Why Start a Tutoring Business?

All parents want their kids to be successful in school and excel in the subjects they study.  When it comes to teaching kids, parents often face difficulty in taking out time for teaching and, also, the lack of required skills to teach a subject.  The children too need help in various subjects in spite of being brilliant at studies in general.  A student may be a science prodigy but may struggle with geometry.  A tutor who is skilled in a subject and teaching in general is someone that parents look for to teach their kids and make them successful in studies.

Requirements to Start Tutoring Business

The requirements for starting a tutoring business vary based on the type of tutoring service that you will be offering (covered later in this article).  The general requirements are:

• Expertise in a specific subject.  A Masters degree is desirable but not essential
• Degree or certificate in teaching.  Optional but it adds to your credibility.

Operations

A tutoring business can be operated in several ways.  The most common methods of tutoring are:

• In-home tutoring
• At-home tutoring
• Online Tutoring

In-home tutoring Business

An in-home tutoring business involves setting up a place in your home where you will teach students.  You will need a room or an area that is quiet and peaceful.  The teaching area will need to have good lighting and seating arrangements depending on how many students you will be teaching at one time.

To start an in-home tutoring business you may be required to obtain a license.  You should check with your local authorities about the regulations.

At-home Tutoring Business

To run an at-home tutoring business you don’t need anything in particular except your teaching skills and willingness to travel to student’s home.  An at-home tutoring business involves going to student’s home for tuitions.

The best part of running an at-home tutoring business is that you don’t need anything to start this business.  There are no regulations, no set up required and no capital to be invested.

Online Tutoring Business

An online tutoring business could be one of the most capital intensive of all tutoring methods but it has its own benefits.  First of all it eliminates the geographical limitations and traveling requirements that often limit the growth of a tutoring business.  Secondly, you will not require space for teaching as in the case of in-home tutoring.

To run an online tutoring business you can use a high end learning management system that allows for creating multimedia educational content and delivering lessons through live chat and video conferencing or use a simple system with an ability to post text notes and manage questions and answers.  You can also have a custom website built for yourself with the required features.

Irrespective of the mode of tutoring that you choose there are some general points that you should keep in mind while running a tutoring business:

1. Choose the subject that you will be teaching very carefully.  You will need to choose a subject that you are an expert at and it should be in demand too.  Choosing a subject that is not in demand will not bring you money and choosing the subject that you are not good at will bring you bad reputation.
2. It is better to use the textbooks that students use in their schools.  Make yourself comfortable with the content of those textbooks.
3. You will need to motivate and engage students.  Keep some small rewards handy for giving to students when they perform well.
4. You will have to keep yourself updated with the latest trends in the subject that you choose to teach.
5. To grow the tutoring business you may be required to hire tutors.  Do verify their credentials before hiring.
6. It is often not advisable to teach many students at once; however, tutoring business may not be able to earn enough income teaching one student at a time.  You should try to keep the size of each batch to 4-5 students.  If the student can afford it then go for one-to-one sessions at a higher pricing.
7. Focus on individual results.  You may be teaching a whole group at once but parents want their kid to succeed.  Prepare your plan for each student and share with parents.
8. Set clear rules and guidelines.  Let the student know what is expected out of them in terms of behavior and discipline and what they can expect from you.
9. Parent-teacher communication is crucial.  Set up a system to communicate with the parents as they want to know what is done in each session and how their child is performing.
10. Time is money when it comes to tutoring business.  A tutor gets paid by the hour and parents would want full value for the money they pay for each minute.  Plan each session in advance and keep the session focused on task.

Marketing

Marketing a tutoring business will involve contacting parents who need a tutor.  Most parents take suggestions from school counselors about tutors and you should target school counselors in your marketing activities.  You can contact school counselors and share the details of your tutoring service and your contact details which they can share with the parents.

You can advertise your tutoring business on local classified websites like craigslist.com and distribute pamphlets in your area.

Also let your friends and family know about your services and ask them to refer parents who need a tutor.

Upfront Cost to Start Tutoring Business

Depending on the tutoring mode that you select, you may be required to invest in space, furniture, website and learning management system.  Apart from that most expenses will be related to marketing and advertising.

