Starting your own business

[Ryooo]

Hi, still rather new on the forum but i wondering what advice you can give on going it on your own and starting your own plumbing and heating business. Just the usual rules of thumb stuff, harsh lessons learnt and general order of process on making the big jump!

A bit about me, I'm 33 years old, single but have 1 dependant. Home owner with a mortgage. Based in central Scotland. Been a plumber for 16 years. Gas Safe registered. Mostly in new build construction.

At the moment, I'm building up my knowledge in my weak area such as boiler breakdowns and general maintenance by doing free jobs for mates, family etc and just bought the 2 John Reginald books. Reading loads on business/plumbing and related forums. Purchasing more tools and equipment when i can afford to. Looking into some courses to. Its all i can think about to be honest.

The reasons i want to go out on my own are; the job satisfaction isn't enough on new build. Good money but thats it. To build a better future for myself and son. To maximise earning potential and hopefully not being crawling under scaffolding when I'm 70 odd.

The order i was thinking was to start planning and get business cards made up and fire them out to as many as i can. I have the option of self employment and I'm on price work so i could try and work 2/3 day weeks on site and then do my own work the other days and Hopefully build from there

How did you guys to it? I would love to hear your own stories.

Cheers

 

[Ryooo]

Thanks Rob, great advice. Most of the local companies have their vans sign written up here. Van theft is thankfully low.

Great idea for the local church. Definitely going to look into that further.

Cheers mate

never sign write your van, nobody expects it nowadays because some low life will steal all your stuff...just get some magnetics and stick them on just before you turn up and take off after...and over the weekend stick them on your car.
Small companies sell large ones market there is a significant difference...leaflets are good, internet takes time, go get an hotel or a nursing home and build off that base. Local stuff like newsagents etc is poor but
we used to do the odd church magazine ...they were ace well healed folk own own gaff and want someone they can trust
let us know how you get on
Rob Foster aka centralheatking

 

[Ryooo]

Thanks Murdoch. Definitely agree that first impressions count.

A website these days is a vital investment, so many people do searches for local tradesmen, so you need to be on the web. Even if you can only afford a single page!

You also need decent quality business cards and logo ed clothing. First impressions really count , so time keeping matters.

Don’t turn down small jobs, customers will often try people with small jobs first. The small jobs can be a pain, but the more clients you get, that are happy, spreads the word and your name

 

[Ryooo]

On a secondary note, what advantages are there for being an improved installer with a chosen boiler manufacturer? Most of the companies round here a Worcester Bosch. Should you try and offer something different or not tie yourself with any? Cheers Ryan

 

[Welder]

A website these days is a vital investment, so many people do searches for local tradesmen, so you need to be on the web. Even if you can only afford a single page!

You also need decent quality business cards and logo ed clothing. First impressions really count , so time keeping matters.

Don’t turn down small jobs, customers will often try people with small jobs first. The small jobs can be a pain, but the more clients you get, that are happy, spreads the word and your name

Please don't think me rude Murdoch, but I disagree.

In my experience THE most important aspect of being self employed is understanding what makes YOU stand out from the crowd. It's whats different about you that people choose, not what's the same.

Finding and feeling what diffentiates you isn't always easy. Often it can be something as daft as enjoying, for example, old people's stories, or the fact you hate being late. Turn those idiosyncrasies into something positive in your advert.

The reason I disagreed with Murdoch was because until you KNOW what makes you different, and by extension who your customers will be, you cannot know how they like to be approached or what matters to them. Taking that even further, if you spend money on stuff that isnt going to target your customers its simply a waste...

 

[Justice League]

From the perspective of a customer. If they call you, you cannot pickup then have a nice message for them to leave a voice mail.

After that call back everyone even if you are not interested in the job. The obvious ones are turn up on time, invest in some app or software to help you with dealing with admin, quotes, invoicing etc.

Be clear on pricing over the phone if possible, it will save you a wasted journey which you could spend marketing or brushing up on your skills.

 

[Welder]

From the perspective of a customer. If they call you, you cannot pickup then have a nice message for them to leave a voice mail.

After that call back everyone even if you are not interested in the job. The obvious ones are turn up on time, invest in some app or software to help you with dealing with admin, quotes, invoicing etc.

Be clear on pricing over the phone if possible, it will save you a wasted journey which you could spend marketing or brushing up on your skills.

