Monday, 12 June 2017 / Published in BUSINESS, LIFE HACKS, LIFESTYLE, LISTINGS

Quick Way To Start Delivery Service Business At Home

Over the recent past, there is much fuss about starting home business particularly a work home online business. However, most people don’t know how to effectively run a business from home, and mainly end up frustrated after multiple business failures. To help you avoid these pitfalls, we are presenting you with a quick Way to start delivery service at home online business.

A delivery/errand service is a business you can easily start without the need for a degree or any other kind of special training. Few skills are needed to start a home based delivery/errand service; your greatest assets are; being sociable/friendly, a hard-working attitude and having a reliable means of transport. Moreover, the start-up cost for an errand service business is typically small thus you don’t need a rich uncle to establish your business.

Select the Niche To Invest In

Choosing the niche for the work home online business will require you to answer the question, “who will be my customers?” Nearly every individual needs to hire someone to perform some tasks he/she cannot physically do.

The target market for a home based delivery service business can include elderly individuals, disabled individuals, stay-at-home moms, restaurants (delivering take-out food), shut-ins (medicines, groceries, mail), businesses (delivering important records or small packages to customers), and even individual working 8 hours or more per day.

Thus in an errand or delivery service, you will be travelling locally for others. It is similar to a taxi service, though you are doing it for things rather than for people.

Legal Structure

After settling for a niche, the next important step is to establish the legal structure for your at home online business. This is dependent mainly on a number of factors:

Determine whether you will hire employees or operate the business by yourself; or whether you will run the errand service on part time or full time basis. Answering these questions will not only help you determine the legal structure of your business but also the startup cost estimate.

Typically, for a home based delivery service business, the easiest, and the most convenient and cost effective legal structure especially when running the business yourself, is sole proprietorship. You can as well opt for partnership or corporation if you deem it necessary. However, ensure you understand the advantages and disadvantages of each legal structure, and settle for one that best suits your needs.

After settling for a legal structure, contact your local administration office to obtain the relevant permits or licenses for your errand service and its location. Research indicates that customers are more likely to trust a licensed and insured business. This takes us to the next step which is insuring your business.

Insurance

Insurance is a must have for any transport and delivery related business. This is because, there are risks involved with handling and transporting goods and individuals using an automobile.

Ensure that the at home online business insurance policy includes automotive insurance and liability insurance. The two will protect you in the case of an accident, damage or loss of property and in case of a lawsuit or claim.

You might need other types of insurances if you’ll be transporting live animals or people, driving your customer’s cars, transporting sensitive materials, among others. Proper insurance will add credibility to your business and also protect your business from immature closure.

Acquire a reliable Means of Transport

Without a reliable means of transport, your errand/delivery service will lose profits and potential business. The means of transport need not necessarily be a car or a truck. Based on the places you will be doing deliveries and the kind of goods you will be carrying, a motorcycle or a bicycle is a viable option for starters.

For instance, if your clients require you to run small errands such as picking up clothes from the cleaners, grocery shopping, or transporting individuals, a small to midsize vehicle is appropriate.

If you are delivering mails, pizza and other small tasks, you can settle for a motorcycle or a bicycle. When the business grows and you are required to carry more bulky equipment for longer distances, you can then purchase a truck.

Set Your Prices

You can either choose to charge for a particular task or by the hour. It is important to note that most delivery services choose to charge by the hour.

Moreover, if you are required to do a lot of driving, you might need to charge for mileage. You can as well charge a higher rate when operating outside your normal working hours, over the weekends or during holidays.

You can as well offer package deals to your royal customers to ensure that you retain them and attract new ones. Additionally, when setting the prices, consider various types of errands you carrying out and factor in the cost of fuel and manpower to be used.

The bottom line is that, you will need to experiment on your pricing strategies to see what works best.

Have a marketing strategy

Setting your prices often times intertwine with marketing strategies. This is because; offering competitive prices for superior services is an effective marketing strategy as well.

Advertising and marketing are essential to attract customers to your business. Marketing always sounds easy than it actually is. Thus, you need to do appropriate research on how to reach your desired clientele in a cost effective way.

Marketing can be an expensive affair, thus you need to devise a strategy that does not require a lot of funds. For instance, you can join various organizations in the concierge industry, like the ‘National Association of Professional Organizers’ that will not only help market your business but also help you understand the errand service industry.

Digital marketing is another suitable and affordable option that can bring customers right to your door step. All you need to have is an interactive website, active social media representation and a few paid adverts on Google.

Other options include, distributing business cards, fliers and brochures. Finally, make a list of the services you offer and ensure that your contacts are published in your marketing campaigns.

The Wrap Up on at Home Online Business

When starting a home based concierge service, courier service, or other delivery service, there are a number of things you need to have in place to get start off at good and profitable pace.

We have established that most of these things are intangible and few are physical. All these are crucial; but more importantly you should treat it like any other business by having a business plan, doing the due diligence into the niche you will be investing in, and having a marketing strategy.

Remember these tips on how to start a delivery/errands service business at home online business will not make you a millionaire overnight; your success will rely heavily on the ability to be consistent in quality service delivery and marketing.

Eric Gichuru

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