If you do not have any special knowledge in a particular area of entrepreneurship, this does not mean that you have no chance to open your own business. If you have some (not necessarily impressive) amount of money that you are willing to give in favor of developing your business, and an obsessive desire to work for yourself, as they say, then you should think about how to create a courier delivery service.
This type of activity does not require special skills or knowledge, the purchase of expensive equipment or the investment of sky-high funds, therefore such a business idea is an excellent solution for a budding entrepreneur with a limited budget.
Of course, it is better to open such a business in a large village, where home delivery services are more in demand, but with perseverance and desire, you can achieve it in a hurry in any city. Where to start? Of course, the first thing to do is to draw up a business plan to take into account all the costs and calculate the possibility of making a profit.
Organization of a courier service: where to start?
So, if the desire to receive income from your personal business is tenaciously stuck in your head, and what you do not know, then this article is just for you.
Legal business requires state registration, so the first thing is to go to the tax office and arrange your type of activity. Then you need to open a current account in the name of the organization in any bank that is beneficial to you (here you will need documents from the tax service on the registration of your company and a certificate from the state statistics committee). In principle, on the formal side of the issue, that’s all.
In parallel with the execution of all documents, proceed to the search for an office space. If your budget is very scarce, then rent it. In case of success and prosperity in this matter, in the future it will be possible to purchase your own corner.
Then, when preparing a business plan for the courier service, take care of the technical side of the issue. Today without modern equipment you can not get anywhere. We need telephone and computer networks, as well as transport. It is desirable that he was his own, although at first you can rent it. If the budget allows, you can create a fleet of several cars, as well as get bicycles for mail delivery. Better yet, hire couriers with personal cars.
The scope of your business at first will most likely be limited to one city. Indeed, at this stage of development it is important to get a good reputation, and if you deliver orders late, nobody will want to work with you. In order to make a good start, it is recommended to find a couple of large customers who would carry out constant orders. Qualitatively fulfilling the instructions of such customers, you can count on getting a stable profit, which can be immediately used for advertising.
How to promote your business?
Courier service, like any other business, requires investment in advertising. Start by creating a site. This marketing tool is today considered the most effective. Do not save on creating your site on the Internet, because in the future it will become the face of your organization. Order a website promotion service for a web company.Its specialists will analyze the market in which you work and will be able to create a truly competitive resource.
Remember to include business card costs in your courier business plan. They 
should also characterize you from the best side.
A business card that is high-quality to the touch and eye-catching with full information (a clearly visible name of your company, all the necessary contacts, opening hours, any special conditions or discounts, etc.) will encourage its owner to turn to the services of your courier service again.
Advertise in the most popular newspapers in your city, do not forget about radio and television. And just share the information with your friends and acquaintances. Such a simple way of advertising often works most effectively.
You can also distribute flyers, the presentation of which guarantees a discount to the client. It may be quite small, but the opportunity to save at least a little always encourages customers to further cooperation.
Connect the fantasy!
Promotions and discounts are, of course, good, but it’s even better to come up with your own “trick”, which can become a decisive factor when a customer selects a courier company. After all, there are a lot of similar services today, they compete among themselves in the quality and speed of delivery, the cost of their services, etc. But modern people want variety, and this can play into the hands of a newly made courier company.
Anything can become your “chip”. For example, let the girls model deliver the goods, then the circle of your customers (especially the male) will definitely increase.
You can hire a few guys model appearance. Then women will turn to you for services much more often.
To make the order process more interesting, create an online catalog on your organization’s website in which you can post photos of your charming employees.
Thus, leaving the application, the client gets the opportunity to choose from the couriers provided to him the desired. In general, connect your imagination, creativity is always welcome!
Such a “highlight” of your business will allow you to slightly increase the cost of your services, but in most cases it will not affect the choice of the client.
Recruiting is an important matter
It is impossible not to include labor costs in your business courier service plan. The issue of recruitment must be approached with all responsibility, because only serious and executive employees will help to get good reviews about the company as a whole. If you do not have experience in the field of courier services, then it is even more advisable to hire professionals in this business who will help you organize the whole process and organize the right work with clients.
Do not hire people who want to get good money and at the same time work from 9 to 6. Such employees usually do not give all the best to help business development. Arrange a probationary period of at least a week before formal employment. This will help to understand how the future employee relates to the client, whether he is able to provide the level of service you have set.
Price policy
It is impossible to act “at random” in the matter of setting prices for delivery; it is important to analyze the cost of such services in your city. You can “monitor” information qualitatively using the Internet, because today every serious company has its own website. But do not rely solely on information received online. Better make a call to the courier service that interests you.
Typically, telephone consultants are very talkative and will tell you about some conditions, promotions or other points that you can use in your activities. Anyway, such calls are the best way to find out how the courier service works.
The provision of services for the delivery of documents and goods within the same city usually requires low costs, therefore, the cost of such delivery should be small. But do not underestimate your prices too much to fully recoup your expenses. To do this, carefully consider all the possible exit options and the distances that will need to be overcome. A well-designed price policy can recoup all costs in almost three to four months.
Your business abroad?
The homeland of the business we are considering is France, so let's see on its example how to open a courier delivery service and make good money abroad while in Russia.
If you follow French laws, the personnel of the delivery service should consist exclusively of French citizens. Therefore, for starters, find the position of director of a native Frenchman, preferably a friend. You, accordingly, as the founder of this organization will need to get a visa.
The so-called “merchant card” is long-term and is issued to the founders of legal entities with French registration for a period of 1 to 5 years. Obtaining such a visa secures a lot of rights for its owner, which will be more than enough for your business idea to be realized. Courier service can now be headed by you personally.
What other formalities must be followed in France?
French lawmakers clearly stipulated the entire procedure for the establishment and operation of enterprises with foreign capital.
Therefore, to find out how to open a courier delivery service to a citizen of the Russian Federation in this country, you need to familiarize yourself with the norms of local legislation. In general, it all comes down to several basic questions:
- first, you must submit all the registration documents of the founder to the commercial court of your choice to conduct the city’s activities;
- after consideration of the above securities, the commercial court decides to register the enterprise in a single trade register;
- then you can apply for a "merchant card";
- obtaining a residence permit for a period of 1 year; if you become the head of your courier service, it will automatically be extended for the duration of your leadership.
To summarize
After reading this article, you have a general knowledge of how to open a courier delivery service and where to start working in the domestic or foreign market for these services. In general, the most painstaking work requires activities related to the selection of personnel, the organization of work processes and their improvement, as well as the policy to attract customers.
Your personality and creative approach to work is also important - only interesting and exclusive projects reach the desired heights.
Do not forget to take into account all these points when you draw up your courier service business plan.
