Nick James

Many people start up a bouncy castle hire business on their own without getting proper advice and support from others in the industry. However, this approach leaves them wide open to make mistakes that can harm their inflatable hire business and slow its growth.

By sharing common "stumbling blocks" we hope that you can learn from mistakes others have made and avoid some of the obstacles that many before you had to overcome

1. Starting without a proper plan. You need more than just lots of energy, enthusiasm and a willingness to work at weekends. It is important that you study the market in your town or city, your competition and develop a plan of how you are going to make money in the bouncy castle hire business.

2. Calling your bouncy castle hire business a name that comes very low down in the alphabet. The reason why you should try and call your business with a name that starts with an "A" or even a number is because most offline and online directories list bouncy castle companies alphabetically. If your business starts with an "P" or worst case a "Z" then you will be at the bottom of the listings. Most people looking to hire a bouncy castle will start at the top and go downwards. You could miss out on a huge amount of enquiries and bookings if you listed near the bottom.

3. Giving up your "day job" too soon! Although the bouncy castle hire business can be very lucrative, it is very important when you first start that you still continue to work in your normal job. As soon as your income from hiring bouncy castles reaches a point where you feel that you can comfortably live off it, then this is the point where it may be appropriate to start thinking of quitting your day job in order to focus 100% on hiring bouncy castles.

4. Don't take on employees until your turnover hits a sufficient level. Many people forget that hiring employees can be very expensive if there is insufficient work to go round. Sometimes it is better to use sub-contractors first although you should check with your accountant and lawyer as to how best to do this to ensure you comply with the law.

5. Keeping employees because they are "nice" and "try hard". It can be difficult to fire someone, but a bad employee or someone who is just not pulling their weight could be dragging your bouncy castle company down. Think about it this way; if you now had the opportunity to hire this person (knowing what you know now about their work habits) would you hire him or her? If not, it's time to be open with the employee and let him or her know they are not a good fit with your bouncy castle hire company.

6. Not diversifying or just hiring out small bouncy castles and inflatables for childrens' parties. More and more customers now want more than just a bouncy castle, e.g. they may want a slide, garden games, obstacle course etc. If you cannot supply this equipment it may be a good idea to work with a competitor (or rent from a competitor) and then share the revenue. If you can't provide these added services, your customers may switch to an inflatable hire company that can better meet their needs.

7. Not saying "thank you" often enough. Everyone likes to know they are appreciated. This includes your employees, your customers, your suppliers and anyone else who has helped you or given you advice that has helped your bouncy castle business grow.

8. Not visiting and participating in the online discussion forum. Using this forum is like having a board of advisers or experts on tap who will help answer any questions, problems and issues you are facing.

9. Spending too much money. When you first start out resist the urge to invest in expensive equipment, fancy office furniture, or gadgets you don't need.

10. Spending too little money. While you don't want to go overboard, you do need the right equipment, and vehicle etc. so you can do the hire job correctly.

Your bouncy castle hire business can be successful if you have the enthusiasm, the drive, the passion and the willingness to learn from other people's mistakes. Take your time, do your homework and learn from those who have already become successful.