open for business question

[sims2]

I bought sims-open for business a few months ago....i have actually got into it more now...i was finding it pretty boring at first but i am wandering whether i am not actually getting into the game enough. I have not really started a business....what do you exactly do in home buinesses? It is quite complicating i think....i know you have to hire people..i tried doing that but nothing seemed to be happeneing...any information or hints would be great!:)
I have read through the instructions!

[hugzncuddles]

Hi sims2 :) I see you're in the same part of the world as me. :)

I really recommend buying the Prima Strategy guide for OFB. It is really informative and explains everything in much more detail than we can on here. Having said that, there are some great threads here which will help you with info about businesses.

I haven't yet created a home business, only on community lots. Start off small, don't rush to hire lots of people - even my level 10 store only needed 1 or 2 employees. A wholesale store might be best to start with, or if you make a florist shop, include a lot of wholesale items too such as catalogue plants/ vases etc as they sell well. Have a range of items of varying prices. I always set my prices at 'cheap' level - works for me. ;)

I'm sure that someone here posted a good guide for getting started on OFB - browse this board for some great tips. If I find that guide I will let you know. :) Sorry I can't stay longer and explain things in more detail.

Happy simming!

[sims2]

Could you tell me about the businnesses out of home? How you did those? also florists...and salons..i know how to make a superstore..but how do you make them..there isnt the things for buying associated with hair salons etc.

[sexierjess14]

In home businesses, if Im not wrong, you don't have to hire anyone. Just use all the available adult/teen living in the lot and they will work in the home business without needing to be hired.

Hiring only happens if you own a business on a community lot.

However, Im not 100% sure about this, so anyone please correct me if Im wrong :D and if I made a mistake sorry :p

[jupitershana]

In home businesses, if Im not wrong, you don't have to hire anyone. Just use all the available adult/teen living in the lot and they will work in the home business without needing to be hired.

Hiring only happens if you own a business on a community lot.

However, Im not 100% sure about this, so anyone please correct me if Im wrong :D and if I made a mistake sorry :p


You can hire if you own a home business OR a community business...but you're right in the fact that you don't have to hire anyone...either home or community. If you have enough family members you definately don't need to hire anyone. I suggest one person for cashier, one for creating the goods, and one for sales/restocking. So if you have a family that has at least 3 people that are teens or older you'd be good to go without hireing anyone.

[sims2]

Oh really?I always thought people had to be hired cause thats what it said i think LOL! but you get these different things in a corner...nthing has started in work yet..then again i did not have many in my family if that helps. It does ask me to sell stuff...how do i sell in order to make this business happen? what is home business all about..doing what:)?

[Alexai]

Oh really?I always thought people had to be hired cause thats what it said i think LOL! but you get these different things in a corner...nthing has started in work yet..then again i did not have many in my family if that helps. It does ask me to sell stuff...how do i sell in order to make this business happen? what is home business all about..doing what:)?
I had Brandi Broke start a very lucrative home business. I built a separate little house on her property and she sells cakes and pies. She had no employees originally, but since the business grew, she was able to hire two employees - one to restock and one at the cash register - and she does the baking and sales. I usually have her take a day or two off to replenish the baking supplies so that she doesn't have to bake and sell on the same day.

You can sell anything out of your home: flowers or plants that you purchase from the wholesale catalogue, flowers that you craft, toys bought from the catalogue or crafted, furniture, trees - anything. Use the phone or the computer to start a business, purchase an open/closed business sign, and use the for sale icon in the right hand corner to mark the prices of your objects for sale.

It's a good idea to lock the doors to your house or to areas in your home that you don't want customers and/or your employees to enter. If you don't lock your doors, your customers will eat your food, use your bathroom etc. You can lock your doors by clicking on them; you will see options allowing you to lock the door for everyone except for family members and employees. It's a good idea to let your employees have access to food, toilet facilities, and something fun to do. You can give them a break by clicking on Management: Give a break.

Hope this helps!

[sims2]

This IS confusing.:)
Do you mean the little signs you put on a wall hanging..that might show a picture of a game stand or something?
How do you build a usiness on her lot?

[jupitershana]

Sims2, I think you need to buy the Prima Guide for open for business. You have WAY to many questions.

[Lynet]

I agree with Shana. You should get the Guide.

The Open For Business expansion is the most complicated of all the expansions. People have been struggling with it from the beginning and still are!

This means that all of your questions, Sims2, have already been asked several times before, and have also been answered and explained in detail in this forum in other threads.

