Judging by the statistics published by the Small Business Administration, it would seem that running a successful home based business is an impossible task. After all, only two-thirds of businesses established each year make it to their two year anniversary. Out of the lucky ones who survive, only 44% are able to keep their doors open for five years.

But don’t let those numbers discourage you from taking the leap from cubicle slave to entrepreneur. Being in control of your time and income is a worthy reward that far outweighs the risks associated with going out on your own. Here are the five secrets to building a successful home based business that will help make sure your business sticks around.

With the right strategy, you too can own a successful home based business

Sell Products People Want

Have you ever heard of the Thirsty Dog! brand of bottled water? Don’t feel bad if you haven’t. It was specially flavored bottled water marketed to dog owners for their pets to drink. The problem was that the majority of dog owners thought buying bottled water for their dog was a colossal waste of money and the product bombed.

One component of building a successful home based business is selling something people want to buy. Before wasting both your time and money, study the market to make sure there is a need for what you have.

Make it Easy for Customers to Buy

People want to buy from you. They really do. They just don’t want to have to jump through hoops in order to do so. Some businesses unwittingly scare away customers by throwing up unnecessary roadblocks that interrupt the selling process. These roadblocks can be anything from unfavorable payment terms to a convoluted check out process.

You want the pathway to a customer purchase to be as smooth as possible. The more difficult it is for customers to buy from you, the easier it is for them to walk away; taking your dreams of having a successful home based business with them.

Market Your Business Effectively

Building a successful home based business requires that you have the right kind of customers; people who want to buy. It is important to attract these customers using a marketing strategy designed to get them to come to you with their money.

One effective marketing technique is to give something away for free. For example, if you sell cosmetics, hosting a free class on makeup application benefits you two-fold. First, you’re presented with an opportunity to sell. Second, sharing your knowledge demonstrates your expertise and customers are more likely to buy from professionals who know what they are doing.

Track Your Progress

Monitoring and measuring the results of the actions you take in your business is a great way to ensure that you stay on target. It also helps you to identify trends so you can make valuable changes that benefit you and grow your business.
For example, if you sell organic dog treats and find that you get a lot of orders from veterinary clinics and dog kennels than you do from individual customers, setting yourself up as a wholesaler would probably be a good move.

Develop Multiple Streams of Income

If you look at other successful home based businesses that have been around for awhile, you will find that the majority of them have developed several ways to generate income. They do this to protect themselves against the natural business cycle where demand for their products may be high one moment and low the next.

Developing multiple streams of income ensures that, if the need for one of your products or services hits a low point, you will still have enough money to support your home based business until demand increases again.

It’s a challenge to build a successful home based business but doing so is rewarding both personally and financially. Use these five secrets to ensure your business thrives and sticks around long enough for you to reap the rewards of your efforts.

(photo credit: SearchEnginePeople @ Flickr)