For an at home worker, proper maintenance of your essential equipment is vital.
This may mean keeping appropriate anti-virus software installed and scanning your system regularly, or making sure that your sewing machine is well maintained.
Even well cared for equipment can sometimes break down.
Even though you are not to blame for these failures, you are responsible for making sure your customers are not let down.
The same goes for unexpected power outages.
It is wise to keep a current listing of all of your clients along with their phone numbers in case of emergency even if you normally only do business by email.
If your computer were to fail, or your Internet connection to fail due to a storm then your landline may also be unavailable.
In either situation you would be unable to access customer email, and so would need the phone number as an alternative contact method from an alternate location or by cell phone if available.
Any piece of equipment that fails must be serviced as quickly as possible so work can resume, preventing further loss of revenue and unhappy customers.
Once you have an estimated repair time it would be wise to contact your customers again with an update, allowing the option to wait, or to take a refund instead.
Unfortunately though, not all equipment failures can be repaired.
When your necessary equipment breaks down you have two primary options.
The first is to replace the equipment with something comparable allowing you to continue work as soon as possible.
The second you may face if you cannot afford to replace it is to refund your customers money, with an apology.
You then have the option of trying to raise the money for the item, and later resuming the work you began.
Or, you might cease this specific line of work.
This may mean finding something else to do from home, or returning to a more tradition job outside the home.
When a computer fails, certain vital information might be lost.
It is important to keep all of your documents backed up.
When it comes to customer details, keeping a hard copy as well as a copy on a back up disc is useful since you cannot be sure that you will have access to another computer to access that information.
If you experience a prolonged power outage you would not be able to take this information from your machine.
The lack of predictability when it comes to having your power restored means that you can only offer your customers a rough estimate as to when you will resume work, but with a contact list in hand you can keep them up to date.
The popularity of cell phones means that even if your landline is out, you stand a good chance of communicating with your customers.
You won't be able to please all of your clients all of the time, but by showing them a little respect by contacting them as soon as a problem occurs, you stand a better chance of retaining those customers.
Your reputation will also be maintained and your income preserved.