that's illegal in some states. DO judge the creditworthyness of your customer.
starting on shoestring budget
- Thread starter bolthead
- Start date
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that's illegal in some states. DO judge the creditworthyness of your customer.
In some states it is illegal for contractors that are not bonded to secure a decent down payment bonding is just one way around consumer protection laws structred contracts is another nothing like getting good legal advice in the areas you work
I love it!!! You guys are great. I am encouraged by all that I am seeing. Seems that most everyone sees things the way I see them, poor economy and a steady job = a great time to set out(as long as I hold on to the steady paycheck)! The business advice contained in this thread is priceless! I would not have thought of alot of these things and it would have shut me down sooner that I got started. I live between two major cities, 30 miles from each, and my little town is going through a bit of a boom right now. I can, and will, make this work.
If possible, I would like to leave this thread open for future advice and for others to reap the benefits of so much knowledge. Keep it coming everybody, the technical stuff is great but if we share business knowledge we can all learn.
Gunning, I hope that the statement that my inventory had been supplied by someone else is not impying that I have stolen anything. After 15 years of large commercial projects and alot of keeping what was supposed to go in the garbage, I have obtained this inventory. The late 90's and early 2000's were a time of great waste and I collected what poor project management tried to cover by throwing it away rather than account for it as waste.
If possible, I would like to leave this thread open for future advice and for others to reap the benefits of so much knowledge. Keep it coming everybody, the technical stuff is great but if we share business knowledge we can all learn.
Gunning, I hope that the statement that my inventory had been supplied by someone else is not impying that I have stolen anything. After 15 years of large commercial projects and alot of keeping what was supposed to go in the garbage, I have obtained this inventory. The late 90's and early 2000's were a time of great waste and I collected what poor project management tried to cover by throwing it away rather than account for it as waste.
boboelectric
Senior Member
- Location
- Eighty Four,Pa.15330
Stay out of Washington county!
I agree exchept for your last sentance.
You may just come to the conclusion it's better to work for someone else.
That is never the case and i think it is a nightmare to work for someone else.
electricmanscott
Senior Member
- Location
- Boston, MA
Opinion only. Not fact.
If you are stupid enough to walk away from a steady full time gig to start an electrical business in this economy you are too stupid to succeed. IMO
mtfallsmikey
Senior Member
I'm sort of agreeing with that line of thinking, but I started mine during a downturn, really had to beat the bushes to get the ball rolling. If you decide that it is better for you to keep your steady gig for the time being, use that time to prepare for opening your biz.
kwired
Electron manager
- Location
- NE Nebraska
I can't believe how many non - electrical jobs I end up taking on some of them I wonder why I ever agreed to do. Many of them could have been done by someone that would charge less also. I do not adjust labor for non electrical work, that is time I could have spent doing work for someone else and is not worth sacrificing what I could have made.
growler
Senior Member
- Location
- Atlanta,GA
On the other hand some people seem to succeed in business simply because they have more guts than brains and are not afraid to take chances.
I never tell anyone they are to dumb to make it because I have been wrong before.
I will say one thing, If a guy can figure out how to make a go of it in this economy he shouldn't have any trouble when/if things improve.
I don't think walking away from a full time job in this economy or even in good times is "stupid".
If you want to start your own business any time is a good.
It's all about what you wan't out of life.
Working as an employee "NO THANKS":grin:
It is all about earning a living and providing your family with security with study income in today's times starting any business requires plenty of reserve assets and savings or a wife with a good income and benefits
We have 4 or more Ec's. Going bust every month in my area they would be happy to have any job right now
kwired
Electron manager
- Location
- NE Nebraska
People who start any business during hard times learn how to make their business work.
People who start when things are going great can not believe what is going on when the economy goes sour and end up folding up.
There are always going to be ups and downs in any business, people will still have wants and needs even when times are tough, you need to learn what those are and be able to offer to help them with those areas, maybe even do things that you normally wouldn't want to do.
one idea - learn about home entertainment systems (all about it from all the different formats of media to how sound systems should be properly installed).
People still want to have fun and will spend money on a home theater instead of going on a vacation - may cost less than the vacation they wanted to take.
you will also need to market this idea somehow otherwise no one will know about it and you will do very little business in this area.
If times are tough and crime is on rise maybe home security has an increase in demand. Business security will probably also have an increase in demand.
Some of the government stimulus and or green programs (not going to get into whether they should or should not have happened) created a lot of commerce for many types of businesses - I'm sure some elecricians made some money that otherwise would not have been spent by the customer.
If nobody ever took any risk at anything we would not be where we are today. Just because you possibly fail this time does not mean you won't learn from it and be successful some time later.
People who start when things are going great can not believe what is going on when the economy goes sour and end up folding up.
There are always going to be ups and downs in any business, people will still have wants and needs even when times are tough, you need to learn what those are and be able to offer to help them with those areas, maybe even do things that you normally wouldn't want to do.
one idea - learn about home entertainment systems (all about it from all the different formats of media to how sound systems should be properly installed).
People still want to have fun and will spend money on a home theater instead of going on a vacation - may cost less than the vacation they wanted to take.
you will also need to market this idea somehow otherwise no one will know about it and you will do very little business in this area.
