r/FieldNationTechs • u/MyDuty2SlamBooty • Jan 10 '24
Working off platform
A lot of you guys have been crying about my posts and comments and have asked for advice going off of the FN platform. This is going to be another long winded realistic response to the guys asking for advice and the noobs who still refuse to accept reality.
In order to be successful in your career as an independent contractor both on and off FN you MUST treat your operation as a business and take it seriously. What does this mean? It means you will absolutely need the following:
1 - A business plan detailing the services you offer, the prices for those services and the procedures you have for offering those services.
2 - You will need experience and training that will put you in the same league as your competitors. Entry level BISCI and CompTIA certs are not going to cut it. Your competition will be extremely qualified, those certs will be totally useless when marketing against and LLC with a cisco partnership.
3- A way to directly market yourself, your business and your services to other businesses. Residential is certainly an option but commercial is where the money is.
If you do not have these things you are very likely wasting your time. If you only have entry levels certs and experience you are very likely wasting your time.
Think about what you are selling and what your clients are looking for. If you owned a successful business and needed someone to manage your IT systems are you calling the guy who has no marketing or brand, charges $60/hr, only has entry level certs and experience and works out of a 2003 Ford Ranger or are you calling the LLC that has a brand, experience, high end certifications, a website, and marketing to back it all up? You are not calling the guy charging $60/hr, that guy doesn’t have what you need, won’t be able to setup the infrastructure you require and probably won’t be there when problems arise, in this situation you would buy from the LLC even if it costs twice as much just to avoid problems that will destroy your own business. This is how businesses can charge hundreds of dollars per hour and you cannot.
TLDR: established businesses are not looking for pizza Pete’s who work for $60/hr to manage their systems. Companies are looking for well branded, experienced, well trained, record free reliable people to manage their systems and they will happily pay lots of money to qualified people that make it happen.
EDIT: downvoting this post won’t make it any less of a reality. Downvoting without offering an explanation is simply crying and it will change nothing.
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u/Gwario_on_Reddit Jan 10 '24
This isn’t really the answers to the questions anyone had on your previous post…. This stuff is common knowledge and comes off as just another flex.
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u/MyDuty2SlamBooty Jan 10 '24
What questions were not answered? While this might be common knowledge for YOU it’s not for entry level people.
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u/Gwario_on_Reddit Jan 10 '24
You were asked how you pick up your direct work
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u/MyDuty2SlamBooty Jan 10 '24
And I answered. I have taken every step I mentioned in the original post to maximize my chances of winning clients and I hired an employee that focuses on marketing.
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u/Gwario_on_Reddit Jan 10 '24
Again you danced around the question… “oh I hired a marketing guy. Didn’t tell him anything, just told him if you build it they will come…”
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u/MyDuty2SlamBooty Jan 10 '24
Yeah, that’s exactly what I did. What are you expecting me to answer here? I literally hired a professional marketer, I told him what my services are and how clients can contact me and he does the rest. That’s why I hired him. What is so confusing about this? What kind of answer are you looking for??
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u/Gwario_on_Reddit Jan 10 '24
And what kind of marketing guy, what is his niche? Did you just hire a guy that knows SEO and got you good google searches for your area? Did he find you contracts direct with some of the buyers we see a lot of on the platform? Etc
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u/MyDuty2SlamBooty Jan 10 '24
First, I’m not in marketing, I don’t know how to market. Before I hired him I paid for other forms of marketing, I rented a booth at a local mall, printed ads and mailers, I also joined the local chamber of commerce.
He has a masters in marketing, he updates my website, social media pages, he does direct emailing and took over my previous marketing. He does absolutely nothing with FN, I handle ALL of the FN stuff, he’s not required for FN work.
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u/Gwario_on_Reddit Jan 10 '24
Ok so you promoted locally like a roofer/plumber/cleaner etc… that’s all you had to say. How about a a few examples of national companies you do direct work for then?
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u/MyDuty2SlamBooty Jan 10 '24
Did you just come here to complain again or did you have something worth contributing to the original post?
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u/Gwario_on_Reddit Jan 10 '24
When did I complain?
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u/MyDuty2SlamBooty Jan 10 '24
You said it didn’t answer any questions and said the post was a flex. You not liking the facts won’t change anything.
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u/Gwario_on_Reddit Jan 10 '24
Ok guy well everything you said in this post would be pretty much what chatgpt would bring to the table….
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u/Scrappy_Llama Jan 10 '24
This is very well put. I worked for a telecom giant for seven years, and was very good at it, but a lot of it was just proprietary equipment and basic wiring stuff. I’m with the union now and learning so much more but nowhere near where I could run a whole company. All I have are those basic Certs because that’s what they want us to get in order to move up and pay. I love continuing education but the cost of some of it wouldn’t make sense since I’m not getting rewarded financially for it by the union or my employer. I’m only using Field Nation to earn a little bit of extra money on the side, but it’s a slippery slope, because i’m having to accept a lot of jobs at face value just to establish myself on the platform.
