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Everything You need to Know about Starting Carpet Cleaning Business

Many people understand the importance of using professional cleaning services and appreciate the solutions that carpet cleaning businesses provide. On the other hand, many people are in search of either full time or part time income earning opportunities. If you are considering starting this type of business, you have a good opportunity to generate an impressive income because plenty of opportunities are available in commercial and residential properties.

Business start-ups require entrepreneurs to do their homework well by researching on every aspect of the business and having a business plan prior to launching. Rug cleaning is no different. You are likely to have a successful business if you arm yourself with all the necessary information about the business.

Business location

Most entrepreneurs who get into the business of cleaning carpets start their businesses from home. Some may eventually move to other business premises, but this implies additional cost. Before you decide to base your business in your home, find out about the local authority’s regulations that govern the running businesses from residential premises.

If you choose to rent commercial premises, identify a reasonably priced facility with ample space that meets your business operations requirements.

What do you know?

One of the best things about starting a rug cleaning business is that you hardly require any special skills or certification. However, you need to have good knowledge of professional equipment and products used for cleaning carpets in addition to learning skills necessary for running a successful business.

Hiring staff with experience in cleaning rugs is a good idea if you only have basic knowledge of the business. You will need to keep updating your knowledge about new cleaning equipment, supplies and invest in those that will add most value to your business.

Licensing

For this type of business, you will require to obtain a Business License before getting started. You may find it necessary to incorporate your business once you grow your assets.

Determine your clientele

Some businesses serve multiple clients successfully while others choose to target a niche market and focus on meeting their needs. Your research should guide you on which market you can serve best and create customer loyalty.

To franchise or not?

Franchising is a good option when you are starting out. Your business gets support in terms of marketing, advertising and operations. It is much easier to work with an already established business with a known name. However, franchising may not work to your advantage once your business is established.

Equipment

You will need to invest in cleaning equipment like steam and vacuum cleaners as well as cleaning supplies. You can start with light equipment and upgrade as your business grows. In addition, you have a choice between buying and hiring cleaning equipment. You may need to consider purchasing a van to transport equipment and staff.

Hiring Staff

Lounge cleaning businesses require workforce especially cleaners, assistants and administrative staff. The amount of work determines the size of workforce. Recruit staff with knowledge of using the equipment used in cleaning carpets.

Pricing

Draw up a reasonable pricing plan for your rug cleaning services. You are starting a business to provide a service in return for profit. Therefore, your pricing should allow you to cover your expenses and give you a profit.

Marketing

Getting your marketing right can mean business success. Establish and maximize on the most effective marketing and advertising strategies for your business.

Image: Frederick Md Publicity / Flickr

Top Benefits of 0800 Numbers for Small Businesses

If you want to experience a significant growth in your business, you must find and exhaust all the strategies available to advance your business objectives. If you don’t know where to start, you’re strongly suggested to begin your journey by opening all communication channels between you and your target market. There are several methods to achieve this, but as a small business owner, you must choose the most cost-effective of them. Large companies employ a complicated and costly method, but you may want to go for something much simpler, yet truly effective. One of these cost-effective strategies is through the use of 0800 numbers.

What is an 0800 number?

An 0800 number is sometimes called a toll-free number, a business phone line that consumers can freely and conveniently use to communicate their concerns, needs, and demands. Many consumers want to share their experience and help you improve your products or services. But sometimes, if there is an expensive phone bill or charges involved, they will change their mind. So to make sure that your target market constantly gets in touch with you, provide them with a convenient communication platform that they can use anytime they want and anywhere they are in the country.

What are the top benefits of having an 0800 number?

The main objective of 0800 numbers is to build a strong relationship with your customers. A strong relationship is not built overnight, but if you constantly talk to them and address their concerns properly, you will be able to expand your clientele. Consumers trust only a company that listens to their needs. So if you have a toll free number they can use, expect to attract more customers in just a few months.

Next, an 0800 number saves you money on all types of consumer surveys. These surveys are meant to know what the target consumers want, so many large companies conduct these surveys to understand what their customers need. But if you have an 0800 number, you don’t have to conduct these surveys or have another company do them for you. All you have to do is to pick up your phone and listen carefully to what your customers tell you. Doing this will lead you to fully understand what you can do to be able to provide what your customers want and need.