Pricing

A tutor is paid on a hourly basis.  For calculating the hourly rate for teaching a batch of students take the hourly rate that you would otherwise earn, add the associated costs for each session such as travel cost and divide that by the number of students.  While deciding your hourly rate also consider the cost of running the website and the rental for the space, if applicable.

Insurance & Regulatory Requirements

A license is required to start in-home tutoring business.  There are no specific regulations or insurance requirements to start tutoring business of any other type.

The Need for a Career Counseling Service

People are often faced with thousands of career options to choose from.  A career counselor works with these people to come up with the best career plan for them based on their attitude, aptitude and other individual aspects.  Apart from students who need a career counselor in the beginning of their careers there are several other types of people that need a career counselor.  These include people like working adults who wish to change careers, women who wish to return to work, unemployed individuals, seniors looking to work after retirement, etc.

Requirements for Starting a Career Counseling Business

• A computer with Internet
• Telephone
• Word processing software such as MS-Word
• A certification in counseling – Requirements differ from state to state
• An undergraduate degree in counseling, education or psychology is preferable
• Personality and aptitude tests
• Office space near educational institutions or offices is also preferable but not essential

Operations

The first step in running a career counseling business is to become a career counselor by obtaining necessary certifications from accredited institutions such as National Board of Certified Counselors.  Some institutions also provide online training and certification for people who want to become counselors.  Since different states have different requirements for becoming a counselor you should select a program that meets the requirements of the state where your business will be based.

Choosing the right location is also important for starting a career counseling business.  Although a career counselor can work entirely on telephone or online, having a storefront at a location with lots of office or colleges will be a boost to the business.

A career counseling business matches people with the right jobs or businesses by understanding them in details.  Career counselors use a variety of aptitude, skills and psychometric tests to identify individual traits and understand the personality.  As a career counseling business you should have access to these tests and questionnaires or you can develop your own test.

In your normal work routine as a career counselor your job will be to talk to different types of people, on phone or in person, who need guidance for making critical career decisions.  The people that you will work with may not always be students or people new to working; you will also be dealing with people who are frustrated with their current jobs or people who have lost their jobs.  Depending on the individual, you will conduct various tests, evaluate results and share your observations, suggestions for career options and areas of improvement.

Apart from suggesting a career plan to an individual, a career counselor can also offer job search assistance, resume writing service, interview preparation and other similar services that help a person find the best job.

As a career counselor you need to be updated with the latest trends in the industry, the economy and education so that you are able to offer correct advice to people.

Marketing

You can advertise your career counseling business in yellow pages, classifieds section of newspapers and job fairs.  You can also advertise on websites that provide career tips and online job boards.

An important aspect in running a successful career counseling business is to establish yourself as an expert in the field.  You can promote yourself and your business by participating in industry seminars and conferences as a speaker.  Another method to establish your authority is to create a website that offers free tips related to jobs and careers.  People who will visit your website can be offered a paid service that providers a personalized career recommendation from an expert career counselor.

Upfront Cost to Start

The primary cost to start a career counseling business includes the cost of office furniture and a computer if you don’t have one.  You will also need to invest in obtaining access to various personality and psychometric tests if you choose not to developer your own.

If you are planning to operate your career counseling business virtually, you will have to spend on creating a website with the ability to take online payments.

Pricing

Career counseling services are charged on a hourly basis.  You can also offer standard packages at a fixed price for students or for those who are just beginning to work.  Career counselors charge anywhere between $30 per hour to $300 per hour.  While deciding on the hourly rate you need to consider factors such as the target audience, the career level of the individual and the locality where you will operate (career counselors in metropolitan areas charge a much higher rate as compared to their counterparts based in smaller cities).

Regulatory & Insurance Requirements

There are no insurance requirements for running a career counseling business.  As mentioned earlier in this post, some states may require a certification to start a career counseling business.

Why a Personalized Gift Basket Business is Needed?

To understand the need for a personalized gift basket business you first need to understand the reason for gifting and the target customers.  People usually give gifts on special occasions, to thank someone or to show their love and appreciation.  Similarly businesses also give gifts to reward customer loyalty, promote a product, service or event and to award their employees.  In all these cases, the need is to have a unique gift item that is customized to the reason for gifting.  A personalized gift basket maker assembles gift items suitable for the gifting requirements and delivers them in a creative packaging.

