If you dream of owning a business and enjoy handy work, starting a home improvement company might be the right fit for you. However, the tasks involved with launching a business can feel overwhelming. In this step-by-step guide, we’ll walk you through how to start a home improvement business.
Step 1: Get Experience
While there’s an undeniable learning curve to starting any business, getting experience before you start your home improvement business is two-sided—you need to gain home improvement skills and observe how other companies run their businesses.
For this reason, it’s best to start by working for a home improvement company. Then, once you build your confidence in the industry, you can start doing small contract work on the side.
That way, you can get a feel for how profitable running a full-time home improvement business could be, and you’ll also build up some references before launching your company full time.
Step 2: Determine Your Budget
As you work on laying the financial foundation for your home improvement business, there are a few items you need to factor into your budget. They include:
- Materials needed to run your business
- Labor you need to hire
- Overhead expenses
For the first point, it’s important to determine what equipment you need to purchase before launching your business to perform routine tasks.
However, our advice is don’t go overboard—if there’s some equipment you likely won’t often use, wait for a job that requires it before you invest your money. Of course, you should invoice your client for any materials you need that go directly into the job (such as nails and paint).
Step 3: Get Your Business Registered
The legalities of starting a home improvement business can feel complicated for those without a legal background. Therefore, one of your first steps when looking at how to start a home improvement business should be to contact an attorney.
Your lawyer will help you sort through the different business models so that you pick one that makes the most financial sense. They’ll also make sure you have any local certifications you may need to operate a home improvement business, and help you craft a client contract.
Finally, you should get insurance. Liabilities are high for home improvement companies since you’re working on other people’s property, and the risk of injury is significant.
Step 4: Connect with Suppliers
Home improvement is a competitive market, so you’ll want to do everything in your power to offer your clients the best quote possible. An effective way to do this is by making connections with suppliers.
Suppliers are often eager to work with home improvement businesses because it brings them more income. As a result, they’ll likely offer you a discount, which you can transfer to your clients.
To maintain a positive relationship with your suppliers, make sure to always pay them on time. Since they’re such a critical part of your business, it’s also nice to give your suppliers a gift on holidays and show little acts of appreciation throughout the year.
Step 5: Market Your Services
You can spend all the time in the world preparing the backend of your home improvement business, but it won’t be successful if no one knows about it. Luckily, there are several free and paid methods you can use to market your business.
Examples include:
- Google Ads
- Social media promotions
- Email campaigns
- Television advertisements
That said, one of the most effective free marketing methods is having a high-quality website with excellent search engine optimization so people can find you. It takes experience to achieve this, and we know that you have limited time as a home improvement contractor.
That’s where Hook Agency can help you. Our expert team will custom design a cutting-edge website that outperforms your competitors. To learn more about our website development and 3-step quality assurance check, contact us today.
Step 6: Stay Patient
As you research how to start a home improvement business, you’re likely energized and excited about the income that it could generate. While some businesses experience success right away, more often than not, it takes time to build up enough clients to make a sustainable living.
Therefore, staying patient and being open to tweaking your marketing strategy is vital. With enough time and hard work, you’ll reap the benefits of success.