If times are tough and crime is on rise maybe home security has an increase in demand. Business security will probably also have an increase in demand.
Some of the government stimulus and or green programs (not going to get into whether they should or should not have happened) created a lot of commerce for many types of businesses - I'm sure some elecricians made some money that otherwise would not have been spent by the customer.
If nobody ever took any risk at anything we would not be where we are today. Just because you possibly fail this time does not mean you won't learn from it and be successful some time later.
jmellc
Senior Member
- Location
- Durham, NC
- Occupation
- Facility Maintenance Tech. Licensed Electrician
Put out the word that you will work at night. Take customers your boss isn't interested in. Don't take on huge jobs that would conflict your time priorities. Get accustomed to tracking your p/l on each job. Slowly build a customer base for the day you decide to cut the strings. Be careful not to pirate any of you boss's materials. Stay on good terms with him. Maybe when you start up, he will refer you jobs he doesn't want.
Find someone who can help you on an as needed basis for 2 man jobs. Careful about deals with the customer assisting to save $. I've tried that. Sometimes it works, sometimes not. He may not know as much as he thinks, may get a call and have to duck out, etc. Then he'll still want the bargain price. Don't do the rough & let the customer do the trim. That's asking for trouble. You either do the whole job or none of it.
Don't let a prospect get you into a bidding war. Your price is what it is, despite Joe being $100 cheaper. That may be true or not. People will use every trick to get you down on price. If customer comes from store with a new smoke detector he forgot to mention earlier, that is an add on. The new switch here, new receptacle there is an add on. Don't have to burn him, but charge something for it. If you see something on your own you want to do as a bonus, no problem. Just don't let people dictate it to you. No free troubleshooting what his brother in law installed, etc. Don't get in the habit of being a pushover. That's hard to break later on.
If someone having hard times really needs a favor, feel free to do it. I did some free work for a friend, then ran into an old friend at supply house that day. Got 6 weeks of work from him that year. So that free $100 job got me a good return, kept me eating. Just be sure you stay in control of it.
Don't take on work you don't know or can't quickly learn. You don't want a mess where you can't call anyone for help. The buck stops with you. DO learn all you can with classes, etc.
Best Wishes
Find someone who can help you on an as needed basis for 2 man jobs. Careful about deals with the customer assisting to save $. I've tried that. Sometimes it works, sometimes not. He may not know as much as he thinks, may get a call and have to duck out, etc. Then he'll still want the bargain price. Don't do the rough & let the customer do the trim. That's asking for trouble. You either do the whole job or none of it.
Don't let a prospect get you into a bidding war. Your price is what it is, despite Joe being $100 cheaper. That may be true or not. People will use every trick to get you down on price. If customer comes from store with a new smoke detector he forgot to mention earlier, that is an add on. The new switch here, new receptacle there is an add on. Don't have to burn him, but charge something for it. If you see something on your own you want to do as a bonus, no problem. Just don't let people dictate it to you. No free troubleshooting what his brother in law installed, etc. Don't get in the habit of being a pushover. That's hard to break later on.
If someone having hard times really needs a favor, feel free to do it. I did some free work for a friend, then ran into an old friend at supply house that day. Got 6 weeks of work from him that year. So that free $100 job got me a good return, kept me eating. Just be sure you stay in control of it.
Don't take on work you don't know or can't quickly learn. You don't want a mess where you can't call anyone for help. The buck stops with you. DO learn all you can with classes, etc.
Best Wishes
jmellc
Senior Member
- Location
- Durham, NC
- Occupation
- Facility Maintenance Tech. Licensed Electrician
P. S.
If you have a chance, listen closely to your boss's phone conversations, job discussions, etc. See how he handles problems, tough customers, inspectors, etc. You may learn a lot that way to use later on. Even do your jobs for him as though they were your jobs. Start thinking like an owner. Notice other people working for him; see who stretches out lunches, finds hiding places, etc. Those are people you don't want to hire later on.
If you have a chance, listen closely to your boss's phone conversations, job discussions, etc. See how he handles problems, tough customers, inspectors, etc. You may learn a lot that way to use later on. Even do your jobs for him as though they were your jobs. Start thinking like an owner. Notice other people working for him; see who stretches out lunches, finds hiding places, etc. Those are people you don't want to hire later on.
Two things that really help.
1.) Have a banker you went to high school with.
2.) Have a wife with a good job.
The first use to be more important than it is now since banks are getting useless.
There is more security working for your self than with a EC ,,
Every day you can get new customers,,working for a "EC" when you get the "AX" You loose all your customers all at once.
Working for your self you have way more control of how much you make
per week .
Is it harder ? Yes it is.
Wow! you must be in some dream land, " Every day you can get new customers"
I have no idea what EC's you were working for, but the good ones usually pay well, and usually offer decent benies. The customers are not yours to loose.
"Working for your self you have way more control of how much you make per week"
Yes you do, provided you have work.
hardworkingstiff
Senior Member
- Location
- Wilmington, NC
THAT, my friend, is how you make money. Find customers that are willing to pay. Do great work. Be on time. Communicate with your customer.
A little mistake a lot of people make is to over promise and under deliver. You will be much better off if you flip that around.
stevenje
Senior Member
- Location
- Yachats Oregon
Take these numbers to heart. Sobering statistics. It's tough out there.
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