Ad Trying to Get Clients for Home Care Business

Arrange for Parking to Be as Unobtrusive as Possible

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Having suitable parking for guests is important if you wish to conduct business from your home. Give clients specific instructions on where to (legally) park when arranging appointments. If you own a house, in your driveway or in front of or on your property is best, so do what you can to make that happen. Put your own vehicle(s) in the garage or elsewhere if needed. Try not to park (or have clients park) in front of anyone else's house on a regular basis.

If you are in an apartment or condominium, see if you can secure an additional parking space for visitors. Having clients constantly using up the "visitor" parking space will eventually cause problems with management.

Creating a parking annoyance for your neighbors will not improve your standing in the neighborhood, nor will having a client's car ticketed and/or towed improve your customer relationships!

Keep Up Your Street Appeal

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Having well-maintained premises will give your clients a favorable impression when they visit your home office. That means keeping your outside premises as attractive and inviting as possible.

If you own a house, the exterior siding should be clean and the paint or siding in good condition. Lawns need to be religiously mowed and garden beds should be kept weed free. Shrubs, trees, and bushes should be neatly pruned. If you can't keep up with the yard work yourself, hire a service to do it for you. Toys, garden implements, etc. should be out of sight.

Have a Separate, Appropriately Decorated Space for Meeting With Clients

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Depending on your business, having a separate space in your home such as a home office to conduct business is important - you should not be conducting business with clients in the kitchen or living room.

If, for example, you are a travel agent or notary public or financial adviser, you should have a separate office in the house with access to the technology you need to do your job, such as a laptop/desktop, multifunction printer, etc., as well as a comfortable seating arrangement where you and the client can meet face to face or side by side as necessary.

If you are offering a service like hairdressing or massage therapy in your home, you should have a separate studio space for needed equipment such as sinks, chairs and tables used in your business.

Make Sure the Route to Your Client Space Is Visible and Clear

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Clients should not have to go around the house, up a stairway and through a passage before they get to ring a bell and get escorted to your meeting room. If the door they should be knocking on is not clearly visible from where they are expected to park, you need to put some signage (discreet enough not to annoy your neighbors but visible enough that clients will see it when they get out of their vehicles).

Clients should be able to move unobstructed from their vehicles to the room where you are meeting with them. Safety first! Prune shrubbery as necessary. Clear potentially slippery moss and/or ice and snow from walkways. If outside stairs are involved, make sure they are kept clean and have proper railings and a no-slip surface. Be especially vigilant for accident causers such as children's toys left out where a client could potentially step on one and fall.

Remember your business (and you personally if your business is not incorporated) can be liable for any client accidents on your premises —​ make sure you carry adequate business insurance as a regular home policy will likely not cover accidents related to business activities in your home.

If you have or expect handicapped customers you should make your premises handicapped accessible (the cost of any handicapped upgrades can be deducted from taxes as a business expense).

Pay Attention to the Decor

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Appropriate decoration of your home business space depends on what you do. Tasteful, inoffensive, and politically correct reigns. You don't want anything distracting or potentially offensive in your client's view. You want them to focus on you and what you're offering them, not on the things that are in the room.

You also want to make sure your décor creates the professional image you want to project. Your young children's drawings are great if you are running a daycare in your home but not so good if you're trying to impress clients with your professional acumen. Pay special attention to the condition of your furnishings. Anything that looks tatty, overused or like it came from a bargain bin somewhere has to go. You want to look successful, not needy.

Try to Have the Calmest, Quietest Surroundings Possible

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If your home includes small children or dogs, this can be difficult! But even small children have routines and you may be able to schedule meetings at quieter times in your household, such as nap times.

Another option is to have someone else look after your children or pets (either in or out of your home) while you meet with clients. Depending on what you do, you might be able to schedule your meetings for two or three days a week only, cutting down on the childcare you require.

Make Sure Your Children Keep Their Distance

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Children (particularly small ones) should never be greeting clients or interrupting you when you're meeting with clients. However, they may do both of these things if you don't train them not to. Using a simple 'Do Not Disturb' sign on the door of the room you use to meet with clients and telling your children not to knock or enter when the sign is on the doorknob can be very effective. They don't need to be able to read to know if the sign is there or not.

If you want to make exceptions where it's okay to interrupt you when you're working, be sure you present them to young children as specific cases rather than generalities. (Not "you can interrupt Mommy when she's working if something bad happens" but "you can interrupt Mommy when she's working if there's a fire".) And do not have children answering business phone calls unless they are old enough to speak properly and have been taught how to answer the phone properly.

See Running a Successful Home Business With Kids for more tips on how to combine happy kids and a thriving business in your home.

Contain Your Pets

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Many people love animals — but that doesn't mean all your clients will unless you are running a pet grooming business. Some will be afraid of them. Some will have allergies. Others just plain won't like them. If your home includes pets, you need to make sure they are under control when you are expecting clients. For example, if you have a dog that tends to bark or bound to the door when the bell rings then contain it elsewhere in your house or on the property for the duration of the client visit.

Because many people have allergies to pet hair, you should try to eliminate the risk as much as possible in the spaces your clients will visit by regular vacuuming and cleaning. If possible, you may want to keep your pets out of your home office at all times to cut down on the problem.

Ad Trying to Get Clients for Home Care Business

Source: https://www.thebalancesmb.com/how-to-have-successful-home-office-meetings-with-clients-4119334

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