By Home Business Magazine
Too many people working from
home neglect the most powerful tool, that being the computer. It is a home-based business owner’s lifeline to success, allowing one to run a business part-time or full-time; manage finances and taxes; keep track of tasks, contacts and schedules; plan out marketing campaigns; sell products and services; advertise online; complete administrative burdens; and much more. So all these benefits are great, but how does one make money with a computer?
The answer is obvious: The computer is used directly to operate a business. The following are ideas on 50+ different computer businesses that can be run from home. These part-time and full-time computer businesses cross into various industries and are categorized under business services, information management services, and personal services.
The 50+ Home-Based Computer Businesses
Business Services
1. Answering Service: Using multiple telephone lines, a home-based answering service retrieves calls forwarded from businesses. Special computer software then records and relays messages through e-mail or fax.
2. Archive Storage: Many professions professionals electronically store large numbers of files. Home businesses accomplish this by transferring data over telephone lines or downloading information on tape at the office location.
Information Management Services
3. Billing and Invoice Services: Home-based entrepreneurs use billing software to key-in transactions, bill clients, perform collections, and track accounts receivable.
4. Bookkeeping Service: Prepare financial information for accountants with the assistance of special software packages.
5. Freight Broker: Connect businesses that need to ship with available trucking assets. Collect commissions off shipping volumes.
6. Legal Transcription: Home-based transcriptionists convert court testimony into legal court documents, and they also document legal matters and proceedings.
7. Legal Notereaders: Review legal transcriptions for accuracy, grammar, and legibility.
8. Medical Billing: Enter medical claims with a computer and file electronically with insurance companies or government agencies.
9. Medical Transcriptionist: Home-based entrepreneurs can use customized word processing applications to create legible medical records for both patients and doctors.
10. Payroll Preparation: Many companies, particularly small businesses, outsource the meticulous task of preparing payroll to home businesses.
11. Property Management: Success in the property management field depends on all of the major computer applications such as word processing, spreadsheets, databases, and personal information management and financial management packages.
12. Public Relations Consultant: The computer is used to manage large numbers of personal contacts. Most of the actual public relations work is done outside of the home office.
13. Secretarial Services: Home-based secretaries retrieve information through e-mail and the telephone and use integrated office suites to complete administrative tasks. Office phone calls can be forwarded to the home.
14. Tape Back-up Service: This service uses a computer to duplicate data, after working hours, over telephone lines.
15. Temporary Help: This business is for the home-based entrepreneur, who can manage payroll and databases of contacts. Outsourcing trends create the opportunity to market networks of temporary workers.
16. Abstracting Service: Use word processing software and good editing skills to condense down information/articles provided by on-line services
17. Bulletin Board Service: Establish a bulletin board service link of targeted subscribers, using a computer and modem.
18. List Management Services: Home-based entrepreneurs, with powerful database software, assist businesses in maintaining their mailing lists.
19. On-line Search Consultants: Go on-line to conduct database searches from hundreds of sources.
20. Computer Loan Auditing: Employ computer software to evaluate loans and home mortgages and ensure clients are not overcharged. Commissions are paid on the savings.
21. Freight Bill Auditing: Use manuals, rate guides and software programs to ensure clients pay the most competitive rates for truck, rail, and air shipment costs.
22. Utility Bill Auditing: Home-based entrepreneurs can examine utility bills to determine if clients are paying too much and assist them in attaining cheaper rates.
Personal Services
23. Children Publications: Computers handle the entire publishing process.
Books can be created for local friends and neighbors or marketed nationwide.
24. Educational Financial Aid Consultant: Provide information on various types of financial assistance for higher education. Search national databases and resources, to help students obtain aid through loans, grants and private sources.
25. Employment Sourcing: By accessing databases for information on employers in specific industries, home-based consultants provide job-seeking clients with valuable prospects.
26. Executive Recruitment: Using contact management programs, home-based recruiters focus on their local market and industries for opportunities in executive placement.
27. Financial Management: With financial management software and access to on-line information systems, financial managers can work from home. Those who lack critical financial qualifications might consider personal financial management (managing checkbook records, paying bills, etc.).
28. Income Tax Preparation: Home-based entrepreneurs can use special software programs to help people file tax returns.
29. Mortgage Consultant: Employ your computer to generate loan documents and paperwork as a mortgage consultant. Funds can be accessed through commercial lenders. On-line information systems track mortgage rates.
30. Mortgage Reduction Consultant: Show clients how to save thousands of dollars in interest payments through accelerated interest payment plans.
31. Nanny Referral: Nannies are increasingly needed by wealthy and middle class families that rely on two income earners. Database management software keeps track of prospective nannies and employers.
32. People Tracing: Home-based entrepreneurs search the Internet for information on people being sought for legal, business or personal reasons.
33. Referral Service: Organize networks of people offering services, such as home maintenance, and market them to the local community. Computers manage the mailing list and publish newsletters and promotional information.
34. Resume Consultants: Use word processing programs and specialized software to create professional resumes for job seekers.
35. Travel Agent: As a home-based travel agent, you offer clients all the same services offered by storefront travel agencies.
36. Word Processing: Use word processing programs to perform typing services for people not literate in computer use.
37. Computer Assembly: Assemble parts and components into finished personal computers and then market them retail or wholesale.
38. Computer Consultant: Home-based entrepreneurs highly literate with computers can consult to small businesses in areas such as purchasing the right equipment, configuring it correctly, loading software packages, and networking computers.
39. Computer Repair and Upgrades: As computers get more powerful, people need to keep upgrading processing speed and memory, and adding features to their computers.
40. Computer Sales: A home-based computer broker manages a database of sales contacts, brokers to third parties, and might even sell overseas. This is an ideal business for highly specialized markets.
41. Data Conversion Service: Large amounts of data are routinely transferred in various business transactions, equipment changes, or disk conversions. Conversion experts can do this from home.
42. Internet Services: As increasing numbers of businesses market products and services on the Internet, they need assistance in managing marketing campaigns for the Internet.
43. Laser Printer Cartridge Recharging: Help meet the high demand for buying, recharging, refurbishing, and reselling lower-cost laser toner cartridges.
44. Software Programmers: The continued expansion of computers into every specialized profession creates demand for new types of software. This opens up promising opportunities for home-based software programmers.
45. Software Sales: Sell specialized software that is not marketed in conventional computer outlets.
46. Clip Art Service: Fill the niche-market demand for specialized types of clip-art.
47. Coupon Newspaper Publishing: Home-based entrepreneurs sell coupon space to different businesses and then publish and mail coupon booklets to local residents.
48. Desktop Publishing: Create sophisticated documents and graphics too difficult to publish with word processing software packages.
49. Desktop Video: Use a computer to edit and add visual and sound effects to videos.
50. Multimedia: Home-based entrepreneurs can design multimedia systems for training videos, marketing presentations, video brochures, interactive videos, etc.
51. Publishing: Using desktop publishing software to assist people and businesses in publishing books, manuscripts, catalogs and newsletters.
52. Software Publishing: An innovative home-based business is publishing and marketing specialized software packages.
53. Consulting Services: Consulting is a perfect home-based business because most all contact is done at the client's office. Opportunities are wide open, and all situations require strong computer skills and support for success.