Customer Service is Key!

Customer service is so important. For this reason, I have decided to retire the blog on starting my own business and begin a new one. Not many people read it anyway! It seems like every day there is something for me to complain about. It seems ridiculous to me how companies can get away with providing less than desireable customer service or products! Sometimes I start my day in the drive through of a restaurant for a long period of time, only to receive the wrong order. Other days may seem to go well until I stand in the checkout line of a large chain store and purchase a product I have been waiting to get my hands on, only to have it break the same day! Please visit my new blog, Complaint Dot Com, to hear my stories or to post some of your own! Thanks!

1 Year Anniversary

I'm coming up on the first anniversary of my business. My Little Helpers is doing well so far and I hope to grow even more. I love being able to help people, especially senior citizens. If there's one thing I've learned, not only from owning my own business but the jobs I've held over the past decade, it's that customer service is key. Please see my next post....

My Little Helpers now a reality!

Business has been going very well the past few months for My Little Helpers. In only 6 months I've worked out all the kinks and have a few regular customers. The yahoo group I joined has been my savior with a wealth of information! My website www.mylittlehelpers.biz has grown to 7 pages! My biggest job the last 2 weeks was gardening for my newest client, who hired me at first for cleaning. Once she found out I was handy for other things she started making lists. I put up a border around a couple of flower gardens, threw down a few bags of mulch, planted portulaca among rocks on a slope, and put together 2 adirondack chairs. Can't wait to see what's in store for me next! Those tasks have been added to my list of personal services provided on the website. Check it out!

By The Way..

I just added a picture of my daughter, Victoria. She's the inspiration for me wanting to start my own business. Mostly I just want to be the boss and have my own hours so I can spend the most time with her! (Even though she's been cranky lately, her 1st 2 teeth are visible today).

So Much To Do!

It has been a week since I came up with the idea to start my errand service business. There has been so much to do, and there is still a lot more to do! I've been busy getting my name out there but I am still waiting on my first customer. I must say, the Yahoo group I joined has been very helpful, and I recommend to anyone starting a business to find one relating to their product or service! Next week I am going to check out a seminar on Government grants, it may be a scam, or I may just find some free money just for being a woman starting a small business!

My First Call...

was a prank call. It came from an aquaintance named David and he asked me how much it would cost him for me to walk his cat for an hour. My first reaction was discouragement. I had been hoping for a call from a real customer on my first full day in business and it hasn't come yet. I thought maybe this whole thing was not a good idea.

At the end of the call he said he thought it was a great idea and wished me luck. Now I felt just the opposite of what I just had felt! Then I received an invitation to a group for other people in my line of business. I checked it out and hopefully I will be accepted. I guess there are a lot of us!

My Second Day

So the idea for my business came from the concept of a concierge service. I decided to become a personal and business errand runner. I will do just about anything (legal) that someone wants done and is willing to pay me for. Whether they just don't have time to do it themselves or they simply don't like doing it. Especially during the holidays, people are busy, and I'm the solution!

The first page of my website is available at www.mylittlehelpers.biz and I will be adding to it in the next couple of days. I definitely have to come up with some pricing. It is difficult though to list a flat rate for some services, since the mileage will be different for every client. If someone wants one specific service several times a month, such as dry cleaning pickup, there will be a monthly fee instead of each individual pickup. This is my biggest challenge so far.

Today I will be finding some potential clients via the phone book and sending out some brochures. I will let you know how that goes!