Requirements for Starting a Gift Basket Business:

• Knowledge of local traditions, culture and products
• Relationship with suppliers of gift items, packaging material etc.
• Ability to creatively select and assemble gift items
• Creative packaging skills
• Telephone
• Storage space and shelves
• Packing and decorative materials
• Gift products

Operations

As a startup gift basket business you will usually keep a handy collection of generic gift baskets that can be sold as is to the customers.  It is essential to develop these generic gift baskets to create a portfolio of your work that you can show to prospective customers.

If a person or business needs customized gift baskets then you can either make changes to one of the standard baskets or, depending on the budget, create a fully customized one.  While creating a fully customized basket for personal gifting you should find out about the recipient’s interests, likes and dislikes, reason for gifting, relationship etc.  All these details will help you choose the items to make that perfect gift basket.  For creating gift baskets for businesses you need to find out if there are any guidelines related to gifts that need to be followed.  Most companies don’t want their gifts to convey any religious and political sentiments and you need to be careful about not including any such item.

The performance of a personalized gift basket business is judged on adherence to budget and schedule apart from the non-measurable satisfaction of the sender and receiver of the gift.  You need to ensure that you are able to create and deliver the best gift basket while remaining within the budget specified by the customer.  It is also critical to deliver the gift on the required schedule otherwise it will not have any value to the sender and receiver both.

A gift basket business needs to have a strong supplier relationship to be able to source gift products at the right price.  You will need to work with various suppliers to ensure a constant supply of variety of gift items at a discounted price.  Getting a lower price for gifts will allow you to offer gift baskets to customers at competitive rates.

A gift basket business can be run both offline and online.  If you run your business offline you will be limited to your local area.  The advantage of running the gift basket business in your local area is that you will be able to keep yourself updated about the market, trends, new suppliers etc. easily.  The advantage of running this business online is that you will not be limited to the customer base in your local area; however, you will have to work with customers from different cultures, needs etc. and you will need to keep abreast of the changes in different markets and trends.  To run an online gift basket business you will need to create a website with the catalog of your gift baskets, a payment system and an option to receive requests for customizations.

Since gifting is a highly seasonal activity, a gift basket business should be ready to handle spikes in demand as well as troughs.  You need to ensure that you have optimum inventory in place to meet the volume needs and also ensure that there is no overstocking during periods of low demand.

If you work with companies for their gifting needs, you may be required to travel to business locations to discuss gift basket customization options.

Marketing

In the beginning, try promoting your personalized gift basket business between your relatives and friends who in turn can refer their friends and relatives to you.  One great aspect of this business is that your suppliers can become a great source of business for you.  Ask your suppliers (gift shops, chocolate makers), from whom you purchase gifts for making gift baskets, to display your contact details in their shops for people who wish to have a gift basket made and, in turn, you can promise them to buy the gift items from them.

Upfront Cost to Start

To start a gift basket business, your initial investment will be in creating standard gift baskets that you will be able to sell to customers as well as use for creating a catalog of your offerings.  This would require an inventory of gift baskets, the gifts, and other related material that you will use to create your standard gift baskets.

If you choose to run an online gift basket business then you will need to spend on website development, payment gateway integration etc.  Apart from these expenses, you will be spending on advertising your business.

Pricing

The pricing will be based on two factors, the cost of gifts, packaging and shipping and the cost of customization time and effort.  For standard, ready-to-sell, gift baskets you can charge a fixed price that covers the cost of items, packaging and delivery along with your profit margin.  For customized gift baskets, apart from the cost of material and shipping, you can either charge a fixed additional amount or bill the customer at an hourly rate for customization.

Regulatory & Insurance Requirements

Shipping some gift items such as alcoholic beverages may require licenses in some areas.  Please check with your local authorities for regulations about them.

Hope you have learnt how to start a gift basket business and are ready to explore this fantastic business opportunity.

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Why a Babysitting Agency is Needed?

First of all it is difficult to find a reliable babysitter and finding a babysitter at the required time and schedule is all the more difficult for people.  Moreover, every parent requires some time out to relax without being worried about kids.  Similarly, single parents on work related travel with their kids require someone’s help so that they can focus on their work.  This is where a babysitting agency comes to the rescue of traveling parents.

