Having a trade behind you puts your career into a very safe zone. You’re always going to have a skill you can make good use of, and in an industry where demand will never truly dip.
As such, becoming a tradesperson can make a big difference in your life. If you start up your own business, whether you have plumbing qualifications, can work with electricity, or you’re certified to install and service internet devices, you’re going to be your own boss and make all the right decisions for you.
But there’s a lot you need to think about before getting up and running as well. How much work will you be able to take on? Will you need to build a team? What kind of work would you really like to focus on? These are the starter questions to go through, but there’s much more to consider as well.
As such, if you’re interested in running your own tradesperson service, check out the points below and see if you can get them ticked off.
Your Starting Budget
How much money do you have saved up right now? Enough to start a tradesperson business? Maybe, maybe not. The cost of getting the right tools and equipment together could be upwards of £2000, especially if you don’t have the best toolbox to begin with. You could end up spending nearer to £5000 altogether, and that’s not usually the kind of cash someone just has laying around.
So you may need to be very careful about planning and structuring your budget. This is a good principle to apply anyway, but it’s also the kind of thing you can forget about when trying to cover all bases. Begin by taking the step to register a company to make the process official. The good news is that you can also open up a business account to better manage your money and finances. This way, you can keep everything separate and minimise any confusion. It’s not only a quick and easy task to complete, but it’s also free. Also, using the best app for invoicing can help you stay on top of payments and keep your cash flow smooth from day one. You want to ensure you have all the right pieces in place to set yourself up for success right from the start.
You don’t know what kind of clients or work will come your way, and if you don’t have the right equipment to get the job done, it’s easy to worry that you could lose that job waiting for the tools to arrive!
It’s best to put a full business plan together, to ensure you’ve got a proper document to refer to regarding the upfront costs and what profit you’ll need to stay afloat. You can also put your ideal profit range in here, as well as what you’re likely to make over the course of the next 12 months.
Try to ensure these ranges are realistic, especially if you want to shop around some potential investors.
Your Working Hours
How many hours do you want to work per week? When you just start out, you mya need to go above the standard 40 hours that most people do. You may need to work up to 50, and even beyond, to ensure you’re meeting your revenue needs and are able to pay the bills.
Be sure you’re ready for this. Moving into a career of your own often comes with flexible time considerations, but the early months don’t tend to be easy. There’s a transition there to get through, and what was once a simple 9 to 5 matter is now something you do in your own time and at your own discretion.
Try to forecast this from the get go. What kind of hours do you want to work, and how will you ensure you can eventually work this schedule every week? Keep in mind that tradesperson jobs can often go overtime, especially if you’re in the contracting industry, and there may be less control available than you’d really like.
But overall, if you would like to work from midday until the late evening, or you’d prefer early morning shifts from 7am to around 1pm in the early afternoon, this is your chance to set the right hours and work up to them.
The Day to Day Logistics
So, once you’ve decided on the starting funds and how you’re going to pace yourself throughout the week, how are you going to get from job to job? It’s a good idea to focus on your immediate local community first, such as your neighbourhood and one to two streets down from here.
Starting small and then working your way up a wider radius, which could end up covering any area that’s 20 to 30 miles away, is a much safer bet than trying to cover that same distance from day one.
After all, you might not even have the right vehicle for work like this yet. Most tradespeople invest in a transit van or pickup truck, depending on the kind of work they do. Vans are usually the best choice though, as they’re roomy, secure, and it’s easy to upgrade from one to another.
If that sounds like the right option for you, you’ll also want to take out special cover for vans with drivers 25+ to ensure you have the right level of insurance for being on the job. If you can get a specific policy that covers both your selected vehicle and industry, you’re much more likely to get a price that’s both affordable and comprehensive for you.
Then it’s time to think about how you’re going to ensure a smooth workflow from one site to another. You’ve got the right vehicle, and you know the area well, but you’ll need to consider the time management factor here.
If job A is on one side of town, and job B is on the other, how much time will you need to block out of the day to get back and forth? It could cost you upwards of 20 minutes each way, which could leave you with near to an hour less in the overall workday.
How You’ll Bring in New Clients
Tradespeople often get new clients from previous clients, but this won’t always be the case. Recommendations are worth their weight in gold and then some, but you can’t rely on people always passing your name around.
You need to make it easy to be discovered independently, and for someone to trust your name, face, and brand without having someone close to them put in a good word.
This is where you need a website you regularly update, as well as a social media profile you’re active on, and even a Whatsapp account you can use for your business. Make yourself easy to contact, and give yourself the kind of platform that makes advertising incredibly approachable.
Providing Excellent Customer Service
If you’re going to be working on other people’s properties and in their homes, the customer experience needs to be something you’re always aware of. Be vigilant about the way you treat your clients, and how you behave when you’re in their environment.
Excellent customer service doesn’t usually happen by accident. You need to put effort into ensuring you communicate effectively, put time and care into your job, and understand what a client is thinking and feeling.
Let’s Start a Tradesperson Business of Your Own
Becoming a self employed tradesperson, or starting a full business with all the benefits, can be a great career move with those technical minds and skills. However, just like any other business out there, you’ll need to make some careful, select decisions before you start taking on work.
Tradespeople have a lot of field focused experience, but it can be difficult to funnel all of that into a bona fide business. It’s not an impossible thing to manage, however, and the better you prepare, the easier this transition will be. Keep this in mind for the near future and what will eventually become a business of your own.