How to make a work-at-home business succeed

By Marty Orgel 

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — When you call Amy Zhang, her secretary answers the phone and transfers you to her office. Only in this case, the secretary is in a “virtual” office and Zhang may be taking her calls at her home office.

Zhang owns San Francisco-based Affinity Fund Services LLC, which provides back-office administration services for hedge-fund managers.

Located in the city’s financial district, the “virtual” office gives her the legitimacy she needs. “If I have to have a private conversation in an office,” Zhang said. “I can book time in a real office with a desk and secretary through my virtual office.” 

Zhang has traded in the nine-to-five office job and instead has developed a successful home-based business for herself.

“My hourly rate varies from $150 to $250 an hour, based on the project,” Zhang said. Some of Zhang’s start-up hedge-fund clients also work out of a home office, she said. “The investors don’t care if a start-up fund manager works from a downtown office or a home office as long as he or she is getting good investment return,” she said.

For those struggling to find work, or who are underemployed, working from home may be a good solution, as new home-based or virtual jobs and business can succeed with the advantages of technology.

 Trading on talent

Michael Patak is Founder/CEO/Director of Scouting of TopstepTrader based in Chicago, Ill. “Our whole company was built on the premise of seeking the undiscovered, untapped trading talent that is often overlooked by other firms, provide them with opportunity and then in return receive a small portion of those traders’ profits,” he said.

Potential traders have to go through TopstepTrader’s Combine program which is loosely based on the NFL Scouting Combine; a week-long event where college football players compete in front of National Football League coaches, general managers and scouts.

Instead of football, participants are immersed in a live, real-time market simulation and then undergo a two- or four-week evaluation period. Those who meet profit targets are invited to go live with a fully-funded trading account provided by TopstepTrader. Traders work remotely from their home or office and receive 60% to 80% of their trading profits.

Brandon Rigio is an independent TopstepTrader commodity trader in Boulder, Colo. He said, “Working from home is drastically different from the information overload of working on the trading floor in Chicago. I have worked from home for five-plus years now, so I’m used to not going into an office.” 

Rigio said it’s tough work. “80% of traders don't ever make money,” he said. “The ones who do have to stay disciplined and focus day-in and day-out.” Successful traders, Rigio said, can earn $10,000 to $20,000 or more a week.

Letters from home

Freelance writing lets Sarah Sekula earn $3,000 a month. Sekula, based in Orlando, Fla., said she is motivated by her love of journalism. She enjoys researching and delivering a compelling story. “Plus, being my own boss is not too bad, either” she said.

Sekula turned to freelancing after being laid off from a full-time job at a magazine. She got a client who needed help with public relations and she got freelance work with a national newspaper. “From there I continued to network with editors to garner additional regular writing assignments,” she said.

Sekula said freelance writing is viable for those who are consummate researchers, have outstanding writing and editing skills and are self-motivated. It requires a good website, the ability to sell your ideas and the discipline to be organized and plan ahead so work is always coming in.

Travel writing in particular can be a difficult industry to get into and it can be a tough field to stay in because it’s not known for paying well. “If it weren’t for that aspect, though, I’d say it’s one of the best jobs around,” she said.

It takes passion and perseverance, Sekula said, but it can be done. “I wake up every day excited to do what I do and to plan where I’m going next. And I’m happier than I’ve ever been,” she said. 

Getting the word out

Having a way with words also allowed Dale Garrison to create a home business. Garrison runs Dale Garrison Editorial Services outside of Kansas City, Mo.

He’s a one-person marketing and public relations agency. His niche is to provide public relations, business writing, desktop publishing and web design to small businesses and non-profit organizations. “Essentially, I give them a professional marketing department for a fraction of in-house operations or large agency services,” he said.

Although it requires 70-80 hour weeks, Garrison said he has earned six figures annually for several years. While none of his clients are “very big to anyone but me and those they serve,” he said, “It’s a good living.” 

1 2