Babysitting Agency Business Requirements:

• A team of babysitters who are available on call
• Telephone
• Access to emergency medical facilities

Operations

A babysitting agency provides sitters who, on demand, visit the client’s house or hotel room to take care of children.  It is a different than concept day care where parents bring in their children to the babysitter.  You need to make it very clear to the clients that you will not accept children in your own home or office and that you will not provide any pickup and drop facility to the children.

As a babysitting agency owner, your first responsibility will be to hire a team of verified babysitters who are patient with kids of different nature and background.  You should ask for references and, if required, have babysitters go through a criminal background check.  If you can get experienced people or people with knowledge of emergency medical care to work with your babysitting agency it will be a big plus.

Secondly, you need to create a contract with your attorney’s assistance for capturing full information about the parents and kids such as:

• Full details about the parent or guardian such as name, telephone and address.  You should verify these details through any government ID card such as a driver’s license.
• Alternative contact person and phone number in case the parents are not reachable.
• Medical details of the child such as allergies, diseases etc. if any
• Duration for which the parents will be out and, if possible, where they will be while you are in charge of the child.
• Any type of special behavior or rules for the child.

You should also seek parent’s legal consent for providing any medical treatment in case of an emergency.

During the normal course of business, you need to take care of the schedule and availability of babysitters, billing, and payment.  It is very critical to have an abundant supply of babysitters who are ready to work at any given time.  You can try hiring seniors and college students who will be available to work at lower rates too.

For payments, you should try to take advance payment from clients so that it is not left to the babysitter to collect payments.  If this is not possible then you should collect your payment through credit cards instead of clients making cash payments to the babysitters directly.

Marketing

A babysitting agency can be an ideal addition to the list of local resources often maintained by hotels, resorts, convention centers, theaters and restaurants.  Try getting your babysitting agency listed by these types of businesses in your area.  You can fix a rate of commission that will be paid to them if they refer a client to you.

These days some big corporations provide babysitting as a facility to their employees.  Try contacting companies in your area and offer them your services.

Upfront Cost to Start

Apart from marketing and advertising expenses and cost of hiring babysitters there is no other cost to start a babysitting agency.

Pricing

The services of a babysitter is charged on a hourly basis and the number of children to be taken care of.  You can charge, for example, $30 per hour for two children and an additional $10 per hour per extra child.  Usually a babysitter is paid to watch the children and any additional activities such as serving meals should be priced separately.

A use of babysitting services on weekends and holidays should be priced more than the normal charge.  You should also mark up the cost of travel for the babysitter in the hourly rate.

Regulatory & Insurance Requirements

You should check with your local administrative authorities as a permit or license may be required to start a babysitting agency in some areas.

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Why a Copywriter is Needed?

A copywriter writes the content that has the power to persuade people to buy the advertised product or service.  Have you ever read a tagline that keeps coming back to your mind or read a web page that made you finalize your purchase decision?  If yes, you have the idea of what a cleverly written copy can do.  Marketers, across the globe, have realized and agree that a well written copy has the power to influence buying decisions and persuade a person for taking a desired action.  A copy writer is what is needed to create that magical copy.  Exponential growth in online retailing is another important factor that has led to increased demand for copywriters.  Since online retailers can’t demonstrate their products and services to the customer as in the case of real world retail businesses they look for a copywriting business that can creatively explain the benefits to the potential customers.

Copywriting Business Requirements

It is fairly simple to start copywriting business and you will need to have:

• Creative writing skills
• Understanding of buyer’s decision making process
• Strong command over the language
• Computer with Internet connectivity
• Word processing application such as MS-Word

Operations

In most cases, as a copywriter, you will be writing sales copy for a product or service that is going to be sold; however, you may be asked to write a copy for other purposes as well such as making a person join a mailing list or asking people to spread an idea amongst their friends.  It is extremely important for a copywriter to understand the purpose of the copy to be written and the ultimate action that is required to be taken.

A sales copy is made up various elements that individually and collectively try to draw attention of the readers and influence their decisions.  You need to know the art of appropriately including elements such as the headline, testimonials, statistics etc. in the copy.

If you going to write a sales copy for the web, it is also important to know about Search Engine Optimization (SEO).  As a SEO copywriter you will be able to offer more value for a client because you will include the relevant keywords that will make the page show up in search engine results and draw more potential buyers to the web page.

