Business Questions? Ask a Locksmith.

[Varjeal]

For keeping track of keys and preparing masterkey systems I use ol' MS Excel spreadsheet. I also do my masterkey systems by "hand" so to speak since I don't do them frequently enough to justify the expense of a program.

I guess in the case of a large institutional or complex system I would definitely purchase a masterkey program. Maybe something such as those offered by HPC.

[Chucklz]

Even though I would never have a use for it, my inner geek dreams of a few perl scripts a cgi interface and a very tightly secured sql database. Throw key management into that as well, and then an institutional locksmith could just walk around with some flavor of a pocket computing device and a wifi card...

[WhiteHat]

well hey, give me an oracle database, a bit of time and someone who knows about wifi and you got it

the reason I ask is because I thought that there may be some free software and if not then it could very easily be developed with the plethora of IT-type guys on this site.

Perhaps that could be a project for 2005.

[32768]

:) well hey, give me an oracle database, a bit of time and someone who knows about wifi and you got it
the reason I ask is because I thought that there may be some free software and if not then it could very easily be developed with the plethora of IT-type guys on this site.
Perhaps that could be a project for 2005.

I know wifi reasonably well. I did some work a while back on mesh routing schemes.
I don't think there would be much to the wifi- any net connection should work. The handheld wouldn't even have to be online all the time, just for updates to the DB. If you know oracle, then there are a number of free db packages you could probably pick up pretty quickly. At the application level, it's all sql, right?

Now, as for the bit of time you need. I've scheduled in some free time for 2006, but it may get bumped back again.

Would you cache a local copy of the database on the handheld, or just use it to access an online server? There are pros and cons either way, I suppose.

Sounds like a fun project!

[WhiteHat]

now I'm inspired , I think I'm going to have to bite the bullet and learn perl.. I just mentioned oracle because that's what I work with all day and you can script in PL/SQL easily.. but mySQL et al. works too.. but perhaps we should take this to another thread.....

[t8769]

Talking to the schools, you'd think all you have to do is put an ad in the paper and people will be bighting your hand off.

I'd like to know the prospects for setting up a business in London or the SE of England.

I don't mind spending money on advertising, if I get a reasonable return. Is there a glut of locksmiths out there? Do I have to put a huge ad in Yellow pages?

I'd hate to pay for training, only to find I get one call a month.

I don't need to get work right away, but I'd like to know that if I persevere, I'lll build up enough to make a reasonable living. I'd like to move out of London to a smaller city.

I've run businesses and regard myself as pretty professional, so I'm hoping I can make a go of this.

How does one get commercial contracts.. is this word of mouth, or does it involve marketing, cold calling ect.


Thanks for any advice.

T

[pinky]

T

you will find answers to all these questions on this forum, about set up costs etc, il send you an email about how it is.

[Varjeal]

In regards to commercial contacts, there's two ways of going about it. One is "cold calling" so to speak, that is, showing up at the business and asking for the manager, giving 'em a handshake and a couple of cards.

The other is a bit more roundabout. It requires joining different business organizations such your local Chamber of Commerce or other such-like places where business-people gather. Meeting business owners after hours and in a social setting is much easier to do that just showing up.

[Hawk4D]

I noticed you mention you spend most of your time doing paperwork. What kind of paper work? Is it just for your own benifit or something required?
Thanks

[Varjeal]

It was actually a little bit of sarcasm from the business side of the business. Sometimes it seems like I spend more time chasing people to collect payment, paying bills, ordering and tracking inventory and then typing it into the computer, writing letters, etc...than actually doing locksmithing work.

Truth of the matter is that it is an important part of business. Keeping your paperwork up to date makes doing your taxes (when the time comes) a lot easier. It also helps in avoiding nasty suprises when you go to write a cheque or otherwise pay for something and having the ability to know how much is in your account.

I would highly recommend the use of software such as Quicken, MYOB, Quickbooks (the software I use and my personal favorite), or others to take advantage of inventory tracking, invoice, reminders, and taxes....With the more popular programs at the end of the tax year you can make a copy of the disk and just hand it to your accountant. Makes life very simple for the both of ya, especially if your a one-man band.

Additionally, most software will allow you to look back on a chart or graph at last years business and perhaps inspire ideas or plans on how to better arrange your business for the best chance of success.

[vector40]

This is a bit of a silly question, but how do you handle power?

For example, if you have to use a Dremel or an angle grinder or something along those lines, where do you plug the thing in? I can't imagine there's a lot of power outlets located conveniently outside next to the front door.

Or for those of you cutting keys on-site, what's your situation? Do you plug into the cigarette lighter in your van?

[toomush2drink]

You can use an invertor or a small generator for power. Inverters have been discussed in depth in this thread http://www.lockpicking101.com/viewtopic.php?t=6468

[plot]

This is a bit of a silly question, but how do you handle power?

For example, if you have to use a Dremel or an angle grinder or something along those lines, where do you plug the thing in? I can't imagine there's a lot of power outlets located conveniently outside next to the front door.

Or for those of you cutting keys on-site, what's your situation? Do you plug into the cigarette lighter in your van?

my dremel is cordless, just like all other power tools available today

[vector40]

One other thing, just a kind of "hmm..." question.

If someone's locked out of his home, how the heck does he get your number out of the phone book? That's locked inside. For that matter, how about his car? If he gets locked out of it in front of his house, fine, but not if he's locked out at the gas station or something. And if someone's locked out of a commercial building, there's probably no phone book available anyway.

I'm confused

[Romstar]

Well, just ask yourself.

How would I call a locksmith if I were locked out?

Romstar