question for any established locksmiths

[Chrispy]

Contracts are very usefull, especially with larger facilities such as government and education facilities.

They all want BiLock!

And when they lose their keys [or rather when someone steals them] you will be called forth to rekey them.

Exactly.

[Loc Doc]

hey thanks for the advice, guys.

[Shrub]

Well youve had comments from trading lockies, you dont seem to take note but youve had them mall the same, good luck and if you make 100K at all not alone n the first 4 years then please let us in on how you did it as no ne else can do it.

[Chrispy]

You drunk Shrub? Yur riting is a bit slurrrrrred....

[Shrub]

Just tired sorry.

[toomush2drink]

One thing that you do seem to be missing and that is your assuming you will have all the skills and experience to deal with these 6 calls per day. I think you need to consider getting the skills first or the business will fail rapidly however good your marketing strategies are. What do you expect your bulk of work to be, lock outs, installation etc ? You only need one stubborn lock to make you late for all the other jobs you have lined up. Unfortunately locks have a nasty habit of making you look silly in front of customers but sometimes its the only way to get valuable experience. Also if your up against other locksmiths where will you get ongoing training as i doubt very much your competition will help you.

Some more thoughts to think over but its good to see someone thinking about it before committing.

[Shrub]

So true, the easiest lock in the world suddenly becomes the hardest if the customer is in a rush or stareing over your shoulder, im sure there must be a name for that sort of feeling like sods law or somthing.

[Rockford]

Having 5 or 6 jobs lined-up, one after the other - hmmm, I had that dream once.

I think you need to take another look at how many jobs you need to just break even, and not assume you'll be working every day of the year. How much salary are you expecting, what do your overheads total, what are your setup costs ?.

You indicate that this is not your first business, and you've an excellent marketing strategy (haven't we all heard that before), but you really need to listen to what's being said. I admire your determination, but you need to be realistic in what you'll achieve in your first couple of years.

[Loc Doc]

One thing that you do seem to be missing and that is your assuming you will have all the skills and experience to deal with these 6 calls per day. I think you need to consider getting the skills first or the business will fail rapidly however good your marketing strategies are. What do you expect your bulk of work to be, lock outs, installation etc ? You only need one stubborn lock to make you late for all the other jobs you have lined up. Unfortunately locks have a nasty habit of making you look silly in front of customers but sometimes its the only way to get valuable experience. Also if your up against other locksmiths where will you get ongoing training as i doubt very much your competition will help you.

Some more thoughts to think over but its good to see someone thinking about it before committing.

point well taken. thank you.

[NKT]

I've got to go with the majority vote here.

I've been going for two and a half months now, and unless you already have a LOT of cash spare to pump into the advertising, you aren't going to be making that much of a splash! If you check out your YP, I'm sure you will find it is $6K a year, rather than per month, and you have to start at the right time, otherwise, like me, you go six months without a paper listing. Even a million wouldn't help there! Sure, you get places like Dyno and SoSecure, but they aren't locksmiths, they are call-centers, and they spend a fortune, and are backed by huge companies.

I doubt anyone at all gets six jobs a day unless it's a warrant run, and they don't pay nearly as well as the call-out emergency work - Your day rate for doing 15 jobs is only what you would get from three call-outs, even if you are charging low like I do - and you have to factor in your fuel for treking round and about all day.

Isn't Mad Mick on your island? You might ask him.

[Loc Doc]

I've got to go with the majority vote here.

I've been going for two and a half months now, and unless you already have a LOT of cash spare to pump into the advertising, you aren't going to be making that much of a splash! If you check out your YP, I'm sure you will find it is $6K a year, rather than per month, and you have to start at the right time, otherwise, like me, you go six months without a paper listing. Even a million wouldn't help there! Sure, you get places like Dyno and SoSecure, but they aren't locksmiths, they are call-centers, and they spend a fortune, and are backed by huge companies.

I doubt anyone at all gets six jobs a day unless it's a warrant run, and they don't pay nearly as well as the call-out emergency work - Your day rate for doing 15 jobs is only what you would get from three call-outs, even if you are charging low like I do - and you have to factor in your fuel for treking round and about all day.

Isn't Mad Mick on your island? You might ask him.

hahaha maybe where you are, full page yp ads go fpr 6k/yr but in hawaii its 6k/yr for a smaller than business card size add.

