Tales, The Business Mom Guide Book, I'll Be Home for Christmas, and Faith Deployed. She holds a bachelor's degree in human development and family studies. Learn more about working from home at http://www.cwahm.com/work-at-home/ . DIANA ENNEN has been a leader and mentor in the work-at-home industry since starting her business, Virtual Word Publishing, in 1985. She is the author of many books, including Virtual Assistant the Series; Become a Highly Successful, Sought After VA and Words from Home: Start, Run, and Profit from a Home-Based Word Processing Business. She resides in Margate, Florida, with her husband and their three children. Below is an interview with the authors of So You Want To Be a Work-at-Home Mom – Jill & Diana. If you have questions they are happy to answer your questions anytime. Leave a comment below or email Jill@cwahm.com or Diana@virtualwordpublishing.com How long have you been working at home? Jill Hart - I've been working at home since 2000. I had to go back to work full-time for a brief period in 2003 when my husband got out of the Air Force. At that point I got even more serious about making my business work and I've been home full-time since then. Diana Ennen – I’ve been working at home since 1985, when my son was born. He’s now graduated college and already working towards his own career. I absolutely love it. I can’t imagine doing anything else. What types of businesses do you operate? Jill Hart – I run Christian Work at Home Moms, CWAHM.com, a website full of free resources, job listings and information about home businesses. I also write articles and books (yes, more books to come!) and am a blogger for sites like Time/Warner's Christian Momlogic.com and a member of the Guideposts blogger team Diana Ennen– I’m the President of Virtual Word Publishing. I’m a virtual assistant and specialize in marketing & publicity. I’ve also written numerous books on how to start a VA business and offer PR and VA Coaching. Tell us about your book? How do you think it can benefit those who want to start a business? Jill Hart - The book has been such a "God thing." He orchestrated the entire sequence of events - from putting Diana and I together as co-authors to bringing us to the right publisher. The book is a hands-on practical guide for anyone who wants to build a business from home. We cover topics ranging from how to select the right type of business for you, to how to get started, to how to market and grow your business. Diana Ennen - I think one of the best features of our book is that it’s not only informative, but motivational as well. You’ll feel like friends are helping you on your journey to success. Also, we discuss numerous types of businesses to start and provide proven methods to achieve success. We also often hear how starting a business can be so overwhelming. That’s why we pay special attention to all the how tos. We feel very confident our book will help, not only those starting a business, but those already in business wanting to expand it. What types of businesses are featured in your book? Jill Hart - We have such a great range of contributors - everything from direct sales companies like Southern Living at Home and Avon to unique product-driven businesses like BSM Media and GrillCharms. These woman are amazing and give readers a great insight into how they've grown their businesses in very different ways. Diana Ennen - We cover everything from direct sales companies to specialized areas such as medical transcription and virtual assisting. Also, Jill shares detailed information on starting a community based membership site. We think you’ll get a lot of helpful tips too from such work-at-home powerhouses as Maria Bailey and Lesley Spencer Pyle. Do you have any tips for success for Christian entrepreneurs that you’d like to share? Jill Hart - I think my favorite tip - shared with me by one of our contributors, Tammy Degenhart, almost ten years ago is that working together benefits everyone. She told me, "Jill, what you give to others God brings back tenfold" and I've seen that hold true time and time again. It may not be in financial gains and it may not look like what we expected but God is so faithful in that when we work together there is no competition - it's a win-win situation. Diana Ennen - Do what you believe in and use your own skills and prior experience to find the business that’s just right for you. Research/Research/Research. The more you research, the better your business. Continue to market and be out there. So many once they find a few clients stop marketing. You need to get out there continually. You then become the go to person when someone needs services or products that you offer. What are some of the challenges that you see with those starting or operating a business? Jill Hart – In my experience, I've talked with many women who get frustrated because success doesn't come easily or quickly. Working from home may sound easy, but in reality it can actually be just as hard as working outside the home. There are many unique challenges, especially when working at home while raising children. If women don't prepare themselves, they can become discouraged and disheartened. Diana Ennen– One of the major challenges I see is losing belief in yourself that you can do it. That’s why I think a faith-based book will be so beneficial. Even when times get tough, you can rely on your faith to forge ahead. With the economy, do you believe it’s still a good time to start a business? Why? Jill Hart – I think it's a better time than ever. The internet is so much more widely used than it was even nine years ago when I began my website. If people do their research and find a company that fits them as well as their budget this can be a great time to break into the work-at-home field. Diana Ennen – Absolutely. In fact, I think there’s never been a better time. You might have to work a little harder, but it absolutely can be done. Plus, there are so many businesses who need us more than ever because of the economy. For example, with virtual assistants because businesses are downsizing they are seeking the help of a VA to help on an as needed basis. Your book is written from a Christian perspective? Tell us a little about that and how you feel that makes it so unique? Jill Hart – My faith is central to who I am and therefore central to my business. I began Christian Work at Home Moms because I wanted women to have a safe place where they could discuss not only business things, but also talk about an area that doesn't get talked about a lot in business circles - how our faith affects our businesses. The book is written in a way that doesn't hit anyone over the head with our faith, but it's true to who we are and talks about things from the vantage point that we see life - through the lens of our faith. Diana Ennen – There are so many books out there today on starting a business. However, few have the Christian mom in mind. We provide a lot of scriptures and examples of how you can use your faith to help you. Our hope is that not only will your business thrive, but it might just give a little boost to your faith as well. Learn more about the book at Beacon Hill Press or SoYouWantToBeAWAHM.com.

