It was a purely social setting, centered around kids, and an unanticipated business opportunity. But it was a business opportunity. And here I was -- purportedly a marketing guy -- and I couldn't find a business card!
I did a mental Homer, as in Simpson, hitting myself while exclaiming, "Doh!"
Have you ever needed a card, but couldn't find one? Or, worse, the only card left was sweat stained and tattered around the edges.
I'm thinking about this because HVAC Comfortech is coming. A conference is the last place anyone should run out of business cards. Forget to bring socks and you can run to the store. Forget your business cards and you're history for the event.
Avoid finding yourself out and about without your business cards by storing them in multiple locations and periodically replenishing those locations. Here's my list...
1. Promote the website.
2. Stress a few key points (i.e., family ownership, long tenure, and Internet orders).
3. Emphasize that it's a Dallas company.
1. No logo.
2. No address.
3. Stating "Family Owned for 20 Years" dates it.
4. Possible trademark infringement.
Don’t copy or imitate Google's trade dress, including the look and feel of Google web design properties or Google brand packaging, distinctive color combinations, typography, graphic designs, product icons, or imagery associated with Google.
GOOGLE is a registered trademark of Google, Inc. We are not a partner, affiliate, or licensee of Google Inc., nor is our company in any other way formally associated with Google Inc.
On the way to church Sunday, my wife nearly backed over a contractor walking across our driveway. Give him credit. He was industrious, walking neighborhoods on a Sunday morning to try and make something happen.
I've personally witnessed a lot more door to door activity in my neighborhood over the past six months. It's a sign that fencing contractors, cleaning services, painters, yard services, pest control companies, and other home services companies are looking for work. So far, so good.
Unfortunately, none of them offer a reason to call. About all they're doing is leaving a business card in the door. None include a call to action. Why should I call any of them? Simply because they leave a business card in my door?
At the very least, include a rubber stamped discount on the back of the business card. Create a call to action with a deadline. Always tell the prospect what he should do, why he should do it, and when he should do it.
(c) 2009 Matt Michel
Continuing the series...
17. Make Your Fax Cover Page A Marketing Piece
When you send a fax, do you use the Microsoft Word fax cover page template? Why? Why not promote your company? Tell people what you do, offer reasons for calling your company, and give the recipient a coupon. Make your fax cover page a marketing piece.
While it’s true that we send fewer faxes, every now and then, its easier to fax a document than email it. Some situations, such as those requiring signatures, necessitate a fax. If you’re going to print and fax the cover page anyway, why not make it work for you?
18. Paperclip A Business Card To Every Bill
We all like to do business with the people who do business with us. It’s human nature. So every time you send in a bill, paperclip your business card to it. The late Tom McCart swore to me that he got one or two leads a year from paperclipping his business cards to bills.
One or two leads is nothing to get excited about, but a few business cards costs almost nothing and it takes little effort to paperclip them to a bill. More important, it supports the marketing mindset where you are constantly marketing.
19. Promote Your Company In Your Email Signature
While we may not fax much, we do email. A lot. Make sure you promote you company in your email signature. List the company name, what you do, your mission, your website, your contact information, and any awards and recognitions. This can be set to automatically be added to the bottom of any email you send using Microsoft Outlook or other email clients.
20. Save Old Yellow Pages (Cross Out The Companies Out Of Business)
When selling equipment replacements, major project, installation, or remodel work, use the transitory nature of the industry in your favor and against your competitors. Scan copies of old yellow pages directories for inclusion in a presentation book and cross out the names of companies who once advertised, but are no longer in existence. When showing this page to your prospects, comment that “A lot of companies come and go, but we’ve got a solid history, which means we’ll be around to honor all warranties and take care of your needs well into the future. Isn’t nice to have a local, family business you can rely upon?”
(c) 2009 Matt Michel
Originally Posted 2.23.09
13. If You Are Drug Free, Promote It
Years ago, a contractor in Auburn, California told me he was randomly testing his employees for drugs. Being somewhat of a libertarian, I was horrified. He explained why and I was even more horrified.
One of his technicians developed a cocaine habit. The tech would case customers’ houses on service calls and return at night to rip them off. “Do you know what my liability would be?” asked the contractor.
“No.”
“Neither do I, and I never want to find out.”
Flash forward a few years. When I worked in franchising, one of our franchisees lost track of a truck. This was pre-GPS. No one knew the vehicle location. The plumber didn’t answer the radio.
