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| Targeting Your Market | First of all, you'll need to be in good physical shape - able to lift, bend, and haul. Surely, you must have a moving van. Your van must be well maintained and reliable. What you may also need is dolly and ramps for going down steps (wood boards can suffice).
You should also have a general knowledge of taking apart furniture (i.e. beds), and a tool kit is needed. You also should know how to pack a truck efficiently.
In case you're running the business yourself, you'll need some reliable backup people to help you if a job is too big for one person.
You'll need to attend to the business side of things. The majority of states require movers to have licenses, permits and insurance. To determine specific requirements, you should contact your local business agency.
Bear in mind, when you schedule a move, you'll need to have a clear idea of the amount of material to be moved so you can plan your time, call in reinforcements if necessary and make an accurate bid.
In case you are hired for a long distance move, it will be necessary to map out the drive, rest stops, etc ahead of time so you can let your customers know when their belongings will reach them. When starting a moving business, you'll understand that effectively managing logistics is a critical key to success.
With more than 40 million Americans moving each year, there are plenty of moving companies to meet their needs. Starting a small business, you don't want to try to compete with the big companies like Allied, Bekin and United Van Lines. And you also will face competition from do-it-yourself companies like U-Haul and Ryder.
It is your challenge, then - to find the best market for your area, and focus on that.
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