A homemade handyman business is a great thing for a dad that’s good with his hands. You can do work for your neighbors, for your family, for friends who live just outside of town, and make a good bit of money on the side. Download a few apps that’ll help you evolve your skills and you’ll soon be the first and only repairman they call on when their home is in trouble!
But what if you want to move outside of these boundaries? What if your handyman business is going so well you’re starting to think about taking it on full time? Then this is the post for you!
If you enjoy taking on DIY projects, fixing up homes, and being your own boss, expanding your handyman business is a step worth considering. It’s not going to be easy, by any means, but you’ve got a very good chance of making some serious money here.
Plus, when you feel passionate about the work you do, you’re soon going to love turning up for work and seeing a full day through. But before you get stuck in, let’s go through the top things you need to know about being a full time handyman.
Tradesperson Websites are a Huge Help
Trades websites are a place for customers to find reliable workmen like you. No matter how big or small the task or project, you can throw your hat into the ring – but only if you’re in the right place to hear about it! And seeing as you’re only just setting out on your expansion journey, you’re going to want to use them liberally for the first few months.
Some notable websites are TaskRabbit and Porch. Both of these websites have thousands of visitors per day, and can help you to connect with jobs in the local area. Of course, each site has its own entry requirements, and you’ll usually have to complete a few validation tasks before you can start replying to postings, but these shouldn’t take too long to get through.
Sign up to as many of these kinds of websites as you can find – as long as you’ve heard of them and they come well reviewed on independent sites. You don’t want to throw your details into the void only for them to disappear!
You’ll Probably Need Better Equipment
It’s an unfortunate side effect of trying to get bigger and better: you’re going to need new tools and equipment to keep up with your new workload. That means investing in quality stuff, to make sure you don’t have to replace anything too soon after you just bought it.
From the lowly yet reliable wrench to the truck you drive to remove waste to one day crane hires, make sure you’re working with the best. Of course, you should try to stay within your budget range as much as possible, but purchasing outside of this every now and then won’t harm your finances too much.
As long as it gets the job done well, you’re going to make back every penny and then some!
Have a Look at the Competition
What are other tradesmen in your area doing right now? You’re going to have to compete against them, so get a good look at their practices from the moment you think about expanding.
Follow them on social media to see what they post, including any deals and how they present their reviews. Check out their website around once a month to see how the design evolves (if it ever does). Read their Google reviews to see what’s mentioned, and more importantly, what’s left out. You’re a handyman just like they are, you’re going to know when something pretty significant is missing from an otherwise glowing review!
When you know what’s going on ‘out there’, you can better align your expansion goals with what your target market is really looking for from you.
You’ll Need to Market Through Social Media
Social media is a time and money saver for small businesses like yours. You can make your own posts and run your own adverts, and all without needing to spend more than around $30. Local area campaigns tend to be on the cheaper side, especially if you’re only running them for a week. However, the impact is still going to be huge!
So market yourself through social media. Upload your face and logo, make sure you use brand colors in all your promos, and have a killer bio ready to go. On both Facebook and Instagram you can link to your website in the same section, and you can even add a button allowing customers to book directly using whatever software you trust!
On platforms like TikTok, you can start making relatable, interesting content. Use their trending audios, post tutorials that are great for beginners, and show off your recent jobs and just how sparkling someone’s home has become. Although, you should make sure you get permission for the latter!
Sound good to you? If not, don’t worry. This isn’t the only way to bring in more customers.
Make Some Time to Market In-Person
Marketing in person has long been reliable for local tradespeople, and you’re not going to be any different. Making time to talk to people and generate interest in person is great for both the older and younger generations alike; we trust people more when we’ve seen them, spoke to them, and had a good, personal interaction.
This is also where you can use leaflet marketing; drop them round houses in your neighborhood by knocking on doors or leaving on the doorstep. You can also post them round high traffic areas, such as a nearby mall, on grocery store notice boards, and in relevant businesses like DIY and homeware stores.
Try Using AI to Simplify Admin Tasks
Admin tasks are the bane of the ‘solopreneur’ existence. When you’re doing everything yourself and still trying to find time to sleep at night, you’re soon going to run into a wall. Soon enough, you’ll be piling tasks onto tomorrow and the day after, even though you’ve got the same amount of tasks to cross off the list until the end of the week.
You’ll constantly feel like you’re running out of time! That’s why you should look into AI tools to simplify common admin tasks. Invoicing, for example, is a huge time sink in a trades business.
For many handymen, cash in hand is preferable, simply because having to draft out invoices and receipts and trying to follow a paper trail is tricky. That’s where software like buildops construction ai comes in. Get machine learning to do the annoying work for you and you’ll free up an hour or two!
Putting Your Prices Up isn’t Bad
It might feel like you’re alienating half your customer base when you do, but this is an important thing to know right now. Putting prices up thanks to rising demand, or to meet the rising costs of running your own business, isn’t a bad thing. You’ve got a lot of work to do from here on out – you’re allowed to set rates that match this!
It also makes you seem more professional. You don’t need super high prices to guarantee good work, but never go as cheap as you can in order to attract more people. If you work on a quote by quote basis, find out what other contractors are saying and be competitive.
Rope in Friends and Family
These people are going to be the main bank of your customer base anyway. They’re already going to know the quality of your work, and how easy you are to work with at times of need. Leverage this. It should be easy – seeing as you know them on a personal level, why not ask them to help spread the word?
If you’ve already done work for them in the past, whether it’s fixing a poorly hung door or repiping the kitchen sink, ask them to leave you a Google review. Similarly, ask them to follow you on social media, so you can start building up a reliable following. You could also hand them business cards to hand out to anyone they feel needs them. Anything goes here; if you want to get the word out, ask those closest to you who believe in the cause as well.
Want to Be a Full Time Handyman?
If you’re an amateur handyman who’s starting to make some good money, maybe it’s time to go professional? Being your own boss, working full time in your own time, and being the kind of guy people can rely on – what could be better than that?
Just make sure you take the above points into account from the beginning. The more you know now, the better you’ll set up for the future. As a handyman, you’ll need to prove your worth and market yourself in as many ways as possible, so lay the stones for this right now!
(Cover Image: Pexels)