small business marketing ideas

Micky_d

Hi, I haven't posted for a while and since then I have qualified as an electrician. I want to set up my own business in a bid to get back on track, to clear down some debts having been unemployed for 6 months.

I have used any spare cash that I had on a small van and tools but I desperately need to do some marketing and advertising to let people know I exist.

I know there are many more experienced people out there than me and want to know how to market and advertise for as little as possible and what would give me the best response.

Every company, newspaper and magazine I have spoken to want several hundred or even thousands of pounds which I do not have.

Any help will be gracefully accepted:eek:

ESKIMO

Although it's not 'brilliant' it's certainly a start and FREE. Try

Gumtree.com
MyHammer.com
PeoplePerHour.com

Try to keep your initial start-up costs as low as poss. You are just starting up after all and it could really knock your confidence if you splash the cash left right and center before you have built a name for yourself. See if you could offer your services for free anywhere. Try ringing around charities/walk in and introduce yourself. Show your cetificate/qualifications and offer to safety check their printers/computers/fax machine etc and leave a simple business card. Charities are crying out for free labour. It would do you in good stead until you build up a client base.

Also if you get round to the local paper advertising look at it more as an 'investment' rather than a 'cost'. Local newspapers have a huge circulation/distribution base. Contact them and explain your story. They might even give you a free article/feature on one of their pages. It's always worth a try. - If you don't ask, you dont get.

Keep us all updated on your progress and good look with your new venture.

pitkin2020

ESKIMO wrote: »

Although it's not 'brilliant' it's certainly a start and FREE. Try

Gumtree.com
MyHammer.com
PeoplePerHour.com

Try to keep your initial start-up costs as low as poss. You are just starting up after all and it could really knock your confidence if you splash the cash left right and center before you have built a name for yourself. See if you could offer your services for free anywhere. [STRIKE]Try ringing around charities/walk in and introduce yourself. Show your cetificate/qualifications and offer to safety check their printers/computers/fax machine etc and leave a simple business card. Charities are crying out for free labour. It would do you in good stead until you build up a client base.[/STRIKE]

Also if you get round to the local paper advertising look at it more as an 'investment' rather than a 'cost'. Local newspapers have a huge circulation/distribution base. Contact them and explain your story. They might even give you a free article/feature on one of their pages. It's always worth a try. - If you don't ask, you dont get.

Keep us all updated on your progress and good look with your new venture.

Some good advice there. The news papers (especially in small towns) do like to focus on new start ups so see if you can get some free publicity through that. A small advert may also be a good investment but it is an investment, it could take several weeks before people even take any notice of your add and start calling. Keep the advert consistent so people associate your ad with your business.

A simple low cost single page website, you could also add a contact page if you check your email frequently. You only really need an online business card advertising your services. You can also link this to hundreds of online directories that will help. 24/7 advertising.

Get your van signwritten, its the cheapest form of advertising as it works for you 24/7. Make sure you take the van everywhere and don't park it miles out of the way!! If there is a new start up in your area look to trade services sign makers need leccys for sign lights etc!!

Don't do free work for a charity unless its a charity you wish to support and give your time freely, thats your choice. It may, but probably won't benefit you in anyway by leading to paid jobs. Only to work for free if your trading something of value to you also.

Business networks, sometimes they can be good look for your local one and see if they have any space. Try and get in with other trades where your no threat to them but you could easily trade work. Carpenters and plumbers would be my first port of call!!

Also other electrical companies who maybe stretched MAY outsource some jobs which in the beginning could be your bread and butter.

Guerilla marketing is a great book if you want more low cost ideas that you could use defo worth a read!

Good luck with your new venture

texranger

also try http://www.admag.co.uk

Slinky

Most towns have business networking groups you can attend weekly. You can go along as a guest a couple of times before deciding to commit. Should cost you about £10-£15 for a visit (for breakfast/lunch)

Put up cards in post office/shop windows, will only cost pennies/£2 a week.

