Sure, the small office, home office set up is more popular than ever, what with the Internet and how people are getting more and more connected these days. But you can't just get up and decide that you want to set up a business at home. You have to think of the things that you need, what you can afford, and if you have the time and dedication to pull off something like a home business. But most importantly, you need to know what kind of business you want to get into.

There are many types and they all need to be studied first to see if they are best suited in a SOHO kind of set up. Here are some businesses that you may want to consider when starting up in your home.

• A website – This is probably the most common of businesses when you think about a small office home office set up. But there is always room for a website business no matter how common the internet space has become. The most important thing is that you come up with a great idea for your website business.

You can probably sell things online, or have people subscribe to a video blog, a picture blog, or online magazine that you can create all by yourself. Whatever it is that you start up with just make sure that you have enough content to provide your audience. In the long run, if your website is interesting and relevant enough, you will make enough money to pay your own way through life. This has worked and still does for many people out there with a computer and an Internet connection.

• A retail outlet – Yes, you don't always need to have a space to rent just so that you can sell retail items like clothes. In fact, you can just use your garage as a space for setting up shop. With a little creativity and a few resources you can even make your garage look like a shop. Your neighbors can be your first customers and they can tell their neighbors, etc. If you sell all the right products, your business will be very successful. Just make sure that you are always stocked up with items that your customers like.

• An eatery – If you are one who likes to cook, one idea is to open up your house as a place to eat. You can even offer just lunch or just dinner. This way, you aren't always busy trying to cook different kinds of foods. This is quite a novelty for most people and if your cooking is a hit, you will have a lot of customers coming to your house each time you open up to serve them.

This is not as popular as many other businesses but it certainly is a very charming idea. People will appreciate the hard work you put in just to feed them each time they come around to visit. Best thing is that if cooking is your passion, this is the best place to start before starting your own full-fledged restaurant.