How to Start an Engraving Business
Very quietly, the engraving industry is one which is highly successful and constantly in demand. Businesses, retailers, clubs, individuals and organisations use engraving companies to engrave signs, badges, jewellery, trophies and all kinds of other objects so there is rarely a quiet day when you have your own engraving company. Read on for advice on setting up your own business:
Learning to Engrave
Obviously, you first need to know how to engrave if you are to set up a business in this industry. This is something that you could teach yourself, but it is much better if you earn a qualification where you learn how to use different equipment and how to work with different materials.
Business Plan, Licenses & Insurance
As with any company, you will then need to come up with a business plan, consider funding, obtain licenses and insurance. What you need will depend on where you are setting up so always check with your local government.
Premises
One of the great aspects of this line of work is that often it can be done from your own home or from a workshop so that cost of using a premise can be small. You may want to showcase examples of your work and have an area where customers can wait, but you do not need a large location in this line of work.
Equipment
Next, you will want to invest in the engraving equipment and tools. These will be crucial to your success, so you should always purchase from reputable suppliers like RS and purchase high-quality items.
Branding & Marketing
The next step will involve creating a brand identity which will include a company name, slogan, logo, website and social media channels. You should then use internet marketing and traditional advertising to get your name out there and start attracting customers. When starting out and trying to generate awareness, it can be beneficial to run promotions that encourage people to spread the word about your business to bring in a lot of traffic to your company website.
These are the key steps that you will need to take to set up your own engraving company. This can be a highly rewarding, creative and lucrative line of work where you get to work with a diverse group of people each day. It can be challenging to get up and running, but the above advice will help you to establish your company and start bringing in customers through the door from the beginning.