Last, an 0800 number helps you increase your sales volume. Studies show that if more customers get in touch with you to ask more about your products or services, the big tendency is, these phone calls or inquiries will eventually be translated into sales. As long as you answer your customers as honest and as prompt as possible, you will experience a significant increase in your sales volume in no time.

To know more about 0800 numbers, you’re strongly suggested to go over different materials that can help you understand the benefits that you can get from these numbers. You can find these materials on the Internet in the form of articles, videos, and websites. If you don’t know where they are located, all you have to do is to put your favorite search engine to good use.

By 0800 Business Number Article Writer

Using Free Tools to Market Your Business

Freebie marketing is an old, tried and tested form of marketing that involves either giving away a product (or offering it at a very cheap price) in the knowledge that in order to use or continue to use said product the consumer will be forced to spend more money with that company.

The concept was believed to have been born of King Camp Gillette; the inventor of the safety razor and the Gillette brand. Gillette realised that by selling his razors very cheaply (usually well below cost price) he would create a market for his then overpriced blades. Gillette still utilise freebie marketing today, choosing to send free razors to men as they approach their 18th birthday.

Gillette Freebies

Other instances of freebie marketing can be seen through cable and satellite television companies, internet providers and any other business venture through which a product is required in order for the customer to use the service.

For instance, the cable company might offer a ‘free’ digital recording box. However, they will charge an installation and set-up fee in addition to a monthly fee that is set to cover the cost of the hardware.

How does it work?

It makes the customer believe they’re getting a great deal and that the company are doing them a favour.

Not only do they then hold the brand in good stead, but they feel obligated to purchase the remaining necessary items from that company – both through loyalty and a reluctance to purchase the whole package elsewhere.

Can it work for you?

Not every industry can utilise freebie marketing in the traditional ‘Gillette’ sense. To do so, you need to embrace the business model of selling your product in separate parts – one that you can give away free or very cheaply, and one that you can price accordingly to recover costs and secure a profit.

When it goes wrong?

Using Free Tools to Market Your Business

As with most businesses, your biggest risk comes from your competition. If a competitor releases a rival product at a greatly reduced cost, the success of the original product is threatened.

In many cases, making a success of freebie marketing entails having a part or whole monopoly on the industry, or at the least, such a strong brand that consumers will choose your products over a cheaper alternative due to their perception of quality.

Using freebies to build a brand:

Giving away products or offering them at a very cheap price is another form of marketing that can help to increase your customer base while building brand awareness and customer loyalty.

While this is different from ‘freebie marketing’ as Gillette use it, it’s still highly effective and since you don’t need a monopoly to succeed with it, less risky.

Business to consumer relationships:

Using Free Tools to Market Your Business

Used correctly, the distribution of ‘freebies’ can help to build lasting ‘relationships’ between business and consumer.

For instance, a toothpaste company could offer free dental check-ups. Not only does this encourage the buying of the company’s products over a competitors, but it gives the customer the impression that this brand cares about those that buy their products.

Alternatively, the producer of a range of diet food products could offer a free membership to Weight Watchers or similar scheme.

Either way, the point is to establish what the consumers of the product care about and to offer them something that complements that as a freebie.

Bringing freebie marketing into the 21st Century:

Bringing freebie marketing into the 21st Century

Another great way to utilise freebie marketing is to incorporate it into social media marketing.

If you’re struggling to grow your social media following, offering a free sample of a product in return for a ‘follow’ or a ‘like’ is a great way to get more people involved in your online marketing efforts.

You can even take it a step further and ask consumers to report back on the product, using Facebook or Twitter (or any other social media channel you might be involved in), offering the chance for them to win a much larger freebie in return.

Marketing costs money:

Remember that most effective forms of marketing cost money. You can own and operate a Facebook or Twitter page for free but if you really want to make a success of it, you need to start spending.

If you’re unsure whether spending money on freebie marketing is viable, consider the cost against television or magazine advertising – in most cases it’s less, while having a far greater return on investment.

Jessy is the marketing blogger for Auto Insurance Calculator, the free tool you can use online.

Image Credits: 1, 2, 3, 4.

Office Supplies Do Not Have To Cost An Arm And A Leg!

When compared to other important acquisitions for the office (furniture and equipment), office supplies appear to require a minimal investment. However, how do you explain the fact that each year billions of dollars are spent on purchasing office supplies only in the United States? While the price of acquiring these basic supplies is rather low, keep in mind that you will need to restock quite frequently. Therefore, when you add up the individual investments dedicated for this purpose in a single month, you will be surprised to learn they are not as cheap as you initially thought.