The Work at Home Family Carnival - August 24, 2009

Welcome to the August 24, 2009 edition of The Work at Home Family Carnival.

This is a new blog carnival dedicated to the work at home family. Our focus is on internet marketing techniques, marketing and advertising tips for home based entrepreneurs, as well as family management for families with one or more work at home parents. We have many good articles this month which should help readers who are already working from home or thinking of starting a home based business.

This is an edited carnival and only quality articles which offer good content will be accepted. To keep this carnival manageable, please submit only your best 2 blog posts for inclusion. I had to exclude a number of very good articles because there were over the 2 submissions per author. I follow this rule for my own submissions. Also, all articles must be family friendly and be related to the topic of home based businesses and working at home. Sales pages with little or no content will not be included in the carnival nor will site with too much hype or excessive income claims. Also, starting with this month, I will no longer include long lists of resources e.g. the 100 best blogs for entrepreneurs, etc. which turn out to be advertisements for schools and other programs.

Our carnival is quickly becoming very popular, and I want to thank all of our authors for the many quality blog posts that I have received this month.

Internet Marketing

Helene Zemel presents Internet Marketing Basics - Creating a Website posted at Work at Home Mom and Dad, saying, "How to create your own marketing website. Follow these 7 steps for good results."

Debbie Foster presents Some Things To Know About Pay Per Click Advertising posted at Internet Income - The Journey, saying, “There are many steps you must master before you can become profitable with PPC. It is not a matter of throwing up something in ten minutes and seeing what works. You will need to research and implement each part of the process properly, otherwise your campaign will not succeed.”

Debbie Foster presents The Role of Inbound Links in SEO posted at Internet Income - The Journey, saying, “There are a number of strategies you can use to get high quality inbound links. Remember, the quality, not the quantity, is the most important factor you will want to take into consideration.”

Chris McClelland presents How social networking sites can also help you save some money posted at Lucrative Investing, saying, “Twitter has actually become kind of useful to those who are trying to save some money also. Companies like Sears, Fiji Water, and Gold’s Gym are looking to be your friend on popular social networking sites like Twitter and Facebook.”

Christian Russell presents How to Use Social Networking Sites for Business posted at Next Level Blogger, saying, "I like to keep it simple. Simple is good. Know why? Because it works. Social networking for business is not rocket science, but for some strange reason, many of us WANT it to be! Perhaps it’s human nature. Perhaps if we think it’s complicated, then we will be able to figure it out…and after we figure it out, it will be easy. And our lives will then be easy. And money will fall into our laps without us ever having to lift a finger, because we’ve figured it out. We know the secret!"

Christian Russell presents Quick Start to Internet Marketing posted at Next Level Blogger, saying, "Many people out there are looking for a quick start to internet marketing. I understand. Most people in my network are business people, and we are the kind of people who want to get things rolling quickly. You know being online and marketing yourself with blogging, internet marketing and social networking is essential, but you don’t know the best way to go about it, and you have a million questions."

Jimmy Adames presents List Building Tips ? 3 Effortless Ways to Grow a List of Active Subscribers posted at Internet Business Building, saying, "Earning an income using the Internet is much simpler if you have a list of active subscribers. The key to making sure you succeed is to have reliable marketing tools and quality content to provide your customers and prospects. What is holding you back from building a list of active subscribers?"

Robert Alan presents Big Mistakes to Avoid with Your First PPC Campaign posted at Sell It on the Web, saying, "Here's a great list of things that must be avoided for newbies and budding online marketers who are considering paid search (PPC) marketing as a means to start and grow their businesses online."

Robert Alan presents Ultimate Twitter Starter Guide for Small Business posted at Bill Hazelton, saying, "Here's a great "starter guide" and how-to manual from Sell It! on the Web on how to get started using Twitter for your small business."

Sell It! on the Web presents Affordable Shopping Cart Platforms for New Business Owners posted at Bill Hazelton, saying, "Recommendations for several affordable shopping cart platforms for new website owners and e-commerce marketers."

Sell It! on the Web presents Guide to Optimizing Your Landing Page Copy posted at Bill Hazelton, saying, "Tips and recommendations on how to optimize the copy on the "landing pages" of your website or blog in order to convert more of your visitors into buyers."

