Are you ready to start a business as a trades person?
If you have a set of skills that means you are able to complete work as a gas engineer, electrician, plumber or handyman then you’re probably wondering how you can take it to the next level and work for yourself. If you have the ambition to work for yourself having these sorts of skills can allow you to achieve this, with a little bit of commitment and hard work.
Many people with these sorts of skills are now starting to look towards working for themselves as they can make more money than working for a company. Someone who is self-employed is earning on average five thousand more a year than someone who is working on the books.
If you’re looking to make the move into being self-employed, have a look below at some of the top tips for starting a business as a tradesperson.
Make Sure You Have Experience And Training
It’s not as easy as just ‘becoming’ a self-employed tradesperson, you need to make sure that you have the relevant training and experience. It’s important to make sure you follow the guidelines set for the safe practice of work such as being on the gas safe register as a gas engineer. You will also need to have the right level of skills to make sure you can keep your customers happy and provide a good level of service and also be able to deal with issues when they arise. Make considerations regards aspects such as bookkeeping and website development too.
Related: Need Bookkeeping Help For Your Business?
Create A Business Plan
Once you have the relevant experience and skills you should start to think about creating a business plan. Every business needs to have one of these in order to become successful. Unfortunately, there is no winging it when it comes to a successful business. Although you may never share your plan with anyone it’s good to set yourself goals and guidelines so you know if you’re achieving what you need to.
Think About Resources
When you’re on the books for another company you will have an unlimited source of supplies for completing your jobs. However, when your self-employed it’s your sole responsibility to make sure you have everything you need for the job. These range from things such as tools, a van, suppliers for on-demand stock and Pipe Threading services. Many local trade counters will allow you to set up a business account so you’re able to get supplies for the jobs you have and pay on a monthly basis.
Make Sure You Have Business Insurance
One of the biggest things that new businesses slip up on is either not having business insurance or not having the correct policies. You need to think about what you want to cover and make sure you’re protecting both you and the public you’re servicing with any policy you take out. It’s advisable to have public liability insurance as a tradesperson. It covers injury, death, or damage as a result of your work, and is going to be the main focus of any policy that you have.
Hopefully, these top tips set you on the right track when you’re starting a business as a tradesperson. Do you have any other tips that you can share in the comments section below?