Understanding the culture of your target audience is another important factor to understand for running a copywriting business.  If you are asked to write a copy meant to be read by people from some other region or country, you should first try to acquaint yourself with their culture to make sure that you don’t end up writing something that may offend people.

The performance of a copy writing business is measured by the client on parameters such as professionalism, timely delivery of content and, most importantly, the success rate of the copy.  You should strive to provide, on time, a copy that works for your client.

Marketing

To market your copywriting business in the initial stages you should try to work with small advertising firms that don’t employ a full-time copywriter.  Also look for copywriting opportunities on websites such as elance.com and odesk.com that often have buyers requesting freelance copywriters.

A portfolio of successful sales copies is one of the best marketing tool for a copywriting business.  Also, a lot of potential clients will ask you to show proof of success for the copies that you written.  You should maintain a portfolio of your most successful copies and try to get data from your satisfied clients.

Upfront Cost to Start

A copywriting business is one the most economical business to start.  You will only be required to have a computer, Internet connectivity and MS-Word or any other word processor which, in all likelihood, you will already have.

Pricing

You can charge your clients on an hourly basis.  Another method that a copywriting business can use is to charge a fixed amount with a limit on the number of words in the sales copy.

Regulatory & Insurance Requirements

There are no legal or insurance requirements to start a copywriting business.

Why a Videographer is Needed?

While anyone can pick up a camcorder today and start recording, a professional videographer brings in creativity, skills and knowledge to produce a memorable video.  Hiring a videographer becomes extremely important for events such as weddings which are once in a lifetime events.  Nobody would want an amateur recording the event only to realize later that a lot of important parts were missed or the entire event was recorded in poor lighting conditions.  A professional videographer also brings in editing skills that are essential to create a nice visual presentation.

Videography Business Requirements

To become a videographer and start your videography business, you will need to have:

• A professional-grade digital video camera (camcorder).  We are recommending digital camcorders as tape-based camcorders are being phased out by most manufacturers.
• External microphones
• Video lights
• A computer
• Video editing software such as Adobe Premiere Pro or iMovie
• One or two on-site assistants to help with set up and for assistance during the recording
• Knowledge of video and audio editing software
• Copyright free music, special effects, and images
• CD/DVD burning software to create copies of video

Operations

As a professional videographer you will be recording events according to your client’s requirements.  This will involve traveling to client specified location with your equipments and setting up equipments there to record the video.

You should try to gather as much details about the event as possible from your client including the location, the important people in the event, ceremonies or special parts of the event etc.

It is advisable to familiar with the location of the event and the rules and regulations applicable there.  You need to know about the rules related to permitted areas for recording, bright lighting, usage of microphones etc.  You will also need to know the availability of electrical outlets for your equipments.  Although most modern equipments can run on battery, you should know the availability and the distance between electrical outlets and the area where you will be shooting for calculating wire requirement and battery backup.

As a videography business, you will be recording live events that do not provide a second chance.  It is important for a videographer to keep backup equipments for use in case of a technical failure.

On the day of the event, you should reach the location well before the beginning of the event.  This will give you time to set up your equipments comfortably and confirm that they are functioning properly.  Use this time to rehearse the recording of the event as that will make you feel comfortable during real action.

Creating a professional quality video requires editing.  During video editing you will be fixing errors in video and audio recording, deleting unnecessary parts of the video, adding transition effects during scene changes etc.  You need to know how to use video editing software to edit a video yourself or you will need to hire someone to do it for you.

Once the editing is complete, you will burn copies of video on CDs or DVDs and deliver to client.

Marketing

Just like freelance photography business, an ideal way to market videography business is to contact providers of complementary services such as wedding planners, event managers, banquet halls etc.  You can publish ads in newspapers and list your business in relevant online directories.

A lot of people will need proof of your capabilities and skills and you should maintain a portfolio of your past work to demonstrate to potential clients.  Referrals from satisfied customers can also be a great source of new business for you.

Upfront Cost to Start

To become a professional videographer you will need to buy a high quality video camera, if you don’t have one, along with other associated equipments such as microphones and lights.  You may also need to spend on video editing software if you plan to edit videos yourself.

Pricing

Usually the services of a videographer are offered for a set price that includes recording, editing and producing the final video.  This should, however, be based on the length of the event to be covered and you should charge extra for longer events.  You should also include the cost of travel, transportation of equipments and creating multiple copies in the price of the package.