Ben Dinsmore presents My Experience with Facebook’s Advertising Program posted at Trees Full of Money, saying, "If you're looking for a new medium to advertise your small business, you may have success with highly targeted ads on social medial sites like Facebook."

Golam Moinuddin presents How to make money on eBay posted at Internet Auction Coach. Editor’s note: The author provides 7 steps that you should follow if you want to be successful on ebay.

Jimmy Adames presents Internet Income Tips - 12 Critical Steps For Recovering Opportunity Jumping Junkies posted at Internet Business Building, saying, "Many people go online everyday looking for ways to make extra money and just as many have every intention of earning a long-term Internet income while simultaneously firing their bosses. Unfortunately, the high expectations of overnight riches turns people into dejected participants. How many times have you quit one money making opportunity for another?"

Rusty Shelton presents Solving the Internet Marketing Puzzle posted at My Internet Marketing Journey. Editor’s note: The author discusses the importance of knowing your why, tenacity, and hard work as the key to success in mlm and network marketing.

Brian Terry presents Does website design really matter? posted at Big Selling Website Design, saying, “I still believe that a visual brand identity is important, but the challenge is in creating graphics that not only look good but also sell. When you get the balance right and combine it with other proven direct response strategies the sky really is the limit!”

Simon Stapleton presents Why Don’t Graduates Get Jobs? posted at Career & Personal Development for CIOs, Technical Professionals and Self-Professed Geeks, saying, "The Recession has created massive competition for the fewer jobs that become available, and it’s graduates that are paying the price. Lack of experience in industry seems like an obvious reason why graduates are not offered job placements, but surprisingly, this is not the primary reason (according to a survey of 200 recruiting managers in the US, UK and South Africa).

Simon Stapleton presents The 12 Dumbest Mistakes Network Managers Make posted at Career & Personal Development for CIOs, Technical Professionals and Self-Professed Geeks, saying, "What are the 12 most stupidest gaffes a network manager can make? More to the point, have you made one, or experienced one yourself? See if you recognize any of these clangers?"

Marketing and Advertising Tips

Shawn M. Driscoll presents Real Growth in Unreal Times posted at Shawn Driscoll, saying, “You can position yourself for growth now and into the future by making a few simple and smart moves”

Kevin Blaikie presents HOW TO - BUSINESS IDEAS FOR BEGINNERS - WarriorForum - Internet Marketing Forums posted at jokijio. Editor’s note: Good advice from the Warrior Forum.

Sam Carrara presents The Seed Becomes a Big Tree posted at Sam Carrara's Marketing Education. Editor’s note: The author explains the maturity stage of the product life cycle.

Bobby Leong presents Complaints Can Be Good posted at Internet Marketing Solutions. Editor’s note: The author points out a problem with the Get Response autoresponder system.

Family Management

Helene Zemel presents AmeriPlan Half Price Discount Dental & Medical Benefit Plans posted at Health Plans Plus, saying, "Self employed entrepreneurs often have trouble finding affordable health benefits. If they have a pre-existing condition, they may not be able to obtain coverage at any price. A discount medical plan can help. AmeriPlan is offering new members who sign up on or before 5 p.m. Central Standard Time on September 14th and opportunity to receive benefits for 1 full year at half price."

Brian McKay presents Flexible Spending Account (FSA) for Dependent Care posted at MonitorBankRates.com, saying, "A dependent care flexible spending Account (FSA) allows you to save money pretax to pay for dependent care in the process also lowering your taxable income."

Eldon Sarte presents This is My Night Job posted at Wordpreneur.com, saying, "Writing is everything. Or is it? Sometimes, even with the best laid plans, it needs to take second place. Temporarily at least." Editor’s note: Some interesting commentary on balancing work at home with caring for a small child.

Chris McClelland presents Best buys of the fall posted at Lucrative Investing. Editor’s note: The author lists some good deals to be had during the Fall season.

Quick and Easy Recipes

Renee V. Rouse presents Family Dinner for under $5 - Deli Sandwiches posted at Frugal-Living-Skills Blog, saying, "...Weekly grocery circulars often read “feed a family of 4 for under $10!”. I’m sure most of you have laughed at this as I did. As a result, I began to wonder what does dinner really cost for my family of 8? So I set a challenge for myself and I figured if I kept it under $5, I was doing good..."

Belle presents How to make Fried Zucchini - with pictures posted at Homesteaderbelle's Blog. Editor’s note: This recipe sounds yummy. Good step by step directions are presented.

Working at Home

DeMarcus presents Creating A Personal Development Home Based Business posted at Self Improvement Articles, saying, “Should you consider a personal development home based business? If you are passionate about being a mentor to others, or have a good knowledge base of personal development skills or resources, then perhaps this is for you.”

John Crickett presents How To Start A Home Based Web Design Business posted at Business Opportunities And Ideas, saying, “Starting a web design business from home doesn’t have to cost much at all. Best of all you can fit in most start up activities around an existing job allowing you to test the waters before you jump in.”