Please use the search function and read carefully ALL of the related threads.

You really don't want us to come to your house and play the game for you. Exploring the game for yourself, experimenting with it, is all part of the fun. It is, after all, a game! To be played with!

[sims2]

Maybe..but im notthe only one finding this game complicated!!
I cannot take this in....you said about a sign.....i am asking which sign:S it wasnt made that clear..and really this game can be confusing.....you are explaining over a computer..some cant always take things in. So sorry but i cant help that..but it is way complicating! over that sign..i was asking if it was the one i was thinking of..im asking individual questions here!

[Shintoga]

I think they mean the little Open/Closed sign you get in Buy Mode to tell customers when your business is open or closed. When it's hanging on the wall of your business (Home/Community lot) you click on it when you're in Live Mode to flip it over. It's easy to miss seeing it in the catalogue, though.

[Lynet]

I am not trying to be unkind, Sims2. I am attaching here a picture of the sign. Just for you, I went back into my game to locate it and found it under Decorative (the vase outline), then under Miscellanoeous (the three dots). The sign is called the Open/Closed Sign of War and Commerce. You need to have it to run your business. You must also have your sim telephone to get a business license.

My game came with a little booklet that explained most of this. It was all pretty clear. Didn't your game come with the booklet? :confused:

I also repeat that the Open For Business expansion is the most difficult of the expansions. Maybe if you find it too confusing you should just play with your families for awhile, let them earn money by just getting a regular job through the newspaper, learn as much about how it all works as you can, and later on, when you are more familiar with everything, try running a business. A game is not fun if you are constantly frustrated. I believe you are trying to do too much all at once. Slow down a little. Practice building, buying stuff for your houses, having babies, throwing parties. :)

[sims2]

OOO that sign! LOL i cant say i have seen it..maybe i just havent read the manual properly..my own faulti guess haha.
Just wanna say though...thankyou very much for doing that! very kind of you hehe.:D *hugs*

[surprised_by_witches]

Please try to post in the site's default font. Larger font in different colors looks a bit like shouting.

Just a friendly reminder from a moderator.

[sims2]

Oh no...i am not doing that:) i just generally like putting a bit of color in font writing hehe.

[Shintoga]

Have you got the guide book? I'd say just relax and have fun, maybe set up a business where you solely learn about how this EP works. I also have OFB although it's not installed at the moment. I played for a few days while my system was still happy with the Sims 2 and 3 EPs :rolleyes: and I found it quite hard to get into. I think with regard to hiring people, I've noticed that if they don't know your Sim that well/at all they might not accept their offer of employment. Maybe just chat to them a bit before you ask them? You could always employ a family member if your Sim has any relatives.

[Dylan00]

Woah, OFB is Complicated??? Aww, I thought Uni was:p

112 IQ tells alot, hmm Oh well im still gonna cry cry cry till i get OFB.:)

[Kristalrose]

I am a veteran Simmer from the old days, but OFB has about whooped me. I can't get a business past level 5, and it seems that I just keep throwing Simoleans down a well because I never make a profit! I keep using cheats to keep my workers happy and they still quit, customers storm out for no reason, I just can't get it all set up and chugging happilly along. If it weren't for the various cheats available online, I'd have given up having a business lot all-together!

But, I did do something fun with mine today. I downloaded a bunch of Paladin's retro-arcade games and set up an arcade/pool hall/greasy spoon. It seemed to do pretty well. ;)

[Dylan00]

well, i cant wait till i get it, running your own vitiral buisness seems cool:)

[Chee-Z]

I seem to do well with the home businesses. I had one Sim buy a community lot, and I just don't have the patience to keep one of those running. Even still, I only have the patience to have one home business running at a time. :o

[sims2]

I think maybe i should buy or just read the booklet that came with the game LOL! :)

[surprised_by_witches]

I can't get a business past level 5, and it seems that I just keep throwing Simoleans down a well because I never make a profit!

Here's what I do, Kristal. Maybe this will help. Mind you, my best business is level 7. You might want to ask Shana for more advice, since she mentioned she had at least one level 10 biz. But anyway, for what it's worth:

My home businesses do better than my community ones. It's easier to open them because you don't have to leave the lot, and therefore they're open more consistently. If I have a lot going on in a family the first thing that suffers is the off-lot business. Of course, if you move you need to start over, which I find irritating. I've got a flower shop that's on it's third iteration thanks to one move and one unsalvagable lot crash.

