Licensed Businesses and Unlicensed Ones

I had an email the other day stating that we should not discriminate against unlicensed contractors.  On our site, Business Beware, we have it where we allow “licensed contractors” ….  The person stated that you should not have to give money to the government if you do a good job with the work you do.  As much as I believe anyone is worthy of doing a good job and a hard worker without the license, that is just not how it works.  I agree that the government makes you pay too much for anything and everything you want to do in life, but it will cause you  a lot  less problems if you go ahead and become licensed. 

Many people look at unlicensed contractors and think they are scammers, maybe most are but you definitely have that going against you if you screw up the work you’re doing or something happens.  There are alot of people out there that scam you, including customers.  No matter who you are, you have to be on your guard all the time.   

Many places are different in what they require a business or contractor to do with having a license.  Many require you to take tests to further your knowledge of what type of work you’re doing, it produces financial advice for you and also give you tips on if you’re starting up your business.  This is for the most part help you as a business, yes you have to pay for the license but everything you do, always has a catch. 

We have owned and run businesses for over 25 years and always hated the fact you have to pay dues, permit fees, license fees but that’s just what you have to do if you want to have a business or be a contractor.

www.businessbeware.biz

Some Say You Should not Post on Forums or Sites like Business Beware…

I read some of the follow-ups that analysts or media bloggers wrote about sites like Business Beware or even ones that were written about us at Business Beware.  Some say that it may be shut down over time because of legal issues and so on, but you know there are just as many sites as ours out there for everything you can think of where you can post things or say what you want.  When you blog, you may write about a topic you agree/disagree with and offend others as you write it.  But we are all entitled to freedom of speech.  Now I am not saying that you should say whatever you just honestly feel like saying and belittle others in your writing or posts, I don’t agree with that and that is not what Business Beware is about. 

Customers cannot get mad if their name is posted on the site, especially if there name is on there a few times by different contractors, that should only tell that customer to back off on how they treat the business and/or contractor.  It’s not fair to have five or more sites for customers to complain about a business and the business not have a outlet to use for themselves.  Of course consumers and analysts who are on the consumers side are going to be against it and hope that it goes down or do what they can to make it go down but you have to remember that not everyone knows what it’s like to be a business owner or contractor. 

Customers can make or break your business, you definitely have to have good customer service or you just won’t have any customers.  But those that you bend over backwards for and do everything in your power to please, then they still complain and rip you off, that’s just not fair to the business.  Most businesses try to do the best we can (yes there are some that lack customer service and are unlicensed) to please customers, but sometimes there is just no way you can please them. 

What I’m getting at is that there is nothing wrong with filing complaints against a customer when a customer can file complaints against a business or contractor, it’s a two way street as anything is.  I know people will argue with that but that is just stating the true facts.

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Contractors, Customers and One Side of the Story

I have heard many times that no matter how you look at sites like the BBB or Business Beware, that there are always one sides of the stories…. That is like with anything though. 

Let’s say you own a business and you go to the BBB to do a search on your business.  You might come up with a few complaints filed against your business.  You were not contacted to allow the comment or complaint to posted.  It was posted and you do have the choice to write back about the complaint but you hear the customers side of the story first. So in hearing their side first, you may automatically assume that the business is no good.  We all know that some customers may overreact and some things may be taken way out of hand, but that complaint is there against you. 

The problem with today’s society is that there are so many opinions out there that everyone thinks and interprets things differently.  Everyone is entitled to their own opinion but sometimes, yes it can piss others off just as well. 

There is no difference in what Business Beware offers for businesses as the BBB offers for the consumer.  Yeah a contractor may file a complaint against a customer who ripped them off, but you know, maybe that customer should not have done it in the first place.  Hopefully customers will now think twice about how they treat some businesses and contractors.  So many consumer forums are out there, that when I hear others rate Business Beware, they say well you only hear one side of the story…. I sort of missed where the BBB, Consumers in Control, etc. you only hear one side of the story as well. 

To break it down, no one is ever going to be happy with what they read or if someone goes against them, that’s just how it is.  But if there are some customers who need to be called out on what they do to businesses, then maybe they will learn they can’t get away with it as easy as they use to now that businesses have Business Beware.  There are always two sides to the story, but everyone has to pick a side as well.

www.businessbeware.biz

Check out the article about us on BusinessWeek.com!

Check out the article written about us on BusinessWeek.com!

http://www.businessweek.com/bwdaily/dnflash/content/feb2009/db20090219_941204.htm

Doctors and Lawyers Can Be a Tough Crowd

Some of the toughest people to do work for or have a contract with are doctors and lawyers.  And let me correct myself, not all of them are but as a whole percentage, they are.   How many times have you gone out to do a job where you are remodeling their house, installing a fence, building a new driveway, etc.??  Sometimes they think they know how to do what you do and tell you what to do as you are there to your job in what you know how to do yourself.  There have been many times I have gone out to bid a job and I have had a lawyer tell me what to do as if they are almost better than I am.  I have doctors call all the time needing bids done.  For instance, one doctor called and wanted us to install a softball batting cage for his daughter.  We told him no problem and got all the information from him and then he proceeded to tell us that he wanted us to be out there that day to get it done.  Well considering we were about 2-3 weeks out with other jobs, I don’t think he cared.  We did what we could and worked him in since it was a process anyways and when it was done, we tried calling him and left messages but when we did get ahold of him, he kept saying how busy he was and that we needed to talk to his wife to collect money.  Well we called her and she would not call us back so we called him again and he acted like he had no time for us even though we worked him in and got the cage done for his daughter.  It took about 3 1/2 weeks of phone tag with him and telling him how it was, that he finally got his wife to come in and pay. 

