Thread: New business - wish me luck

We use a book keeper for all our BASS stuff. She comes to our place does all the 3 months paper work Used to email it to the accountant who would then sign it off and then we pay the cheque, but now she knows how the acc. wants things he dont need to check it. LOT cheaper than acc doing it or trying to do the stuff yourselves.

Biggest mistake Ive made is sending 1 cheque to tax dept. (What a pack of nongs, brains smaller than ants and about as useful as tits on a bull.)Thgis cheque covered bass plus our PAYG note included to define but no all went into BASS, and trying to get them dumb b...... to credit our PAYG, oily crap man.

Mate,

Is it as good as we made out? Have you had the customer from hell yet? are you making any money?

I had a good friend from a large corporation ring me and say "what would it take to get you to come and work for us?" I told her 180k and a 28hr week. Then I rang back and told her I was being really mean, I was flattered and no thx. That was last week, this week... well.....

Sebastiaan

ew do a lotof work with bobcat drivers and i have found all to be hopelss and charge to mutch.

tip 1: dont go to fast

one of the guys here goes flat out gets it done no faster than the others but makes a bludy big mess in the process.

tip 2: dont go to slow

we had a guy that took 4 hours to dig a 6m tank stand on nearly level ground. and when he was done we had to level it out by hand. we could have dug it buy hand in about 2 hours.

tip 3: do a good job

ask what they want give your advise and then do it as it was talked about dont change you mind half way threw and do sompthing difrent. and do it well dont do a halfed ass job of it.

tip 3: show up when you said you would.

dont arive late. we dnt want to be sitting around for long.

tip 4: do the hole job

dont do half and come back a week later after i've rung you 3 times to finish it

tip 4: clean up when you are done.

leave the site clean and tidy not piles af dirt and holes in the ground.

tip 5: dont sit on the mobile for hours.

i am sick of standing around wating for you to get of the phone.

tip 6: dont over charge.

i just goy a bill for $1800 to dig a tank stand and take about 4 truck loads of soil away.

Sorry I have been rude. I've wheelie bin away.

Havent started business yet. Loader (bobcat with tracks) arrives on Thursday and should be up and running on the Saturday.

Advertising is the biggest hassle at this stage. We only have the paper and direct marketing until yellow pages in January and then local directory in March.

Though a slow start is okay as I get my head around it. Finished my bobcat refresher course and was surprised how much stuck in my head from 20 years ago.

Have made a small website that can be seen at armearth.com .

Not flash but at least I cant point people somewhere. Hope to add a few more features such as an email form etc.

Surprised just how much money goes out starting a business. You get told it flows out fast but surprising when you actually do it for real.

Luckily have enough funds to cover for some time while the work builds up.

cheers

dazzler

Hi Dazzler good luck

Checked out your web page using FireFox & IE under Firefox text and click on tabs flow over each other. otherwise a top site for quick get it up and out there.

Dazzler,
Hope you are doing as well as you hoped with the new business.

If I may be so bold, more of an observation than a critical whinge on the website?

Under the smart choice button, (love the buttons though) you have described how little impact the machine has on the terrain, and then there is a picture of the machine in a site that looks like it could be decades before a blade of grass will reappear.

I realise that you are probably a bit limited on photos available to you at this stage, but I would think a photo of the machine on the turf at your local bowling club doing donuts would get the point across better. The mental image one would take away from that is that it really is low impact.........

Full marks to you for getting out there and having a crack at working for yourself and best of luck with it.

Originally Posted by Ray153

Dazzler,
Hope you are doing as well as you hoped with the new business.

If I may be so bold, more of an observation than a critical whinge on the website?

Under the smart choice button, (love the buttons though) you have described how little impact the machine has on the terrain, and then there is a picture of the machine in a site that looks like it could be decades before a blade of grass will reappear.

I realise that you are probably a bit limited on photos available to you at this stage, but I would think a photo of the machine on the turf at your local bowling club doing donuts would get the point across better. The mental image one would take away from that is that it really is low impact.........

Full marks to you for getting out there and having a crack at working for yourself and best of luck with it.

Thanks for your advice....didnt think of that when I grabbed the photo.....looks a wee bit silly now

Good on ya! Working for yourself is the most fun you can have.

BTW, I like the website - I hope mine 'll be that good when I get around to it, but why is the title "Handyman"?

i would get heaps of good qaulity cards printed in colur maybe laminated if possible and leave them on counters at hardware stores, sand yards, plumbing suppiles, electrical supplies etc. put big pictures on of the machine and attachments.

i always pick up cards from counters when i go into places last week i got a 25k stainless steel fabrication job quoted from a bloke whos card i got from the counter at my power tool shop,

- always get time sheets / weight dockets signed daily.
- portable eftpos machine would reduce your risk for bad debts when dealing with one off customers and direct to home owners, plus saves a trip to the bank to deposit a cheque.
- enure that your invoices to builders have the clause "this claim is issued under the NSW building and construction indsurty sequirty of paymnet act" in the event of a bad debt it reduces the cost of collection and saves you having to go to court.
- dont sit on phone (as mentioned before) looks bad when you are being paid by hour.
- prepare a full Safe Work Method Statmenent for all jobs that you do and keep it with you so you can supply it on the spot when requested by principle contractors.
- keep a photo copy of your plant operators ticket and induction card, CBUS membership card and long service leave so that they can be supplied when request by princple contractors
- have insurncae certifactes of currency with you to issue as request by builders.
most of all have fun.

Originally Posted by dazzler

Surprised just how much money goes out starting a business. You get told it flows out fast but surprising when you actually do it for real.

Luckily have enough funds to cover for some time while the work builds up.

cheers

dazzler

no one will beleive you either

Originally Posted by rhancock

Good on ya! Working for yourself is the most fun you can have.

BTW, I like the website - I hope mine 'll be that good when I get around to it, but why is the title "Handyman"?

Thanks

The handyman came from the template I used for the site. Didnt realise till it was up. Will have to amend it.

Cheers

dazzler

PS thanks Gaza, will do

Originally Posted by Ray153

Dazzler,
I realise that you are probably a bit limited on photos available to you at this stage, but I would think a photo of the machine on the turf at your local bowling club doing donuts would get the point across better. The mental image one would take away from that is that it really is low impact.........

.

Last time I take your advice.....two 75 yo bowlers pulled me from the machine, grabbed me in a headlock and through me in the river ......

Sensitive fellas bout thier greens apparently

I got my business cards from Vistaprint.com - You design them online and they print them and post them to you.

Good onya Darren

Shame you didn't have it when you were putting that water tank in the ground

I'll send you a PM with a marketing suggestion.

HH.