8. Project a positive company image. You only have a passing moment to leave a positive and memorable impression on the people you intend to do business with. Home-based business owners must go out of their way and make a conscious effort to always project the most professional business image possible. Most home-based business owners don't have the benefit of elaborate offices or elegant storefronts and showrooms to dazzle prospects and impress customers. Instead, they must rely on imagination, creativity and attention to the smallest detail when creating and maintaining a professional image for their home business.9. Know your customers. One of the most important features and often the most significant competitive advantage the home business owner has over larger competitors is the ability to offer personalized attention. Call it a high-tech reaction, if you will, but customers are tired of hearing that their information is somewhere on the computer and needs to be retrieved, or that they are told to press a dozen digits to finally get to the right department only to find themselves with an answering machine, from which they never receive a return call