When to start up?

[AW Services]

Signwriting is a tricky thing and if your a sole trader then it might be good to reflect your personality. 

A 'cartoon' style image might portray the person to be friendly, approachable, etc.

For bigger companies then a more formal type of signwriting might be more appropriate. 

I think having signage that is noticeable helps get your name out there. It's sort of brand awareness on a budget scale.

Some of you may remember when the mobile phone company Orange was about to launch? They had posters at bus stops, advertising hoardings etc that were just a single orange colour nothing else. They received lots of press attention and questions about what the posters meant. Then after a month or so they launched the company 'Orange', by then they lots of people sort of recognised the brand just by the colour on the posters. They gained recognition very quickly.

OK so window cleaning isn't quite the same as a global communications company but the more people see your van the more they start to 'trust' you. So something recognisable like a cartoon character might help to make people aware of you.  

There will also be people who think cartoon style characters mean the person in the vehicle is less professional. Everyone's different.

I've just booked my van in for signwriting and it's very plain and simple - a bit like me ? It's navy blue background on the recessed panels with white text, company name and mobile number with website in navy along  both sills. 

Good old orange or was it France telecom or the Hutchinson group. 

I might sign write my van soon if I can be bothered.  I have all the vinyl sat waiting. Never bothered but with the increase in tool theft having a van saying window cleaner will be a security deterrent for anyone looking to steal power tools 

 

[Jonny 67]

Good old orange or was it France telecom or the Hutchinson group. 

I might sign write my van soon if I can be bothered.  I have all the vinyl sat waiting. Never bothered but with the increase in tool theft having a van saying window cleaner will be a security deterrent for anyone looking to steal power tools 

That's a really good point. I have magnetic strips, and not got round to doing them. It's now a job for the weekend, as they need to be trimmed to fit the panels...

 

[Dale Harries]

IMHO branding is important to an extent, people genuinely learn to associate colours or decals with your company. IMHO it really helps with the van, people know straight away it's you coming up their street - even if they've only seen your website or a leaflet.

Personally, I didn't go for logos or cartoons as that's not my forte. I come from an internet marketing/IT background so I chose a particular font in an eye catching colour scheme - the font and the colour scheme stay the exact same regardless of where it appears (leaflets, the van, website, anything else).

If you discover the Hexidecimal code for the colours and stick to them you'll be golden.

Having said that I wouldn't overthink it, what's more important is you do a decent job and customers learn to associate you with honesty, being a nice all round chap and a quality finished article.

 

[K in Kent]

Hi all. Advise on when to go full time start up? I'm currently in full time employment. I have a few houses to clean from word of mouth just as extra cash on the side. However I intend to set up on my own as I have some decent leads of work but it's not enough, I will need more customers to make it worthwhile, successful and to live off. I'm happy to door knock and canvas for work but without a company name and business and card it's not very professional. So would it best to set up as a sole trader with a company name whilst still be in full-time employment, then I can generate more work, work it in my spare time till it is a big enough round? Can that work? Has anyone done it like this?

There's nothing to stop you setting up as a sole trader while you're still employed. You can set up and register for self assessment and carry on working. You shold decide on a business name but don't need to formally register it unless you wanr to trademark / protect it (I'm not sure what the official phrase is).

I should also make clear that I don't pretend to be an expert on the subject and you should research it yourself and speak to an account for advice, but my understanding is there is not a problem with setting up and being employed at the same time while you grow the business.

R.E. company name I'd suggest inclding keywords in the company name and domain name (if you're thinking of getting a website) and start listing with Google My Business, Bing Places etc etc. Keywords = ' window cleaner', 'cleaning services' etc etc. You want a name that makes it clear what you do and relevant keywords in company and domain names give a ranking boost in GMB and for SEO purposes.