By Starting any business from scratch is daunting, and property maintenance is no different. In fact, due to the nature of the service, you will have a number of additional challenges to consider.
The first – and most obvious – difficulty is the amount of equipment you should stock at any one time. Unlike a traditional construction business, you will not be building homes but keeping them in good condition, which is tricky to prepare for. You could go months and only have to repair a few pieces of furniture or repaint a wall, only for one of your client’s properties to spring a water leak, demanding a lot of equipment all at once.
Furthermore, you will need to attract new clients using a number of mediums – including newspaper advertising and digital marketing, which will eat into your budget.
Thankfully, there are a number of solutions to these issues, as long as you plan ahead and prepare for the rollercoaster workload of maintaining property.
This is how you can start a property maintenance business without breaking the bank:
You can get your supplies wholesale and tailor your order to the client’s needs
A major consideration when you run a property maintenance business is how much equipment to store in advance, and how much you should buy only when you need it. This is particularly relevant when you’re starting out, because you will likely have no clients at first.
Therefore, you won’t know what to prepare for, or what type of properties you are likely to maintain in the future.
The best approach to dealing with this is to buy a healthy amount of basic equipment and supplies from a wholesaler up front, in order to tide you over for the majority of jobs you’re likely to complete.
If you buy in bulk from a wholesaler like Tradefix Direct, you’re likely to spend less money than if you buy individual supplies if and when you need them.
This approach is also less likely to catch you unawares if a property suddenly suffers a major problem that needs dealing with immediately. Your reputation will crumble if you aren’t seen to deal with it straight away.
Locate your prospects using online searches
Once you’ve got a suitable supply of tools and equipment, you’re going to need a number of clients to start off with. You should aim to at least have two or three at first, because it will leave you less vulnerable if one of them backs out without prior warning, as can sometimes happen with property owners, especially in a difficult financial climate.
The best tool you can use to find new clients is to search for them online. Do your background research on the types of properties you want to maintain (and in what area), then check to see where the nearest properties are that fit the criteria.
Create a list of suitable properties and find out whether the owner has published their contact details online. This will often be the case with commercial buildings owned by companies.
Build brand awareness using SEO and digital marketing techniques
Another related approach to building awareness of your brand and establishing yourself as a market leading property maintainer is to make use of SEO on your website.
You could start posting articles with property maintenance advice, film how-to videos or even become a guest expert on property TV shows. This will raise your profile and likely expose you to a whole host of prospects while demonstrating your expertise in your industry.
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