Don't hire employees outside the family until you get the hang of the customer thing. Employees are just a distraction. Bring along a family member or two by taking a cab to work instead of a car, or just by having a home business. It's easier if you can control everyone.

If you do hire an employee or two, have them work extremely short shifts. For example, Jake Hourvitz has a superette. He has an NPC who comes in to stock and another who makes flower arrangements. A third, player employee makes toys or bakes, depending on what he's low on. Once an employee has made a few of one item or restocked everything once he sends them home.

Tell yourself when you're going to close and stick to it. Try to keep regular hours, just like at a real store. You'll find your sim and their employees are less tired afterwards.

I always tell a joke first and then try to sell the customer something. That works really well. Most of my sims have fairly high charisma. If yours don't, try talking to the mirror for a couple of days and then going back to the store. Also, not being shy helps. Stella Nova is a terrible salesperson because her outgoing is a 2. I've had her father in law take over the shop.

Keep an interesting variety of stock, but you don't have to have too much stuff. Sell one expensive item and the rest should be priced at average. Cheap doesn't make you enough money. Once your sim gets a gold sales badge, dazzle the interested customers into buying the expensive item. My home flower shop sells more of that item than anything else. It costs more to replace it, but it's worth it because it makes them the most money.

Put snapdragons in the store once your sims have a gold flowermaking badge. It raises the environment score.

Don't bother to sell to people debating over the ticketron. Concentrate on the ones who came to buy goods.

Anyway, hope this helps.

[jupitershana]

Here's what I do, Kristal. Maybe this will help. Mind you, my best business is level 7. You might want to ask Shana for more advice, since she mentioned she had at least one level 10 biz. But anyway, for what it's worth:

First off, great advice on all of it.

2nd...I have level ten because I cheat! LOL... I admit that I use the painting quite a bit to keep my employees happy through the "everyone on lot" option.

3rd, there is one lot that I didn't cheat at. But it's one of my rich families to begin with with a ton of toys. They didn't do anything except install a ticket-tron and mark it cheap. Then I just let people decide if they wanted to visit or not. Every once in a while I'll "sell" someone on the ticket tron, but otherwise I just leave it on, even when they are sleeping. I just lock their bedrooms and some of the bathrooms to keep sims from bothering them. I made it to a level 10 within about a week...without having them do anything. I then raised the price slightly, but still kept it below average. It's worked out well so far!

Oh, and I also try my hardest NOT to hire anyone, just use the household members for slaves! ;)

[person123]

Snapdragons also raise your sims' motives. Every hour or so the bouquet releases a cloud of odor that sometimes increases your sims' motives a bit. It doesn't always help, though. Sometimes it will affect one sim's moods and not the other's.

[surprised_by_witches]

You know, I have yet to play it, but Lola Phoenix's house is a home business now, run by her great-grandson Carlo. She had everything, including a two-lane bowling alley. I think I'll play it for a while and see if they reach level 10.

And I feel better! I may only have reached level 7, but I don't cheat, so now I'm feeling pretty good about my accomplishments. :o

It's not easy, but that makes it more fun.

[WereBear]

I can guarantee a ten level buisiness to anyone, it's just not very challenging doing it this way (even tho it is a great way to make easy simoleons). Here's my secret formula:

1. Lock all outside doors in the house to allow only "Household & Emplyees" Don't worry, all NPC service personel (maids, nannys, fire, police, etc.) can still enter.
2. Go to the catalouge menu and purchase one "Open/Closed" sign, one ticketron, and one poker table (and 4 chairs).
3. Place the poker table (with chairs) on the front lawn and set the ticketron to its cheapest price.
4. Use the phone to get your buisness license. Your "Open" sign should instantly flip to green and your ticketron's "under construction" sign will go away. Congratulations, you are now "Open for Buisiness"!
5. Have your sims live their simlives as you normally would, totally ignoring their buisiness. Meanwhile your sim's neighbors will be wandering onto your lot to play cards, make friends, and flood your buisiness with happy stars. Within one sim week your sim's buisiness should be at level ten and you will have ten "buisiness perk" points that you can trade in for monetary awards, relationship building and networking boosts, and buisness inventory discounts. You will also be making money like crazy since you get a 100% vigorish on all buy-in's and bets made at the card table!:D

As I said, this formula takes away any challenge. After you get your confidence up, I suggest trying all the different types of business one by one for the fun and challenge. HTH:)

[Lynet]

Welcome back, WereBear. Glad to see you, and all your good advice. :D

[sims2]

sell items? wouldnt you need a till ro something in your home or some sort of thing to sell your items...advertise them with?