"AestheticsInMotion" (aestheticsinmotion)
03/22/2019 at 21:51 • Filed to: None
20
37|
"AestheticsInMotion" (aestheticsinmotion)
03/22/2019 at 21:51 • Filed to: None | 20
| 37 |
Business license in hand. Business line set up and routed to my cell. Website created, design-work started, marketing campaign in the works. Equipment purchased, vehicle storage found. The picture is unrelated, but one of my favorites!
Still a lot to do. Marketing is by far the most important aspect of hitting the ground running, and it’s something that a lot of my competitors know very little about.
It’s been awhile since I’ve played with adwords, but I’ll be getting back into that ASAP. Or adwords express, which I’ve also heard good things about. SEO (search engine optimization) is huge in a competitive area like Seattle, but that will come with time. Social media is another piece of the puzzle. IG page is already up and running, so a blog, Facebook and maybe even YouTube will be next. I’ll also need to join the relavent forums. Why do all t his? To drive traffic. YouTube has links to IG and Facebook, Facebook will have links to Yelp and BBB, BBB will have links to your website and blog.... Etc. It’s all about visibility.
“I’ve never advertised, it’s all word of mouth!”
-Guy who has had miniscule growth compared to guy who HAS advertised.
Plenty of advertising to be done outside of the internet as well. The absolute best ROI can be found with a vehicle wrap. Nothing else even comes close. That high initial cost will pay for itself VERY quickly, if you have the supporting infrastructure (website, someone to pick up the phones, etc.).
EDDM is generally the next best option. That’s where you send out mailers directly to mailboxes on a certain “route”. The only downside is it’s quite expensive for a new business, generally starting at $3000ish.
Yard signs are another good one. Make a simple design, spend $400 to get 100 signs printed and sent to you along with stakes. Spend a day (or night) going around the neighborhoods you want to work in and leaving signs in visible places. Also great to put anywhere that traffic frequently builds up. Downtown areas are great too, although city workers will usually take them down quickly.
Best way to get a sale is still in person. Which means... Door-to-door. I fucking hate going door-to-door, but it’s a necessary evil unless you’re willing to spend quite a bit on initial advertising. If you hit 100 houses in a day, and get 2 jobs on the books at an average price of $500 each... Assuming you complete both jobs in one day (easy) you’ll have made $500/day. Not bad for a fledgling business. But it’s better than that, because you left a business card with everyone who wasn’t interested (right?) and while you were taking care of the two homes you scored, your wrapped vehicle and yard sign placed in a good spot attracted even more attention! Again, necessary evil.
Reviews are worth their weight in gold. Er... Well. *good* reviews are. But asking for reviews gets you absolutely nowhere. Software that automatically sends out review requests after a job are a huge help to building online presence, and definitely the route I’ll be persu ing.
There you have it. Very quick initial thoughts and plans on moving forward. Am I missing anything major? All estimates are free, and will be done in person to A) have the highest chance of making the sale and B) letting me know exactly what gear I’ll need to purchase to complete the job.
I'll keep Oppo updated with progress. "I Just Washed These Windows" posts will live again...
66P1800inpieces
> AestheticsInMotion
03/22/2019 at 21:58 |
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Its like a real life version of that concession stand game from back in the day. Good luck!
benjrblant
> AestheticsInMotion
03/22/2019 at 22:04 |
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I wish i had the nads/motivation to employ myself. Props amd respect for doing it again!
BaconSandwich is tasty.
> AestheticsInMotion
03/22/2019 at 22:04 |
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A few other ideas (if allowed/legal) : give discounts for referrals. Give discounts for reviews.
For Sweden
> AestheticsInMotion
03/22/2019 at 22:04 |
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what
MrDakka
> AestheticsInMotion
03/22/2019 at 22:07 |
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What's your business?
CarsofFortLangley - Oppo Forever
> AestheticsInMotion
03/22/2019 at 22:10 |
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Woo!