Darwin presents Haverhill Home Staging Course - Have You Been Had? posted at Darwin's Finance, saying, "This article highlights a rapidly growing and heavily advertised "income opportunity" that you should consider further before forking over your money."

Leah Grant presents Things to Consider When Employing a New Strategy posted at Startup Success. Editor’s note: The author lists 7 key ideas that you consider when creating a business strategy.

nissim ziv presents Career Goals: Examples of Career Goals and Objectives posted at Job Interview Guide, saying, "It is only when a person has a clear thought about their career goals and objectives that they get ultimate satisfaction from their jobs and therefore progress faster. This article covers many examples for your career goals & objectives."

sagarika presents Skills that you should be learn for Success posted at Social Work for Mankind, saying, “True Success is simply the realization and obtainment of a worthy ideal or result that your heart is deeply connected to it & what you desired, results fruitfully in your life, business, wealth, or a worthy ideal.”

Tiffany Colter presents Getting Ahead of the Game posted at Writing Career Coach. Editor’s note: The author discusses some techniques for getting a jump start on a new writing project.
Gloria Booth presents Self Development and the Marketing Entrepreneur posted at MLM Marketing UK, saying, "Do you think that it's ok to set up in business then sit back and watch it happen? Or do you think there's more you can do, but not sure what? Find out how self development can make a difference."

Gloria Booth presents Donald Trump & Network Marketing posted at MLM Marketing UK, saying, "With the backing of business magnate Donald Trump, could this be the start of media acceptance of network marketing as a legitimate way to build a business and work towards financial independence?"

Gin G. presents Spotlight Ten Offers posted at Sense Scribe, saying, "Learn to use your computer for self-employment. Read more."

Miscellaneous

Ray presents SmartMoney 2009's Best Online Brokers posted at Money Blue Book, saying, “While I have written about the best discount online brokers in the past – reviewing what I believe to be the top brokerage companies out there for new stock and fund investors – it’s always good to check out what the financial experts have to say on the subject.”

fourleafclovergoodluckcharms presents Four Leaf cLovers posted at Four Leaf cLover Good Luck Charms.com, saying, "Luck plays a hugely significant role in many different aspects of our lives. Luck has the power to transform both our personal and professional lives. Do you feel lucky?"

That concludes this edition. Submit your blog article to the next edition of the work at home family using our carnival submission form. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.

Technorati tags: the work at home family, blog carnival.

Internet Marketing Basics - Creating a Website

Internet Marketing Basics Part 2

In Part 1 of Internet Marketing Basics, I ended by stating that “content was king.” It is your good content that will entice your readers to visit more often, stay on your site longer, request information from you, and ultimately purchase from you.

Now that you have created good content and copy, what do you do with it? Hopefully, you have already written some good articles and blog posts. You may even want to take this one step further and create your own website. Of course, once you have created your website, you will need to build traffic for your website. How to build traffic will be the subject of Part 3 of this series.

Creating Your Own Website

If you have a big advertising budget, you can certainly pay to have a beautiful website created for you. If you are just getting started, you may prefer to create your own website. In fact, optimizing your site for Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is more important than a glossy website.

Here are some steps that you can follow to create your own website:

1. First you will need to choose a good domain name. A site like www.godaddy.com will show you which URLs are available, make suggestions for you, and you can purchase a domain name through them.

2. You will also want to choose a website host. There are a number of good ones available. Be sure to choose a website host with good support. I have gotten good support from www.jumpline.com, but there are many others to choose from.

3. Select a Website Design Program. Depending on your level of expertise, you will need a program to build your website. There are some excellent programs that you can purchase such as Microsoft’s FrontPage or Adobe’s Dreamweaver. I was able to purchase a very easy to use WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) website builder for just $49.00 at www.sitespinner.com.

4. Begin creating your website. Start to create your website. Pay attention to spelling and grammar. Be sure that each website is both readable and attractive to the eye. Include links to your offers and/or affiliate sites but don’t overdo. Check all of your facts for accuracy. You do not want to mislead your prospects. If you have already written articles or blog posts about your business, using this content can give you a quick start into building your website.

5. Set up each page for optimal SEO. Be sure to use the keywords that you have researched liberally; however, don’t stuff your website with keywords. Remember that your website content must always be readable to keep your potential customers coming back. Be sure to thoroughly proofread your website. If grammar isn’t your area of expertise, ask a friend or family member to proofread your copy. See July 2 post for more information on keyword research. Even more important is selecting a good title for your website. This is what will appear in the blue bar at the top of your website and this is how search engines find you. Be sure to include some keywords in your title. As an example, the actual title appearing in the blue bar of my www.workathomemom-dad.com website is: Business Opportunities, Marketing Tips, and Advertising for Work at Home Moms, Dads, & Grandparents.

