Is this a good idea??

[SugarBlossom]

Hi everyone,

I need some help, my partner and I have just spent heaps of money trying to set up a home business for me to run at home, we did a little bit of research and thought it was great idea....but 3 newspaper ads later and we really haven't had many calls.....
and now I'm not sure our fantastic idea is so great afterall :confused:
So what it is, is we transfer peoples home/favourite videos onto DVD, we can edit, add chapters and clean up the quality, and depending on the work involved it costs around $45-55.

So heres the questions

Would you use this service?

And how much would you be willing to pay?

(and if you are interested...pm me and I'll tell u more :) )

Your help would be appreciated....at least if we have to sell everything we bought
if we sell it soon, we may still get some $$ back :(

[Lucybelle]

There are businesses that do that but it is only part of it, they usually do wedding or school productions etc.
To be honest - I think alot of that technology is pretty freely available to most of us it doesn't seem so specilised anymore. BUT there are a lot of busy people out there. A couple of newspaper ads won't really be enough - you have to get out there and pound the pavements- let people know what you have to offer. Door knock, talk to people in a similar industry, go to business expos.

Try your local TAFE for a course in small business - if you are eligible through centrelink you may apply for the NEIS scheme - apparently it is excellent, plenty of help and guidance. Marketing is terribly important and you really need to know your own costs in terms of time and equipment.
small businesses fail all the time - arm yourself with knowledge of the particular industry you want to work in and be prepared to put in alot more work thatn you would have to if you were earning a wage elsewhere.

Keep at it, it really does take time. I have run at a loss for about 6 months before my business took off, and thats not really a long time by any standards. It certainly isn't easy but if I keep at it I will see the rewards by the start of the new year.

Good Luck

[Shelly68]

Hi, I think it's a great idea,

We are actually getting our girls dancing videos and our wedding video transferred. The company is only charging $30 though, (not sure where you are, we are in Brisbane), maybe price is a factor in all this (not having a dig, again, don't know where you are situated), but check out the competition's prices.

Shelly

[Ineedsleep]

I wouldn't use the service - not because i don't think it's a good idea though! I bought a recordable dvd player so I can do my own (if i can find the manual and if i ever get around to it!)

Could you add to your service and do CD & DVD photos also? My sister in law did a DVD of music and photos for the grandparents for xmas.

Advertising - are you doing more than ad's? what is your ad wording by the way? you want to capture the "slightly older" generation that have their weddings, etc on videos. where can you drop off some flyers and/or business cards? Do you have a website? You need to up the advertising for the xmas period.

Also your price - as mentioned above - do you know who your competitors are and what they charge? If you charge more, what is your point of difference?

Good luck and congrats for having a go.

[aardvark]

DH does it himself, so I wouldn't use the service.