Providing excellent service is an essential ingredient in any successful business. However, this alone does not guarantee success; it must be coupled with good business practices. The following are important foundations for any driving school:

Self-assessment – Work to your strengths and address your weaknesses. There is a plenty of help and assistance at hand if you look. Recognise your reasons for becoming self-employed and be very clear about your objectives and goals.

A good team – When you become self-employed, you become responsible for designing, producing, selling, customer care, financing, collecting payments, book-keeping, etc. However, you needn’t undertake all of these tasks unaided. It may be more cost-effective and efficient to buy in professional help and experience where necessary to do the ‘chores’ you are not comfortable with, such as accounts, or office and diary management. It can allow you to do your job better, improving your reputation and increasing your turnover.

What you offer – Is the service you provide, and knowledge you share high quality? Are you confident that there is a market for what you offer, are you pitching to the right people, confident that they are prepared to pay your prices?

Recognising opportunities – Are you truly an entrepreneur, studying the market, the trends and willing to go out on a limb (armed with good information) to seize an opportunity? Knowledge is the greatest asset of any business.

Costs and pricing – It is imperative that you know your break-even point; the number of hours you need to teach to provide the income to cover your costs. Only then can you know what you must charge to be a viable business.

You are your business – Everything you do needs to promote you in a very positive manner. Good branding and promotional materials. Professional at all times, with clear and accurate terms and conditions applicable to you and your customers.

Record keeping – Accurate diary organisation, bookkeeping and day-to-day business management. If you do not record and understand your business, your business will control you rather than you controlling it.

Tax-compliance – It is a legal and moral obligation to register for and pay your tax. Registering must take place as soon as you become self-employed. You will only have to pay any tax when you earn enough and have covered your business costs.

Planning – The key to a successful business is planning from day one. It’s about making choices and decisions based on good information.

Top Tips

● You are a link in the chain
of your business; form good relationships with other links.
● Be professional; you are the main asset of your business.
● Indecisiveness wastes time; gain knowledge and make informed decisions.
● Getting finance is not easy; acquire it wisely and spend
it wisely.
● Undertake market research; know your market
● Do what you say and say what you do.

Mike runs ADI Network, who have teamed up with Perkbox and made use of their collective buying power to provide instructors & their pupils access to a huge number of money saving perks.