As long as civilizations use electricity, there will always be a demand for electricians. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, employment of electricians through 2024 will grow by 14 percent, which is much faster than average for all occupations thanks to increased construction rates, clean energy advancements and the number of people expected to retire. By knowing the fundamentals of how to start an electrician company in advance, you will set yourself up for a successful launch.

Tips for Starting an Electrician Company

Training and Licensure

Before starting your own business, it is a good idea to complete vocational training and receive the certifications and licenses required by your respective state. You can learn the specific requirements from the state contractors’ board or a local electrician union.

Market Research

Determine if there is a need for an electrician company in the area that interests you. If you’re considering a small town that already has seven electrical companies operating in it, for example, the demand for your services might not be high. When thinking about where to base your operations, keep your target customer in mind. If you plan to target residential customers, setting up shop in the suburbs might be fruitful. Similarly, if you specialize in new construction, having an office in an area near architectural firms and construction contractors could prove beneficial.

Be Aware of Financial Pitfalls

Several seemingly normal headaches can cost your electrician company more than you may realize. Being aware of these pitfalls in advance can help you avoid them when you open for business:

  • Sales and quoting pitfalls: Slow quoting, misquotes, and failing to return calls from prospective clients leads to missed opportunities
  • Planning and scheduling pitfalls: Data-related double entries, missing project details, and inefficiencies at the jobsite hinder productivity and increase operating costs
  • Job tracking and billing pitfalls: Untracked changes, simple oversights, and neglecting the budget can create a multitude of unexpected expenses that you must assume
  • Invoice and billing pitfalls: Sending invoices late, errors on invoices, and procedural missteps (i.e., failing to submit a claim form with an invoice) results in poor cash flow, unpaid work, and customer dissatisfaction
  • Reporting and metrics: Recording data manually, using different software programs to do everyday business, and using generic software programs that don’t meet all your needs reduces accuracy and productivity, and makes it difficult to track your true value and identify areas of improvement

Make Your Job Simpler

As a business owner, you’ll have several details to manage, such as employee schedules, quotes, invoices, project details, billing, tax regions, bookkeeping, inventory, cost tracking, and job permits. Rather than use several programs or record the details by hand, which many contractors do, streamline your operations with a single solution that’s tailored to your exact needs—360e.

While every electrical business has its pain points, several are preventable with proper tracking and organization. 360e helps you do just this with a single program that’s easy to use on any device that connects to the Internet. Designed specifically for electricians, 360e allows you to manage your business while eliminating costly errors and increasing profits with flexible tools that:

  • Eliminate double entries
  • Track leads, sales opportunities and charge orders
  • Make it simple to create, send and convert quotes
  • Track materials, labor and communication in real time
  • Manage schedules
  • Record project notes and upload photos
  • Reduce paper clutter with intuitive document management features
  • Send you alerts about quotes, invoices, permits and more

Sign up today to schedule a demo tour of 360e to learn how it will help you reach your goals and become profitable sooner.