[Loc Doc]

i forgot to mention. i know ther ad prices - i work for the local phone company setting up business data and telecom networks.

this really is amazig to me. i assume that all of you are highly skilled locksmiths and have no problem with what comes your way. with that said, your problem is with volume, or the lack thereof.

this is what i know about business and life in general - you get what you deserve. you get what you put into your business not only in technical skills but also marketing/management skills.

seems as though everyone here has a volume issue and even though i claim to have a genius marketing plan that i would be happy to share via pm with anyone, no pm's. instead everyone is quick to jump on the boo-hoo-there-aint-no-money-to-be-made bandwagon.


interesting.

you get what you deserve.




backgound on myself:

ive owned over 10 companies in my life. not all of them went well. there was certainly a learning curve in each instance. i currently own two companies that do well for me. the best part is that they are on auto-pilot. in other words, im not in the picture..just getting paid. i also have a 6 fig salary at my job. i dont do to bad for my age (35). ive learned a lot from all of my experiences and im very eager to apply some of it to this as well.

believe me, when i decided to get into the last two businesses, people told me the same thing in the begining. "its not possible" "it wont work" "your dreaming"

both companies clear 500k/yr and with each i draw a 6 digit anual.





advice for all: if its not going how youd like it to go, change your formula. dont be so ignorant..or complacent to accept what is before you.
you you dont make enough. so others dont either. so everyone is pissing in your ear. doesnt mean that you cant do it. no reason why you cant clear 6figs in this business.


this is my formula:

1. you have a service that people need
2. get as much business you can with the least amout of cash outlay.
3. have a plan on how to get this done.


my question to you all:

who here even had a business plan? what was the basis of the plan in the way of marketing?

you can say im dreaming. ive heard it all before. and really im not. when you already make close to 400k/yr, another 100k is not a dream. its planning.

[NKT]

Well, I too run a couple of businesses. I too got bored with being a "high flyer". I'm now a locksmith.

As regards 6 or 7 jobs a day, you are dreaming. You will not get that, unless you have staff. How long do you think it takes for a quote for a bespoke security system? Even if you are a guru, and it takes 30 minutes, you still have to factor 30 minutes there and back, plus 30 on site, then write up and price the quote, factor in your profits, etc. Then they drag their heels, change thier minds, etc. and you have to re-quote, etc. etc. and you get paid nothing for all this, even if it takes a full day.

Then there are small things like lead times on stock, suppliers not getting stuff to you in time, taking phone calls at odd hours so you are wiped the next day, safe jobs that might take a full day, and more.

This is why we all say £45 is only just enough for a standard call out. We aren't making a fortune. We certainly aren't "pissing in your ear" so there is more work for us! 1 more guy (who knows nothing about locksmithing) isn't going to be a threat next to the 35 other locksmiths in my town. And besides, you are on the other side of the world...

It's hard going, long hours, and a lot to learn. Do it as a hobby, sure, start a sport group. That would be more your thing that pissing around in the rain at 3am trying to open a lock when the EPG battery is flat, the client is moaning at you, and you've already done a 14 hour day, which starts again in 5 hours... unless the phone rings again!

[Rockford]

NKT - 14hr day - you slacker

P.S. carry an inverter in your van to keep the gun charged. It's also useful for charging the mobile when that goes flat too.

[NKT]

I'm actually after a small generator. Makro had some for £40 a month or so ago. They currently have a lovely inverter/SLA/booster cable unit for £25+ which I nearly bought. I got the version for £15 instead, without the inverter, as I have one already. I want a jenny to run the power tools off, though, for those carp jobs where the mains is behind a locked door, or you are in the field.

Going back to the topic, I just did a quote and measure task, for a company. Took an hour, they might go for it, but odds are they won't. Even if they do, I can only really charge for my time on the job, most of which is really specialist, and will be sub-contracted out again. You'll never make 6 figures doing this job on your own, e.g. I earned nothing at all today except more bills, more paperwork, and a few more contacts. Tomorrow I hope I'll be able to cement one quote and make a nice profit. That profit, however, has to be divided by the hours of work it will take, and those it has already taken, as well as cover things that didn't go through. 365 of these jobs a year, and I'd be rich, but that just isn't the reality. And even I want a day off every so often.