Take a look at what TORO has done with their Social Media Marketing (SMM) by spending time on their YouTube channel. Toro sells all sorts of lawn products. Boring eh? Well, they’ve made it not so boring by creating interesting videos that they feel will be well received. So far, they’ve had over 250,000 visitors watching their short clips. You won’t find a lot of promotional commercials. Instead you’ll see how Toro does “low budget” videos that shows their products in action. Consumers are tired of commercial, and TORO understands the power of Social Media. That is why they took “real life” footage and made believable clips. Great job TORO!
Painters, Remodelers, Service companies? You call can do the same. Just be yourself. Start a blog. Get a Flip Camera or use a Smartphone and start recording some video. If your content and videos are good…people will watch and read.
The Numbers If you think that people don’t use the Internet to find a great painting company, think again. In 2009, over 1.3 million people used Google, LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter to find a company to paint their houses and offices.
So, What? What does this mean to you? It means that if you’re not online, you’re leaving several thousands of dollars on the table. Just to be clear: by “online”, I don’t mean just “having a website”. Who doesn’t have one of those these days, anyway? What I mean is:
You’re on the first page of Google when people search for “painting company” in your local area.
You earn the trust of your community through Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and community.
You have a website created by marketers and web designers (as opposed to web designers alone).
How You Can Use the Internet to Market Your Painting Company These are some great ideas to use the Internet to generate dozens of hot leads every month.
Less Is More Make sure your website is clean, organized and easy to navigate.
Give Something Away for Free Have a freebie for prospects who aren’t ready to be sold yet. Not every website visitor will become a client. Some are just “looking around”. Give them something for free, such as a free guide on how to choose the perfect painting company (be completely unbiased) or a presentation featuring some “before and after’s” from your previous clients. This will result in two things: 1) You’ll build trust with your prospects by giving them something of value for free and 2) You’ll get your prospect email address in exchange for the freebie. This will allow you to follow up with them after they leave your site.
Use Testimonials Your prospects will always have some reservations about working with you the first time they visit your site. When you meet prospects in person, it’s really easy to overcome their objections. But, when it comes to your website, the best way to overcome objections is to show your prospects that other people just like them had the same reservations they now have, decided to trust your company and now they couldn’t be happier they did. Try to get video testimonials if possible. Otherwise, just a few sentences on why exactly your clients love working with you will be great.
Have a Blog Write great home improvement articles and post them to your blog at least every other week. Share this content with your community using Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. Also, add a “Share” button to your site so your visitors can share your content with their friends with just one click.
Increase Your Reach The more people you reach with your content, the more clients you’ll get. Be proactive about getting more qualified prospects on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn.
Be First on Google When you search for something on Google, do you click on the first results Google shows you or you go to the 7th page to see the results there? Of course you click on the first results! That’s what your prospects do too when they search for a painting company in your area. So, you need to be on the first page of Google (preferably at the very top of it).
The Million-Dollar Question Every day, hundreds of prospects are using the Internet to find a painting company in your area. Are they finding you or your competitors?
Amazon.com has done an incredible job with their brand since its inception back in 1994. When you look at the Amazon.com logo (a part of their overall brand) and think about their company, what comes to mind? A hint, you should be able to think of at least three things!
A few years ago, most small service business owners did not know what a blog is? Now, more of these owners have blogs on their site. However, when I look over company blogs, I do not see either good content or activity. Most of the time a company starts a blog with good intentions but gets too busy to keep up! This is why, I highly recommend outsourcing your blog writing services to a professional writer. You will find hundreds and thousands of writers who are capable to writer for you. The key for you is to find the right writer(s) that fits well for you. The video below is about 10 minutes and a little technical. However, it is worth the 10 minutes to discuss the important of outsourcing content and the benefits of hiring a good writer. The presenter makes an excellent point: 1 Good Article is worth ten if not a hundred crummy articles. So watch the video and create a plan on hiring a skilled writer to create remarkable content for your business. As always, please give me your feedback.