6. Be sure that your website is pleasing to the eye. Do not crowd your website and use an easy to read font. Be sure to leave plenty of “white space” on your website to make your website more readable. Use of graphics and photographs also create an interesting look to your website. When using graphics, be sure to give credit to the photographer or illustrator. For an inexpensive source of licensed photographs, check out www.istockphoto.com. Many of the photos on this blog have come from this source.

7. Make it easy for your readers to contact you. You will want to make it easy for your readers to contact you. It is a good idea to have a Contact Us page as well as links that lead to either a shopping cart or a source for additional information. To help you build your mailing list, be sure to include a lead capture form on your website.

The Work at Home Family Carnival June 8, 2009

Welcome to our very first edition of The Work at Home Family Carnival. The purpose of this carnival is to provide moms, dads, and grandparents with resources and information to help manage their busy households and businesses. Some of the topics to be covered include working at home, internet marketing, family management, marketing and advertising tips, and quick and easy recipes.

I look forward to the growth of this carnival and your future submissions. To be accepted, all articles must be appropriate to the subject matter of this carnival, have good content, not be spammy, and be family friendly.

Working at Home

Helene Zemel presents Finding a Great Home Based Business posted at Work at Home Mom and Dad, saying, "Now that you have made the decision to work from home, how do you go about selecting a suitable and profitable home business?"

Shawn M. Driscoll presents Stop! Don’t Throw in the Towel Just Yet! posted at Shawn Driscoll. Editor’s note: The author focuses on the importance of having a clear mission, a good business model to follow, a good working environment, and the need to have a plan of action to implement your business.

Fiona Lohrenz presents Guidelines For Preparing A Day Care Safety Statement posted at Child Care Only. Editor’s note: If you are considering starting a day care or pre-school business, you need to read this important article.

Brian McKay presents Business Insurance Basics posted at MonitorBankRates.com, saying, "Whether you’re a business owner, a risk manager or an executive, have a large or small business or employ five people or 500, purchasing the right insurance coverage is essential to your business plan."

Ruoall Chapman presents Everything you need to know about how to Make Online Beats posted at Make Online Beats. Editor’s note: The author provides good information for those interested in the music industry.

Patti Blevins presents Are You Driving Your Life Blindfolded? posted at Patti Blevins, saying, "Believe In Yourself and Enjoy Life!"

nissim ziv presents How to start eBay business from scratch posted at eBay Business Guide. Editor’s note: If you are thinking of starting an Ebay business, you will find this step-by-step guide very helpful.

Catherine VanWetter presents To the Heart of the Matter - The Myth of Busyness posted at To The Heart of the Matter, saying, "Have you ever wondered who you are if you are not busy? Busy taking care of other people, busy working, busy doing “stuff”? In everyday life, how does one step off of the “dread mill” of busyness? Are you present?"

Sarah Scrafford presents 100 Terrific Productivity Tools for the Bored or Unemployed posted at Online College.org, saying, “These 100 tools will help you get busy doing just about anything from organizing your DVD collection to planning your potential future, giving you no excuse to be bored or unemployed for long.”

Internet Marketing

nissim ziv presents Best EBay business ideas for home based business posted at eBay Business Guide. Editor’s note: The author provides 7 helpful tips and ideas for making money selling on Ebay.

Jim DeSantis presents How To Get Low Cost Products To Sell At Fair Prices On Ebay! posted at Work At Home Programs Reviewed, saying, "If you have been selling products on eBay, you know how difficult it is to find products cheaply enough to sell for a fair profit these days. You may not have considered several good sources right under your nose in your own hometown. But, the question is: Which promise the least amount of hassle for the most profit? Let's consider the most popular sources."

Diego Cervantes presents the Ultimate Guide to Web Marketing for Real Estate Agents posted at Real Estate Agent Database Blog. Editor’s note: You will find some excellent sources in this blog post for marketing your real estate business. The author has also included some web sources that are helpful for all businesses including article marketing and social media.

Quick and Easy Recipes

Helene Zemel presents My Tomato Rarebit Recipe A Good Source of Lycopene posted at Health Plans Plus, saying, "Here is a very simple but tasty recipe that has been in my father’s family for many years and is a good source of vitamins A, C, K and lycopene. It is also very quick and easy to make for busy parents who work at home as well an inexpensive, budget lunch."

Family Management

Jacquelyn presents Financial Concerns For a Stay-At-Home Parent posted at WParent.com - Wise Parenting Guide, saying, "This article gives suggestions on how to make the transition to a one-income household when one parent decides to stay at home."

Jack Schmidt presents Health Insurance Can Improve Your Love Life posted at SectorMatic Money Journal, saying, "Personal Finance - Everything for the Big Spender on a Budget. Now you can live like a fat cat, even if you're on a money diet. Laugh all the way to the bank with Jack Schmidt and SectorMatic. It's for you!" Editor’s note: A humorous look at a serious subject.

