Forum Moderators: buckworks
If you can't find someone who can run the shop for you, do you just disable purchasing from your store informing your visitors that you are gone for 2 weeks?
Fair point but we are all different.
"Sorry but taking your work with you no matter where you go does not constitute a vacation in my eyes."Fair point but we are all different.
Is generally known as a working holiday.
I still believe the best advice to the OP was given by Starec on the first page.
Starec's post P1.
AffiliateDreamer, I know exactly how it feels. I operated a 1 man shop some years ago.
Your problem is not vacation; your problem is 1 man operation... Any 1 man shop is quite risky (vacation can be planned in advance, accidents and illnesses can't).Get a backup (at least one part-time employee) as soon as you are able to pay his salary. It will allow you to focus on growing your business, while he/she can take care of everyday operations.
Even if it seems you can't afford it right now, think again. Part-time, junior position don't cost much. Think of it as a kind of insurance policy...
invaluable...
put in about 2 hours of work each day.
It's not a vacation if you take the 'office' with you.
LEAVE THE COMPUTER AT HOME.
The hardest thing for a self-employed person to do (and learn) is that the world won't fall apart if you take a few days off.
Yes, you'll lose a few sales - so be it.
There's more to life than money...and you'll become even MORE successful (and make up for any sales you lost) when you come back recharged!
Anyway- get rest- but stay focused!
Yes, you'll lose a few sales - so be it.
I think your missing the point, its not loosing sales but company reputation one man bands have an image to maintain to keep getting business and good reviews.
Thats my in put anyway, the idea of a part time help is really good.
The hardest thing for a self-employed person to do (and learn) is that the world won't fall apart if you take a few days off.Yes, you'll lose a few sales - so be it.
There's more to life than money...and you'll become even MORE successful (and make up for any sales you lost) when you come back recharged!
I agree 110%.
As a high-quality service provider, your customers should be grateful that you exist at all. You should not be shy about adopting the position that you provide them a service when you're there to do so, and when you're not there, then they will simply have to wait. The customers are not there for your benefit... you are there for theirs.
The idea that those who consume are somehow more important than those who provide is preposterous.
If some customers end up moaning endlessly and then going somewhere else, you probably didn't want them as customers anyway.
The chances are, however, if they appreciate your service, they won't.
Wow, not in my world. My customers are here for my benefit. Without customers, I have no financial security. Hell, without customers I have no business ... period.
But I see the point, you do need to get refreshed to continue on.
Cheers.
Customers are for us, we are for customers. Nonsense!
We work for each other. Customers need us, they need our work, but they want to get profit from our products. But we in our turn get benefit as well. If you consider your benefit too small so increase the price for your service.
The customer who wants to get profit from the service is ready to pay quite good money.
Best regards, Intempo.
My wife and I run our little business and manage to take at least 2 (and sometimes 3) vacations of 3 to 7 days each during the year.
It's pretty simple really - we put up a notice on the web site that we're going to be closed from X to Y and we'll ship orders when we get back. The answering machine has the same information and all emails get an auto-reply.
As an added incentive, I typically give all customers a 5% or 10% discount for orders placed while we're closed, with no minimum purchase.
We went to the Caribbean last March for 7 days and received nearly 200 orders while we were gone, which is far above our average of 200 to 300 orders per month. The extra business paid for our vacation about two times over.
The only hard part was digging out from under that deluge when we got home -- we needed another vacation by the time we got caught up!
I personally don't buy the bit about "advertising to the burglars" -- I'll take my chances on some enterprising burglar stumbling onto my niche web site, deducing that I'm not going to be home and that it's just a short drive from his house to mine...
