I can save you a lot of time trying to answer one age old question: How do you make $1,000,000 surveying? Start with $2,000,000! Also, when you are the busiest, it seems, is when the cash flow is the smallest. And finally, NEVER, ever get in hock with Uncle Sam.
I went solo 3 years ago and would never go back to being a company man.
While all of the above is generally true being your own boss is great!
My first bit of advice is take care of your clients! I make it a habit to walk my clients around the farm and show them the corners. It may take a little extra time but those extra minutes really make a difference when it comes to referrals!
Second bit of advice is to advertise when you don't need it. By the time you need it it is too late.
Third bit of advice is to not neglect your family because of work. You are working for them! This sounds very simplistic but it can be a struggle to run all parts of the business and make time for the family. I still struggle with letting the voicemail get the phone at nights and weekends.
There is a lot of wisdom on this board. Take it to heart!
It all depends on the type of work you do. 40 acre tracts through a thicket will make you question solo. Be sure of your market, solo can be done in any environment now, BUT you can also burn yourself out. Make sure you can balance it.
Shawn Billings, post: 397591, member: 6521 wrote: When something good happens, there's no one with whom to share the experience.
That's what this site is for! (And Facebook, too.)
Jim Frame, post: 397791, member: 10 wrote: That's what this site is for! (And Facebook, too.)
You are exactly right, Jim. It's definitely therapeutic!
I'm not solo, at all, but I can add a few things.
1. Understand finance and your fixed vs. variable costs. Understand a budget, how to prepare and and when to deviate from it.
2. Lease-to-buy your gear. That way, if it doesn't work out, you can turn it back in. This is a great idea initially and keeps your risk hedged to a certain degree.
3. Understand that solo is not always great. If you're a type A personality, you'll not like it. I work alone sometimes. I'm not a fan. I do enough of it on the farm that it's pretty normal to me, but talk to yourself. Sounds weird, but it will make it easier long term. Also, invest in really good ear buds and listen to music, talk radio, something throughout the day.
4. Understand no one is there to push you but yourself. If you're not a self motivated person, don't do this. Think about the hardest corner you've ever found. Think whether you'd have continued to look for that corner if you hadn't had a boss. If you say you would, then okay, but if you're honest with yourself and you wouldn't have, then don't.
Being a surveyor is fairly easy. Work is hard. Gear is heavy. Where the problems arise are in costs and how to understand them. Most people don't get it and surveyors are typically some of the worst businessmen on the planet. Social interaction and personality type are also just as important. Note from my points that I didn't say anything about surveying per se.
Finally, when you have to have that person help you, DO NOT go ask a friend or relative to help or offer to pay. Go hire someone that you won't feel bad about getting onto or letting go when the job is done. Makes get-togethers and holidays much better.
half bubble, post: 397537, member: 175 wrote: Make sure you charge enough to go fishing most of the time.
Just drove through your home base a couple times...you could have just stopped in the middle of the road and threw a cast out the window.
Man what's up with those roads?! Not considering the wagon tire ruts everywhere, weird stuff like road signs mounted 3" off the ground and drain inlets recessed 12" below the shoulder surface.
Lots of good suggestions above.....But have you done a market analysis for the Asheville region. I ran solo there for 5 years and it is a tough market. One because of the terrain.....But the bigger one is the competition. I would suggest researching how many surveying firms and independent surveyors there are around Asheville before making your choice to go solo. You can make a living there, but even the bigger firms travel out of the area to find the right amount of work.
Good luck
mattsib79, post: 397780, member: 1138 wrote:
Second bit of advice is to advertise when you don't need it. By the time you need it it is too late.
I need to do this. I have some work coming in through referrals from larger firms but I need to get my name out there. I have been thinking about email and some kind of post card mailer...
What are some thoughts on Solo advertising? What do you do and who do you target?
Darryl Beard, post: 398207, member: 11556 wrote: I need to do this. I have some work coming in through referrals from larger firms but I need to get my name out there. I have been thinking about email and some kind of post card mailer...
What are some thoughts on Solo advertising? What do you do and who do you target?
When I started we mailed formal printed announcements with the company information and that I specialized in ALTA surveys. The mailing went to title officers, commercial brokers, and real estate attorneys. I tried to be as classy as possible. Note that my name was already out there because of all the seminars I taught. When the new ALTA standards arrive every few years I send out a summary of the changes to the same contacts and several title companies have asked me to speak on the changes.
