In a world where time is a premium commodity, the ability to have someone run casual errands can be an investment that is well worth the price that is paid. This is where the concierge business model comes into play. A concierge isn’t just something that hotels and other service organizations provide. Many small business owners are offering their services to people who want to spend quality time with family and friends when they have it instead of grocery shopping, doing laundry, and other mundane chores.
The first stage of the concierge business model is to determine what the specific services provided will be. Some businesses will only offer one specific service, such as dropping children off at school or picking up tickets to local concerts or sporting events. Others offer a full-service ala carte menu of options that may include ordering flowers, making dinner reservations, or picking up coffee.
Once you’ve decided which concierge business model services to include, then the rest of the model can be followed to design very successful business opportunity.
1. Your market matters in the concierge industry.
There are two basic approaches to running a concierge business. There can be a focus on personal interests or corporate interests. Some large businesses may have a model that includes both, but in separate divisions. In the corporate world, services typically involve picking up lunches, planning business trips, or scheduling services. In the personal world, virtually any regular household chore becomes a legitimate moneymaking opportunity.
2. Focus on the high value markets.
The concierge business model isn’t going to attract low income clients. People who are just scraping by are going to do their own cleaning, grocery shopping, and other regular errands. It is the middle- and high-income earners that will be your focus in this business. That doesn’t mean low income earners are just as busy as high income earners. It just means that you go where the dollars are. Plan on a short sales pitch that you can deliver on a moment’s notice to make an impact on new clients.
3. Marketing is always important.
It can be very easy to get busy with work and forget that marketing is an essential component of the concierge business model. Just because a schedule is busy now doesn’t mean that it will stay busy in 2-3 months. Spend a little time on your marketing efforts every day if you’re trying to break into the concierge business world, even if it is only for a few minutes per day. Marketing is often focused on getting new clients. Sometimes marketing to existing clients is better because instead of more work, you can have expanded work.
4. You must be able to build relationships.
The concierge business is all about the relationship. You must be able to establish relationships at the service level and at the client level. This will help to foster loyalty within a client base and facilitate faster results. Imagine if someone who owns a deli knows that you come in Tuesdays and Thursdays to pick up the same sandwich for your client at the same time. Instead of standing in a line that backs around the corner, you can walk in, pay for your sandwich that was already made, and make it back to your client.
5. People feel like they are all used up – use that.
Three-quarters of the married American working public are married to working spouses. More than 8 in 10 workers today go home to fulfill family responsibilities after 9 hours of dealing with work responsibilities. About 4 in 10 workers come home from work with zero energy whatsoever. This all means that there are perfect places to promote a concierge business. When there is no downtime to be had, a concierge business is a very tempting proposition. This is the core of the concierge business model.
6. Younger workers demand concierge services.
Survey after survey of Generation X and Millennials show that the younger generation craves a balance of professional and personal life. People don’t mind working hard, but they also want to be able to play hard when they’re not at work. To address this need, the concierge business model is able to take care of the things that get in the way of the needed balance.
Concierge services provide different service needs to each client. It requires relationships, high energy levels, and the ability to provide timely services. If that sounds intriguing, then the concierge business model might just be right for you.
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