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InbetweenDreams · 06-01-2016, 09:53 PM

Having the opportunity to be self employed was both challenging and liberating also very difficult to start. The problem almost everyone faces when starting a business, selling a product or service is lack of business and where to spend your money on advertising.

Someone once told me in advertising half your money is being wasted and the key is figuring out where it is going to waste.

The first time I did any advertising was in the local newspaper. Spent over $300 and out of that I got 1 phone call which did not result in any revenue. Not saying newspapers can't bring better results but something to keep in mind and you're competing in a cramped space and a limited number of people who get the paper.

I also went to social media. I created a page on Facebook. Now Facebook is setup to make money off your page and you advertising. Well I'm on a very tight budget and wasn't going to wage any ad campaigns just to get a few clicks and hopefully a few phone calls. So I made a regular page. I sent friend requests to everyone I knew and didn't know (which is against Facebook's community guidelines). I got some leads, it wasn't bad but the best part it was free.

Before I got out of being self-employed I did a radio ad on a local radio station and a banner ad on a local cable TV station (they did both). I got several phone calls. That ultimately lead to new customers. It did seem for me that radio worked really well.

Ultimately though the best thing I found in my experience was word of mouth and networking. You have to talk to people and bet involved with the community in various areas. If you do the same stuff all the time with the same group of people you might not get very far. The other thing I quickly saw was to not be forceful with pomotions and ads, people get really annoyed when you start spamming them, even when you don't see it as spam and ultimately hurts you in the end.

Just some thoughts on the subject. I do realize mileage will vary depending on region, culture, target customers and population. Hopefully someone will find this helpful and save them some grief and money trying to do advertising and promotions.

LJay · 06-01-2016, 11:18 PM

[MENTION=23180]axle2152[/MENTION] What was the nature of your business?

InbetweenDreams · 06-02-2016, 12:44 AM

LJay Wrote:[MENTION=23180]axle2152[/MENTION] What was the nature of your business?

That does make a difference doesn't it lol. I used to do computer services. Virus removal, network setup, consulting. I had a pretty good number of clients, return customers and so on, but the problem is when you do good work they don't call back until they screw something up. Unfortunately there were a few business that were kind of shady and didn't always do what was in the best interest of the client.

LJay · 06-02-2016, 04:16 AM

[MENTION=23180]axle2152[/MENTION], well you may not be able to support yourself with it, but you might build up a small side business.

InbetweenDreams · 06-02-2016, 10:47 AM

[MENTION=20933]LJay[/MENTION] I would but I no longer have time for it anymore. I'm covered up between work and trying to do all this training business. There's some other stuff going on too, but perhaps at some point I could do that just not right now.

I was self-employed about 4 years ago (doesn't seem like it). It was very stressful, for a number of reasons. My problem was that I wasn't charging enough, I was trying to be too nice and crap and I was really just making it hard on myself. There's no telling how much I gave away to customers.

06-02-2016, 07:19 PM

I agree. I don't think those that haven't tried it realize just how stressful (and time consuming) being self-employed can be. And.... yeah, a lot of people fall into that "not charging enough" trap. Mostly because they don't value work from their own hands as -much- as they do work from an outside source. Finding that pricing "sweet spot" that is both paying YOU as well as appealing to the consumer is really quite difficult.

For me, being self employed is rewarding because I enjoy what I do. I am an extremely creative person and jewelry design gives me an outlet for that creativity that I've found lucrative. After the 6 years I've been doing it, is it enough to support me all on it's own? No. Unfortunately, not yet. Maybe not ever. But, for me, that's okay. I don't mind taking a few (currently four) part-time jobs to supplement the income I need. It gives me freedom to live my life on my own terms, and I need that freedom.

InbetweenDreams · 06-02-2016, 08:09 PM

I'd say that is partly true, not valuing one's own work but I always felt at that I might be asking for too much and that's something to address from the start. I should have been charging $20 more per hour at least on service calls. Some people even would try talking you down more when they felt they could take advantage. Despite that, I did do good work and overall I did enjoy doing the work just not always dealing with the people.,

06-02-2016, 08:28 PM

I am currently in the process of shuttering my business and selling off the equipment. In my case, the dissolution of my current business was the result of several factors.

First and formost, I experienced what may or may not have been a manufacturers defect that resulted in a wheel coming off of my service vehicle. I was insured, but had never placed a claim with insurance before, so I followed the directions of my insurance agent. It turned out that she was NOT my friend, and it took 4 months for me to get them money from the insurance to reap lace the equipment. During that time, the normal bills associated with running a business (rent, electricity, ect) literally BLED my finances.

This is not the first time I have shuttered an unsuccessful business, but it hurts more this time, as I can honestly say that this instance was not due to a fault of my own.

I have owned and operated 7 businesses. 5 were very successful and were sold at a profit. You cannot win the all, but it still hurts when you lose.

Best Wishes,
~Beaux

InbetweenDreams · 06-02-2016, 09:50 PM

Fortunately, I will not be running my own business anytime soon. I think some people just have a knack for it and definitely works to your advantage knowing a lot of people and being able to network.

Insurance was something I had ignored. If I had stayed in business longer or ended up with a store front I probably would have needed to look at that. I had walked through many million dollar homes with all sorts of stuff I could have knocked over, tripped over while carrying a computer or some other equipment.

There was one instance where I damaged a laptop I was working on. Long story short, soldering iron slipped and gouged the mainboard and was ruined. I had to eat the laptop, but the customer was happy that I was honest instead of lying or insisting that something else was wrong with the laptop. I mention that because it is very easy for someone to be dishonest with people when you provide a technical service, same with plumbing, auto mechanics and so on. I have heard many horror stories.

In my case I got out of business at a good time, I ended up getting another job pretty much just in time. It was getting to the point where I just about started missing car payments.