Regulatory and Insurance Requirements

There are no specific legal and insurance requirements that govern videography business; however, you should be aware of copyright restrictions for recording a live event such as stage show.  You should also check with your insurance agent about protection against loss, theft or damage to expensive equipments that you will be buying to become a videographer.

Why Resume Writing Service is Needed?

While everyone can jot down details of their academics and professional milestones, creating a resume and cover letter that leaves a lasting impression is a special skill that everyone doesn’t posses.  Since a resume is the first impression of a candidate for the hiring company, a well crafted resume acts as a door opener for a candidate.  A resume writing service is required to create a resume that provides accurate details in a style that is easy to read and understand.  Generally, a jobseeker needs a certified professional resume writer to increase the chances of getting an interview.

Requirements for Starting Resume Writing Business

To start Resume Writing business, you will need to have:

• Computer with Internet connectivity
• Telephone
• Printer
• Understanding of hiring processes
• Resume writing software or Word Processing application
• Resume templates

Operations

The job of a resume writing business is to sell jobseeker’s profile to the hiring company and help getting interview.  The day-to-day operations for a resume writing business involves talking to jobseekers to find out details of their professional experience and academics.  After getting the details, the resume writer compiles all the information in one of the templates that is suitable for the position sought.  The resume, when finished, is emailed to the client or printed copies are mailed.

Although it is not necessary, based on your preference and educational background, you may choose to specialize in writing resumes for a particular industry, for eg: if you are familiar with IT industry then your niche can be resumes for IT professionals only or you can become a Federal Resume Writer and specialize in writing resumes for federal jobs only.

A resume writer’s performance is measured by the number of interviews the jobseeker is able to win with the help of the resume.  As a resume writing business you should measure your performance and keep track of the success rate of the resumes that you have written.  You should keep a portfolio of well written resumes to show to your potential customers and, if possible, mention the number of interviews that a particular resume was able to win.

A resume writing business gets to know lot of details about a person’s career and education and it is the responsibility of the resume writer to keep this information confidential.  In fact, you should not share the name of your customer with any other person.  If you are showing resume of a person to potential customer, it is advisable to remove the name, contact details and any other personally identifiable details or use fictional details.

It is also the responsibility of the resume writer to present facts correctly and not to overstate or understate them.  Any misrepresentation, willfully or by mistake, can lead to a troublesome situation for your customer and will also create a bad image of your business.

You should learn to use a resume writing software and using resume templates.  Creating a resume from scratch every time is very time consuming and will not be a scalable process for your business once it starts growing.  Resume software and templates will help you write more resumes in the same amount of time.  Selection of right template for creating resume for a certain position is also important and you should find out which template works best for a position.

To improve your resume writing skills you can read books written on the subject.  You should also keep yourself updated with the new trends in resume styles and the methods and keywords used by hiring people to shortlist resumes for interview.  Please remember that a single keyword, if missed, can cost an interview opportunity for your customer.

Marketing

You should advertise your resume writing business to graduating classes in colleges.  You can also tie up with employment agencies and start offering a service that complements theirs.  Register yourself with directories that list resume writers and place a small classified ad in local newspaper.  Don’t forget to ask satisfied customers for referrals.

Upfront Cost to Start

The main cost to start resume writing business is the computer and good quality printer.  You may also need to buy license for resume writing software, templates and word processing application depending on the way you choose to operate.

Pricing

You can offer resume writing service as a package with a fixed price.  Usually, resume writing packages will include multiple printed copies of the resume.  You should add the cost of paper and printing while fixing the price of the package.

A resume writer can also charge an hourly price with the cost of paper, printing and other services marked up in the hourly rate.

Regulatory and Insurance Requirements

There are no specific legal and insurance requirements to become a certified professional resume writer and start resume writing business.

Why a Transcriptionist is Required?

A transcriptionist is required by people who, due to lack of time, prefer to dictate and record their notes, letters, memos etc.  This may include lawyers, doctors, authors, etc.  Transcription services are also required by companies that record notes from meetings and conference calls etc.  An example of this could be a quarterly earnings call by a company that can be recorded and later transcribed for publishing and archiving.  Another example for requirement of transcription services is speeches delivered at academic institutions which can be transcribed and stored for reference or publishing.