As to advertising, it depends on what type of client you want. I've never been in the phone book because I wanted commercial clients from referrals, and I certainly didn't want price shoppers on lot surveys.
Depends on your target audience. The few attempts I ever made at direct advertising failed miserably. Not any help there. The best advice I can offer is to become known as a surveyor by simply socializing with all sorts of people everywhere you go. It's easy to mention you do survey work while telling some humorous story, for example, while standing in line for two hours waiting to vote. (or about two minutes in my case) Be in the same place potential clients are.
I have a website and use google adwords. That is the only real advertising I do. It does pay for itself and then some.
mattsib79, post: 398220, member: 1138 wrote: I have a website and use google adwords. That is the only real advertising I do. It does pay for itself and then some.
Adwords is particularly handy because you can pause it when you are real buzy.
What kind of work are you doing now? Do you plan on competing with your current employer for work? Are you a boundary line surveyor or are you a layout man? Is you current position so crazy and intolerable that you want to take on a business all by yourself? You only raise more questions when you say you want to start a firm and will work it solo.
I'm going to give adwords a shot.
I started solo about 3 to 3-1/2 years ago. When I started I used Google adwords. After about a year I grew quite tired of being price shopped and I was in a place to quit using it. I also ran a large telephone book ad that year. I scaled way back the next year.
I treated my repeat clients very well and all of my other clients seemed more than satisfied and gave referrals. I have kept very busy since. I have had to hire 2 employees and am still having trouble keeping up most weeks, mostly in the office.
Google adwords can be quite expensive, competitive and time consuming. When I stopped I was paying over $300 a month. Was I making money on it? Yes but I was also wasting a lot of time putting figures together.
The most important things in my eyes are
1. Your family time (I have a hard time here)
2. Make sure that you're charging enough to keep your equipment up to date and relevant.
3. Don't shortchanged yourself to make others happy
4. Put decals on your vehicle while increasing your coverage for said vehicle (people, in accidents, assume that your loaded with your own company).
5. Professional liability insurance.
6. Good computer
7. The right equipment.
8. A handheld disto for measuring buildings alone!!!!!! ($100 will work here)
9. A decent vehicle.
10. Schedule yourself some YOU time. To get out of your head, you'll need it.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Officially Solo again. It feels kind of good!
Adam, post: 413737, member: 8900 wrote: Officially Solo again. It feels kind of good!
Best of luck to you.
I'm 35 and a solo operator and trying not to sound arrogant I look at it this way:
Get good gear (not necessarily new gear) and keep your overhead low.
I'm debt free and I highly recommend it. When you buy gear, trucks insurance etc ask for a cash discount and it will add up. I couldn't even begin to estimate how much money I've saved by paying up front. As my grandpa said "squeeze the s**! outta that buffalo nickel"
Also I could easily take on two employees and soon after be at 2 crews but then I would have to take a lot of crap jobs in poorly surveyed areas that may or may not pay well just to keep people busy. I also feel that I would have to adjust all of my prices down closer to be inline with the competition to ensure work for them. Right now I'm about %20-%50 higher on avg. or so I'm told
Be dynamic.. As it is now I can cherry pick my projects let the junk go to the competition and if I pick a lot of cherries and need help I have extra gear and 2 very capable DOT surveyors that I pay very well and can field on the weekends. They work a lot of weekends and I pay them 1.5x what DOT does so they jump on short notice but if they don't work a few weekends they are all still happy and not depending on me to feed their family. By not getting bogged down with taking on lots of projects and focusing on a few quality profitable projects I Know that I do as well or better than some owners with 2 -3 full time crews and higher overhead and workloads. And when it's slow I'm free to spend time with my family and not worry about an employee family.
Don't mind telling people that you will personally be the one working on every aspect of their project and answering every call. That goes a long way with some potential clients.
Avoid realtors when possible
I have also found that I average 60-90 hours per week working solo. But it is the price one pays
I went from 3 to 5 employees to solo about 12 years ago. The number one investment I made was to purchase a new robot, I already had everything else. The robot was used very often. Knowing what I know today, I'm pretty sure I would purchase a robot first - add on bit by bit later. Do not so much as answer the phone without a metal detector.
The number two rule is to stay healthy. I've done that pretty well, and still can not wait every day to get outside and do the fun part that I used to pay people to do. In my experience, my income is better but I am the first to admit that I am a terrible manager of people and employees!
Have a nice day! Or, may your monument prevail over some guy's touchscreen.
