Home Based Business Questions & Answers
This column maintains the various questions raised by readers of A. Mustaffa Yussof's Home Based Business in Malaysia articles. If you have any other questions (not covered here) regarding home based businesses, please eMail A. Mustaffa Yussof, and he will be happy to attend to them.

1. Do I need a license to run this kind of mail order business?
2. Do I need any permit from any government authorities for advertising my product on the internet?
3. Is a sole proprietorship business registration enough for such businesses?
4. Do I need to get any form of approval from any government agency for the products that I am selling?
5. I am running a part-time home based mobile computer tutoring service and I wish to promote my business to my neighbourhood. What is a good way to promote my business? Should I advertise in the classifieds?

1. Do I need a license to run this kind of mail order business?
   (The reader intended to run a mail order business selling children's items - toys etc)
       Actually, strictly speaking, you do. You have to obtain what you call a Lesen AJL (Akta Jualan Langsung). The essential requirements are that you have to be a Sdn Bhd company and your paid-up capital must be RM200,000. Pretty steep huh? But in my opinion, if you run an ethical business and sell quality goods which do not attract complaints from customers, nobody really cares if you have a licence or not. What I mean by ethical is be transparent. Use a proper physical mailing address (non-PO Box) so that people know where to find you and have a telephone number ready to attend to complaints. If you do get caught and fined, you might just pay the fine and treat it as a business expense but the likelihood of that happening is low.

   ---

   [Back to top]

2. Do I need any permit from any government authorities for advertising my product on the internet?
       Advertising permits are only required by Local Municipalities for outdoor advertising. In any case, advertise ethically.

   ---

   [Back to top]

3. Is a sole proprietorship business registration enough for such business?
       As I said, a Sdn. Bhd. is needed for a properly licensed business but a sole proprietorship is quite necessary as you sound more professional using a trade name and for people to pay by cheque to that trade name, you have to open a bank account under the name which will require a business registration.

   ---

   [Back to top]

4. Do I need to get any form of approval from any government agency for the products that I am selling?
   (The reader intended to run a mail order business selling children's items - toys etc)
       If they are not sexually or religiously offensive, it should be okay. I think food products and medicine need to have some kind of approval but in your case, it's not necessary.

   ---

   [Back to top]

5. I am running a part-time home based mobile computer tutoring service and I wish to promote my business to my neighbourhood. What is a good way to promote my business? Should I advertise in the classifieds?
       The best way to market to a particular locality is by distributing flyers. Let's say your budget is RM80. For that amount, to advertise in the papers, you would probably get a 4 line classified ad which do not adequately explain the benefits of your products. Since your market is confined is confined to a small geographical area, it is not necessary to promote to the whole country by putting in a classifieds ad. If you choose to market using flyers, for RM80, you can easily print 1000 A4 size flyers explaining your service in full. You'll get a heart attack knowing the rates the newspapers will charge for an A4 size ad! 1000 flyers will cover your locality quite well. Another tip is to get your newspaper vendor to insert the flyer in every newspaper they deliver within your locality for a small fee. I would also suggest that you include a discount coupon in your flyer or a free item or service. I have in mind free software installation which will cost you nothing but would have tremendous benefits for your customer.
       Let me add that to print 1000 flyers, which is considered a small number, the cheapest way is to photocopy. One of the better services in town is provided by World Information Technology Services at bizbest@writeme.com who are a home based business which can take your orders by email. If you have the original copy in Microsoft Word or Powerpoint format, just attach the file by email and they will print it out using a laser printer and run the copies for you immediately. They also provide door-to-door delivery and flyer design services at a very small fee.
       If any of you readers are interested in knowing how to start a Computer Tutoring service, email me at perfo@positive-thinking.com and type "Compbiz" in the subject box to receive a free report.