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AestheticsInMotion
> BaconSandwich is tasty.
03/22/2019 at 22:10 |
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The discount for referrals is a good idea. At my old business I’d give 10% for each referral, and there were a decent number of times where I’d do a house for pennies because the customer reffered me ten other paying customers.
I'm unsure about the review legality, have to look into that!
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AestheticsInMotion
> benjrblant
03/22/2019 at 22:11 |
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I've learned a lot in the past year. I'm also very tired of my current job. A Perfect storm of opportunity...
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AestheticsInMotion
> MrDakka
03/22/2019 at 22:11 |
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Window/gutter/roof cleaning. With some repair and home inspection services offered
DipodomysDeserti
> AestheticsInMotion
03/22/2019 at 22:15 |
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I managed all the EDDM (from printing to fulfillment) for the Orange Theory Fitness places in Arizona and Washington when they first opened. Worked great for them, but the local post offices in Seattle were a shitshow. They once lost my mail, then filled one of my boxes with sea food and sent it back to me as undeliverable. However, they never cashed any of our postage checks which was nice.
I’ve thought about buying some cheap press equipment and running EDDM mailers out of my house for local businesses.
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AestheticsInMotion
> DipodomysDeserti
03/22/2019 at 22:18 |
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Wow. I can believe it. I’m currently trying to figure out why they keep sending company paychecks to the wrong address without even asking for a signature....
Any advice for getting started with mailers ? I’ve got a passing acquaintance with EDDM at best
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AestheticsInMotion
> CarsofFortLangley - Oppo Forever
03/22/2019 at 22:20 |
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Woo indeed. If only I could snap my fingers and turn my Volvo into a pickup
facw
> AestheticsInMotion
03/22/2019 at 22:23 |
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Reciprocating saws aren’t that expensive right?
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AestheticsInMotion
> facw
03/22/2019 at 22:25 |
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I would (rightfully) get murdered by my fellow Volvo enthusiasts for doing that to a manual T5 :/
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DipodomysDeserti
> AestheticsInMotion
03/22/2019 at 22:45 |
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Yeah, we were doing EDDM when they first started, and the retail post offices were never taught how it worked. We were a commercial printer and mailer, so it made everything easier for us. The hardest part was educating postal employees on how it worked.
EDDM is definitely your best bet for mailers. Super cheap postage and the fulfillment portion is easier, so you get good rates from printers and mailers. I don’t know any of the printers in Seattle, but your best bet is going straight through a printer that has its own mailing house. Stay away from print brokers and ad firms. They don’t have a fucking clue what they’re doing and will cost you more.
Pull up a zip code map and figure out the zips you want to blanket and how many people live in them . Bring that info along with the artwork you want on the flyer to the printers when asking for a quotes. They’ll realize you know what you’re doing and aren’t going to waste their time. If you have a hard time finding printers in Seattle, I can hook you up with experienced people in AZ that know how to drop EDDMs out of state.
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DipodomysDeserti
> For Sweden
03/22/2019 at 22:48 |
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Capitalism, comrade.
Highlander-Datsuns are Forever
> AestheticsInMotion
03/22/2019 at 22:50 |
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Miata pickup? Or a Subaru Baja for a work car.
Chariotoflove
> AestheticsInMotion
03/22/2019 at 23:54 |
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You’ve got your mojo back!
I can only imagine the detailed lists you must be making. Looking forward to those posts. It’s gotta be better than chandeliers.
Future Heap Owner
> AestheticsInMotion
03/23/2019 at 00:10 |
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Excellent! I’m happy to hear this. Did you quit your current job , or are you gonna work there for a little bit longer while this ramps up?
Eric @ opposite-lock.com
> AestheticsInMotion
03/23/2019 at 00:10 |
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You clearly know what you’re doing. Will the buyer of your business be unhappy with you starting another? Did you agree not to compete with them?