Requirements for Becoming a Transcriptionist

If you wish to become a transcriptionist, you will need:

• The ability to understand different accents
• Good command over the language
• Fast typing speed
• Understanding of technical terms used in the fields in which you wish to offer your services, for eg: knowledge of financial terms if you plan to offer earnings call transcription services
• A transcription machine that includes a foot pedal which is a special equipment that allows controlling the audio playback with your foot
• A computer with Internet connectivity
• A Word Processing application such as MS-Word
• An audio player such as Windows Media Player or VLC Media Player
• Headphone

Operations

A transcriptionist usually receives audio files in a CD, tapes or in digital format over the Internet.  The job of a transcriptionist is to listen to the audio and transcribe it in a word processing application and provide the transcript in digital and/or printed format.  The performance of a transcriptionist is measured on the basis of speed and accuracy of transcription.  A good transcriptionist will be able to quickly and accurately transcribe an audio.  Another very important measure of performance in transcription business is the turnaround time.  A lot of times, clients require the transcript within few hours and you should make provisions to be able to deliver the transcript within the specified turnaround time.

It is always advisable for the transcriptionist to be familiar with the language and terminology of the domain to be able to accurately transcribe the audio.  You can purchase dictionaries for specific industries to gain understanding of the terminology.

You can also use a voice to text conversion tool that can quickly convert any audio into text format.  The text produced using this conversion can be far from accurate depending on the speaker’s voice and accent and will require editing on your part to ensure accuracy.  This technique, if used properly, can help you transcribe very quickly.

Marketing

The marketing for transcription services business will involve contacting the individual professionals such as lawyers and doctors directly and offering your services.  Another method is to publish an advertisement in industry magazines.

Students and researchers can be a big market for a transcription services business as they require their notes to be transcribed.  You can consider advertising inside colleges and within student communities.

Online freelance job boards such as ODesk.com and Elance.com also have lots of potential buyers of transcription services.  You can create your profile on these sites and contact the buyers.

Upfront Cost to Start

You will need to invest in good quality transcription equipments that will make your work as a transcriptionist easy and quick to perform.  The choice of the transcription machine will depend on the format in which you receive the audio.  You may have to own more than one if you wish to cater to different types such as CDs, digital files and tapes.  Other expenses include the software that you will need to purchase such as MS-Word, Voice to text conversion software etc.

Pricing

The work of a transcriptionist is usually priced by hour.  A premium over the standard hourly rate can be charged for specialty jobs such as highly technical transcription and urgent requirements.  You should mark up the cost of printing and postage if the output is to be delivered in print format or if you need to send the tapes or CDs back to the customer.

Regulatory and Insurance Requirements

While there are no statutory requirements, you should safeguard yourself against liability for loss or damage to customer’s audio files which is an intellectual property.

Why a Freelance Photographer is Needed?

Different people need a freelance photographer for different reasons.  Families and individuals need a freelance photographer to capture high quality pictures of their social events such as a wedding or a graduation party.  Small and medium size companies require a freelance photographer to click photos of their products for printing in catalogs or brochures.  Professionals such as architects and interior designers may also need a freelance photographer to take pictures for creating their portfolio.  Since most of them cannot or may not want to hire a professional photographer who comes at a much higher cost than a freelance photographer there is always a requirement for freelancers who can take good quality pictures at a reasonable price.

Freelance Photography Business Requirements

To start freelance photography business, you will need to have:

• An entry-level Digital Single Lens Reflex (DSLR or Digital SLR) camera
• Lenses according to the type of photography work that you wish to pursue.  Wedding photography, for example, will need a different lens than the one used to capture passport photos
• A photo editing program such as Adobe Photoshop
• Basic photo editing skills using a photo editing program.  This is not mandatory as you can have someone else do it for you
• A high quality printer if you wish to print photos yourself or you can use sites like snapfish.com for ordering prints
• A small room with good lighting for studio if you wish to take up passport photography

Operations

Depending upon the type of photography that you choose, you will be working at various places which will involve traveling to different places.  During the initial stages of your freelance photography business try building your portfolio of smaller jobs such as birthday parties.  This will give you a hands-on experience and will also equip you with required skills for working in different situations and with different people.  It is not a good idea to take up bigger projects such as weddings in the initial stages of your freelance photography business because you may be faced with lots of difficulties in terms of settings, location and people.