Try and find parish or local community magazines that are delivered free through people's doors. These can be very effective (I run a couple myself and know of a lot of other successful publications) and are NOT hundreds of pounds a time. My trades advertisers tend to do very well as readers trust the magazines. Have a look here https://www.findlocalmagazines.co.uk and see if there is something local to you.

Good luck with your new business.

paulwf

For my shop fit out due to the amount of compliance and testing required the electrician got in some local help for a couple of days...so it might be worth networking with other electricians and also shop fit companies. Don't look at other electricians as opposition, chances are if they have a client desperate for help but they are tied up they would be glad to pass on the work if you return the favour or give them a cut.

*Please* make sure you get the basics right before you spend a lot of time/effort/money on marketing. The number of times I've called a tradesperson and been answered by a grunt or their other half who hasn't got a clue answers the phone or they can't be bothered. Anyone self employed has to be a salesman first and tradesman second, make sure you know how to talk to clients, get them interested and get them to book you.

It will take time to build up business as a lot of it will come from recommendations. Maximise this by always giving customers a stack of your business cards to pass on.

Savvy_Sue

ESKIMO wrote: »

Try ringing around charities/walk in and introduce yourself. Show your cetificate/qualifications and offer to safety check their printers/computers/fax machine etc and leave a simple business card. Charities are crying out for free labour. It would do you in good stead until you build up a client base.

I'm not sure, but I think for PA testing (which is what I think Eskimo is suggesting) you need to have some pretty serious kit, which needs to be tested / calibrated / something or othered at vast expense on a regular basis. And I think that while there is a need for regular PA testing, there are already many options.

But don't go into this without thoroughly researching it. The chap who's done ours for the last couple of years provides very detailed reports which, if we printed them off, would fill a ring binder.

If you do go into it, be ready to do a lot of cold calling: find out who's responsible for H&S within the company, ask what their policy on PA testing is, and ask when it was last done. Chances are some companies will have slipped on their target and be overdue, so offering a good price at that point may get you some business. And then repeat business a year later (for most companies - if it's needed more frequently than that then it begins to make sense to do it in-house) if you send a reminder!

paulwf wrote: »

*Please* make sure you get the basics right before you spend a lot of time/effort/money on marketing. The number of times I've called a tradesperson and been answered by a grunt or their other half who hasn't got a clue answers the phone or they can't be bothered. Anyone self employed has to be a salesman first and tradesman second, make sure you know how to talk to clients, get them interested and get them to book you.

All very true ...

pitkin2020

Sue you do you mean PAT testing?? IF so its one of the most basic things and literally anyone can become a PAT tester after a days course. A qualified electrician should be able to do it. Equipment starts at around £400 upwards. PAT testing can be very good for some electricians as it can be steady work, problem is you have to do a lot of items for it to be worth while as most only charge around £1.50 per item.

Pennywise

If you don't have a marketing budget, then you need to rely on referrals and recommendations, which is fine - it's a model that works exceptionally well for tradesmen. You need to go through the pain barrier of getting the first few jobs, but after that, you can expect repeat business and referrals to friends, family & neighbours.

Use your PC and printer to print some half-decent A5 flyers to put in shop windows - costs you nothing but the ink and paper. Make it clear what services you are offering - if you're happy to do small jobs, then make that stand out. Get some free business cards online.

Get some local cheap advertising, i.e. local Parish Magazine. We have a local business telephone card (A3 sized poster) where I and most other local businesses advertise for £50 p.a. that is posted to all local households - they do this for all the towns and villages round my way so probably similar elsewhere. Get yourself known - talk to people in shops and the pub etc - it's easy to slip into conversation what you do - far more fruitful than sitting at home watching daytime TV waiting for the phone to ring!

Definitely sign write your van. It doesn't need to be expensive. Cheap will do for starters. As others have said, park it prominently, don't hide it. It goes without saying to keep it clean, park it sympathetically and don't go round cutting up other drivers or flicking V signs - it's amazing how many van drivers give a bad impression of their firm by that kind of antics which does lose potential customers.

