According to business statistics released by the House of Common in December 2021, approximately three-quarters of British businesses have no employees. Many of these businesses are often based at home and can struggle to grow. Here are 5 tips to consider if you are trying to bring your home-based business to the next level without draining your budget. 

Grow your contact list

Realistically, your list of contacts is your best asset in building a network of partners, customers, and advocates. Yet, for small businesses, building a suitable contact list can be difficult. While you may come across cheap services promising business email address lists, these can often be ineffective. Bought contact lists are rarely suited to your unique business needs and audience targeting. Therefore, it can be helpful to create effective strategies to grow your email list yourself. You can run social media challenges where participants must register their email addresses. Offering free services and trials can also help increase your contact list. 

Don't let your home office size limit your efforts

Working at home may be practical when you provide digital services. But if you make physical goods or deliver non-digital services, your home office could significantly impact your activities. Indeed, it can be tricky to store your equipment and items in a small space. If space is an issue, it is worth considering self storage options to keep your goods or large equipment safe and free up your workspace at home. 

Share your expertise

Sharing information and educational content is the quickest way to position yourself as an expert. Blogging can be useful, but nowadays, the audience tends to prefer more digestible formats, such as videos. Creating video tutorials and vlogs can be a great strategy to showcase your knowledge and experience to your audience group. You can create a branded Youtube channel to share your vlogs with the public. 

How vlogs can boost your business reach:

• They increase your digital presence and SEO scores

• They can attract people who specifically need your services

• They are more likely to create a buzz

• They are highly shareable 

Accept that you don't have to do everything yourself

As tempting as it is to keep everything in-house, you can't run a one-person business alone. Entrepreneurs often must multitask to build their paths to success. Yet, multitasking doesn't mean you must do everything. You can focus on activities that are more valuable and meet your expertise. Wasting time on menial tasks because it's free to do it yourself is a false economy. You can save yourself a lot of trouble and time by outsourcing tasks that are not related to your business expertise, such as accounting or building your website. 

Be on the lookout for funding

You may not be able to apply for a commercial loan with a home-based business, but you can look for grants and other funding options that could support future investments. Indeed, investments can help find premises for your business or develop your go-to-market solution. 

Needless to say, these are only a few ideas to bring your business to the next level. However, you can gradually grow your activities and clientele by focusing on growing brand awareness, productivity, contacts, opportunities, and investment facilities. 

Photo by Arnel Hasanovic on Unsplash