In order to avoid spending a large portion of your business budget on office supplies, you need to set up a process of managing and controlling the consumption. Managing the supplies should start with verifying your past orders and determining which of the items are absolute necessities and which are simply nice to have. In case you discover items that are present on constantly ordered list, but nobody really uses them, then you can start to eliminate them systematically. In addition, you should re-evaluate the office supplies you are acquiring regularly and see if you can get them for less.

Due to the fact that most businesses have an online presence today, you can save a lot of time and effort when comparing office supplies offers. In short, you do not have to go down to the depot and note down the prices because you can check that out on websites and office supplies portals. Besides comparing and reviewing the offer, you can choose to order the office supplies directly from online sources. In the eventuality that you are making an order online, it is advisable to account for the shipping fee. Nonetheless, take note that most reputable office supplies providers will include free shipping for orders worth a minimum threshold.

If you are happy with the office supplies provider (new or old) and you purchase a significant amount of supplies each month, then you should negotiate a purchase contract. In order to be able to turn the tide of the deal in your favor, it is advisable that you evaluate which of these items you acquire more frequently. Afterwards, focus on getting a lower price or a discount and you will benefit from great savings. As a side note, because the purchase contract means regular expenses and hefty amounts of office supplies, this strategy works optimally for larger companies (with at least 100 employees).

Another method of conserving some of the cash spent on office supplies is to consider bulk orders. Therefore, instead of purchasing 100 sheet packs of paper often, a better approach is to acquire 1000 sheet packs at once. While this is by far the best method through which small companies can reduce the costs on office supplies, there are two crucial aspects worth mentioning. First off, the company must have the necessary budget to afford purchasing 1000 sheet packs (or other bulk supplies). The second aspect implies figuring out if you have the necessary (available) space to store bulk office supplies in a manner that will not negatively impact on the working space.

Be prudent and smart when it comes to amassing savings on your office supplies!

About the Author: Gerard Lee owns a stationary outlet whose mainly involved in selling office supplies. Through his blog he is willing to let people know how they can save money on buying office supplies.

5 Ways To Raise Capital For a Business

One of the major challenges before any entrepreneur is to raise capital for his business. This becomes more important for a new entrepreneur as he starts the business without any contacts or experience. No doubt, a business plan, office, workers, contacts and and many more things are involved with a business but raising capital is the primary challenge. There are a number of ways to raise capital for a business and this post covers detailed information regarding those methods.

Loans From Banks

One of the easiest methods to get the required capital for a business is to take loan from a bank. In order to get loans from banks, you will have to submit security worth the loan amount. Even after the easy availability of loans, most of the entrepreneurs avoid bank loans as a medium to raise capital for business. This is bank loans are associated with high interest rates and various other complications.

Venture Capitalists

Another method to obtain necessary funds for starting a business is from venture capitalists. Since venture capitalists are very strict with approval and sanctioning loans, you must have a solid business plan based on an innovative idea. If the venture capitalists are impressed with your plan, you can easily get the required capital. In return, you have to provide them some equity in the business. One of the merits of this method is that you also get the opportunity to benefit from the experience of venture capitalists. As a result, you can modify your plan on their recommendation which can improve the chances of your success.

Private Investors

There are a number of people who are looking to invest in fresh business ideas. Most of these people are business man that want to diversify their income sources and thus are ready to invest in projects of other people. All you need to do is to search few private investors in your locality and then explain you business plan and possible returns to them. If you are able to convince them, you can easily raise the required capital for your business. Again, you should do proper planning before fixing a meeting with private investors. You should be able to justify your budget and business plans. Also, explain the whole plan from the perspective of the investors also so that they feel interested in the project. Once you have made good relations with private investors and showed him your potential, you can expect monetary helps for future projects also.

Family

If you cannot afford to pay the interest rates of banks or individual investors, you can ask your family and friends for help. This is one of the most conventional ways of generating capital for a business. These people simply give you the money for the bond they share with you.

Friends

If you are taking monetary help from a friend, you should offer him some share from the profits. Again, your attitude also plays a vital role in convincing your family and friends for investing.

About the Author: Our friend Sara Muler at www.loansforpeoplewithverybadcredit.net provided this free guest post. Please check out her website when you get a chance.