Home business online resources

Running a home business is probably the most satisfying thing you can do. But, if you work alone, who can you turn to when you need help or advice? And, maybe more importantly, where you can get advice that is free and is from a trusted source? A friend or family member may be able to sympathise with your concerns about the financial state of your business, but they probably can’t offer constructive advice. So what do you do? Well, the Internet is at hand.

If you know where to look and can sort the wheat from the chaff, then the Internet is a rich source of information for home businesses. Here’s our pick of some of the best websites to check out:

Business Link is a free online business advice and support service. It’s government funded and designed to help you set up and run your business in accordance with the law. You can find pretty much everything you need here – from setting up your business to health and safety regulations to importing and exporting. The site has a dedicated section for running home businesses and has links to specific government departments and agencies, as well as a directory of business events that can be searched by region and county.

HMRC provides online advice for all tax-related matters. If you register to use its online services you can file your self-assessment tax return online, view summaries of specific tax years, make payments and get information on National Insurance, PAYE, VAT etc.

You will probably be looking to keep your overheads as low as possible working from home, so before choosing or changing any services you need to use for your home business make Money Saving Expert your first port of call. All information has been thoroughly researched and the site aims to help consumers find the best deals on everything. So for your home business this will probably mean phone and broadband, gas and electricity, mobiles and insurance.