It is also advisable to know the tricks and rules of the trade before venturing into freelance photography.  Passport photos, for example, have some specific guidelines about the size, backgrounds etc. and you should be well aware of them before taking photos for passports.

Apart from the core picture clicking activity, digital photography also involves post production and you should understand and plan your post production process very well.  Since you will be taking pictures in digital format, it is also advisable to learn some basic photo editing using tools such as Photoshop.  Unlike earlier times when photographers used film cameras and carefully composed each and every picture before pressing and releasing the shutter button, today’s digital cameras allow taking more than a couple of shots without worrying about film wastage.  The ability to easily edit pictures later also make photographers click more pictures with digital cameras as compared to what they would have clicked with film cameras.  However, working with lot many photos makes post production a very time consuming activity.  If you wish to control the post production time, follow the basic rules i.e. compose the photographs carefully so that you don’t have to make many edits during post production.  Also, consider learning and purchasing a software such as Adobe Photoshop Elements that simplifies post production workflow.

Marketing

An ideal way to market your freelance photography business is to contact other complementary service providers such as caterers and event planners.  You can also supplement services of bigger professional photographers who may not have time to take up certain jobs and ask them to pass such jobs to you.  You can pay them a part of the free in return for the jobs received through them.

Since photography is one activity that you do for fun, one good idea for marketing your services is to take pictures at parties in which you are invited.  You can take pictures of the party, create a small album of 10-15 photos with your business watermark on them and gift it to the host.  Ask them to share the photos with people they know and refer clients.

Upfront Cost to Start

To start your freelance photography business, you will need to spend on a DSLR camera with good resolution, lenses, memory cards, and some basic lighting equipments.  Apart from that, you need to have a computer with photo editing software and Internet access preferably.  You will also need to buy a good quality printer if you wish to print photos yourself.

Pricing

You can price your freelance photography services in various ways.  One way is to charge an hourly rate and top up that with the cost of prints, travel etc.  Another way is to charge a fixed amount for your time and services and a separate charge for each print.

Regulatory and Insurance Requirements

Freelance photography business does not have any specific regulatory or insurance requirements.

Why a Travel Planner is Required?

The need for a travel planner arises because a normal travel agent is unable to offer personalized services to clients.  A usual travel agent works with hundreds of clients on a daily basis as against a personal travel planner who works with fewer clients.  Secondly, a travel agent’s job is to ensure that the tickets and hotels are booked for the trip on the specified dates whereas a travel planner’s job is to understand client’s preferences, budgets, interests etc. and offer suitable alternatives.

Travel Planner Business Requirements

To start your personal travel planner business you will be required to have:

• A telephone
• A computer with Internet connectivity and a printer
• Knowledge of using travel websites such as Kayak.com, Expedia.com and Priceline.com
• Access to travel guidebooks and maps, either online or hard copies
• Web searching skills to find out information about places and rules and regulations for visiting a place
• An itinerary template that you will be filling in and printing to give to clients

Operations

As a travel planner your day-to-day operations will involve talking to clients who have requested for your service.  You may be required to visit client’s home or office for the meeting to understand their needs, if telephonic conversation is not sufficient.

You will be searching for the best flight ticket prices, hotels according to your client’s preference and budget and information about the places that you client needs to visit.  Once you have completed the research, you will be compiling all the options and will present to your client.  This may require another visit to your client’s home or office.

You should maintain basic accounts to keep track of your earnings and expenses.

Marketing

You can publish an advertisement in newspaper and distribute pamphlets in your locality.  Some freelance job boards such as elance.com and odesk.com also carry these types of requirements so you can contact the buyers there.  The biggest marketing tool for a travel planner are the clients who are satisfied with the services.  Ask them to refer new clients to you and you can, in turn, give them discounts on their next travel plan.

Upfront Cost to Start

You will be primarily spending on purchasing a computer and printer if you don’t have one.  Apart from that the main expenditure will be on advertising and promoting your business.

Pricing

The pricing for your services will be based on the hours required to complete the research.  You should also add the cost of telephone calls, visits to client’s place (fuel and time).

Regulatory and Insurance Requirements

There are no regulatory or insurance requirements as such to work as a travel planner.