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Growing a business

Downsizer Forum Index -> Small Business Questions, Ideas and Advice

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wellington womble

Joined: 08 Nov 2004
Posts: 15051
Location: East Midlands

Posted: Sat Feb 17, 07 10:57 am Post subject: Growing a business

At the moment my small business is, well, teeny rather than small. It runs alongside my day job, and I work a work a few evenings a week now and again. It does very nicely, paying for a few holidays and treats, but I want to grow it into a part time business that will consistently support my share of the household income.

I'm encountering two lots of problems at the moment, the first is that I have a full time day job as a physio, and my private clients don't always want to be seen during evenings or weekends, so I am losing patients because I can't always see them at time convinient for them.

The second is that its quite a dynamic customer base, in that people's health changes a lot, so often people want blocks of treatment, and then nothing at all for a while, or they get better completely and drop off the books. It's hard to build up any kind of semi-reliable income. It's not really very seasonal, so it would be hard to plan for.

The only way round this I can think of is to increase my advertising and to reduce my hours at work a bit, so I have some time during the day to see people, and still some steady income. I hope also in the future to diversify a little into various exercise classes, or to hold 'clinics' in places where there might be lots of people needing my services (like nursing homes for example) I don't know yet if reducing my working hours is going to be an option. I really daren't leave, as I am so lucky to have a job in physio at all in the present climate, that I might never get another. MrWomble is self employed as well, although he has so far never had a problem getting work, it does make taking any risk a bit more risky! I'm farily rubbish at self promotion and marketing, but he's quite good, although he's little tied up with plumbing a heating system at the moment.

So, how do you grow a bit on the side into a small business, and how do plan for a randomnly fluctuating market?

Last edited by wellington womble on Sat Feb 17, 07 11:38 am; edited 1 time in total

alisjs

Joined: 23 Jun 2006
Posts: 1497
Location: Conwy

Posted: Sat Feb 17, 07 11:18 am Post subject:
any chance you could go part time with your day job? You will be keeping a foot in the door then if things don't work out. The extra time will make you more flexible for your customers and give you some time to think and plan your campaign. It's hard to make progress if you can't free up some space (in your head and in time) I reckon

hedgewitch

Joined: 26 Nov 2005
Posts: 5834
Location: Daft wench GHQ

Posted: Sat Feb 17, 07 11:36 am Post subject:

Don't know if this is applicable to you but I knew a chiropodist who got regular gigs and old folks home or two. This meant that there was always a steady income stream from that because although other clients might have blocks of treatment then vanish when cured, there was always someone in the home needing regular care. Visiting one site for many clients also meant time could be used well.

Do you have any potential clients in a similar situation? If so, it might be possible to agree on one day a week and know you were going to get paid for that, so be able to reduce your hours at your day job and leave yourself a little time in the week to take other, individual clients on?

boisdevie1

Joined: 11 Aug 2006
Posts: 3897
Location: Lancaster

Posted: Sat Feb 17, 07 12:02 pm Post subject:
Obviously you're working to pay the bills. To give you flexibility if you don't know what you're income is going to be from day to the next is there any way to temporarily cut your living expenses? Also, is there any mileage trying to find clients who use gyms and sports centres. Could you not do a deal with private gyms?

piggybreeder

Joined: 18 Jun 2006
Posts: 122
Location: Kirkbride Cumbria England

Posted: Sat Feb 17, 07 12:14 pm Post subject:
see how many nursing homes/gyns would be interested in your service and try to get some sort of contract in writing to hold your classes / clinics on a weekly basis. If you got perminent bookings on set days then you could do your private physio sessions on the free days.

2steps

Joined: 05 Sep 2005
Posts: 5349
Location: Surrey

Posted: Sat Feb 17, 07 4:04 pm Post subject:
don't know if you have one in your area but our local sure start have an aromatherapist come in one day a week for parents to come to at a reduced cost (they pay the rest to her I believe) they also have a yogo class and someone who does head massage so it could be worth contacting them to see if one near you would be interested

alison
Downsizer Moderator

Joined: 29 Oct 2004
Posts: 12918
Location: North Devon

Posted: Sat Feb 17, 07 4:51 pm Post subject:
In our last town we lived in there was a superb alternative health clinic that had various treatment rooms, with beds, chairs etc provided, and practitioners could hire the room for 1/2 a day, or a week or whatever. There was one receptionist, that would be given the appointment sheet, and a waiting room for all, but the practitioner would have done their own bookings.

chez

Joined: 13 Aug 2006
Posts: 35934
Location: The Hive of the Uberbee, Quantock Hills, Somerset

Posted: Sun Feb 18, 07 12:54 pm Post subject:
I know that in the complementary therapies business they say that it takes two years to work up an effective business and start getting a good number of referrals from people who have felt one has helped them; and it is a big leap of faith to give up the day job all at once. Can you volunteer somewhere for an evening a month or something like that, to get known?

alison
Downsizer Moderator

Joined: 29 Oct 2004
Posts: 12918
Location: North Devon

Posted: Sun Feb 18, 07 1:04 pm Post subject:
Are there any health evenings run in your area. I have just remembered when I was pregnant, 11 years ago!, that I went to an evening run by the NCT, and we had mini appointments, then got the opportunity of having a proper appointment later. Think big hotel with about 30 different activities going on. It was very good.

wellington womble

Joined: 08 Nov 2004
Posts: 15051
Location: East Midlands

Posted: Sun Feb 18, 07 4:05 pm Post subject:

Lots of good ideas! Hadn't thought of the NCT, they might have a lot going on, thanks Alison

What's surestart, 2steps?

I'm not sure how interested gyms would be, but there are plenty around, so I guess it can't hurt to mailshot them.

Oddly, I found an complementary health clinic today, because I came a different way home (just because I'd never been that way before) so I'll contact them, too.

I'm planning on starting up some mobility and exercise classes for older people soon, and hope that that will be a slightly steadier income. But I think really the only thing to do is to get some savings together to live off if I have to, and cut my day job hours. It's a bit chicken and egg though - I'm not sure which to do first - there's no point cutting my hours if I've no private work, and there's no point getting any private work if I can't cut my hours. Ho-hum! I would like to reduce our outgoings, which might happen in a odd way soon - we should be losing out mortgage, and although all the money will be going into fixing up the new place, it isn't quite so constricting.

The next step is to get some promotional materials together, and get them sent out to GP surgeries, gyms, nursing homes, complimentary health clinics and all. I am so, so rubbish at promotional stuff. Does anyone have any views on whether a face to face or letter approach is better?

Nick

Joined: 02 Nov 2004
Posts: 34535
Location: Hereford

Posted: Sun Feb 18, 07 4:32 pm Post subject:

Face to face will always be better. By a thousand fold.

However, how many face to face meetings can you squeeze into a week? My guess, if you do it full time, is about 20, properly.

How many letters can you send out in a week? A few million. So....

Look at the competition. Go to the homes, clinics, hospitals, gyms, internet sites, local rag, everything. Find out who the competition is, and steal the ideas that work for you.

Don't discount. Ever. Give more product for the same money, which is a difference. So, offer 5 sessions for the price of four. Perhaps to an individual client, perhaps to a place, like the gym. That way, you get the same income, and you can depend on it.

Becki

Joined: 02 Nov 2004
Posts: 6293
Location: Devon

Posted: Sun Feb 18, 07 5:47 pm Post subject:
Here is Sure Start https://www.surestart.gov.uk/

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