Nancy Miller presents Top 100 Blogs for DIY Home Improvement posted at Construction Management Degrees, saying, Hiring a contractor can be expensive. With monthly bills climbing and income shrinking, the “do it yourself” movement has gained momentum. Below are the best 100 blogs for home improvement that provide inspiration, design ideas, advice, and much more from those just starting out or those that have a lifetime of experience.”

That concludes this edition. Submit your blog article to the next edition of the work at home family using our carnival submission form. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.

Technorati tags: the work at home family, blog carnival.

Introducing The Work at Home Family Carnival

Due to the success of the Take Charge of Your Health Care Carnival which appears monthly on my Health Plans Plus Blog, I have decided to publish a new blog carnival on this blog: The Work at Home Family Carnival.

This carnival is for busy moms and dads who work from home and manage a family at the same time. Accepted articles should focus on business solutions and tips for moms, dads, and grandparents who work at home as well as suggestions for managing a busy household while working from home. All articles must have good content, and no more than 2 articles will be accepted per author.

I am looking for blog posts in the following areas: working from home, internet marketing, marketing and advertising tips, quick and easy recipes, family management. I promise to promote the carnival to gain traffic for your posts.

To submit an article to the carnival, visit www.blogcarnival.com and look for The Work at Home Family Carnival under business or click here. I look forward to reading your submissions.

Free Work at Home 101 course from CWAHM

CWAHM.com Announces Work At Home 101 A FREE online 3 week course designed to give moms a work-at-home starting place. Most people are curious about working from home. We know others do it, but aren't sure how they do it. CWAHM.com's Work at Home 101 is designed to give you an overview of the choices available that will allow you to work from home. This online course will give you the starting place you've been searching for. Best of all - it's completely free! CLICK HERE! Some of the things covered during Work at Home 101: * Where to Start * Telecommuting * Home-Based Businesses * Avoiding Scams * Entrepreneur Tips *AND MUCH MORE! To My Readers: CWAHM is one of the top ranked Work at Home sites on Google. Jill has been helping people find legitimate work at home opportunities through her CWAHM.COM and CWAHD.COM sites for years. She has personally helped me with my advertising, and I know that this course will provide you with excellent information on starting a successful home based business.

12 Tips for Effective Phone Presentations

You’ve done your marketing and now have leads to work with. Most likely you have snail mailed or e-mailed your client or customer additional information describing your product or service. You might have even sent your prospect a sequence of e-mails through an autoresponder. At some point in the marketing process, you must pick up the phone and actually talk with the customer. People new to telemarketing or direct marketing often feel like the phone weighs a thousand pounds, but with the right techniques, you can become confident and successful on the phone. Remember that with your phone call, you can do what is so essential to the network marketing process—build a relationship.

Here are some tips that you can follow for effective phone presentations:

1. Good Quality Leads. Be sure to start with good quality leads. When working with leads purchased from a lead company, get the best quality leads available. The best purchased leads will be phone verified or surveyed and exclusive to you. It is even better if you can purchase leads that have seen an overview of your specific opportunity. The adage that “you get what you pay for” is especially true of leads. Get the best quality leads that you can afford.


2. Self Generated Leads. Most network marketers find that the leads that they generate through their own advertising and marketing efforts are the best. When people see an ad that you have written and posted yourself, they are usually eager for the information that you have to offer and welcome your call. When people are truly ready to buy your product or join you opportunity, you won’t even have to sell them.


3. Have a Good Marketing Plan. Beginning network marketers often complain that they are having trouble signing people up, but they have invested little time and money on advertising and marketing. Building a successful business, be it an internet marketing business, a service, a product, or brick and mortar store starts with a good marketing plan. See my blog post: http://workathomemom-dad.blogspot.com/2008/06/formulating-marketing-plan-for-your-at.html


4. Show excitement and enthusiasm about your product or opportunity. Start with a product, service, or opportunity that you truly believe in. What is unique about the product, service or opportunity? Be enthusiastic when you describe these unique features, and your client will feel your enthusiasm.


5. Choose a good script and rehearse it. Do some role playing with your mentor, enroller, or even a close friend. Rehearsing your phone presentation will give you the confidence that you need for an effective presentation.


6. Your presentation should flow and sound natural. Know your script well enough to not sound like you are reading it. The best presentation will sound natural and not forced. Basically I do my presentation extemporaneously. I work with a 6 step outline on a 4 x 6 card which I use just to make sure I don’t forget any important points.


7. Build a relationship. Begin to build a relationship with your client, customer, or future team member. People will buy from or sign up with someone that they can trust and relate to. Type out notes so you can remember that their child was sick or that they have an upcoming birthday or event, etc. You can ask your prospect about it in a subsequent call. Building relationships is the essence of network marketing.