Once finances recover some (my wife has been unemployed for over 6 months and I might be changing jobs), I might hire you to do ours (and give you a glowing review) . The outside of the second floor and the skylight are actively hopeless in my opinion . We need 8-9 windows replaced as well, so if you have any recommendations for getting that done at a reasonable price, I’d love to hear it.
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AestheticsInMotion
> Eric @ opposite-lock.com
03/23/2019 at 01:01 |
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Our agreement was pretty lax. And the guy who bought my first company ended up selling it again to.... My very first boss in the window washing industry! Who 6 months later retired and handed his company off to none other than my window washing protégé, who I helped get a job years ago. I’m actually going to help him out on a few big jobs later this month....
I would be happy to help. Oppo discount of course. I’ll be posting more here a s I move forward, still have a few kinks to work out (there's a special place in hell for domain squatters...)
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AestheticsInMotion
> Chariotoflove
03/23/2019 at 01:03 |
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So many spreadsheets. So many charts. So many ways to track metrics moving forward.
I love this step in the process.
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AestheticsInMotion
> Future Heap Owner
03/23/2019 at 01:05 |
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I haven’t physically quit, but mentally I’m only about 30% there. Honestly even just stepping into my office makes me depressed. I'll likely be gone soon
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Eric @ opposite-lock.com
> AestheticsInMotion
03/23/2019 at 01:18 |
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That is a crazy series of ownership changes. I guess that pretty much covers you, though, which is great. The downside is building up a new customer base, which I know can be very hard...
I’ll keep an eye out for it.
Personally, I’m ho peful that this interview I have set for next week goes well. It’s just a contract gig, but it’ll get me good exposure to what it’s like inside the big east side employer and should get me a lot of exposure to people that could possibly hire me as an FTE if I impress them. I am quite nervous about the prospect of being a contractor again after 12 continuous years as an FTE . It feels like a step backward, but I’m kind of miserable where I am (more due to family driving me crazy, the job is also pretty boring), so any change will probably be good...
Dr. Zoidberg - RIP Oppo
> AestheticsInMotion
03/23/2019 at 01:32 |
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Are you hiring? Please hire me next year.
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AestheticsInMotion
> Dr. Zoidberg - RIP Oppo
03/23/2019 at 01:49 |
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Hello Sales Director
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Dr. Zoidberg - RIP Oppo
> AestheticsInMotion
03/23/2019 at 02:03 |
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Yesssssss
Spamfeller Loves Nazi Clicks
> AestheticsInMotion
03/23/2019 at 09:59 |
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Can I be VP, Technology Infrastructure then?
MM54
> AestheticsInMotion
03/23/2019 at 18:46 |
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Horray!
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Chariotoflove
> AestheticsInMotion
03/23/2019 at 19:29 |
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You’re like my wife that way.
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AestheticsInMotion
> Chariotoflove
03/24/2019 at 00:48 |
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I feel like you’ve said that before.
Your wife seems cool
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AestheticsInMotion
> Eric @ opposite-lock.com
03/24/2019 at 00:49 |
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Change for the sake of change isn't the worst thing. Anything to start the ball rolling and get some momentum you know? That's how I look at it, as a person who gets way too comfortable way too quickly
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AestheticsInMotion
> Spamfeller Loves Nazi Clicks
03/24/2019 at 00:50 |
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I'm going to tell everyone in the company to come to you for their agonizingly basic IT questions
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AestheticsInMotion
> MM54
03/24/2019 at 00:51 |
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Scary, but it feels good!
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Spamfeller Loves Nazi Clicks
> AestheticsInMotion
03/24/2019 at 10:58 |
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They can open a ticket.
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Chariotoflove
> AestheticsInMotion
03/24/2019 at 14:24 |
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It’s possible.
She is.
davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com
> AestheticsInMotion
03/25/2019 at 11:39 |
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Congrats! Looking forward to hearing about your growth and success.