Locksmiths in Livingston, West Lothian EH54 8JA Blog

Hi Reader,

Dark nights are once again upon us!

Its not my favourite time of year because daylight hours are shorter and driving conditions are much more difficult. No one ever seems to have external lights so trying to find the right house in the dark nights can be a bit tricky. Shining a big million candle torch out the van window at the doors as I travel down a street bring home owners to there windows, curious to know whats going on.

Getting called out to do lockouts in Livingston in the dark nights and with poor weather conditions makes it more difficult to do your job. But Pentland Locksmiths Services will always remain on hand to our customers in Livingston, West Lothian, EH54 whatever the conditions 24 hours a day.

Livingston Monthly Crime Spot

Thankfully, nothing much to report this month in Livingston or the wider West Lothian areas. Most notable crimes have been opportunist thefts of handbags and belongings left in cars. Most jobs we have attended have been related to this type of crime with worried customers having their locks changed to ensure security and piece of mind. We would urge all our customers to careful as we head into the darker nights not to leave bags or belongings unattended while out in Bars, Clubs or just out for the day in the car. Thieves will target cars left in beauty spots as the occupants go out for a walk.

It is also worthwhile leaving a light on when you go out for the evening and if you plan to go away for a few days, let a neighbour you know and trust to look after your property while you are away.

Door Multipoint Locking Mechanisms

The colder night brings its own problems with many types of external door systems, especially UPVC doors with Multipoint Locking Systems. UPVC doors in Livingston, that may appear to be difficult to lock or to even put the handles up, may just need to be adjusted to work the way they should. Depending on how warm or cold it is, will affect your door.

Your upvc or composite door will expand and retract each day depending on the weather. If your door is already difficult to lock or close then extreme cold can be enough to break your locking system.

If your Locking mechanism breaks then your'e not able to use your door and it will cost at least 3 times the amount to get it repaired.

So if feel it is difficult to lock your door get Pentland Locksmiths Services Livingston, West Lothian EH54 8JA to service and adjust you door and locking system before its too late.

Picture above shows a typical problem with a multipoint locking system after part of the spindle section had broken. Our Customer from Bankton Avenue, Livingston could not open his door because it failed after it had been forcefully locked for a period of time.

Here is a link to our webpage on Multipoint Locking Systems that will give you more information on what you need to do to get your door lockins system repaired.

http://www.pentlandlocksmiths.com/upvc-door-window-repairs.html

Locksmith Industry

There has been some fierce debate on the UK locksmiths forums over the last few months about the amount of new start-up locksmiths and the level of training that's on offer. Most honest indivuduals who want to become locksmiths are unaware of the pitfalls to learning this trade and what happens after they hand over there hard earned cash or redundancy to a locksmith trainer. The vast majority of courses on offer to do not cover a fraction of what you need to know to get even started. Once you have handed over your £1000 for your basic 2/3 day course you then have to find a minimum of £2000 for basic tools and some locks.

So you've spent your redundancy and you think your ready to get going as a locksmith, where is your work coming from?

No existing locksmith business will give you a job because there is a possibility you will go it alone after a short period of time and become a competitor. So the biggest mistake most start-ups make is that they don't find out the level of training they need, how to fund their tools/stock, and how to get work one they have got that far.

So if you are planning to start up as a locksmith then make sure you check out everything before you take the plunge because you will lose your hard earned cash and end up with no job.

So here is a few pointers when starting a locksmith business.

• Train with a registered Locksmith Organisation (ICL or MLA)


• Most honest Locksmith trainers will not accept individuals with a criminal background


• Make sure you have sufficient funds to buy tools and stock


• Always ensure you have a guaranteed outlet for work before you start up


• Check to see if your area needs and can sustain another locksmith Service


• And be prepared to pay yourself a minimum wage for at least 2 years before you become established

Alternatively, you could just do locksmith work at night, while continuing to do your day job as a Plumber, Care Worker or Taxi Driver during the daytime.

Seems to be a popular practise in Livingston, West Lothian, EH54.

I was hoping to do quite a bit on Google Adwords and Google Business listings in this months blog, but unfortunately I don't have enough space to say everything I want to.

I would like to say that I'm glad Google are now cleansing the business listings of the many spammers out there. It has been a wake up call for my own business and led me to rethink my business listings. Google are continually changing their Algorythms at the moment as they tweak their listings and get rid of the scumbags that spam the listings and prevent honest local businesses to take their rightfull place. There is a sea change of movement and it looks like it will continue until all the spammers are eventually gone. If Matt Cutts (Head of Google online Spam) is true to his word then there will be a lot of local locksmiths who advertise in West Lothian who are taking up more than one position will be systematically removed.

So if you fall into this category you may want to make your changes now before its too late.

You know who you are!

Google listings update

Google have reviewed ther Business listing guidelines and the following updates will now take place. If your business doesn't comply with this then you will be penalised and more than likely have your listing(s) removed at some point

• Represent your business exactly as it appears in the offline world. The name on Google Maps should match the business name, as should the address, phone number and website.
• Do not attempt to manipulate search results by adding extraneous keywords or a description of your business into the business name.
• Do not include phone numbers or URLs in the business name.

With all this in mind I decided to remove all my own listings from Livingston, West Lothian EH54 8JA until our new Website was uploaded. This has now been completed and can be viewed if you follow the link at the bottom of this post. Pentland Locksmiths Services has now re-firmed its comittment to our customers in Livingston and will be promoting our services on a much bigger scale in the coming months.

Thanks for reading

Chris

Pentland Locksmiths Services - Est. 2006

http://www.pentlandlocksmiths.com/