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Part-time Business Opportunity or Full-time Business? 

Part-time Business Opportunity: Market Matters 

When choosing between a part-time business opportunity and full-time business you should start with a thorough assessment of your idea’s market potential.  Often, this step alone will be enough to tell you whether you should start with a part-time business opportunity or full-time.  

Home-based business consultant Sylvia Landman has stated "You can't become so caught up in your love for what you're doing that you overlook the business realities".  If you find there is a huge unmet need for your product or service, no major competition and a ready supply of eager customers, then by all means go ahead and start full-time.  If on the other hand however, you find that the market won't support a full-time business, but might some day with proper marketing and business development, then it's probably best to start with a part-time business opportunity at first. 

Whether you develop a full-time or part-time business opportunity, you must make sure there is a market for your product or service.  You should investigate such factors as competition in your industry, the economy in your area, the demographic break-down of your client base, and the availability of potential customers.  If you're thinking of opening an upscale beauty salon, for example in your area, you should probably evaluate the number of similar shops in your area and the fees clients are willing to pay.

Once you determine that there is a need for your business, you should then outline your goals and strategies into a comprehensive business plan.  You should always conduct extensive research, make market projections for your full or part-time business opportunity, and set goals for yourself based upon these findings.  "It gives you a tremendous view of the long-range possibilities and keeps the business on the right track," stated Landman.  Don't neglect writing a business plan even if you're starting a part-time business opportunity: A well-written business plan will help you take your business full-time later on. 

Certain businesses lend themselves particularly well to a part-time business opportunity arrangement.  Mail order, food products, direct marketing, some Internet businesses and service businesses are good examples.  Doing your market research and business plan will give you a more realistic idea of whether you need to focus on a part-time business opportunity. 

If you have your heart set on a business which is traditionally full-time, you may have to think creatively.  There may be ways to make it work as a part-time business opportunity.  For instance, instead of a restaurant, you might consider a catering business.  You still get to create menus and interact with customers, but your work can all be done during the evenings and weekends.  

By Paul Susic MA Licensed Psychologist Ph.D. Candidate President/CEO Susic Psychological Consulting P.C.