Are you planning to start your own small business? Do you hate your job and dream of being your own boss? How hard can it be? These 5 questions are vital to ask yourself. You are the best mechanic, IT geek, baker, cleaner or candle stick maker in town. All your friends think you are a genius. They don't even know why you haven't done it sooner. Or I got a redundancy payout from the public service or the bank or left the armed services. Time to take control of your time and be your own man. What better back ground for a small business owner than coming out of a large corporation, public service or the military?  Here are the five vital questions to ask yourself before you take the leap of faith and start your own business. 1) Why do you want to run your own business? The stronger the reason the greater the emotional drive. If you are planning to run a cleaning business to make a bit extra cash to supplement your day job is very different to wanting to grow a bu

  Are you currently battling with effectively balancing your family and business life? Are you working when you should be with your family? Maybe you are struggling with changes to your business and family life balance ? Maybe you lay awake at night “ freaking out” from nightmares about what may happen to your business if you don’t go into the office on Saturday? Do you break out in a sweat whenever a friend simply raises the subject that perhaps, you should consider changing your work pattern? Or, perhaps your partner makes plans to go out to dinner and a show, but you are always too late at work? If the above describes you, you just might have a problem that needs to be addressed. There are 2 very different drivers behind these behaviors: 1)       The Workaholic 2)       The Just Too Scared to Stop Running   Workaholic: A person who compulsively works excessively hard and long hours   Firstly, what is a workaholic ? The definition – “ A person who co

Do you own a service business or a home service franchise? Are you struggling to convert a high percentage of your quotes? Maybe you have no idea on how a professional actually quotes? We have the answers that will make work and make you income now. If your business is home cleaning ,lawn and garden care, window cleaning ,carpet cleaning ,car detailing or pet grooming .These 3 simple keys will give you a professional advantage when quoting  to your client.   Step 1 Present Your Quote in Person. The service provider who makes the time to get in front of their client has a major head start on building a relationship and getting the long term business. The Face to Face Communication makes all the difference If you are in front of your client you have the opportunity to get the details of your quote exact to meet your clients needs. If they have concerns you have the opportunity to answer those concerns and offer other options. Your client is given the opportunity to e

Are you the greatest gardening guy in your area, but no idea how to be the salesperson in your business? Maybe you are a clean freak who just joy out of making your clients homes look sparkling, but just don't have the "gift of the gab" needed to sale yourself ? Are you in any home service business and need to learn how to sell? Our James Family business, James Home Services, grow form a one man band car cleaning business that grow to a national Franchisee Network of 400 franchisees servicing $20 million of clients home service needs annually. For many people there is a lot of misunderstanding of our the basis for elite sales skills.There is no sneaky tricks ,smoke and mirrors or black magic. It is a systematic professional approach to understanding the clients needs and wants to the services you provide and negotiating a solution that suits both parties. These Proven Sales   Fundamentals are specialised for the home service industry, but they can easily be adop

Starting a small business and don't know where to being? Is your family business not performing as you would like? Maybe you don't know what you don't know about running a family business? The James Family business took Robert James' one man band car cleaning business into a national franchise of 400 franchisee turning over $20 million in annual in homes services Australia wide. These 7 proven steps have been used successfully in over 2000 family businesses since 1993 . Our Family built successful businesses using these steps in a wide range of industries , from home cleaning, lawn and garden care, pet grooming, carpet cleaning, coffee industry, real estate , performance horse breeding and bloodstock agency. These steps will give you the foundations to build a business at works for your family. They have stood the test of time, they are proven in the marketplace.   If you use all the 7 steps constantly they will work for you . Step #1 Design Your Bu

You want to start your own home service business? You are worried if your level of service will be professional enough? Are you running a home service business but want to take it to the next level? Over the last 25 years we have coached over 2000 home services franchisees to deliver professional home services. The systems we built in James Home Services, were based on a strong foundation of practical principals which put the customers needs first. We grow from my one man band car cleaning business to a nation brand of 400 franchisees servicing $20 million. These are the base foundations that we built our professional home service culture on. 1) Return the Call Within 15 minutes. I know that you maybe busy cleaning a car ,washing a dog, mowing a lawn , cleaning a house or spraying the cockroaches. Believe me the cockroaches can wait and the lawn isn't going to grow that much in the 15 minutes it takes to return the call to the new client. Don't let today's &quo

Starting your own home services business? Don't know how to market for new clients? Worried about not getting enough clients  to get your business off the ground? Are maybe you are considering joining a Franchise system or going out on your own? Jim's Mowing or James Home Services or VIP Homes Services or maybe Hydro Dog all promise you will do it for you. What if you had the proven professional secrets to " FastTrack your business" without the huge fees upfront or ongoing? As the founder of James Home Services I built my one man band car cleaning business into a group of professional home service franchisees servicing over $20 million of clients annually. For 20 years we taught over 2000 franchisees how to professionally market their Home Service Businesses. We want to share these systems with the wider population. There is nothing more rewarding then succeeding in your own business. The home service industry is still rapidly growing, there are plenty

You have decided to start your own business and have no idea how to make it like a professional brand ? Maybe you are not even sure you should you brand it ? How do you decide what it should look like? Where do you start? You may have heard ,"You only get one chance to make a good first impressions! In the small business world this is as true as anywhere else. Most family business fall into the trap of ignoring the necessity of their business to make that" commercial good first impression". The Pro Marketer knows it is all about the first impression , that is how you get the client to contact you to start. If your branding promises professional friendly service. Remember you do have to deliver the promise, (We can talk about that on another day). Can the independent small business owner create the image that can position them against the professional, larger brands ?   The answer is, yes you can.  You just have to follow these simple proven rul

Are you considering investing in a home services franchise opportunity?  Are you unsure of what to ask the franchise sales person? Would you love to have the key questions to ask to avoid making the most common mistakes? With over 20 years experience in the home service industry,I have been involved indirectly and directly in the recruitment of over 2000 home service franchisees. I have seen all of the mistakes made by individuals in the recruitment process. Here are the 3 most common mistakes made by potential franchisees investigating the home service industry. I'll arm you with the  questions you need to ask to make sure you don't get caught unawares. Mistake #1 Buying into a Particle Service Franchise You Dislike ,Because You Think It Will Make The Most Money. In the James Home Service network we had 8 different service franchise opportunities to choose from. I don't know how many times I've been asked " Which services makes the most money

The 3 All Time Greatest Home Service Businesses for less than $8,900 setup.  Have you always wanted to run your own home service business? Are you worried about making an income fast? Do you really want to be your own boss? Do you only have less than $8,900 to invest ? I started my business in the home service industry in 1993. I took my one man band car cleaning business to a national network,James Home Services,we were servicing $20 million dollars worth of home services each year.  The home services industry is still rapidly growing. The marketplace is struggling to keep up with the demand in certain services areas. If you are considering taking the step of becoming your own boss, but are worried about the ability to earn great money for a small investment. I do assume you have car you can use in your business. These are the 3 proven home service business that you can get off the ground for less than $8,900 that will make you and your family a great income quickly .