job. This means purchasing items rather than trying to "get along" with bare minimums. You need a good computer, a good printer (two actually) not some wimpy printer that prints only one size paper. A good scanner, good programs, Adobe Acrobat, (not the free reader) MS Office Suite or similar.
Yes, they cost money. You have to invest in ANY business. One cannot try to get away doing things on the cheap, because you'll run into problems like the one you describe. Gone are the days of a kitchen table, a pen and a stamp. The investment is considerable, and I haven't covered everything.
Once you are open for business, part of the money you make goes toward toner, paper, pens, gas, auto maintenance, and so on. This is not a get rich quick business. Once you get busy, you will find equipment needs to be replaced. Don't buy cheap junk printers and scanners, or all-in-one's with slow printing and scanning, and you will be rewarded. You cannot keep every penny you earn.
Always have a backup plan to get your printing done should your printer go down (that's why I use two dual tray HP's) HP repair facilities have oodles of printer trade-ins and surplus printers from government facilities. One of my dual tray network printers was used to make 312 copies before it was surplussed by the Air Force. New it was $2,247. I bought it barely used for $450 and it's been running now for 6 years without a hiccup. A great investment ($75 a year).
You need to plan how you are going to run your business. It's the difference between $12,000 and $65,000 a year and still not working that hard. Last but not least - you can't make money accepting peanuts for your work! Let those other notaries do that - they're trying to ruin the market, but that's what it has come to. |
