Starting a business-need help?

Okay, So I have started my business and I get lots of calls for it. However I work 9 to 5 and I cannot call the people back to get them what they need. This is the only way I will get paid. Now it is a bit of a catch 22 because I cannot quit my job, i get paid alot and it covers my rent and the money that i use to keep my business running( not alot of money- just website fees and some minimal advertising). i do not have an office for my new business and do not want to invest in one as of yet. Should I hire someone part time to make the calls and get the ball rolling? This would mean that they would need to work out of my house while I am at work and I am not too comfortable with that. someone please give me some advice. I really want this to take off and I am not giving it my all because i am lettig customers fall between the cracks.

What you need to do is outsource or use an answering service agency...Best case scenario would probably be to hire someone with a computer on a temporary basis just until you start making enough money to quit your job...Congrats on your new business!

i think you should hire a part time person to do all the calls for a week and see if you can afford it and if you like it.

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there is no reason that you couldnt get call forwarding and direct the calls to a line at either their home or a cellular number (that you pick up each day (to assure no persoanl charges etc). You could use an answering service and have the service take the message relatively inexpensively.

I would suggest that you bring another person into the venture. Do you have friends or family whom you can trust to help you out? Is this a part-time or full-time position? Also, why are you not comfortable bringing someone into your home to work for you? Do you belong to a church? Churches are sometimes good places to start for finding someone who is trustworthy. I emphasize "sometimes" here, of course.

If this is really your dream and it is realistic...meaning you have the talent and skills necessary to do this then you need to do everything possible to get your business going. If this means you change jobs or shifts so that you can be available during business hours for your customers then you need to do that. When you first are developing a business you will have to make sacrifices. If you don't have responsibilities other than rent (like kids, spouse etc) or have limited responsibilities then now is the time to take that chance.

Is there someone maybe a friend or parent that can help out during the day...maybe even for free until you are able to quit your job. Maybe bring on a partner?

Good Luck! I hope you succeed. Please update us on how you are doing!

That is definately a problem however whether you choose to go with an answering service or part-time person, you will risk losing customers that in many cases need to speak to you directly. The answer will depend whether your callers are working 9-5 also and the product/service is for consumers. They may appreciate taking care of the personal matter after work hours. If you are in a business to business (9-5) industry then you indeed have a problem unless your calls can be arranged only during your lunch and break times on a cell phone. That time however may be just enough time to keep up with the schedule of phone calls. If you do have a part time person, make sure they know as much of the business as you do so they can help answer questions rather than just answer the phone. Keep a list of the frequently asked questions they will encounter and have answers. Make the best use of your website with a "contact us" email link and answers to those questions you are often asked. You don't need an office to run your business and you could hire someone to work from their home instead of yours. Most people would appreciate that option. Make sure you have insurance to cover employees because there's no such thing as "under the table" in a court of law. The attorney fees however are tax deductible as would be a professional answering service.

here is the deal. Depending on how long you started your business you should not be using money from your stable job to pay for expenses from your current business. This just means that you aint bringing in the income that you need to make a profitable business. But I understand that if you are just starting then maybe you should consider these things. First of all they dont have to work out of your home. Buy a laptop computer with internet access and check it to make sure that it is being used properly. Also buy a track phone and designate so many minutes for business talk with a calling card. So that way they cant run up your phone bill over what you cant afford to pay. So you can have them work out of their home for you part time. If you cant afford a laptop then you should consider stopping your business cause if you dont have the money for a computer then you might have picked a bad business opportunity. Also becareful not to have too much personal information on that laptop just the essential information that your customers need to know and your employee.

First of all you should remember that anything that you spend for your business is TAX DEDUCTIBLE. So whether you go the answering service route or part timer route just go with the one that will service your business for this moment. This doesn't have to be a permanent solution to your temporary problem, just a solution to the immediate one. I'm not sure why the would have to work out of your home unless your products/services are housed there, but find someone you can trust that is the absolutely most important.