Have you ever seen a work from home opportunity or home based business idea that is only founded on the idea that you make money? A home business should be like any business. A business must solve a problem, provide something needed and useful. A home based business must provide something of value to the consumer. Think about a brick and mortar business. Let’s say Best Buy for example. I like that store. I haven’t been there for a while but I’m sure I’ll go back some day. When I walk in the door I am greeted by a friendly face and a pleasant, “Hi, how are you?” or something equivalent. This person is really a security guard but because he or she dresses like every other employee you get the impression that the average person working there is friendly. You also get the impression they are busy. Have you ever tried to find someone to help you? They are helping customers constantly and are always busy. But if I am just browsing around I can walk into the store and wander about at my leisure. I can choose to buy something or I can simply walk out and go elsewhere. I didn’t have to buy something to be able to come back later. The store is always there, it is not a limited time offer. I can see what other stores have and come back if I determine they really have the “best buy”. I know I will pay the same price for an item whether I shop there every day or whether I only come a few times per year. The name of the store is enticing. Best Buy! Wow. They care about the customer. They want me, the consumer, to get the most bang for my buck. They have the cool stuff I want and I can get the best buy on it at Best Buy. Think about the implications here. They are subconsciously telling everyone that they offer great value to the consumer. The marketing is brilliant.

But then consider many home based business opportunities you have seen.   They are all over the Internet now.  What do they have to offer the consumer?  Is the product they offer the business opportunity to sell the product which is the opportunity to sell the system which shows others how to. . .  Could you even follow that?  Some, not all, but some of them seem to be based on the compensation plan.  They come up with something that will rake in thousands of dollars (for someone) and then throw a product into the system to have something legitimate to sell.  The product may be good or bad, but they sell the opportunity, not the product.  Without the business opportunity would anyone pay full price for the product?  Can you even buy the product without getting the home based business opportunity?  Are there testimonials?  Do recognized, reputable people endorse this?  Will I miss something if I don’t sign up now or is the opportunity available next week?

Think back to Best Buy. The name says a lot. It tells you where their focus is. Think of the names of some home based businesses you may have seen. I will make some up here for examples. If they actually exist it is by chance, not design. www.makelotsofmoneybytomorrow.com www.retire-next-year.com www.fire-your-ugly-boss.com www.we_do_all_the_work_for_you.com www.rob_from_the_rich_to_become_rich.com www.wealth-for-you-by-next-week.com I actually got this ad today through Twitter.com: “Limited Time Only! GET 39 BUSINESSES 100% FREE! MAKE THOUSANDS EVERYDAY!” Come on people. Where is the focus here? Where is the value to your customer? Could you sell a product (not a biz op) to someone if the first thing they saw was that your business was going to make you rich by next week?

Now, think outside the box. Think about legitimate home based businesses. What if someone were to offer their product to a potential customer and the customer would benefit from it without having to get involved in the business? What if there were enough value in the product that the customer would want the product at any price? A “no-brainer”, if you will. What if you could show that your product or service would benefit your customer 100 times as much as selling it would benefit you? Do you think maybe you could sleep at night knowing you are giving your customer the best value, the best buy?
All a “salesman” would have to do then is to educate people as to the availability of the product or service. In the ideal home based business people would not have to entice their victims (oops, customers) into getting involved in a business in order to experience the benefits of their product or service. As people see the value in what they have purchased they will naturally want to tell others about it. Then it will seem natural to get paid for spreading the news about their experience. And joining the company will be something they are excited about because they are already telling people about the company anyway, so why not get paid for it.
To recap: Legitimate home based businesses should focus on providing the best value to the customer. The customer should get the “best buy” meaning they get the most benefit from the transaction. The salesman will profit as the customer sends referrals to the salesman and he gets more business. The customers realize the profit potential and want to sell the product they are using. Win-win-win. No one has to lose in a home based business like that.