Enterprise Nation

‘I have been an advocate of homeworking since I started my first company back in 1997’  This is how the tale of Mark Bellinger begins. He takes us back in time, brings us up to date with VoIP, and asks why more people don’t work from home.

Generation Flex

Back then I coined the phrase "Generation Flex" as it seemed imminent to me that this would be the way things would become for the masses. I wrote at length about the best ways to do it, the pros, the cons and the mindset required to work in this virtual way.

Strangely though more than 12 years on, whilst there are many more of us with virtual offices, I joyfully find myself mainly competing against companies with a mass of unnecessary overheads, which of course is brilliant for my business...but

...the question is, why do so many people just not get it?

Being creative

I guess because I have never had the luxury of a nest egg or investment capital to build my humble empire that I have simply had to be frugal just to survive and therefore creative in finding the most cost effective way to do everything.

For example, it was relatively easy back in the late 90's to make a call using VOIP (Voice over Internet Protocol), granted you didn't want to be doing much else on your PC at the time and call drop outs were a bit of a pain but it was doable.

Today in June 2009 I simply can't believe that everybody doesn't use VOIP, I talk for free with almost all of my business associates using Skype (which I would highly recommend) , I make unlimited landline calls to anywhere in Europe for less than £60 a year, and my total annual phone bill is less than £200 for the year!

And where is my Virtual Office you may ask? well at the time of writing this I am on the beautiful island of Mallorca, next week I will be in the UK, I have an apartment in Poland but it doesn't really matter, because anyone can call me on the only number I hand out, which is a UK number +44 (0) 208 1233453 and the call comes through to me crystal clear wherever I am in the world.....and the best thing is that it costs me nothing because that number is a SkypeIn number which costs less than £2 a month!

Now granted, there is a small charge if I divert to a mobile, but because I always use a local SIM card in my mobile phone, that charge is also very small.

That is just one example of why my companies will never be beaten on price, except maybe by other companies with a virtual set up.

A professional front door

Now I know all the arguments about lack of social interaction, an important subject that I will cover on another occasion, but what I am focusing on here is the pure financial suicide of spending money on things you don't need.

"But what if I need to meet with a client?" simple, Meet them at their office, Meet them at a hotel, Meet them at your home.

Now, some of you will yelp "AT MY HOME no way!" what will they think, well, let me tell you a true story from back in 1999.

I had started a new relationship with a particular client who ran one of the largest independent chains of chemists in the South East of England and we were in discussions about building an intranet for them.

I had met at their head office a number of times and once at a restaurant to discuss their requirements, this last meeting before we signed a contract was different however..."Why don't we come to you?" they said.

Well I could think of plenty of reasons, primarily though because at that time I was running "The WWW Company" from a dingy studio basement flat in Hove, the trip to my desk was literally a roll to the floor from my bed and then from there you could probably reach the kitchen fridge door if you stretched hard enough.

Nevertheless, far from being put off by this the Group CEO and their Regional Director came and we discussed BIG business on my tiny sofa.

Rather than them being unimpressed with my "Home" set up, they were actually in admiration of the entrepreneurship and the fact that they weren't paying for swanky overheads.

By the way, the deal got done and they became one of our most valued clients.

I tell you this story because I still find people who have started their business from their home who have the ambition to "one day move into offices" which in some cases may be justified, but honestly ask yourself a big WHY before you take on any overhead, especially renting an office.

Remember it is profit that makes your business valuable, not turnover

Today, twelve years on "The WWW Company" and all the Singularis Media Group companies are still home based...and all the time I am at the wheel, they always will be. 

• Mark Bellinger, The WWW Company