posted
I used to have a large shop in the downtown area of my hometown. Now i have moved to another town and i'm working for another sign company, but tomarrow is my last day even though they don't know it yet. I purchased a metal building to go behind my home instead of paying rent on another shop. What do you guys do to promote you home based shop, do you scheduale appointments to meet with customer, what is the typical process to get a job signed off on; working from home?
------------------ Scott Patterson 4magic@kih.net
Every job is a self-portrait of the person who did it. Autograph your work with Excellence!
Posts: 52 | From: Lily, Ky, USA | Registered: Aug 2000
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I've had just this sort of arrangement for the last 25 years, and there is a lot to be said for it. There are a lot of "ifs", such as what type of work you do, how far out of town you are located, do you have employees, and can customers find your shop.
For the most part, I have found that walk in business isn't all that great anyway. Most customers contact you by phone and I just ask what would be a convenient time for me to drop by and discuss their sign needs. I find it's a lot easier to sell them what they need, when I'm looking at their project.
My shop is big enough to get a pickup or van inside and anything bigger I have a arrangement with a local truck shop to use their facility. It's worked out well for both of us.
All in all, I don't think there is a better arrangement for a one person shop or family operation. When my boys were growing up it was kind of nice to be there when they got home from school. It's also nice to be able to just walk next door for lunch, or a sweater cause it's getting cold. You do need to discipline yourself about going back the the shop to work in the evening or on weekends, of course we all know that's going to happen sometimes. Just don't make it a steady habit. It's real easy to find yourself spending all your waking hours in the shop and missing a lot of life. You also need to sort of educate your customers that you keep regular hours and don't appreciate them bothering you at night or on Sunday.
If you are thinking about a larger operation, with a bunch of employees, equipment, etc., you will probably find a shop away from your home is a better situation.
There are also tax advantages to a home based business. Your bookeeper can explain them far better than I can.
------------------ Jerry Mathel Jerry Mathel Signs Grants Pass, Oregon signs@grantspass.com
[This message has been edited by jmathel (edited October 05, 2000).]
Posts: 916 | From: Grants Pass, OR USA | Registered: Dec 1998
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posted
I used to do it too...but after a year I was a mad man.I found I actually had to have some where to "go to work".
Now I know this is only me and others have been very successful doing the "home" thing.
But if you're the type of person that looks out in the yard and sees something that needs doing in the middle of the day(thats me)you can't just stop the presses and head off in that direction.
One thing I did to stave that kind of thing off was to make a trip to town every morning (either for coffee or client contact...then when I returned I knew it was "show time".
Even then it was hard for me to concentrate on the job at hand and too easy to get on the tractor and go "tear something up"eventually I gave in and rented a building in town and I have never regreted it.
This next comment is not meant to hurt or insult anyone ...so please don't jump on it...but I have always had the notion that people that work from their home are not looked upon as being proffesional.Now I know thats NOT TRUE but it is a perception a lot of people have and I for one was not proffessional at that level, so I did what I needed to do.
All that having been said YOU also need to do what is right for YOU...GOOD LUCK
------------------ Monte Jumper SIGNLanguage/Norman.Okla.
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Been working from home since '81. feel burnt out by the hassles of running a one man biz, too many hats to fill. And as the previous poster said, the temptation to put in a few more hours is always there, better to have the shop a distance away so biz can stay in the shop & home stays home. After having said that; I have raised 3 kids to maturity & I would like to think they did not miss out on much.
------------------ Don Lopez Signs Signwriter Faulconbridge N.S.W. Australia
Posts: 80 | From: Australia | Registered: Jan 1999
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I love my home based business. Fortunately I have managed to find a 1/2 acre within 5 minutes centre of town (population about 100,000) so there is plenty of business. Also the room I have enables me to have a very large shed out the back for painting etc I also have a back entry and a lawn at the back big enough to take semi trailers. I have an apprentice, and my wife runs the cutting,books and answers the phone. The computers/cutting etc are set up in two rooms of the house. Sue's and my children have fled the nest I do operate 7 days a week (if necessary) and find the advertised "ANYTIME" pulls in a lot of business. Yes, it can be hard to divorse yourself from your business but it is really only a matter of setting up a set of rules. What has priority at that particular time? But you can't beat the flexiblity of working when you want to, and not have to have a shop open set hours. No, I have never had any feedback about being "home-based" and un-professional. My customers like my place and envy it !!!! Yes, I do a calculated "run" around town every day to collect mail, call on clients etc the morning "cruise" I call it. Keeps me in touch and sane hahahahaa No, I would never even consider moving to a "Shop Front" business. The Tax breaks I get are almost paying the mortgage
------------------ Bushie aka Jon Butterworth Jonsigns old signwriters never retire ... they just fade into the background! Toowoomba,Queensland Australia.
Posts: 4014 | From: Toowoomba, Queensland, Australia | Registered: Nov 1998
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posted
I work from home and a fairly large 2 bay garage on my property. Unlike Monte, I can look at grass that needs cutting and say to myself "It ain't going fall over and die if I don't cut it till next week" . So focusing on work isn't a problem for me.
I have always tried to maintain a fairly high pricing structure, because I'd rather make money than roll it over. As a result, I am often in the position of not having anything to do for a day or two. I just accept that fact and use the time for other things. Since I do have days off here and there I don't find it a problem if I have to work on a weekend. And since our kids are all married and have kids of their own there isn't the necessity to worry about being with them all the time.
What I have wondered is, what do the one person shops who DO have a "storefront" do when there is a slow time? Do you just sit in the shop and look at the passers by? What do you do when you have to go out and get materials or do work on site? Do you just hang up a sign that says "back at 4"?
I know that a photo developing place I use all the time is run by one person and when she can't be there for one reason or other, it is a real annoyance for me to drive to town, only to see the dreaded "back in 2 hours" sign hanging on the door. I feel that if you are operating a "store" that you should be open for business with regular hours.
How do you folks who have storefront operations handle these situations?
------------------ Dave Grundy shop#340 AKA "applicator" on mIRC "stickin' sticky stuff to valuable vessels and vehicles!" in Granton, Ontario, Canada 1-519-225-2634 dave.grundy@quadro.net www.quadro.net/~shirley "A PROUD $ supporter of the website"
Over the years a steady client base is comfortable coming over to my home to have me work up their projects. Many of them are home based themselves. Landscapers, electricians, construction, yada yada yada.
As for the work schedual... I'm up at 6 am and in bed at 11:30 and every day is just another day. I work on signs until someone tells me I have to run to the store to get a gallon of milk! If I get tired, I take a short nap about 2:00pm If I have to mow the yard in the middle of the day, I'll work on signs in the evening.
I like, no, I LOVE the flexibility. I love my wife being able to stay at home, work with me when I need part time help and keep the books....cause I'm bad with book work!
My customers know I wont quit at 5 and go home and leave their project hanging till the next day. This is where you have an advantage over the 8-5 shops. Its true you will have to work nights...but you also have the freedom to just take any day or part of a day) off and dissapear!
The steady paycheck wont be there and the cash flow situation will be the toughest mind game to play. Some of your customers will screw you, not pay you, make you jump through hoops, but fortunately there are far more good customers than bad ones.
It will work if you make it work. or it wont
------------------ Go Get 'Em..... :) AKA Raptorman on #Letterheads mIRC Chat Draper The Signmaker Bloomington Illinois USA
Proud 2-yr. $upporter of this Web Site (May 1999-May 2001)
Posts: 2883 | From: Bloomington Illinois USA | Registered: Nov 1998
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posted
Home based here also. Grundy makes a VERY good point about what to do when you're not busy at the storefront... I live in a rural area and my shop is out in the boonies so I do have a low income business. Since my income is the second income, this is not critical, altho.. the more I make, the happier I am. And yes, some folks consider what I do my "hobby", but since I charge more than the vinyl storefront shops around, my feelings aren't hurt. Even tho I offer all kinds of sign services, I am best known for truck lettering since trucking is a major source of employment in my area. My shop can accommodate a large sleeper tractor-cab. I would suggest having a good size shop for a home based business. I was considering trying a storefront, but I sure didn't like the idea of having to be there all the time. Then someone opened a new quickie print place, and I spoke to her about leasing a corner of her store to display my samples and take orders... She's still thinkin' it over... I need to make some more samples anyway.. LE
------------------ LazyEdna in RL known as Sara Straw from southern Utah 5 National Parks within 3 hours drive Red Rock Heaven
Posts: 776 | From: Aurora, Utah, USA | Registered: Nov 1998
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posted
Scott, the first thing you need to do is check with the proper city official and find out what the guidelines are for running a business out of your home. Mine allows NO customers at the house, no noise, no visible work going on, no business sign. Ten 4x8's drying in the back yard is a no no. The last thing you want is the city on your back. I would strongly urge you to meet customers at their place of business. If people get used to coming to your place they WILL at 11;00 at night, 2:30 Sunday afternoon and any other inappropriate time. Monte, I found your comments to really hit home. I always had the same attitude about the "professional" aspect of working out of the home. Said I would never do it. Yea, what's that they say about never say never It killed me to have to close up my shop and work out of the house. I soon found out that it really didn't make any difference, since I work mainly on location, most folks have no idea if I have a shop or not, nor do they care.
------------------ George Perkins Millington,TN. goatwell@ionictech.com
"I started out with nothing and still have most of it left"
posted
Hi! I can answer some questions....I have had a storefront sign shop, a warehouse shop, and am now homebased. I liked the warehouse spot alot. The storefront was cute. Everyone liked it. But in all honesty, it was a meeting place for my friends to come! I didn't get that much walk in business. The rent was much higher. And I felt like I HAD to be there. major bummer for a 'goer' like meso yes to your question Dave Grundy. That is exactly what I used to do.......sit in the shop....watchin' all the guys go by.....
------------------ "surf" or "MoJo54" on mirc Cheryl J Nordby Signs by Cheryl (206) 300-0153 Seattle WA.....!
Make your own glitter. Then follow your own shine. Linda Knight
posted
Thanks to everyone for the advice. I am going to give it a go. I have a two year old and five year old. I think more time around them, even working will be great. Thanks again.
------------------ Scott Patterson 4magic@kih.net
Every job is a self-portrait of the person who did it. Autograph your work with Excellence!
Posts: 52 | From: Lily, Ky, USA | Registered: Aug 2000
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posted
I don't think we can say we work at home anymore. We now LIVE at work. Our store was originally built as an IGA store. Above it was 4 good sized apartments. It has been a two year project, but we have gutted the 4 apartments, and essentially built a brand new home within. We were fortunate in that it is of I-beam construction, and allowed us to arrange interior walls anyway we desired. So we were a able to build the home exactly the way we wanted. Living at work is very convenient. Customers cannot get to us after hours, because of our layout. There are drawbacks. We have not had a vacation in three years, have not had a day off since January 2000. We do now have 6 employees. It just never seems to be enough. I hired a store manager who is such an incredible embroidery digitizer, that I can't spare her to work at the front counter. I know these are "good" problems. I thank the Lord we are this busy, I can just see the toll it is taking on my wife and myself. We are both former athletes who made it a point to run or walk every day. We are now both on "Blood Pressure" medicine. At the current growth rate, We can probably retire in about 24 months. I am not sure, in fact I can't, look at my employees in 24 months and say we are retiring. Equally it will be hard to lock the door on such a thriving business. My point is, we will have to give up home and business in one big swoop! Man that is going to be hard. I keep thinking that there must be some middle ground here, I just can't bring myself to "slow" the business down. My son is a senior in college. He worked the counter on summer break. I think it was enough for him to decide that he really does not want the store handed to him. At 22 years old, I wouldn't want an 18 hour day-seven day work week either. I guess it is possible to have your business run you, if you work at home - live at work.
We have a permanent sign on our door below the logo stating that appointments are recommended.
We do post a note on the door "back at 3pm" (whatever) and we do miss a few people coming by to pick up their stuff or order something, however once they come over for nothing a couple times, they learn pretty quick to call first. We are also connected onto a bodyshop, so it's easy to leave signs there if we are expecting someone to come by for a pickup.
I'd like to add, having someone in our storefront all the time isn't as crucial as one may think. 99% of our work is by phone. We have an answering machine like everyone else does and we return all calls promptly. Why we have the storefront is because of our location, within 5 min from most customers. And of course, all the bay space avail for our use.
What we do when it's slow is either get caught up in long overdue jobs, focus on that updated brochure that should be sent out, etc. Being in the shop makes you concentrate fully on business and makes you spend the time the biz deserves. Ok, well sometimes I've put a note on the door "Due to projects off site we won't return until..." Because after all, Costco is a very important project! Right Duncan?
One day I will be homebased again, and I know myself well. As soon as a project is done and the phone is quiet, I'll be out of that shop and puttering doing personal stuff. At least where I'm located now, I'm forced to concentrate on what I should be concentrating on. I tell ya, a storefront is a good means of training for those that can't stay focused on biz.
One thing I do wonder though is, those that are homebased, do you lose calls when someone has to leave a message on a machine? And do you feel guilty leaving your phone unattended? My answer to both of those was yes when I was homebased.
However, I'd be homebased right this minute if...
#1. my son was in school. There's no way I could operate a biz and care for him at the same time at his age. (thank-you to my employee!)
#2. My home location was closer to my clientelle.
#3. I didn't have an employee.
------------------ Graphic Impact located in BC Canada gisigns@sprint.ca
[This message has been edited by Donna in BC (edited October 08, 2000).]
Posts: 5630 | From: Yarrow, BC Canada | Registered: Nov 1998
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I'm homebased here and I don't have any guilt associated with leaving the phone unattended. The answering machine is there for a reason, and poeple that call but don't leave a message are only hurting themselves!
Unanswered phones are pretty common in this town, many of the businesses are one-man operations and it's impossible to contact anyone around here at lunch time. =) I have my number on my website as well, but with a note that quite often there won't be anyone here to pick up the phone due to being on-site somewhere or being in the middle of painting. They don't have to know I'm actually at the beach with my dog.
------------------ Mike Pipes Digital Illusion Custom Graphics Lake Havasu City, AZ http://www.stickerpimp.com
Posts: 8746 | From: Lake Havasu, AZ USA | Registered: Jun 2000
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posted
In answer to Donna's question: Get a cell phone! My business phone number is my cell #. That way when I am delivering a sign, or picking up supplies.....I can still answer my phone. (plus you can see who is calling) With all the new technology..soon everyone will just have one phone # that will follow them everywhere. And if you don't like who is calling......don't answer!
------------------ "surf" or "MoJo54" on mirc Cheryl J Nordby Signs by Cheryl (206) 300-0153 Seattle WA.....!
Make your own glitter. Then follow your own shine. Linda Knight
And yes, some folks consider what I do my "hobby", but since I charge more than the vinyl storefront shops around, my feelings aren't hurt.
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