"The Medway Handyman" wrote in message
. uk...
Hi All

Still struggling with the horrendous cost of advertising. You would not
credit how much the buggers want. I came up with the following cunning
plan;

A large (huge) sign to mounted on the roof bars of my vehicle. Something
like 6' x 3' full colour, professionally done.

Checking out the car parks of local B&Q, Homebase, Morrisons, Asda, Tesco
stores etc they all have the following restrictions;

Maximum stay 2 hours, customers only.

So, I park in B&Q car park in prominence position, attach sign to roof,
buy packet of screws (therefore becoming a customer) and leave car there
for 1 hour 55 mins. Remove sign, drive to Homebase & do the same. Then
Morrisons etc.

Perfectly legal, not flyposting, doesn't annoy people like windscreen
flyers, can't be banned for doing anything.

snip

It is probably legal, but annoying to the places concerned.

BUT, I do wonder at any attempt to advertise at all, I have found that word
of mouth is the only real way to go forward. If you advertise you have no
idea of the quality of people you are going to get, and it only takes a few
non payers to wreck your business.
Also, if you are any good you will get more work than you can do in any
case.

My advice (as a self employed person for thirty years) is DO NOT advertise
at all (not even on the van) DO a very good quality of work. DO NOT
attempt to price match or be badgered down on money (walk away when they
start making you silly, low offers or ask if you can do it cheaper) Always
stay on your estimate price, and tell them first of any changes. ONLY work
on recommendation. Also, know your limits, don't take on a job that is too
big for you, for instance. I usually find there is more profit in a small
job, like plumbing in a washing machine, rather than painting a house. So
do several small jobs, these are also easier to assess accurately for costs.

mrcheerful