Current Situation

Frequently Asked Questions

Publications

Other Information

MSUcares
home page

Business Assistance:
Home-Based & Micro Businesses in Mississippi - FAQ 9

What type of home-based business should I go into?

For some individuals, choosing a business is easy --- they already have a marketable skill or a hobby that has profit-making potential. Generally businesses are either product-oriented or service-oriented --- or a combination of both product and service.

Product-oriented businesses fall into two categories:

• selling products made by you, family members, and/or employees
• selling products manufactured by others and either purchased by you for resale or sold on an order basis

Service-oriented businesses may involve the performance of a service at the place of business (examples: word processing, tutoring, child care) or performing a service at another location (examples: house painting, carpet cleaning, consulting).

BEFORE leaping into business ownership, the first step in deciding whether to go into business is self-assessment. Do you have the personal characteristics it takes to be a business owner? Are you really ready to start a business ---- or not???

Answer each of the following questions HONESTLY:

Are you a self starter?
_____I do things on my own. No one has to tell me to get going.
_____If someone gets me started, I keep going.
_____Easy does it. I don't put myself out until I have to.

How do you feel about other people?
_____I like people. I can get along with most anyone.
_____I have plenty of friends --- I don't need anyone else.
_____Most people irritate me.

Can you lead others?
_____I can get most people to go along with me without much difficulty.
_____I can get most people to go along if I push them.
_____I let someone else get things moving.

Can you take responsibility?
_____I like to take charge of things and see them through.
_____I'll take over if I have to, but I'd rather let some one else be responsible.
_____There's always some eager beaver around wanting to show how smart he/she is. I say let him/her.

How good of an organizer are you?
_____I like to have a plan before I start. I'm usually the one to get things lined up.
_____I do all right unless things get too confused. Then I quit.
_____I just take things as they come.

How good of a worker are you?
_____I can keep going as long as necessary. I don't mind working hard.
_____I'll work hard for awhile, but when I've had enough, that's it!
_____I can't see that hard work gets you anywhere.

Can you make decisions?
_____I can make up my mind in a hurry if necessary and my decision usually turns out okay, too.
_____I can if I have plenty of time. If I have to make up my mind in a hurry, I usually regret it.
_____I don't like to be the one who decides things.

Can people trust what you say?
_____Yes, they can. I don't say things I don't mean.
_____I try to be on the level most of the time, but sometimes I just say what is easiest.
_____Why bother if the other person does not know the difference.

Can you stick with it?
_____If I make up my mind to do something, I don't let anything stop me.
_____I usually finish what I start --- if all goes well.
_____If it does not go well right away, I quit. Why beat your brains out?

How good is your health?
_____I never run down!
_____I have enough energy for most of the things I want to do.
_____I run out of energy sooner than most of my friends do.

Now, count the checks you made. Make sure your answers are truthful and not a result of wishful thinking! If most of your checks are beside the first answers, you probably have the personal characteristics it takes to run a business. If your checks are mostly by the second answer, carefully examine your weaknesses to see if they can be overcome. If many checks are beside the third answer, it may be in your best interest not to start a business at this time.

Are you really ready to go into business for yourself? Do you have what it takes? Only YOU can honestly answer those questions!

BUSINESS IDEAS

The following list of business possibilities is provided to stimulate your thinking regarding income-producing ideas. Many of these ideas have been tried successfully by business owners and may help you identify one of your own personal skills that could be turned into profit.

Personal/Individual/Self Improvement

• Accounting
• Adult Care- day, residential and post surgery health care, adult-in-home foster care
• Animals - grooming, sitting, exercising, training, boarding, breeding
• Apartment guide
• Attorney
• Automotive - rental, painting, cleaning and repair
• Beauty services - nails, hair care, facials, massage, beauty products
• Bicycle, moped motorcycle sales and repair
• Books - binding, sales, collecting
• Bridal consultant plus gowns for rent or sale
• Calligraphy
• Chauffeur- limousine service
• Clock repair
• Clothing and sewing-related - alterations, monograms, exchange, needlework, hemming, reweaving, tailoring, refurbishing vintage clothing, custom sewing, clothing for disabled, clothes for hard-to-fit, drapery making, custom window treatments, baby specialty items
• Correspondence for others
• Costumes - design, manufacturing, sales, repair
• Counselor - marriage, family, career, children, rehabilitation, financial, and investments
• Coupon mailer service
• Day Care - child day care center, group family day care, family day care home
• Designing and painting murals in churches, homes, offices and restaurants
• Digital watch repair
• Get-away weekends for couples, families
• Genealogical research
• Greeting cards/notes, design, sell
• Health improvement - exercise, body toning, electrolysis, stop smoking clinics, weight control diet preparation, recreation for older adults
• Hospitality services - catering, mobile catering, clowning, parties for children and adults
• Image consultant - color analysis, wardrobe analysis and planning
• Income tax preparer
• Jewelry design, sales, repair
• Laundry and ironing
• Messenger service
• Shopping Service - clothing, groceries, interior design, maintenance services
• Towing