8. Be a good listener. Try to address the customer’s needs. Explain how your product will solve a problem that he or she may have. If you are in a competitive market, you can compare your product with a competitor’s product to show why your product or service can best meet the customer’s need, but do not be overly harsh or critical of another product. This will have a negative effect on your ability to close the sale.


9. Listen for signs that you are ready to close. Avoid a hard sell. People will buy your product or service or join your opportunity when they are truly ready. There are subtle ways of asking for the close. After my presentation, I will ask if the prospect has any questions. If I feel that they are really interested, I might ask them if they are ready to get started. If they are not ready, I always set a date and time for a follow up call.



10. Do have a good follow up system. Do not be discouraged if you do not close on your first presentation. It has been said that it takes at least 7 marketing exposures to close the deal. That is why good follow up techniques are so important. For more information on follow up see my blog post at: http://workathomemom-dad.blogspot.com/2008/07/importance-of-good-follow-up-techniques.html



11. Post Sales Follow Up. Post sales follow up is very important but often neglected. A buyer may have cognitive dissonance about what they have just purchased or signed up for. Cognitive dissonance can be definite as the “second thoughts” that buyers sometimes get after completing a purchase. Did they make the right selection? Can they really be successful with this opportunity? Be sure to send post sales literature. An after sale follow up phone call will certainly be appreciated. If the prospect will be joining your opportunity, be sure to provide him or her with adequate training. Keep your holiday list of customers and teammates up to date.


12. Ask for referrals. Referrals are your best source for enthusiastic customers.

The Importance of Good Follow Up Techniques with Prospective Clients and Customers

In both my career as an insurance agent and my present career as a Senior Regional Sales Director for AmeriPlan, a discount medical and dental benefits company, I have always been quite aware of the importance of following up with prospects and clients. As any good advertising professional will tell you, it takes a number of exposures to your marketing or advertising to make that sale no matter which industry you are in.

While we have all experienced those customers who are ready to buy as soon as we finish our presentation, and some clients will even buy directly from your website without even calling your 800 number or requesting more information via e-mail, chances are that these customers have already done their homework, have a need that your product, service or opportunity satisfies, and are ready to buy when they come across your advertising or website. There is always the impulse buyer too, but in my experience they are the first to return the product or only use your service for a short period of time.

For most sales, people will want to think about it. Sometimes the timing is just not right. Perhaps they have some extra bills to pay, their life is too hectic at the moment, or there is even a family crisis going on. Your prospects may be ready in the future to make the purchase, but if you don’t keep your advertising in front of prospective customers, you will lose them as future customers when they are ready to try your product, service or opportunity.

Here are some tips for following up with your prospects:

1. Keep an accurate and up to date database of all your customers and prospects. You can even subdivide your database into various categories e.g. age group, income level, type of product purchased, etc.



2. Set up a system of drip mails or repeat promotional announcements to send to your prospects and customers. Do this in a tasteful and subtle way. Send a drip mail or announcement frequently enough to keep your name in front of the potential customer but not so often that your messages are annoying.



3. I make it a point to follow up until the prospect unsubscribes from my list or tells me they are no longer interested.



4. Purchase an auto responder. I use Constant Contact for my drip mailings and newsletters. You can easily create beautiful promotional mailings, announcements, and newsletters with this program. Be sure to use only opt-in leads with Constant Contact otherwise purchase a more general type of auto responder.



5. Have promotions from time to time. It is not surprising that people will make that purchase when the price is right.



6. An informative, content rich newsletter makes a good follow up piece to send out. Your prospect will appreciate the timely information and good content.



7. Remember to send out holiday cards, not just at Christmas and New Years, but for other important holidays as well.

For more marketing tips and ideas check out my website at: http://www.workathomemom-dad.com/.

Finding a Great Home Based Business

There are many reasons to make the decision to work from home. For many parents, it is the desire to spend more time with children and family. Even if you have the best quality child care available, there is no substitution for the love and care that you can provide as a parent. It is so rewarding to watch your child take those first few steps, speak those first words, and later on to be able to attend school events. For other people it is the flexibility of being in charge of your own schedule and earnings. For people with disabilities, the opportunity to work from home can allow you to be able to earn a living without the hindrance of commuting to a work place. And with today’s high gasoline prices, working from home makes more and more sense with the money that you will save by not having to commute.

Now that you have made the decision to work from home, how do you go about selecting a suitable and profitable home business? Here are some suggestions:

1) Telecommuting – You might already be working for a company and like your job. There are many jobs that can be done just as well from home such as bookkeeping and accounting, data entry, advertising, editing, and many others. Discuss with your manager the feasibility of being able to work from home for all or part of the work week.

2) Special knowledge and expertise – If you have special knowledge, experience, or talent, put this to work for you as you start a home based business. For example teachers can start a tutoring service. People talented and skilled in music, art or theater can give lessons out of their home or even start a small school or studio. If you are skilled in market research, accounting, advertising, human resources, website design, computer programming, or other business related areas, consider becoming a free lance consultant or starting your own advertising, accounting, internet marketing, or other business service.

3) Choose a service or product you are passionate about – When choosing a totally new business, be sure to choose something that you are truly passionate about. If you are passionate about ecology, choose a product or products that benefit the environment. As a Senior Regional Sales Director for AmeriPlan, the discount dental and medical benefits company, some of my best team members are those that are very passionate about wanting to help people save money on their health care.

4) Hobbies – If you have hobbies like making jewelry, sewing, writing, and various crafts, consider turning these into businesses.

5) Work at Home Jobs – While there are many legitimate work at home jobs, do investigate them thoroughly before signing up. Generally, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Beware of such schemes as envelope stuffing, mailing letters, and assembling products. In some cases they are just trying to get your money for the purchase of a kit, and then there is no real work behind this. From my own experience, filling out surveys is time consuming, and most turn out to be just contests. Filling out surveys is very unlikely to pay your bills.

As with any important decision, be sure to do your research when selecting a home based business. Read as much as you can about the company, and speak to people who have been successful in similar businesses. If you will be working for or representing a company, be sure to qualify this company. How long has the company been in business? What credentials does the company have? Are they members of any professional or industrial associations? In addition, learn all that you can about their products and services.

Formulating a Marketing Plan for your At Home Business

As a Senior Regional Sales Director at AmeriPlan, a discount dental and medical benefits company, one of my main responsibilities is to see that my new Independent Business Owners get off to a good start. Whether you have a brick and mortar store, an online store or business, have purchased a franchise, own a business creating crafts and handmade items, or your business is an MLM or network marketing company, it is important to create a marketing plan. This marketing plan should be fluid and dynamic, and you should update it with some regularity.

Here are some steps that you can follow to create a successful marketing plan.

1) Learn all you can about your new business. Read all you can about the business and talk to people who have been successful in the industry. If you are with a network marketing company, attend meetings and work closely with your enroller. Review all company literature. Franchise businesses usually have very specific training for their franchisees.

2) Do some brainstorming and free association. Put down as many ideas that you can think up for marketing your new business. Do not censor any ideas. Think of all the ways that you can advertise or promote your business and do this over the course of several days. Even write down some wish list marketing ideas. In other words, if I had an extra $500 or $1000 or even more to spend on marketing, how would I use it for advertising and promotion?

3) Research all of the marketing ideas that you wrote down in step 2. Locate various advertising sources and find out how much each will cost. For example with magazine advertising, you will want to determine not only the price for various types of ads, but what is the circulation? What are the demographics for that magazine (income level, age of reader, interests and hobbies of the reader, etc.)? In other words, whom does this magazine target? Are your competitors in that magazine? Also speak to people who might have done this type of advertising before.

4) Choose your best ideas and come up with a marketing plan. Review your list of marketing ideas and select the 4 or 5 best ideas. (It is always good to have more than one type of marketing or advertising going on at one time. I am a strong believer in not putting “all of my eggs in one basket.” By participating in a number of different marketing activities, your odds of being successful will definitely increase. The ideas that you select become your marketing plan. Write this plan up and keep it in a safe place.

5) Develop your marketing ideas. For each of the ideas that you have selected, write down a course of action to implement each activity. For example, if you are planning to purchase some leads. Your course of action might include the following:

- Research various lead companies
- Compare prices
- Seek testimonials from people who have used this lead service.
- Purchase the leads
- What methods will you use to contact these leads?
- Set up a schedule for mailing and calling the leads.

6) Keep notes and statistics on results. This is one of the most important things for you to do. Always keep careful notes on all of the ads and promotional activities that you do. It is best to set up tracking codes, so that you can track which ads are getting the most response. Don’t make too large an advertising purchase until you have sampled this marketing technique and know that it will get you the results that you want.

7) Visit your marketing plans from time to time. Make changes as necessary. As I mentioned above, the marketing plan should be fluid and dynamic and adjust to changes in your business. Check each marketing technique for effectiveness. Add some new activities from time to time, and discard any activities that are ineffective.

Be sure to visit www.workathomemom-dad.com for some more tips and ideas for work at home moms, dads, and grandparents.

Welcome to Work at Home Mom & Dad

I am a Senior Regional Sales Director with AmeriPlan, a 16 year old discount medical and dental benefits company. I am also a piano teacher with my own homebased music studio. I have enjoyed having the freedom to earn a living while working at home, and hope to share some of my experiences with my readers.

This blog is a companion to my website http://www.workathomemom-dad.com/. This website is designed for work at home moms, dads, and grandparents and has information on marketing, work at home opportunities, and homeschooling while working at home. Inexpensive button and banner ads can be purchased on this website as well.

I hope to post articles that will help you in choosing a homebased business, marketing your new business, website management and blogging, time management, family health, fast and easy nutritious recipes, and even homeschooling advice for those homebased business owners that also homeschool their children.