Accessory dwelling units have become popular among property owners amidst the housing crisis. ADUs are affordable housing options that allow both the main house and the secondary unit to be placed on one lot. This additional living space increases property value and helps homeowners to get extra rental income. But what are the other effective ways of using your accessory dwelling unit?
If you are a small business owner and you need your own space for development, a specially designed ADU project might help. ADU owners can use this cost-effective option to create new home offices, storage spaces, or even studios. As rental properties located in the city might be unfeasible for a newly established business, accessory dwelling units (ADUs) can become a perfect solution for anyone who wants to work in the comfort of their own home.
An ADU business area will give you extra space to develop your business models without being interrupted by the daily routines in the existing home. This housing innovation has many benefits for property owners who have unused ADU construction on their parcel or simply want to save money on rent. Want to learn how to turn your conventional construction into a successful business opportunity? Read further and find out how to develop your ADU business.
Everyone, from real-estate professionals to self-employed artists, is utilizing social media to show their work. Even for people who build ADUs, it is increasingly important to demonstrate their results and skills that are different from other people in the ADU market. The same goes for any ADU-based business owner. If you want more people to learn about the work of yours, be as active as possible on social media!
Doing business from an accessory dwelling unit does not mean that you are any less professional than a person who rents a special office in the city for the same purpose. Thus, you should really focus on channels for promoting your stuff. As the majority of people nowadays use social media in many forms, creating different business pages and channels should be one of your priorities.
When working on your business ADU development, consider the following tips for posting business information online:
Even starting with small family support in the form of reposts and shout-outs can be the beginning of your popularity. Don’t be afraid to show your work on social media. Learn what other successful businesses in your sphere are implementing in their online promotion strategies and try to incorporate these techniques as well.
Those with a bigger accessory dwelling unit business can consider the option of hiring a social media specialist. Professionally trained people can take your business accounts to the next level, making you look more solid compared to other businesses in your sphere.
Another step that property owners with accessory dwelling units dedicated to home businesses should work on is creating a website. People working from in-law suites should pay special attention to demonstrating their goods or services properly. Careful planning of the website’s content can lead to an increase in sales, generating a bigger income stream.
For ADU projects dedicated to businesses, it is important to provide informational content that would be easy to understand. Moreover, the way you present your business on your website should be memorable enough to make your clients make purchases regularly or come back when needed. Therefore, if your business has a particular brand, personalized colors, and other distinguishing features, stick to them all throughout your website. Do not make it complicated, as you never know who might want to visit your web page: aging parents who sometimes struggle with technology or their adult children who will identify any web designing mistake easily.
A website gives more space for freedom for any business owner. Thanks to the availability of different sections that structure your web pages, you can talk about not only your products and services but also about the history and meaning of your brand, your work routines, interesting facts about the development of your products or services, and even tours of your ADU space where all the magic is happening.
Make sure that all the crucial information about the things you sell is easily accessible on your website:
Websites continue to be a viable option for promoting any kind of business. Even when working from a small cottage, you can develop your unique business models and achieve outstanding results. Don’t forget to mention your accomplishments on a website as well. Demonstrate your experience and credibility and attract new clients regularly.
Just like the housing market has slowly moved online, and now you can find different home builders to create granny flats on the Internet, you can sell your own products on web markets as well. Some of the most popular options include eBay, Amazon, and Etsy.
Even smaller businesses that work from accessory dwelling units can become recognizable all over the world. Online marketplaces give us such an opportunity, as people from any country can easily find products or services they are interested in and order delivery. Thus, you can take your business-making to a whole new arena, expanding your audience even further.
Whatever business you are creating, it needs to have a certain meaning, to begin with. Simply selling goods and services does not work anymore, as there are many competitors appearing on the market regularly. Thus, to stay afloat and to keep up with the growing demand, you need to make your company stand out not only with unique offers but also with an appealing brand message.
For starters, you should think about the visual signs of your brand. Think about an interesting logo that has a special meaning behind it. Also, choose a color palette that would represent your business and stick to it on all of your platforms so that customers can easily distinguish you from other sellers. Picking fonts for products that you sell on your property can also help to build a nice representation of your brand.
What is more, businesses that work in accessory dwelling units should not forget about the main idea of their brand. You may have a powerful catchphrase or simply a welcoming message on your website to show what your brand’s views and values are.
If your business is dedicated to outdoor space decoration, state what are the reasons you believe your products should be chosen instead of others. If you offer wood frame construction services, emphasize your brand’s strong points as well. Do not be scared to share your real opinion on certain issues if you believe it is important to solve them, and your products or services can help with it.
The affordable housing crisis has moved many business owners to ditch rental properties and work in additional space provided by ADU construction instead. Therefore, it would not be too surprising to find out how many other small companies exist in your local area and work from accessory dwelling units (ADUs) as well. Building connections with as many of them as possible can give you a potential benefit in the future.
