There is no question about it, the economy is contracting. What is happening now is similar to what happened in Japan in the 90’s –after massive consumption and ‘easy money’ (and a good dose of corruption) there is no more room for the economy to keep growing in an healthy manner. People are afraid, and the economy starts to contact. The US will go through a period of that, in the coming months. Unless spending is brought under control, the mess will get worse.  This is an essay on how to make some preparations for that as you work on your plan to make money at home.

Here are some sobering news items on what is happening: AN ECONOMY of MERCY…

Today I’ll discuss major and minor steps you can take to save a lot of money and headache, as you build your dream business online.

Let’s get to the Make Money at Home Tips for the Recession:

1. The biggest mistake that I’ve seen people make when deciding to pursue an online business is not to look at the sales and profit numbers up close. Often the figures are discussed in revenue and referred to as “profit” –the costs of making those profits are ignored. As normal people we look at the sales figures and go “WOW!”. We then forget that 50% or more of that amount was used to make the sales! The problem here is this: In a perfect scenario, that may be possible. However, one mistake and a newbie is wiped out of money to run a business. Solution? Look at as many of the numbers as you can, especially the cost of sales & marketing.
2. The next mistake is to spend money from a credit card buying things online to run a business. I think in our daily life, we make enough mistakes buying things that we don’t need. Online, everything is *optimized* for you to whip out that credit card and make the purchase. You’ll end up buying literally 50% of the time things that you will never need or don’t even end up using. Solution? Spend a bit of time looking for a free solution, that is as close to what you need or just sleep on it and see if you feel the same way (Still a buyer?) the next day.
3. When is the last time you looked at Open Source Software? It’s unbelievable what is out there –everything that you may need to start a business online is available free. Just need to search a little and find what you need. None of these software packages have fancy sales pages. You need to know what you want, don’t want and need to know how to work with it. Just study up a bit and you’ll be on your way to using free resources to get the job done.
4. Another HUGE mistake is to rely on a credit card to make advertising purchases. Often in a spot like pay-per-click, we make the mistake of “letting the ad campaign go on autopilot” while not optimizing the results as often. The bad part is that the credit card also gets charged on “autopilot”. Optimize, optimize, optimize –make sure you’re getting 100% of the value.
5. Keep in mind that not only do you need to make cuts in spending, but also your customers are doing the same thing. If you are looking for products to sell, make sure to work with money saving products. Better yet, develop your own product to help people save money.
6. We all want the latest and greatest ‘gadgets’ while working at home. Often what we need is just a basic computer, good back up and a better than normal screen to get our work done. These are basic: The good back up is to make sure we don’t get wiped out. The good screen since we’re always looking at it most of the day. Apart from that and a printer, not much more is needed. Best best way to manage things is to keep the costs down and wait for sales to cover monies to pay for ‘gadgets’ as revenue comes in.
7. If sales are slow, then this is the perfect time to work on your own products and services. Slow sales don’t last for two long. I anticipate that within a few quarters –by late summer the corporate numbers are going to turn around and people are going to start spending again. You want to be ready with your own digital e-book or membership area –you want to be ready to sell!
8. When your business is running smoothly keep in mind these tough times. When you have the temptation to over spend when things are going well, keep these times in mind. Those thoughts will certainly help you curtail your buying habits and help you closely manage your cash flow in the best possible manner.
9. If you have to purchase something, always keep in mind that there are plenty of coupons and special offers “floating” that you can search for before purchase. Keep this in mind as well, as a seller –people are always looking for savings. Make sure to advertise your products so that the market that is eager to purchase with a discount.
10. Cutting your prices in your products may not be the best thing to do. It’s far better to keep adding value so that you have a better and better product. This will also help you out-smart the competition and have the best product when the boom-times return.
11. While the economy is in a contraction, give it a “test run” of your products, web site or membership area.  Don’t take the results and think that it’s the end of business online.  Keep in mind that you’ll NOT even know when the economy ‘returns’, but you will see it in your sales figures.  Be ready for it.

AND a BONUS! Long term solution? Actually, the long-term solution is very much in your hands as well. Literally, it’s in your hands as you can vote –just press a screen or flip a lever, and vote for a man of integrity! The Epic of “The Unelectable” : Ron Paul

Please forgive me for ‘dumping’ a political message into the very important update.  I did so because after ending up with the least worst candidate for President many times, we now have a clear leader with integrity who actually knows what he’s talking about.  It’s time to get the message to everyone and get him elected.  OR we’ll be in worse shape.

Rich Sage