Cover Story | FEATURE Heading | F
startinganeWbusiness?
ANNA DE COURCY of The Classic Group offers some tips to get you started.
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So you have gone out on your own. You have the CRO registration as a company, partnership or sole trader; you have the name, the bank account. And of course you have the idea, product or service, but now what?
Here’s a checklist of some things you’ll need to consider:
WHERE YOU WILL WORK
You need to keep your overheads down, so the obvious solution is to work at home. All you need is a phone line and computer and off you go. Working at home is fine and works well for most people most of the time. But then what happens when: • Your client says “can we meet in your office?”
• You are on an important call and the doorbell goes?
• You are trying to get multiple copies of a report out against a deadline?
• Sometimes you just need to be around people?
There is no need to take a full-time office or long-term lease. Find a serviced office environment that: • Has professional, comfortable working space with phones and broadband connections;
• Allows you to use space for anything from an hour to a year;
• Allows you to only pay for what you use and doesn’t lock you in to a minimum agreement;
• Has a meeting room that you can use when you need it, only paying reasonable rates on a pay- as-you go basis; and
• Has friendly, professional staff to meet your clients or to provide support as you need it.
For a start-up, it is particularly important to keep your overheads low. Make sure you don’t get locked into an arrangement that might not suit in the long run.
YOUR PHONE NUMBER
It looks better to have a landline number than just a mobile. You can re-direct your landline
to your mobile at minimal cost (typically 30c to redirect, plus the cost of the call to your mobile). But what do you do when you are on holidays or when you’re busy? How do you pick up messages?
Consider using a ‘virtual office’ solution. Many companies provide phone answering; you redirect your calls to them when you are busy (or leave a permanent redirect on) and they will answer the calls in your company name, take messages and handle the calls as you instruct. Look for a company that: • Can patch calls through to you as if they were at a reception desk and you were in your office;
• Has an affordable pay-as-you-go option so you can just pay for days that are busy;
• Offers a range of message handling options (e.g. e-mail/SMS/fax etc);
• Wants to know about your business so that they can handle the most common enquiries; and
• Offers a professional, friendly voice on the phone. They will be representing you after all.
When choosing your actual phone number, consider getting a non-geographic number, or one that you can take with you if you decide to move (home/office/country!). VOIP providers can give you a number which is a Dublin number that you can take anywhere, for example.
YOUR BUSINESS ADDRESS
Whether you are working from home or not, consider whether having your home address (e.g. Apartment 3B, Block 2) on your business card, website and stationery suits your professional image. Would you be better off with a business address? Look for an address which is in a good business district that fits with your service or industry; avoid Post Office Boxes at all cost!
Consider getting a business address where you can actually work and have meetings, to provide a highly professional and seamless image to your clients. There are many virtual office businesses around. Look for one that
doesn’t lock you in for any minimum period. If they are confident of their service, they won’t have to lock you in.
ADMIN AND BOOK-KEEPING
Most of the time you can do your own admin. It’s straightforward, and you have time to do prompt invoicing, filing and check the invoices are being paid. But what happens when you get busy? Or are on holidays when the VAT return is due?
Consider using a secretarial or administrative support service who will understand your business and the challenges facing the sole trader or small business. Look for a service that you can establish a relationship with, but who you don’t pay when you don’t need them e.g. when you have time to do it yourself.
You may need one hour every two months on a VAT return, and suddenly you need a full days support getting a large report out. You may find your van is full of receipts and need a regular book-keeping slot. Or you find you have sent out a report with typos and would love to have some support in proof- reading your final client documents. You need professional support that understand your business, but charge you only for the services and hours you need.
DEBT COLLECTION CALLS
It can be difficult calling a customer and saying ‘you owe me money’; for some people its easier to stay at arms length from that call as they don’t want to risk alienating their customers. Some administration services will offer this service; but you may only need this once or twice per month. Look for a company that will only charge you for the calls they make with no minimum monthly spend. In short, having the company name and the product or service is a great start, but get your administration right from the start and it will save you time and money in the long run.
For more information on any of the services mentioned above or for additional information on ser vices for star t-ups, log on to
www.theclassicgroup.ie.
InBusiness May 10 33
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