You never know what your business acquaintances might be useful for. For instance, if you are building guest houses, you can collaborate with your local design companies to provide full-package services to your customers. Or if you have a new product coming out, you will have additional space to promote it if one of the local vendors agrees to make barter relations with you.
Sometimes, getting to know your local businesses can help even with simple matters. Getting friendly advice from an experienced service provider might move your business further, even if it has been stuck for a while. Moreover, local business representatives can unite and protect their rights when there are any violations or neglect from the local government.
With your ADU business, attracting as many customers as possible is crucial, especially during the very first stages. To get people excited about ordering your products and services, create special incentives to motivate them. Everyone knows that buying something with a discount is always preferable.
To get new clients interested in your company, create special promotions that will give them advantages for their next purchases. Develop a reward system, membership, or regular subscriptions to make the customers want to buy from you.
Another way of promoting your ADU company is to send out emails regularly. However, in order to be able to send any information, you need to have a good email list. And how can one compile it?
There are several ways to get your customers’ email addresses:
As long as your emails stay informative, consistent (but not to the point when they become annoying), and exclusive, clients will want to receive your special offers, new announcements, and other important information.
Building a network of customers is just as important as creating a network of business acquaintances. Sometimes, no matter what kind of advertisements we pay for, there are no new clients. However, simple word of mouth can facilitate sales again. People tend to trust other customers more: if one of your friends wears a handmade jacket and you like it, you are more likely to get interested in the products of this company.
Thus, to make sure that your customers do not forget to talk about their newest purchases, create an efficient referral program. Usually, such tools reward those who make references with special bonuses or discounts for future purchases.
Moreover, there are plenty of referral templates available online, which can be useful for those who are only starting to work with programs of this kind. Keep a clear goal in mind and ask your customers to promote your brand if they like it.
An ADU business will thrive, especially if the things you sell are one-of-a-kind. We live during a time when almost everything can be bought in physical stores or ordered online. So, how do you even create a unique product or service when it seems like everything has already been invented?
Usually, great business ideas start when a certain problem needs to be solved. Once you look for available solutions and cannot find any, you start to think about solving the issue yourself. Even producing something on a small property of your ADU can help many people to make their lives easier.
Another point is to emphasize the meaning behind your products and services. You need to advertise yourself in a way that would make people touched or concerned about their current conditions. If you are able to position your company as one that offers products and services with unique value that has not been proposed by anyone else, you will surely find someone who is interested.
Do not try to copy other companies’ ideas or products. Customers will soon find out that you are a copycat and have nothing to offer of your own. Build a strong brand identity, focus on the uniqueness of your goods or services, and promote your business in an appropriate way.
A successful business is one that constantly grows. Do not be afraid to make mistakes, as they can bring much-needed growth and innovation to your business. And to learn in what directions you need to improve, it is especially important to keep up with your client’s opinions.
Ask customers to leave their honest opinions about the things and services they have purchased from you. It is especially relevant to those who have just started their business. You need to build your reputation and reassure any future customers that you are the one to trust. Displaying reviews left by other clients is also important, as it helps anyone who is interested in buying from you to understand what kind of seller you are.
To motivate the clients to leave their reviews, you might want to offer them small gifts or bonus points for future purchases. If you create a product or a service that will leave your customer speechless, they will surely want to share it with others as well. Therefore, the very thing that you offer should make your clients want to tell everyone about it.
Developing a business in your ADU is a cost-effective solution for those who want to be their own bosses but do not want to spend thousands of dollars on rent every month. There are plenty of ADU business promotion strategies that will help you to achieve success. Do not be afraid to experiment with your brand, build a strong company identity, and work hard to make people value your efforts!
An ADU is an additional living space located on the same property as the primary single-family home. Single-family lots are allowed to have one ADU and a junior ADU to increase property functionality and value. Single-family homes can build ADUs to provide more living space to multigenerational households, earn passive income, or create extra space for family activities.
Whether you have a single-family lot or a multifamily property, an ADU can be of great use to you. They can be turned into short-term rentals, providing you with passive income and your potential tenants with affordable housing options. If ADU rentals do not interest you, transform your ADU into a guest house or a home for your elderly relatives to live in. Real estate agents also recommend ADU development to those who want to increase the value of their property on the housing market.
Your ADU property can easily be used as your business space. With not as much affordable housing and premises available for small businesses to rent, ADUs become real-life savers. Building ADUs for smaller businesses has become quite a widespread practice, so transforming your ADU property into a home office or a storage space should not be a big problem.
If you work from an ADU to develop your business, think about all the possible channels of promotion. Post on different social media platforms, create a nice and informative website, participate in local events, and collaborate with other businesses in your area.