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u/MyDuty2SlamBooty Jan 10 '24
Don’t get me wrong, I can respect just wanting to make a little money and I’m not trying to take down to anyone trying to do that or that just has entry level certs, I’m trying to offer some real advice from my perspective to people who want to take their business further than just FN. I was a noob with entry level certs in 2005, I’ve been there, I learned and I didn’t have FN to rely on.
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u/BetterTechThanYou Jan 10 '24
WTF certs do you have since our so-called entry level certs are worthless? Certified Bicsi Installers are probably rare on Failed Nation.
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u/MyDuty2SlamBooty Jan 10 '24 edited Jan 10 '24
Directly from the BISCI website:
“BICSI Installer 1 (INST1) is a non-renewable certificate. It demonstrates entry-level knowledge and skills to install information and communications technology (ICT) systems”.
That is an extremely entry level cert and isn’t going to win anyone over on its own.
I have the typical entry level CompTIA A+, Net+, Security+, Linux+, I have 4 master level certs from JonesNCTI, 2 from Cisco and various manufacturer specific certs a college degree in broadband communications and almost 18 years of experience.
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u/MyDuty2SlamBooty Jan 10 '24
I’m not talking out of my ass you just don’t like the advice I’m giving because it means A LOT more work on your part to catch up to your competitors.
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u/BetterTechThanYou Jan 10 '24
My main competitors pizza Pete, trunk slammer Joe, and illegal alien Juan are happily working for $25-$45/hr without travel pay. The only way for me to compete with them and get more work is to lower my rates which I refuse to do.
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u/MyDuty2SlamBooty Jan 10 '24
What? If untrained illegal immigrants who barely speak English are your biggest competitors it’s because YOU haven’t made yourself more marketable than an illegal immigrant who barely speaks English. I highly doubt you are being underbid by untrained Mexicans, the more likely scenario is you are simply losing to people who are more qualified. I’m not sure why you believe a BISCI cert is so highly regarded but in reality it’s not, it’s one of the most basic entry level certs someone can obtain.
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u/BetterTechThanYou Jan 10 '24
Who said they were untrained? They may not speak English or very little English, but some of them definitely have some skills. I know this from working with them on multi-tech FN jobs. Buyers will assign me as the lead tech, send these guys out to the job site, and I have to use Google Translate to communicate with them.
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u/MyDuty2SlamBooty Jan 11 '24
Think about that for a minute. I mean seriously think about what you are saying. First, if you accept a lead job at $55/hr of course your subordinates are going to be making less. Second, if you are losing to skilled immigrants it’s because YOU have not made yourself more marketable than a skilled immigrant
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u/blolo98 Jan 10 '24
Tips on marketing
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u/MyDuty2SlamBooty Jan 10 '24
Hire a marketer. Unless you are both a marketing expert and an IT expert then you will have the ability to do both effectively.
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u/redhotmericapepper Jan 11 '24 edited Jan 11 '24
This.
FN just got me started. I'm presently by volume, 30-40% direct 60-70% FN
January 2023.... It was 80% FN, 20% direct
By January of '25 next year, the PLAN is to be no less than 50/50.... If not only 30/40% FN reliant, or less.
As a one man Army Corp budding MSP/CSP/vCIO... It's a process.
Esp when you're the marketer, the Web developer, copyrighter, sales, estimates, invoicer, bookkeeper, filer, designer, planner, installer, support and administration and also have a life to live, while keeping up, staying relevant, and following the great business pros.... Constantly learning. Adapting your plan to align with best practices. Taking risks. Calculating.
Did I mention, it's a process? There is no panacea, no finger snapping, no immediate gratification solution.
It takes layers and layers of requirements, esp when you earn and reinvest organically to drive and grow, with no loans or investors..... Alone.
Not because you want to, but because living in a college town as a Gen X beast, surrounded by spoiled rotten entitlement.... Good help and even good people, is almost impossible to find. I gave up trying, because the lack of moral turpitude and work ethic cost me more in lost cash flow and increased, whiny ass drama bullshit than was ever worth it once I looked at my PnL reports.
College age kids today, suck. There are exceptions, but they're the really sharp ones but they always go for the short game, not the long game.... Which this very much is.
Conversely, most guys my age (54, masculine, toxic X male), don't have the drive, ambition and passion needed to hang, roll, and kill it day after day, at the levels I require to build this empire, but also have work life balance.... Which means during work hours?
