Look professional working from home
By Rhonda Abrams
Gannett News Service
For 14 years, I ran my business from home. But working from home presents challenges. Here are four of the most common questions I'm asked by those setting up home offices:
Q: How do I meet with customers?
A: If you meet your clients only at their place of business, trade shows or over the Internet, no problem. But if customers come to you, how will you arrange your space so you look professional?
If you meet with customers at your home regularly, ideally, set up your workspace separately from your family surroundings. If possible, have a separate entrance or at least a path to your office that doesn't go through the kids' playroom.
If you need to meet customers somewhere other than their offices, look for neutral locations, such as a restaurant. If you have an ongoing need, see if you can rent a meeting space or conference room on an hourly basis from another company such as a small law firm. Executive suite services — short-term office rentals — often offer hourly rentals as well.
Q: What should I do about phones, faxes and the Internet?
A: I'm a big believer in a separate business line if you're doing business from your home on an ongoing basis. If you want to be listed in the Yellow Pages or business section of the phone book, many local phone companies require you to have a business line. If you get a lot of faxes or use a dial-up modem, get a separate data line as well.
An extra phone line for business also enables you to have a business message on that line and a family message on your other line. I prefer voice mail from the phone company rather than machine-recorded voice mail. That way, in the event of a power loss, or problems with your own phones, you still get your messages.
Above all, I'm a big believer in getting a fast Internet connection if you're working from home full time. It makes e-mail communication and finding information much easier.
Q: What tax deductions can I take?
A: When you work from home, one murky area you'll quickly deal with is which expenses are deductible as business expenses and which aren't.
Most normal business expenses that you would incur whether or not you were working from home — postage, office supplies, advertising, wages — are treated the same way as any other business. You can deduct those expenses as part of your regular deductions for the cost of doing business.
However, you have an additional tax savings option on your home office if you qualify — the home office deduction, enabling you to deduct a portion of the cost of your house or apartment used exclusively for business. Be careful, though. Discuss all other home office deductions and business expenses with your accountant.
Q: Should I get a business mailbox?
A: One alternative is to get a post office box from the U.S. Postal Service. However, then your only address is a "P.O. Box" and that may not give a professional impression. Moreover, the post office usually doesn't accept mail from private delivery services such as Federal Express or UPS.
A better alternative is to rent a mailbox from a private mailbox provider. This gives you the advantage of not giving out your home address, having a secure place to receive mail and having someone who can sign for packages for you.