The highway patrol found him. He was sitting in his service van on a freeway shoulder, slumped over, dead from a heroine overdose. Fortunately, the plumber hadn’t hurt anyone besides himself.
In Philadelphia this week, a plumber was arrested after getting videotaped stealing pipes from suburban fast food restaurants. He was selling the pipes as scrap to pay for drugs.
Unfortunately drugs are a problem. And people know it.
According to the National Household Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH), over 8% of full time workers use illicit drugs. Among full time employees, the construction trades witnessed the second highest amount of illicit drug abuse (15%) of any occupation. Less than one third of companies use random drug testing.
Source
Drug test. Drug test to protect yourself. Drug test to protect your (clean) employees. Then, promote it.
Let your customers and potential employees know your company is drug free. Proclaim it on job applications and on your website.
It will attract the employees you want and dissuade those you do not from applying in the first place. It will also attract customers who want peace of mind about the individuals who are allowed inside their homes.
14. Insert A Business Card Into Every Returned DVD
When you rent a DVD, stick a business card into the box when returning it. The kid who opens the box to verify the DVD will probably toss it, but you never know. It’s only a business card!
Of course, it will be more effective if you have a coupon on the back of the business card for dollars off a service call.
15. Join A Leads Club
Leads clubs exist in every town. Some are affiliated with national organizations. Some are independent. Usually, the Chamber of Commerce knows about area leads clubs.
Leads clubs are focused networking groups. Non-competitive businesses meet for lunch or breakfast. The idea is to help each other with introductions and business opportunities.
Everyone in your club is a prospect. More important, everyone in your club is a community center of influence and source of quality referrals.
Leads clubs are different than service clubs. Service clubs exist to be of service to the community. The networking that occurs is a fringe benefit. In a leads club the networking is the purpose. As a result, the meetings tend to be focused and no-nonsense. Each member tries to help others gain business.
Contact your local chamber for more information on the leads clubs in your area.
16. Knock On Doors
Tom McCart was the first salesperson in the heating and air conditioning industry to sell $1 million of replacement products. He did it in a small, one season market, one system at a time, with many sales coming from leads generated by knocking on doors.
Knocking on doors? It sounds crazy. Yet, soon after Tom broke the million dollar ceiling, Pat McCormick sold $1 million worth of high efficiency air conditioners in mild Southern California. Pat generated ALL of his leads by knocking on doors.
Mention “knocking on doors” and the image of the pushy salesperson immediately comes to mind. And, a lot of door-to-door salespeople are pushy. The best are not. They don’t have to be pushy.
Think about Tom and Pat selling air conditioners. Air conditioners are replaced every 15 years on average (though they should be replaced a little more often than that). This means that 7% of the installed base of air conditioners needs replacement every year.
Knock on 15 doors and the odds suggest that one homeowner will own an air conditioner that needs replacement. Why hasn’t he replaced? It’s probably because he doesn’t know who to call and dreads the process of calling contractors, scheduling appointments, and listening to the pitch. He imagines the contractor salesperson to be dishonest and pushy.
So why will he buy from you? Because you are the opposite of the salesperson he fears. McCart used to knock on the door, smile, introduce himself, and declare that he was the neighborhood contractor and was letting people know that he had some special financing available for homeowners in the area. He just wanted to know if the homeowner had any interest.
Tom said the next part was key. “Shut up,” advised Tom.
Minneapolis contractor Gary Katz says that silence is the only pressure you ever need to apply. Tom McCart certainly used it to great effect.
Following the pregnant pause, the homeowner will do one of the following:
- He might dismiss you, declaring a lack of interest.
- He might ask for more information.
- He might invite you to take a look at his old air conditioner.
If he dismisses you, thank him for his time. Hand him a business card and give him permission to call you when he decides it’s time to replace.
Pat McCormick said knocking or doors will eventually result in a sale. It’s a numbers game. Pat would divide the commission by the number of doors he knocked on until he made a sale to come up with an average value of each door. On each rejection, he reminded himself of the value of that door.
If the homeowner asks for information, give it to him. If he asks for you to look at his air conditioner, do it. Chances are good that this is a homeowner who lacks a relationship with a contractor and knows it’s time to replace. You’re in the right place at the right time.
All marketing requires an investment of money or time. Knocking on doors costs nothing, but does take time. If you lack leads, knocking on doors beats the heck out of sitting around the shop. Give it a try.
