Getting started as a Handyman

With the depression still here and while employment figures are beginning to rise again, there remains hundreds of thousands of residents across the UK looking to set up their own business as a route to generate an income into the house.


Many people see beginning to offer local handyman services as a cheap and easy startup which can generate paid work instantly. If you have a car and a toolbox of basic tools then it is possible to get work with some basic advertising.


While it is possible to ‘bootstrap’ your way into becoming a handyman it will be a lot easier if you have some money which can be invested while you get going, we will inspect how these can be put to best use shortly.


What jobs does a Handyman do?


Most handyman businesses offer general household repairs both indoors and outside, they can be classified as a ‘jack of all trades but master of none’. Knowing your limits as a handyman is very important so not to finish with time-consuming and expensive errors to correct.


Whilst you may be willing to replace cupboard shelves and install coving you may want to keep away from other skilled projects such as decorating and kitchen plumbing. Work involving electrics and gas should be steered clear from as you are expected to be qualified to work in this environment.


Deatiling a list of jobs you have carried out before and jobs you are able to do will help you with advertising your handyman business.


How to advertise your Handyman Business


A lot of handymen who have been established for a long time will have a base of clients they perform regular work for. As a beginner to the industry this is a result you can look forward to and wish for but to begin with you will have to market your service to attract new clients.


Most handyman services will try and target their home town. Local targeting mostly occurs in these ways:


Local Newspaper


An advertisement in the back of the local newspaper can bring phonecalls from people searching for a handyman that specific week.


Leaflets


Creating a leaflet and delivering it can be very cheap and create lots of jobs. You can target an exact area such as the more expensive area of town where residents have extra disposable income.


Vehicle Sign writing


Having your vehicle sign written can be very inexpensive for a basic sign and attract enquiries on a continuing basis, not just a single day a week like a couple of the methods above.


One more way that is becoming more popular to Handyman Companies is websites targeted to attract web surfers looking for your type of trade in your specific town. The brilliant thing about having a website is it is created for customers actively wanting your services (permission marketing) whereas the most other advertising methods are interruptive. Websites can be cheap/free to get started and have very minimal ongoing costs.


When you have decided what work you will take on, then promoted those services you should hopefully start receiving some jobs or at least some phonecalls from customers requesting you to give quotations.


Once you start getting enquiries you need to look at getting business insurance, this will protect you incase you damage a customer's house, or even worse severely injure a passer by.


As you have received a few jobs you need to look at reinvesting the profits into extra marketing or extra tools so you can increase the amount of jobs you are able to fulfil. If you receive continual phonecalls for a particular area of work, maybe wet plumbing, it may be worth your while learning that craft in an evening school so you can then promote it to your customers.


Good luck in beginning your new Local Handyman Business.