Single Moms, Is Working at Home Online For You

Why Start an Internet Business

Are you a single mom frustrated with your current situation and wondering if working at home online could work for you?  Not sure what your options are for working at home online? Not sure where to begin? This article will help you make a well-informed decision.

There are many benefits to working at home.  You can:

• Own and run your own business
• Create your perfect, flexible schedule
• Work as many or as few hours as you need
• Stay home with your children
• Avoid travel costs, as well as wear and tear on your vehicle
• Avoid child care fees

Those who have done it for a year or two will tell you, however, that nothing is perfect in life and there are also definite drawbacks.  You need to be disciplined and goal-focused, otherwise "flexibility" can easily become procrastination.  Deadlines have to be planned for and met. Meaning your prized freedom can quickly feel more like an illusion.  You can feel cut off from peers, if trapped in the house without social interaction or stimulation.  You can lose track of goals and more easily be distracted. 

You won't truly know if working at home online is going to be your best option until you sit down and weigh up both the advantages and drawbacks.  But remember, what you consider a drawback might be someone else's idea of its biggest benefit.

Are You an Entrepreneur?

Working at home online involves being both proactive and entrepreneurial. This means you look for money-making opportunities as naturally as you breathe.  Does this describe you…

You are adventurous and like thinking outside the box, instinctively seeking creative new solutions to problems.  You consider yourself an "ideas" person — but you don't mind rolling up your sleeves and getting to work.

You love being your own boss.  You are passionate and dedicated.  Your particular challenge is more likely to be bringing yourself back in and not getting swept away by your work. Rather than challenges like spending too much time procrastinating. You may be an entrepreneur.

Or are you having this thought… "But I Just Need a Job…"

If you just desperately need employment, the above description of an entrepreneur may fill you with dismay.  Don't despair, however:  There are many forms of online employment.  More and more companies these days allow you to work on a structured system, only at home instead of at the office.  Search databases and job sites, using the keyword (search parameter) "work online" or "work from home".

For the entrepreneurial at heart, let's take a look at viable work at home online opportunities…

Business Ideas for Working at Home Online

Here are some areas where there's always money to be made:

• Copywriter
• Online Transcriptionist
• Affiliate Marketer
• Virtual Assistant
• Digital Information Product Creator
• Online Store Owner (selling physical products)
• Graphic Designer
• Web or Blog Designer
• Online Coach

Let's take a quick peek at each of these online professions…

1.  Copywriter:  A copywriter is a business or technical writer who writes money-making material:  Digital products like eBooks, articles, blog posts, and sales or ad copy. Copywriters usually do this for clients (though writing articles in your own name to drive traffic to your website is expected, as well as writing posts for your blog).

Becoming a copywriter is not hard, if you enjoy writing.  There are copywriting courses online that can quickly offer you the basics you need.

2.  Online Transcriptionist:  All you need is a simple guide showing you how to be a transcriptionist, turning video or audio files of webinars or interviews into text files for other online entrepreneurs. 

Your key assets in this field would be fast turnaround and accuracy, therefore strong typing skills are a must.

3.  Affiliate Marketer:  If you're an affiliate marketer, you sign up with companies or individuals to promote their products, usually by blogging or writing articles about them and driving people to the seller's sales pages.  (In other words, you're a commission-based sales professional.)

Although it's always better to have your own website, some affiliate marketers choose to go without one. 

Unfortunately, it can also be slow going, taking anywhere from six months to a couple of years before money starts coming in.  Profits are usually small, prompting most affiliate marketers to run multiple campaigns — though if you promote only high-ticket items, your commissions will be noticeably larger.

4.  Virtual Assistant:  If you'd rather be the power behind the throne and multi-tasking is something that comes naturally to you, being a VA allows you great flexibility and scope in making online money. There are always millions of online entrepreneurs who need assistance with day-to-day task while they concentrate on their own money-making skills and specialties.

Competent Virtual Assistants are much in demand.  Specializing in your own areas of strength will be your greatest asset. For instance, I do virtual assistant work for some clients. And I specialize based on my strengthns of WordPress, content management, research and social media.

5.  Digital Information Product Creator:  A digital product creator writes Special Reports, how-to guides, eBooks or other digital "books".  If communication is your passion and you have a specialty interest you can share with the world, this is a "natural" for you.

It's not hard to create information products and place them in virtual marketplaces such as ClickBank, where you don't even need to run your own affiliate program; ClickBank does that for you.

Your biggest challenge will lie in quickly becoming known in your niche online and driving people to your product.  If you have any sort of expertise, however, this is easily done.

6.  Online Store Owner (e-commerce – selling physical products):  If you have goods to sell, taking them online is an excellent strategy, whether you also have a physical, local storefront or not.  Shopping Cart systems and software, product fulfillment companies or virtual catalogues such as Etsy will help you display your products to a pre-qualified audience. As well as deal with such things as shipping and tax calculations.

7.  Graphic Designer:  If you have graphic design skills, you can easily set up online. If you want to make money quickly, offer packages of blank e-Covers, buttons and banner boxes to online marketers (as well as blog theme headers and backgrounds).

Use your skills and specialize in social media graphic design by creating Facebook Timeline graphics, landing tabs, or profile graphics. As well as custom Twitter and YouTube backgrounds.

8.  Web or Blog Designer:  If you have strong XHTML and CSS skills along with WordPress skills, you're a natural for becoming a WordPress web designer.  Competition is fierce, but all you really need is one or two satisfied clients to start that word-of-mouth spreading. 

Your key will be focusing on designs that communicate, rather than designs that dazzle but load in slowly.  Do this, and you'll set yourself ahead of the majority of web designers — your results will speak for themselves.

If you're familiar with WordPress, specialize either simply in designing blog themes or offer blog set up as well. There are many excellent courses online to get you up to speed quickly — even if you've never done this before.

9.  Online Coach:  If you have specialized experience with any skill or field and proven results, you can coach in it.  Many online entrepreneurs add coaching as an additional income stream.

Coaching can be as simple as offering a monthly subscription newsletter packed with high-value information and tips.  You can also consider providing one-on-one telephone or email coaching, or group membership coaching.

Again, all you need is a few happy customer for word-of-mouth recommendation to get the ball rolling.

This is just the tip of the iceberg, when it comes to online income creation. With all of these online careers, however, you'll need to promote yourself, building up web exposure.  Social networking on sites such as Facebook and Twitter can really speed up this process. 

And your other key will be to specialize in whatever area you choose. You can take any one of the general career categories listed above and sub-divide it into more specialized niche careers. For example, a copywriter could focus on any one of these areas:

• Ghostwriting for other copywriters
• Direct response sales copy writing
• Online sales copy writing
• Ad writing
• Article writing
• Blogging

Within those sub-categories, one can refine even further by specializing in specific subject areas or fields:  For example, writing about skin care… or natural health… or stamp collecting. 

A web designer could focus only on setting up blogs for local businesses… or only on designing shopping cart sites.  A graphic designer could specialize in creating only eBook covers, buttons and banner boxes for other business owners… or strictly in logo design. 

A virtual assistant could specialize in Autoresponder management… or only in pod casting… or in customer service.   An online coach could set up as a life coach, a parenting coach, a financial coach or any other sort of coach you can think of.  She could specialize even more by becoming certified in a particular method or discipline.

I'm sure by now you've got the point:  Whatever you choose to do, specialize in it!  That's where the most money is to be made.

You should now have a better understanding of what career options are available for working from home online. Use this article and continue to conduct research to help pinpoint which direction is best for you based on your skills, experience and passions.