© 2009 Matt Michel
Originally Published 10.24.08
1. Adopt A Highway (Adopt A Busy Highway/Road With Lower Speeds)
My service club adopted a busy street. One Saturday a month we meet at 8:00 a.m. and pick up trash along a two block section. With two people, it takes 45 minutes. With more than two, it takes less than half an hour.
In return for maintaining the strip, the city put up signs acknowledging our effort. More than once while I’ve been picking up trash near the traffic light, a driver has pulled to a stop, found he was even with me, rolled down the window, and said thanks. Talk about great PR!
Adopting a highway isn’t going to make your phone ring off the wall, but it’s not going to cost you anything either. Make company t-shirts or reflective vests with your logo big and bold on the back.
It will build goodwill. It will build awareness. It will also build your sense of self-worth because you’re doing something good for the community.
2. Ask For Reciprocity
People like to do business with the people who do business with them. It’s natural. When people patronize our businesses, we feel a sense of obligation to return the favor. So remind people of their “obligation.”
Years ago I was visiting a friend whose shop was located in the sticks. At lunch, I noticed a several employees of the contractor were eating in the same restaurant. I asked him about it.
“There’s not many places nearby, so a lot of us come here. It’s close.”
“How many people from your company eat here?” I asked.
This lead to several back of the napkin calculations. We determined my friend, through himself and his employees, was spending thousands a month at the one restaurant. Yet, there was no reciprocity. He didn’t get any work from the restaurant.
We called the manager over, complemented him on his food and service, and showed him our quick calculations. My friend followed up the next week and walked away with a maintenance contract that would ultimately save the restaurant owner money. It was a nice reciprocal arrangement where everyone won.
How can you get started generating reciprocity? A simple thing we put together for Service Roundtable members is a back-of-the-business-card template that asks for reciprocity. The card states, “Who gets your business? I like to do business with the people who do business with me. How about you? The next time you need _____ work, call me. Let’s do business.”
Print this on the back of your business card and hand it out to every business you patronize. Do it EVERY TIME. The message will get through. If the business owner needs your services and doesn’t already have a strong relationship with another company, you’re probably going to get called the next time he needs work at his company or home.
And why not? You’re giving business to him. It only seems natural to reciprocate.
3. Conduct An Employee Business Card Collection Contest
At a Nexstar meeting I attended, a business card collection contest was held for new members. The alliance managers were using the contest to encourage new members to meet as many people as possible. They certainly put forth more effort to meet people than they likely would have without the contest.
It got me thinking. While I generally try to find out other people’s occupations, there are lots of people I know whose occupations are a mystery to me. Mine is probably a mystery to them. These are people at church, involved with youth activities, volunteer work, and so on.
If that’s true for me, it’s probably true for you and your employees, right? Between you and your employees, you probably interact with hundreds, if not thousands of people who might patronize your company if they only knew what you did or where your employees worked. So how do you get the word out?
Well, when someone hands you a business card, what’s the most natural thing in the world to do? Hand one back, right?
So why not start a business card collection contest with your employees? Offer a nice incentive for the winner and a few good consolation prizes for runners up. The incentive should be attractive enough to motivate people to action.
Instruct employees to approach their friends and simply say…
“We’re running a business card collection contest at work to see how many people everyone in the company knows. If you wouldn’t mind, could I get your business card? The company won’t add you to any mail lists, though you might get a thank you card with a coupon.”
Most people will be happy to give your employee a business card. You can run the contest over a long enough period of time that people who may not normally bring business cards to church, bowling, or some other weekly event can bring one the following week.
When someone hands you or your employee a business card, hand two or more back. If the friend or acquaintance tries to give you one back, refuse. Say, “Oh, I’ve got plenty. Just give it to someone who might need it.”
After the contest ends, mail a thank you post card or letter to everyone who gave your employees their business cards and enclose a coupon. Don’t do more. You’ve accomplished your purpose, which is to encourage your employees to spread the word about your company among their circle of friends and acquaintances.
If you need your carpets cleaned, don’t care what company you use, and know a parent on your kid’s t-ball team who is a carpet cleaner, who are you likely to call? Because of the relationship, you assume you’ll get more conscientious service and maybe even a price break from the guy you know, even if you don’t know him well. However tenuous, there’s already a relationship and business is built on relationships.
© 2008 Matt Michel
