Entrepreneur Work at Home Mom Success Story

Meet Work at home Mom, Brenda Bradford and her husband Joey. The Bradford’s are parents to an 11 year old son and a 6 month old daughter. They are a couple who has successfully launched their own heat applied vinyl business from their garage this year. It has been a challenge. The Bradford’s agreed to share their story with us.

Pro’s and Con’s
After the birth of their daughter in March of this year, Brenda and Joey realized they needed to make some changes in their daily routine to fulfill their parenting goals. Joey works full time outside of the home. Brenda had been in her job for a few years. They wanted to offer their children the opportunity to avoid day care. They also wanted to provide the parental benefits from a stay at home Mom. Brenda likes the freedom being a work at home Mom offers. It also allows her to be available to both of her children without worrying about missing time from work. It was a move the Bradford’s approached with cautious optimism. Of course leaving a job to start your own business at home is a scary move. That decision required a lot of prayer, and planning.

What is Brand It Boutique
Brand it Boutique is an online store specializing in professional heat applied vinyl gifts. Heat applied vinyl can be used on a wide variety of surfaces and therefore reaches a wide range of marketing options. Their biggest selling item is the Chevron pocket t-shirt right now. They also offer a wide range of items and will also go on-site to personalize automobiles and walls.

Why choose Heat Applied Vinyl
Brenda had knowledge of the heat applied vinyl business. The startup cost was affordable. Also, it was something they knew they could do in their garage space. They acquired the necessary equipment and supplies, set up their workspace and prepared to advertise.
Advertising for Free
Brenda set up a facebook page in her business name, Brand It Boutique. She asked all of her friends to share. They launched their fb page on July 12th. They were ready for customers only 3 weeks after Brenda left her full time job. The facebook page is free. Sharing is free. Many people are not aware that facebook offers a paid advertising option called ‘boost’. Brenda invested a  a facebook boost on July 14th which netted them about 20 orders. This was an exciting beginning only 2 days after going live on Facebook. They did another facebook boost about one week later. This time, they more than tripled the amount of orders from the first boost. The rest is history! By August, Brand It Boutique was grossing more than the projected goals the Bradford’s had set.

Setting goals
Brenda set bench mark goals from the very beginning. They knew how important it was to meet their first financial goal. This first goal was met within the first few weeks of business. Setting goals has been a key factor in being able to manage a home business and be a stay at home mom for Brenda. The Bradford’s realize that setting unrealistic goals is really just setting yourself up for failure. They keep their goals realistic for their own personal circumstances. One of their goals was to be able to set up a web page for their business. They met that goal about two weeks ago through Go Daddy, http://branditboutique.com/ . Go Daddy made the experience easy because they cater to small businesses.

Challenges
The biggest challenge for being a stay at home mom with a home based business has been time management. Not being distracted by household chores is at the top of the list. It is also often tempting to just ditch work and play with a cuddly new baby girl. However, when you are the sole employee in your own business, it becomes mandatory to stay focused and well organized. Organization is a key factor to overcoming the work at home challenge. Brenda has her work space extremely well organized making for a much smoother work day.
There are going to be challenges in any endeavor. Success or failure is determined by your attitude.

What to consider before starting your own business from home

Determine if your financial situation will allow you to pursue self employment full time. You need to sit down with your spouse and go over your budget. Don’t just look at what is going on right now, project your future finances realistically for at least the next year. Profits can be almost nothing in the first year of a new business. How much investment capitol will this business idea require?
Ask yourself the question “what part of my knowledge is marketable?” Are your friends always asking you to do this thing or that thing, whatever it is, because you are so good at it? What marketable talents do you posses?
Research the market for the business you are considering. Be certain there is a viable market in your area to support your business idea. Use Google to search ‘business failures’ for the type of business you are considering. Be willing to learn from other people’s mistakes.
Make a handwritten list of the pros and cons. This will allow you the time to really ponder the facts carefully.
Discuss your idea at length with your spouse or family. You will need a cheering squad and sometimes a voice of reason.
Pray about it !

You can shop Brand It Boutique on their website here or their facebook page here.