Quite clearly JL, judging by your terribly Corbynesque (idealistic) post, you do not deal with the general public on a daily basis.

The public generally oscillate between Jekyll & Hyde and one never knows which face they'll present until they do.

If people were a little less self obsessed then trades could reasonably expected to act differently.

 

[Justice League]

Quite clearly JL, judging by your terribly Corbynesque (idealistic) post, you do not deal with the general public on a daily basis.

The public generally oscillate between Jekyll & Hyde and one never knows which face they'll present until they do.

If people were a little less self obsessed then trades could reasonably expected to act differently.

Nothing wrong with idealism - it's something to aim for or we can just become cynical.

Not sure what to make of your last sentence other than its a big generalisation.

 

[Millsy 82]

From the perspective of a customer. If they call you, you cannot pickup then have a nice message for them to leave a voice mail.

After that call back everyone even if you are not interested in the job. The obvious ones are turn up on time, invest in some app or software to help you with dealing with admin, quotes, invoicing etc.

Be clear on pricing over the phone if possible, it will save you a wasted journey which you could spend marketing or brushing up on your skills.

From your posts I can 100% see why no one has got back to you.

 

[Justice League]

From your posts I can 100% see why no one has got back to you.

Not sure how you worked that out.

 

[OffshoreGas]

Can’t help but agree with Justice League, how hard is it to have a professional greeting on your voice mail and call people back? I’m sure we all expect merchants etc to return our calls!

 

[firemant]

Its easier now due to facebook etc.

Do you actually find that is true? I am not SE anymore, but I see people asking on local pages for recommendations, and the commn thread is "cheap" or "not expensive". nd way too easy too be unfairly slagged, IMO

 

[firemant]

Do you actually find that is true? I am not SE anymore, but I see people asking on local pages for recommendations, and the commn thread is "cheap" or "not expensive". nd way too easy too be unfairly slagged, IMO

As I said a couple of days ago, my saying was always that no job is ever too small - but my quote may be too large.
If you quote for a "big" job, you may have to be cheaper than a few others, or be good at selling yourself. With "small jobs", I NEVER visited to give a quote. On the phone I always explained HOW I charge, and that I will be calling to do work not look at it. And I expect to be paid immediately on completion. On that basis, you are reasonably sure that when you go out, you will return with some earnings

 

[Rob Foster]

Look, facebook , twitter etc are just another way to promote your business, if you dont do,them you might miss out it can cost zero so why not....remember ...facebook etc are basically marketing venues
when you are a mes outfit in a local area then its sales you need...after a while facebook etc can become a direct sales tool but it takes ages. I can see both aspects as we operate in both areas ...Rob Foster aka centralheatking

 

[Rob Foster]

Thanks Rob, great advice. Most of the local companies have their vans sign written up here. Van theft is thankfully low.

Great idea for the local church. Definitely going to look into that further.

Cheers mate

Turn up to the Church on Sundays with your mrs and kids ...you will be never short of work...we got into some Mormons years ago
they lasted 2 or 3 years and then there are the ones with a fish on the back of their motor...if short of work follow them home and pop a flyer thro their door...its called targeted marketing .
all nice honest and good payers
...centralheatking

 

[firemant]

Hi, where in Central Scotland?
I'm a landlord with a portfolio in and around Falkirk and always looking for a decent (and decent priced) gas engineer for boiler installs etc.
Will be needing a back boiler replaced in a couple of months in Stirling if interested.

OP: Generally, DO NOT get tied up with landlord agents. They often either want commission or charge a massive mark up on your fee. The LL is not always aware, and you can end up being labelled as expensive.

Also they take the attitude that you dont get paid until THEY get paid. What if the tenant never pays rent - suddenly the LL's problem is YOUR problem. I always refused and had them sign to agree that THEY are responsible for the bill. But that was years ago and with independents, I don't expect the big boys will play fair. The main thing s to KNOW what you are agreeing to.

LL's are there to make money, and will often try to screw you down hard. I have worked for good ones, and terrible ones - it takes a bit of experience to work it out, although when I started there were no internet forums, so was pretty much learning alone.

RBC above is a case in point. Why are you (RBC) always looking for a new RGI? That rings bells for me. We know that when you find a decent tradesman, you try to keep hold of him, by treating them with respect. If you keep needing new guys, either there is something wrong with your way of dealing, or you are unlucky to live in an area thoroughly unblessed with good RGI's.