Hudson, Ink

Since the dawn of time, when dinosaurs roamed the Earth and the first contractors were peddling fire door to door, lead generation has been the most difficult – and necessary – feat of business survival.

Whew! Finally. I’ve just always wanted to sneak “since the dawn of time into an article.” Of course, that doesn’t negate the truth of the lead generation crisis.

If you’re struggling to keep your techs busy … if cash flow has dried up … or if you’re just a little worried about all of the above, let me encourage you with the response you’re likely to hear from many a successful contractor: “Been there, done that.” Like Steve Scott of Comfort Technology…

“I'd like others to realize they don't have to feel stuck. That just starting with a few small changes they can reap immediate, tangible benefits that will enable them to make other changes that will reap further benefits.

Our systems sales to the general public have increased dramatically. A whopping 265% increase. This happened while we raised our prices.

Some of this increase is because I've been working at becoming a better sales person so I'm closing a higher percentage, but another big factor is I'm having more leads to work with. And I wanted to say, ‘Thanks for all your help.’”

It’s a rare company that does not struggle from time to time. The thing to do is to know what to do about it. There’s a way out of the hole. But I won’t ask you to suffer through the reassurances of someone who’s “not in your shoes.” Instead, let me give you the guidance based on the successes of contractors who’ve seen it all before.

Some hopefully helpful specifics:

Track your Incoming Leads – Would you buy a car if the speedometer doesn’t work or if you couldn’t gauge how much gasoline is in your tank? Would you be happy with a watch that wouldn’t give you the time of day? Would you purchase an air conditioning system that had no thermostat, no way to judge temperature?

Measurement and assessment. These are important factors when you’re talking about how much fuel you’ve got until the next exit or how much time until your next appointment. They’re also important factors when you’re talking about one of the most essential investments made by your contracting company: your marketing.

Is your marketing getting you where you need to be? Which aspects of it are really working for you? This is the kind of information that comes by “tracking.” Another word for tracking is “testing,” but essentially, you can’t get any idea of how well any ad or promotion works unless you track it. When you do, you’ll have an advantage that pays handsomely.

Your receptionist can keep up with this in a number of ways. I’ve seen very effective companies use a “tick mark” system of noting an ad’s response that is then fed into a weekly results sheet for leads and sales. I’ve also seen sophisticated contact management software that had a field for incoming leads per media type. Any method is better than no method. The essence of tracking is to find what works and how well it’s paying you back.

Click here to learn about Online Lead Generation

Adams Hudson is president of Hudson, Ink, a creative marketing firm for contractors. For a free sample of our customer retention newsletter, call Hudson, Ink at 1-800-489-9099 or visit www.hudsonink.com for many free marketing articles and reports. To receive a free newsletter sample, fax the request on your letterhead to 334-262-1115.