To guarantee referrals, you have to turn up on time, do the job properly, clean up after yourself, and generally be a pleasure in someone else's home. Offer to take off your shoes before you go in, or even better, buy some plastic shoe covers - some customers don't care, but others do and you can't afford to alienate anyone. Also, don't smoke, turn up smelling of booze or bring your huge Alsation with you, and keep the radio turned down. You've got to avoid any reason for a customer not liking you as you need repeat business and referrals.

Don't concentrate only on domestic work. Get yourself known to other tradesmen. OK, plumbers, builders and joiners will already have a "tame" electrician to call in when needed, but there's no harm in making yourself known to them and leaving a business card in case they need one and their tame one isn't around. Again, hang out around the builders merchants etc and just be friendly and talk to people - just to pass the time of day.

Most homeowners have small jobs that need doing, but they just can't be bothered to ring around for quotes and risk getting a rogue trader, so people tend to put off getting small jobs done or do it themselves. If you get yourself "out there" and let people know you are there, there's every chance you can persuade people to give you a chance on a small job, and if they're happy, then you're the first in mind for the bigger work later on.

Hope it all works out for you.

Savvy_Sue

pitkin2020 wrote: »

Sue you do you mean PAT testing?? IF so its one of the most basic things and literally anyone can become a PAT tester after a days course. A qualified electrician should be able to do it. Equipment starts at around £400 upwards. PAT testing can be very good for some electricians as it can be steady work, problem is you have to do a lot of items for it to be worth while as most only charge around £1.50 per item.

PAT = Portable Appliance Testing, so the T is technically redundant, like the N in PIN: it's either a PI Number or a PIN, not a PIN Number. :rotfl: I know that's picky, but I'm just explaining why I don't talk about PAT Testing.

Yes, pretty much anyone can do it. But if the OP doesn't have the budget for advertising, then he needs to balance whether it's better to spend £400 on that or on a piece of kit which may or may not make him any money, and for which he still needs to do some serious advertising IYSWIM. Also as I understand it, it's not a one off cost for the kit, you need to pay to get it calibrated or something regularly. At least I think that's what I was told. By someone who was explaining that we could Do It Ourselves, but it wasn't as simple as knowing how to wire a plug safely.

pitkin2020

Savvy_Sue wrote: »

PAT = Portable Appliance Testing, so the T is technically redundant, like the N in PIN: it's either a PI Number or a PIN, not a PIN Number. :rotfl: I know that's picky, but I'm just explaining why I don't talk about PAT Testing.

Yes, pretty much anyone can do it. But if the OP doesn't have the budget for advertising, then he needs to balance whether it's better to spend £400 on that or on a piece of kit which may or may not make him any money, and for which he still needs to do some serious advertising IYSWIM. Also as I understand it, it's not a one off cost for the kit, you need to pay to get it calibrated or something regularly. At least I think that's what I was told. By someone who was explaining that we could Do It Ourselves, but it wasn't as simple as knowing how to wire a plug safely.

LOL i completly overlooked the testing after PA lol, its not how it would usually be said thats why I queried/missed it, yes PA testing = PAT but then most people do say PAT testing lol.

As for the PAT equipment you can buy for £400 upwards (2nd units available from time to time for less) a calibration cert is about £40 IIRC, and if you can wire a plug you should be able to pass a PAT testing exam. The hard part is fixing the problem if it fails which is why its best for a leccy to do it as they can fix it (or atleast should be able to)

The OP could offer PAT testing for an outlay of £25 plus lots of his time. All he needs is some business cards (500 double sided cards £25) and get out there visiting everyone that requires a PAT test which includes a hell of a lot of businesses. He could take the bookings and hire the equipment, a week or 2 of PAT test and he could buy the equipment. Not only has he approached the businesses direct and they have met him face to face but there maybe other electrical work that needs doing within the business!!