• Appliance repair
• Appraisals - antiques, books, collectibles, art objects
• Architecture
• Auctioneer
• Awnings - design and make canvas awnings and shades, installation
• Building storage sheds
• Burglar alarm sales and service
• Carpet installation and cleaning
• Carpentry
• Cement casting - curbing, patio block, etc.
• Chain saw service
• Chair caning
• Crystal and china repair
• Custom rug making - braided, hooked, woven
• Electronic sales and repair
• Energy consultant
• Fence installation and repair
• Firewood
• Floor refinishing
• Furniture - build, design, repair, refinish, upholster, sell
• Garden furniture - rewebbing, repainting, repadding, reupholstering, reweaving
• Home handyman service
• Household cleaning
• Housesitting
• I'll finish your project" service
• Interior design and decorating
• Lamp repair
• Mobile lock service
• Musical instrument maintenance and repair
• Oriental rug repair
• Pest control
• Plants - potting, sales, care at home
• Pool cleaning and repair
• Porcelain refinishing (tubs, sinks, etc.)
• Real estate sales
• Rental agency - furniture, tools, appliances, party items, etc.
• Screen and storm window service - sell, repair, install
• Security patrol
• Small engine repair
• Tree service - treat, trim diseased trees, tree removal, replacement
• Welding
• Window and wall washing
• Yard/Lawn maintenance - landscaping, pruning of shrubbery, flower bed preparation, fertilizing, specialized outdoor lighting, design and installation

Services to Other Businesses

• Accounting or book keeping - setting up books, keeping records, completed tax forms, payroll
• Advertising- write, copy layout, artwork
• Advertising specialist - sell calendars, pen, bumper stickers and other items imprinted with business names and advertising message
• Aerial advertising - skywriting, towing advertising banners behind airplane, balloon signs
• Agent - Literary, sales, insurance
• Answering service
• Aquarium service -design, install, clean, and maintain
• Art rental - plan and display art in businesses
• Booking agent representing musicians, models, actors, actresses and other temporary help
• Builder's cleanup service
• Burglar alarm sales and service
• Business chauffeur
• Calligraphy-diplomas, scrolls, certificates
• Clipping service - newspapers and magazines
• Computer - analysis training, programming, repair, sales, hardware, software, web site developer
• Computer-generated visuals
• Consultant and deliverer of professional development seminars
• Copy center
• Credit investigator - check on history of people applying for credit
• Data and word processing
• Delivery/messenger service
• Employment agency - match workers with job opportunities. Teach classes in developing resumes, interview techniques, etc.
• Event planning
• Free-lance writer
• Home-based business directory - publish directory of home-based businesses in area. Charge for listing and give directories free
• Income tax preparation
• Jewelry and watch repair - contract with jewelry stores to repair jobs they take in
• Mailing list - develop/print labels
• Marketing research
• Money broker
• Newsletter research, writer, editor
• Notary public
• Office machines repair
• Parking lot maintenance - sweeping, striping, coating, snow removal, installation of signs, replacement of light bulbs
• Pest control
• Printing - layout, edit
• Proofreader
• Public relations
• Rubber-stamp making
• Sales representative
• Secretarial service
• Security patrol
• Sharpening service
• Shopping service - shop for busy executives - purchase and ship or deliver gifts to their customers or employees, shop for people in nursing homes
• Signs - design, building, install
• Translator
• Travel agent
• Trucking - long/short distance
• Typing pool
• Welcome new residents - provide community information and referral
• Window and wall washing

Sales Businesses

• Art - prints, original art
• Bait and tackle
• Balloons
• Directors sales - candles, cosmetics, seasonings, household items
• Fiberglass molding
• Firebacks - design and manufacture cast iron plates that absorb and radiate heat
• Florist
• Greenhouses - design, build, install
• Homemade food products - specialty processed food, breads, cakes, cookies, pastry maker for restaurants and delicatessens, candy, catering gourmet meals for delivery or pick up
• Household items
• Insurance
• Mail order
• Personalized products
• Used clothing

Crafts and Related Arts

• Candlemaking
• Ceramics
• Decoys
• Dollmaking, doll clothes, collecting unique dolls, dollhouses
• Dried flower arrangements
• Framing
• Glass blowing
• Jewelry - design, repair, restyling, sales
• Lampshades
• Leather work
• Metal design
• Miniatures - manufacture and sales
• Ornaments
• Personalized sketches of house, boat, animals
• Pottery
• Quilting
• Selling Crafts supplies
• Silk-screening
• Soft sculpture
• Spinning
• Stained glass
• Teaching crafts
• Toys
• Weaving
• Woodworking

Educational Services

• Career counseling - resume writing, tutoring, dressing for success
• Children's camp
• Educational services
• Historic or educational tours
• Sports camp for children
• Teaching classes or individual lessons in the following: time management, typing, study skills, test-taking, public speaking, computer, foreign languages, photography, music, voice, natural childbirth, dancing, physical fitness, first aid, self-defense, weight-loss, quit-smoking clinics, specific crafts skills, games skills (bridge, chess, etc.), cooking, sewing, etc.

Other Business

• Bed and breakfast
• Beekeeping - keeping hives, selling honey, making beeswax candles
• Blacksmith
• Boat rental - rent boat only or conduct charter fishing trips
• Christmas tree farm
• Coin dealer
• Coordinate exhibitions - organize antiques shows, art fairs, flea markets, fund-raising drives, special promotions
• Goat production - sell meat or milk to ethnic markets, health food stores, and coops. Make and sell cheese.
• Gun repair
• Herbs - grow, dry, sell
• Holiday greenery
• Organic vegetable growing
• Pick-your-own operations
• Restorations - antiques, artifacts, cars, boats, and home
• Roadside vegetable/fruit stands
• Sheep raising
• Sod farm
• Taxidermy
• Trailer and camper maintenance and repair
• Underground sprinkler systems - installation and repair
• Unusual transportation - carriage, horse and buggy rides, etc.

Source of Information: CA$HING IN ON BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES

Resources at your library:
Edwards, P. and S. (1996). Finding Your Perfect Work. New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons.
Edwards, P., Edwards, S. and Zooi, W. (1997). Home Businesses You Can Buy. New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons.