Starting Out / Generating Business

[Marlene]

since you've done things for the superbowl, can you use that? the cheap online banners offer only price. you can offer your skills to get attention and there are those out there who will pay extra for that.

 

[Texas_Signmaker]

Looking for some advice. Wife and I have really just finished getting our shop together. We are relocating next year to Tennessee so I didn't want to lease a storefront. We operate out of a workshop on our property. We've been selling our goods and services online at the moment and doing well, but i want to generate more business locally to keep the machines and ourselves busy. My question is do any of you operate of your home workshops and how do you present yourself to a client that may be hung up on the fact that you operate out of your residence. From looking at the local shops around me, I feel we are better equipped than most of them. Any thoughts or advice?

I have a shop behind my house and I'm a two-man operation. When people ask where I am or can they visit me I tell them "We don't have a retail location, but what kind of sign are you looking for?" (Saying it that way gets them off the question and gets them talking about their sign need) I don't readily admit I operate from my house. Once a customer has purchased from me and they know that I can and do great work I don't mind letting them know if they ask or insist on picking up the order. I figure I already proved myself and what do I have to loose now? The ones that are put off by not having a retail shop I feel are the undesirable types anyway. Larger buyers wouldn't have the time or desire to drive to go to a store just to talk about something that can be accomplished over the phone or email.

Most of my customers come from Google listing and google ads, and by repeat and referral. Google was invaluable in getting the business in the door. I don't have an address on my listing, you have the option to hide that but you will still show up in your city. The smaller the city the better for your listing.

As far as not being at your current location for long... it does take a LONG time to build business, but you can start getting leads ASAP from Google once a listing is made. Maybe not a lot because you won't rank high but it would be SOMETHING while you wait. If you know your new address already in TN I'd get a listing going yesterday and start getting it to rank.

 

[Blaster]

I worked from home for a while and I would go out and visit clients. Most signage jobs required an on-site visit and you can get an idea of their requirements and possible future work. I didn't want clients at my home, potentially seeing my equipment, my setup and my security, and also the value of my property. It's like when a salesman shows up in a brand new Mercedes...

I later moved to a shop on a busy road and I spent most of my working days chatting and providing quotes to walk-ins rather than getting on with the business of making signs and money. It meant a lot of late nights catching up on work that I should have done during the day. If you are the key man, the last thing you want to be doing is wasting your time. If you are out fitting signs, who is going to take care of the shop and your potential customers?

If the internet sales are making a profit for you, why not focus on growing that part of the business? Post on forums, advertise, pay per click, social media etc. After all the internet sales are something that will move to Tennessee with you.

Internet sales have been fairly busy but as I said earlier, Some of these outfits are practically giving the stuff away. Id rather stop swinging at pitches in the dirt and move on to more profitable projects. I cant understand how those outfits make money. It was one of the reasons I posted a few weeks ago about shipping banners folded rather than rolled. Many of these online outfits ship the stuff folded which to me ruins the product.

 

[Blaster]

since you've done things for the superbowl, can you use that? the cheap online banners offer only price. you can offer your skills to get attention and there are those out there who will pay extra for that.

I'm considering using that a a selling point from the design aspect.even though my work on the SB involves Flames and Lasers . I will say the sign vendor they bring in for SB is quite incredible. They bring multiple hybrid UV printers and set up shop right inside the stadium. The signage required just for facility navigation is unreal. Miles of mesh to cover fences, etc.

 

[Blaster]

I have a shop behind my house and I'm a two-man operation. When people ask where I am or can they visit me I tell them "We don't have a retail location, but what kind of sign are you looking for?" (Saying it that way gets them off the question and gets them talking about their sign need) I don't readily admit I operate from my house. Once a customer has purchased from me and they know that I can and do great work I don't mind letting them know if they ask or insist on picking up the order. I figure I already proved myself and what do I have to loose now? The ones that are put off by not having a retail shop I feel are the undesirable types anyway. Larger buyers wouldn't have the time or desire to drive to go to a store just to talk about something that can be accomplished over the phone or email.

Most of my customers come from Google listing and google ads, and by repeat and referral. Google was invaluable in getting the business in the door. I don't have an address on my listing, you have the option to hide that but you will still show up in your city. The smaller the city the better for your listing.

As far as not being at your current location for long... it does take a LONG time to build business, but you can start getting leads ASAP from Google once a listing is made. Maybe not a lot because you won't rank high but it would be SOMETHING while you wait. If you know your new address already in TN I'd get a listing going yesterday and start getting it to rank.

I just listed the business on Google. I just put the website up a few weeks ago so well see what that generates. What you said about the retail location is good advice. Ill use that for sure.

 

[SlikGRFX]

Internet sales have been fairly busy but as I said earlier, Some of these outfits are practically giving the stuff away. Id rather stop swinging at pitches in the dirt and move on to more profitable projects. I cant understand how those outfits make money. It was one of the reasons I posted a few weeks ago about shipping banners folded rather than rolled. Many of these online outfits ship the stuff folded which to me ruins the product.

If someone else can offer an identical product for less, you have a problem. Having said that, there is always someone out there willing to work for less, but those guys usually aren't around for long.

You have tons of experience that others can only dream of. You just need to figure out what your USP is and shout it from the rooftops.

 

[ams]

Many cities will not allow you to operate a commercial business in a home or residential area. Also most have laws that you cannot have customers come on your property for goods or services. So be aware of that.

 

[Gino]

Ha, as just noted in a recent thread, the owner couldn't park his work truck at his house.

Friends of ours moved to Tennessee about 2 years ago because of the low cost of everything down there. They have 11 acres, a house, garage and a large out building and their taxes are a fraction of what they were here with a house on an acre of land.

Good luck down there...........​

 

[neato]

Of course. Right now we make a lot of banners and yard signs, Problem is the online prices companies charge are brutally low.. I cant compete with that and it isn't worth my time trying to either. We also do dimensional/carved signs.

Banners and yard signs...sounds like that's your bottleneck. With the equipment you have, forget that jazz. Push the higher end work. Deliver outstanding design (hire out if you need to), outstanding quality, and outstanding service and you'll be fine. Don't worry about what everyone else is doing on the internet or about customer perception of working out of your home. Sell yourself and your product, not your shop location.

Sounds like you really are in a nice position to focus on the high quality work and forget sweating over $10 yard signs.

 

[Blaster]

Many cities will not allow you to operate a commercial business in a home or residential area. Also most have laws that you cannot have customers come on your property for goods or services. So be aware of that.

I dont want the public at my residence. You can have a business out of your home here but its limited on what is allowed. If it involves the public coming to your property,, its a no go. Th area of Tennessee however where we are moving,, its not an issue, at least as of now.

 

[Blaster]

Banners and yard signs...sounds like that's your bottleneck. With the equipment you have, forget that jazz. Push the higher end work. Deliver outstanding design (hire out if you need to), outstanding quality, and outstanding service and you'll be fine. Don't worry about what everyone else is doing on the internet or about customer perception of working out of your home. Sell yourself and your product, not your shop location.

Sounds like you really are in a nice position to focus on the high quality work and forget sweating over $10 yard signs.

Design is our strong point. And yes the banner and yard sign thing is a PITA but its what customers I have at the moment are asking for. At this point, I wont turn down anything. But in the future when I can pick and choose Id imagine well do less of it.

 

[Blaster]

Ha, as just noted in a recent thread, the owner couldn't park his work truck at his house.

Friends of ours moved to Tennessee about 2 years ago because of the low cost of everything down there. They have 11 acres, a house, garage and a large out building and their taxes are a fraction of what they were here with a house on an acre of land.

Good luck down there...........​

One of the reasons were going there. Connecticut has essentially started pushing small businesses out. Taxes, regulation, well pretty much everything here has gotten out of control. The taxes on the houses we looked at down there are what I pay for property tax here on my F250. Ridiculous.

 

[Sidney]

So, you think there's something wrong with a 'working outta your house' set up ??

What's your knowledge or wife's knowledge in/of the sign industry ?? What all do you offer ??

Can you instal signs, fabricate, weld, make electric boxes, do vehicle wraps...... etc ??

Last..... what kinda equipment are you running ??

I agree with Gino... There's nothing wrong with working out of your house.

 

[Sidney]

If you join the Chamber of Commerce that's your opportunity to share with potential customers that you come from an established business, but due to the fact that this is a new location you want to check out supply and demand before investing into a property.