Like I said, I’m not saying all doctors and lawyers are like that but most that I have delt with are all the same.  I just can’t stand those who think they know more and are better than others.  Get over yourself is all I have to say.

www.businessbeware.biz

Simple Steps to Survive The Economy

Simple Steps To Survive The Economy

By Clayton Conway

 

Although the financial world around us seems to be collapsing into chaos there are those out there reaping profits from this otherwise troubled economy.  Contrary to what you may think it’s the small business that has the greatest chance for survival amidst the torrent of foreclosures, layoffs, and bank failures.  Here are a few tips to make sure you can weather the storm:

1.       Accept credit cards – this may seem like a novel idea but many small contractors don’t accept credit cards.  This is a small step that can make a huge difference in what your customers are capable of spending on projects.  Did you know that new technology allows you to process transactions from any web enabled phone, and that you no longer need those clunky machines and a phone line?

2.       Make friends with your local banks and real estate agents.  Many of you have already done this I’m sure and it is a very smart move.  Currently banks are foreclosing on homes at a record pace and they haven’t the means to maintain them.  Agencies and Banks will pay you to inspect, do touch ups, and general maintenance.  Consider this however, since you’re in there you have an opportunity to see a multitude of projects that need to be done, and as soon as that house sells you can contact the buyer and show them exactly what needs to be done and have a quote prepared before they’ve even had a chance to talk to another contractor…

3.       Be proactive.  Consider doing jobs that don’t just pay cash.  The barter system often times works out in your favor if you do some research.  Doing a small touch –up job for a church or a school can many times result in more work sent your way.

4.       Most importantly, be active in your community.  Sponsor the local school and church  groups by providing them with supplies or assistance for car washes and other fund-raising activities (and then conveniently make sure your company vehicle is right out front where everyone can see).  This works out great because all those kids just happen to have parents, who have houses…

www.businessbeware.biz

 

Home Talk USA interviews tomorrow

Home Talk USA with Michael King

We will be on Home Talk USA tomorrow so tune in!

 

www.businessbeware.biz

You know the economy is bad when…

I saw this lady on the news the other day, she was traveling on her horse and pulling her other horse behind her with her things and clothes.  She said that there were no jobs in FL so she was headed to TX.  But she was determined to go somewhere and do something about it.  Maybe not the most legit way but still she is doing what she has to do.

I admire her and you see people like that, that know they have to keep going through the bad times.  I know things can get bad and they are right now for alot of contractors and businesses, believe me I know.  But you can’t let it get to you and bring you down.  I truly believe in “what doesn’t kill you, makes you stronger.” 

Keep your head up fellow contractors and businesses, we will make it through!

www.businessbeware.biz

Tired of Dealing with Customers?

Here is a new banner of ours at Business Beware.  Enjoy.

 

If you would like to use this banner on your site, please contact us.

www.businessbeware.biz

Don’t underestimate WORD OF MOUTH

How do you market your company?  There are so many different ways to market your company now whether it’s email marketing, google adwords, websites, etc.  There are alot of ways you can spend your money on marketing and waste your money too.  I have tried many different ways of marketing for business and one thing that I always keep coming back to is WORD OF MOUTH and how much it never fails you. 

Postcards, you would think would be a good idea to send out to customers/companies about you, yeah the return rate is usually around 1%.  Think about it when you get postcards in the mail, you may take a look at them but then usually nine times out of ten you chunk them in the trash.  You can spend alot of money on postcards from how flashy they are to all the postage you spend to send them out and maybe only get 20 customers out of the 200 you sent out.  Now to some 20 may sound good, but the odds are not there. 

SEO tools and companies that take your money for this.  There are so many companies out there that do placement and rankings for your site, do they all work? NO.  I have tested and used many before, but when compared to other ways I marketed myself and created my own optimization, I ranked higher.  I think it’s crazy how much they charge a month for that stuff.  I mean if you have absolutely no clue on what to do with optimizing your website, then I would say give it a try but it is not going to put your site on top in three weeks like they may state. 

Email marketing is overrated I think.  I signed up one time for that thinking that it may help me build my emails to email out but no it just sets it up and you have to build your base of emails and input them in there to send out information.  It’s a waste.  So much easier and better to have something on your site to sign up for your newsletter or something to those who want to stay tuned for you business.  I just can’t stand sites that send me so much junk email in my inbox that I don’t want.

Social media is a great way to market your site.   You can control what information is on there, how it looks, etc.  You can invite others to see your page and then have it linked to your home site.  If you are not techy and don’t know much about social media networks, I would look into it.

Business cards are always great and still will always be great.  You can leave your business cards anywhere or exchange them with friends to have at their businesses.  One great thing too, is if you go to a restaraunt and they have a bulletin board, you can leave your card there for others to see.  Don’t be shy to ask if you can leave some cards somewhere, because it works!

And honest to goodness, word-of-mouth is still what always tops any marketing out there and best of all, it’s free.  One thing that is always true is people talk.  When a person likes something, they share it with others.  It’s like seeing a really good movie and then turning around and telling a friend to go see it.  This also starts with you talking about your site/business to others and handing out your cards.  But if you have a strong brand and decent business to offer, people will come.  Also, patience is key.  Don’t fret if you don’t see people rush to your business or company, because things always take a little time. 

www.businessbeware.biz