Architectural Designs

Supplement income by doing some MS office/design work at home?

I've been considering using my computer skills to earn some cash from home -formating documents, designing posters/publicity/leaflets, creating basic and advanced Excel documents and so on. Problem is, I have these skills but have no idea how to use them from home to make money. Does anybody here do something similar and how do I start off doing something like this? Thanks in advance

Public Comments

1. Make an awsome website and tell people what you do and if your cost would be resonable, etc. My cousin does simple to extreme websites for people. You have a great opportunity. Will you do things like spreadsheets for people to handle their bills better? Type reports for students? I used to pay 80.00 for someone to type mine. Good Luck!
2. Work up a portfolio of your best efforts . Contact printing companies, temp staffing agencies such as Manpower or Kelly, and local newspapers/periodicals. University on-line bulletin boards are another good place to find one-time jobs... professors hate the busy work. Build a good reputation, and I'm sure you will have plenty of work Good Luck
3. word of mouth is the best way to go on this sort of thing. start looking at everyone you see as a candidate for your services. doing a website is a good idea; except you're competing with an international market then. with word of mouth, you're not really competing with anyone! also, a website will eat up your profits, while w.o.m. is free! churches are great networks--you may want to visit area churches with a sampling of your work. ask them if they have a big event coming up, or more regular work that they just don't have the staffing for. smaller churches are going to be a better bet, here. be sure to not step on anyone's toes who is already doing the computer work! give churches a discounted rate, because they're going to spread the word about you. attend a few services, stick around afterwards and wa-lah! business!! keep your costs low, so that you can charge less. christmas is around the corner--start talking to people who are over 50. ask if they want to impress their kids/grand-kids for christmas. make a newsletter for them (even show them how to do it!) with their pictures and words and you're gonna have one happy client. who will tell his/her friends about you! :) good luck!!!! gertie