Most tradies who fail in their first year going solo do not fail at the trade work. They fail commercially, on deposits, pricing, written agreements, invoicing and unpaid extras. The first year is about survival and learning, and the five customer mistakes below are the ones that catch skilled people out most often. Get the basics right and a quieter, profitable year beats a busy one that goes broke.
The reality of year one
The first year going solo is about survival and learning. Plenty of tradies with excellent technical skills come unstuck not because of their workmanship, but because of how they handle customers, pricing and cash flow. The fixes are not complicated, they just have to be done consistently.
The five most common customer and pricing mistakes
- Mistake 1: not getting a deposit. Clients who pay nothing upfront have no skin in the game. For any job over about R5,000, ask for 30% to 50% upfront to cover materials. A deposit also filters out bad-faith clients.
- Mistake 2: quoting verbally with nothing in writing. A verbal agreement is almost impossible to enforce. Write it down. Even a WhatsApp confirmation of scope and price is better than nothing. Better still, use a simple written quotation and get written acceptance.
- Mistake 3: underpricing to win work. Charging below cost to get the job is not a strategy, it is a cash-flow disaster. Know your numbers. A busy tradie going broke is worse off than a quieter one who is profitable.
- Mistake 4: not invoicing promptly. The longer the gap between finishing the work and sending the invoice, the slower you get paid. Invoice the same day the job is finished, and set 30 days or less as your payment term.
- Mistake 5: doing extras without agreeing the price first. "While you are here, can you just..." is the most expensive phrase in the trades. Every extra must be agreed in writing, or at the very least confirmed by WhatsApp, before the work starts. Say it plainly: "I am happy to do that, it will be an additional R amount."
Your year-one survival checklist
Set these up early and the admin side of the business stops being a source of panic:
- Register with SARS for provisional tax through SARS eFiling, so your first tax bill does not blindside you.
- Open a separate business bank account. Never mix personal and business money. It keeps your books clean and your accountant cheap.
- Register with the Compensation Fund if you take on any workers, so you are covered under COIDA (the Compensation for Occupational Injuries and Diseases Act).
- Take out public liability insurance on day one, before you set foot on a site.
- Get three good testimonials from your first three satisfied clients. Start building your reputation from the very first job.
Common mistakes
- Starting a job with no deposit, then carrying the materials cost yourself.
- Relying on a handshake instead of a written quote and acceptance.
- Cutting your price to win the job, then working at a loss.
- Letting invoices pile up for days or weeks after the work is done.
- Saying yes to extras without confirming the extra cost in writing first.
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