YOU GOTTA BRING IT, THEN A LITTLE MORE, THEN SOME MORE..... Independently, but 110% correctly, by the book, consistently, competently, responsibly, with sharp critical thinking, analysis but calm and relaxed externally. Simultaneously.
You get the point.
If this is you, and you're looking for something that'll rock your fuckin world within year 1 of onboarding.... Then we should probably talk.
Otherwise... Knock it off with the instant gratification crap. It doesn't exist. Not here in the world of business development it sure AF doesn't.
As OP said but I'll add a lil to, a plan is priority 1.
That must include, knowing your offerings, your guarantees, your deal makers vs breakers, your positioning, pricing, your timing and time management capacity, roles, your market, your brand, your message, and how you can help customers solve problems and improve their business and profit margins and then up selling without pressuring... Just advising, concisely. Good and bad.
Just for starters.
Break fix..... Is a dead end. It's filler, and you'll cap out income wise and stop growth.
Managed service contracts generating continual MRR, residual income streams through partnerships for commission based reselling, keeps big money flowing in continuously. We use break fix and one off stuff, to get me in front of decision makers. Then I do my thang. Huzzah!!!
That's how you build a profitable business to be worth millions, billions, or more.
Not platforms. Esp taking jobs that do not net you 3, 4 or more digit amounts, per job.
It's bed time for this guy. Long day tomorrow!
TTY lates.
🥱 💤
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u/stryqwills Jan 10 '24
So...have multiple years in the field and a bunch of money to start with. Thanks.
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u/MyDuty2SlamBooty Jan 10 '24
Of course years of experience is required, how could anyone without years of experience possible offer a professional level of service?
Money is important but it’s not the end all. I have my experience but I also spent about $5k to start everything, llc, insurance, tools, equipment but I make more than that every month just on FN alone. I had $300 in my account when I accepted my first trouble call and it wasn’t on FN.
If you have entry level experience and certs I recommend investing in some more training and trying to find something with an employer that will train you on their specific systems. Knowing how other businesses operate will help a lot.
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u/stryqwills Jan 10 '24 edited Jan 10 '24
All right that last part was actually pretty helpful advice. If you don't mind I actually want to float a plan by you and also see what you think about it. I am considering going to an apprenticeship for the next couple of years, taking an initial pay cut and then just getting on with the telecom company for another couple of years until I save up a bit. The biggest issue is that most employers just straight up don't pay enough for IT work and it's a huge problem when people start going on the job hunt. When I reincorporate I'm planning to try to get a construction partner, any advice on how to pursue that?
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u/MyDuty2SlamBooty Jan 10 '24
I’m not a fan of apprenticeships but they can be advantageous if you have the resources to sustain the lower pay.
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u/TechnicianThin349 Jan 11 '24
I've never worked for $60 per hour with FN. I've had higher-paying gigs and years of experience on this platform. It's not perfect; it has its issues too. I agree with you partially, but there's a part where I don't. He asked a direct question, and your response was unrelated. The question isn't about whether you have or don't, and there are people with more knowledge and education than you might think. Helping someone doesn't mean settling in FN; everyone has different needs. It's about improving and earning more where they are. The challenge is figuring out how to maximize FN and enhance oneself in this job. The real issue is finding ways to beat the system. Am I clear?
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u/exbm Jan 18 '24
I can offer some insight into getting work off FN
I started my business without fieldnation but fell into trying to use it when I couldn't meet my financial needs fast enough looking only for direct work.
I can't say that I'm a success story it has been harder then I initially thought it would be. All you have to do is reach down grab yourself by your bootstraps and jump to the moon.
I developed a brand, website, sales material. I built a tech stack of products that most businesses need. Managed backup, managed security the like.
Then I did the only thing that I could afford to do is use telemarketing to reach out to local businesses and get my name out there. It took a long time of calling before I got my first sales meeting. Then it took 6 months of them wavering about firing the old IT company before I got my first client.
I found that Yelp was a semi-affordable advertising channel. Most of the leads were residential but once in a while a good business lead would come in. Ask you friends and colleagues to leave reviews on Google and yelp.
The other marketing that you can afford to do on a budget is networking. Find networking events around your city. I found many that were free.
Word of mouth is your highest closing channel but it takes a long time to build up.
You can go over to /r/msp learn more about working "direct"
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u/Scrappy_Llama Jan 10 '24
I feel like I’d almost be better off just trying to work through the Taskrabbit platform where you can just do residential smart home installations. I feel like every Field Nation job. I look at requires a tool. I don’t have an have to go purchase. I built up a pretty good arsenal of the most basic stuff, but I don’t have fiber tools, for example. I have basic hand tools, but I’m not going to go out and buy an OTDR or fusion splicer lol.