Aquarium Consulting - Viable?

[Eienna]

I'm thinking about doing whatever I'd have to do to become a home aquarium consultant, helping people fix and/or avoid problems, stock compatible animals, etc.

Is it a viable idea, do you think? Would you pay for such a thing and do you think others might?

 

[180galreef]

I would think you would have to create a nitch among the wealthy. The problem I see is those that can afford big systems can also afford someone that maintains it (I understand the difference; However, they wont) there for cutting you out of the equation. The companys wont hire you because they feel they can do the same thing. The homeowners wont hire you because they have guys to maintain the system and they can tell them what to put in. The average joe I dont see paying for a service that they can google and if they can afford to pay someone to do it, I revert back to my comment of "they have a company doing the maintaining already.

Not to sound negative but I think your going to have to really find a way to show that you really know more than the other guys and "this" is why you are a viable option.

 

[kacrocorals581]

I agree with 180. Open your own store I drive past 5 stores and a hour away an I'm not the only one just go's to show you people will go out the way to find someone who knows what there talking about and is good to you!

 

[Eienna]

I would even have my own little fishy hospital set up XD
Guess I'd best get marine biologist training...
As it stands, I don't think there are laws pertaining to who can doctor pet fish. Am I right?

At first I would build my reputation by helping out for free or cheap, I think. This is gonna take some thought XD

 

[Eienna]

Anyone else?

 

[Jpurpz831]

anything can get done with a little planning and self motivation

 

[cdness]

There is a guy local to me who does this sort of thing. He handles the setup, maintenance, and teardowns of aquariums in the area. He does not have a storefront, but it heavily tied into a LFS which brings him many new customers while he directs people to them for equipment... He works at the LFS while doing the consulting part time as a side business. However I feel that it could turn into a full time business if he wanted to to, but with a full time business you need to assume the failure risk...

I would suggest getting in with an LFS that would like to offer maintenance services but doesn't have the means to do that. It would allow them to advertise they have maintenance services available which would increase sales and you would charge the labor side of things for the setup. It could benefit the both of you.

What I know from personal experience and dealing with a small time consulting effort of my own is you will find people who will use the service for different reasons. Sometimes it is due to being a price leader, sometimes they have an emergency issue and need help ASAP, sometimes they are too rich to do that kind of work, but sometimes they are just lazy too. Here are some questions to ask yourself though:

1. Are there other companies you would be in direct competition with in your area?

2. Do you have the knowledge to prove to your customers or future customers that you are a better solution than your competitors?

3. Do you have the means to haul heavy equipment and deal with the setup of multiple different systems?

4. Have you figured out yet what your competitive edge will be against your competition to drive customers to chose you over the others in the area?

5. Is there room in the market or demand that is not being met, that would support an additional consulting business to form?

 

[Mike J.]

We've had this discussion before. I admire your dream. I do have a degree in marine biology and will say that will help very little in getting an aquarium consulting job. In the reef tank business your tanks are your degrees. Having a hospital tank setup and treating sick fish might be one way to get a toe in. Your reputation in the reef tank community is vitally important.

The first approach I would take to achieve your objective is to get a couple first rate tanks set up. Maybe advertise selling tank acclimated fish.

Wish you the best. Never give up pursuing your dream.

 

[Eienna]

Okay. Thanks, guys!
n.n I obviously have a lot yet to learn first, but I imagine it won't be terribly long the way I soak things up.

What I can expect on my budget, though, is that it'll take me a quite some time to set up that caliber of tank.

It occurs to me that if I can figure out how to successfully keep something labeled "difficult" or "impossible" that could help my standing quite a bit.

 

[Reef Fever]

Consulting is part of the maintenance gig. I manage a maintenance company and consultations are free. IMO you need to have more than just a few months under your belt. It is one thing to care for your own aquariums but when you deal with other peoples and play with their money you need to know exactly what youre doing. Now I am not saying I know EVERYTHING, but I do know more than most. Technical problem solving is key, if you run into emergencies you need to know how to handle them quickly and properly.

In addition to doing the above I highly suggest that if you pursue such work you become licensed and insured. It is not right to offer services to people (residential or commercial) without some sort of protection for you and your clients. If you go into someones residence or place of business and you are at fault for damages you need to have the proper protection for the both of you. There are so many newbie hobbyists offering "service" work on Craigslist when they clearly know minimal amounts of knowledge and do not have the right to operate such a business.

just my.02

 

[Reef Pets]

Most people that would need consulting would hire an aquarium maintenance company, especially the wealthy. Of course there are many that want to maintain their own reef but those that are wealthy didnt do so by throwing money down the drain. They will most likely educate themselves before adventuring into a reef aquarium.

If you still have a lot to learn of course I would not recommend giving any advice until you know exactly what you are talking about. There are already enough LFS to give horrible advise.... Also, this hobby changes drastically month by month with all of the new products that hit the market day after day. So, once you have learned something its time to learn something new because if you plan to consult you would have to basically keep up with nearly every product on the market to give knowledgeable advise.

The other challenge I see when it comes to consulting, most people can google any problem or or question for free. If they are reefing themselves they can easily google and if someone is maintaining their reef then as Reef Fever stated consulting is free.

It seems like consulting would be a challenging way to earn extra pay..

 

[bige]

I agree with what most have said. I use to buy contracts of maintenance businesses and I bought an aquarium maintenance contract for over 400 aquariums. They didn't care about anything I said about care. They want the tank to look good when clients come in. That's it. The people that can afford consulting want more than to hear you talk. They want it fixed. I sold that contract before I even cleaned a tank. And im glad I did. If your interested in this aspect of care, start a business maintaining tanks. But be aware no one cares about fish. They just want a pretty tank to keep people happy while they wait. Or wealthy people that want to impress people when they entertain.

 

[Eienna]

I would be aiming my services mostly at those who

 

[Reef Fever]

There are already enough LFS to give horrible advise....

agreed with all you said but this made me LOL!

 

[Squishie89]

Let me put my .01 (not .02) in. Soon after I started I had a consultant come over. My skimmer would not function properly and I wanted to make sure I was doing everything right. I will say, I am in the .000001% of pet owners, their lives mean more to me than you can imagine, so I do my ultimate best to give them the best care. I found him on craigslist as I was not a part of a local group/forum yet and had trouble finding consultants in the area. Having him over was a HUGE help. I think a big thing that helped me, was just having someone else in the hobby to talk to and bounce ideas off of. And sometimes you just want to hear a different opinion. The consultant was a huge help in getting me going, I really just needed a push and being told I was doing things right.
The small catch. Had I known there were more experienced consultants in the area, I would have gone with them. My guy is not new, but not majorly experienced. But I am also not your usual client.
I think the overall advice given so far is very good though.