If you have not started a Facebook Fan page yet, get going! Don’t wait. Before I give you a few tips on how to get started, let me tell you what NOT to do on Facebook. Do not use Facebook as a means to SELL SELL SELL. Facebook is a Social Networking tool. A business page is called a “fan page,” and it is just that: people who like your content and company will become fans! They will “de-fan” you if you try to sell them stuff. Use it as a tool to connect, share and get feedback. I like to look at Facebook the same way I meet someone in person. Just start a normal conversation and try to keep it going in a conversational way! It is really pretty easy if you have good people skills. The only time you can sell is when you have VERY loyal fans, but even then, you can’t promote too much. For example, lets say you have built 200+ fans that seem to like your post and even comment regularly. Now it is the winter months and work has slowed down. You can very cautiously post that a few of your painters, carpenters and/or employees need work. If you have raving fans, they will help you out!
So, here are a few tips to get started:
Create your business page here (Make sure it is not a group but a “page”) A Group can be important but that is for another blog
One the page is complete, fill in your company information, website information, Twitter and Blog RSS
Create a custom profile image to use for your company fan page (any length but no wider than 200 pixels) View My Sample
Make sure your Facebook page is posted everywhere: Linkedin, Twitter, Blogs, Website, Email Signature, etc.
Tell your friends and customers to join the fun on Facebook. Tell them in a non-sales way! Just ask them to join and they will! If they need a little help, send them a link.
Then start posting remarkable content and respond to anyone who comments on your site. If you don’t have remarkable and fun things to say, don’t use Facebook. If you get stuck, hire a professional Social Media writer or expert.
We are in the process of updating a contractor’s logo, brand and website. He is very well known in the Washington D.C. area. In the past, he has done his work strictly by word of mouth. Therefore, he did not have a logo or brand identity.
Download the few samples of his new Logo, Business Cards and Yard Signs. My graphic artist did an outstanding job working with the colors and layout. Pioneer Designs is finishing up the website, which will launch in about 2 weeks or less. Download Here.
In this economy, many contractors are becoming desperate, that is…if they are still in business. Instead of thinking smart about their business, they are doing the first thing that comes to their mind: lowering their price. Who can blame them? I’ve been there plenty of times myself. You go into a sales situation, bond and rapport with a homeowner, discuss their project and then get down to the price. All of a sudden, your not their friend anymore. They say, “Oh wow…that is way too much. The “other guy” will do it for half!” I’d sure like to meet the “other guy” someday. I’ve heard about him, and he does not have a good reputation. So, what’s a contractor to do when he hears those words? Cut his price or create something new and different for his clients?
My suggestion would be to not cheapen your brand but provide a solution to your potential clients that is new, different and might cost less. So for example, instead of trying to sell a complete exterior paint job or interior renovation, try giving the prospect something tangible for less. I recently talked to a painter who created a “curbside special” package and sold it for a flat price. He told homeowners that they could freshen up their fascia, shutters and entry wood trim for less than a thousand dollars. The painting owner came up with this idea for a few communities with similar looking homes. He knew he would not loose money as well. The benefit to the homeowner was it would tie them over for the next few years until they were ready for a complete paint job. Another example is my dad, Mike Chism, created a Painter for a Day during the mid and late 1990s to offer small painting projects to his clients. During this slowing economy, his Painter For a Day concept has worked quite well. In fact, dozens of other painters are using a similar program to promote their services. A Painter for a Day really is a great way for clients to sample one’s services before committing to a larger project. My dad tried hard not to discount the work as well, because the value to the client was obvious: he did small jobs. Many times, customers began to add more than just one day of painting. He even had a customer hire his company to paint the entire inside of the house, which started with a Painter for a Day daily rate. It was tangible…and easy for customers to swallow.
Creating value and new programs for your customers is far better than just lowering your price. Now is the time to really get your creative juice going and try different ways to connect with homeowners. If you don’t know what to do, ask them. Call up your existing clients and talk to them about some of your ideas of marketing your business.
I did a presentation a few months back at a NARI meeting about SEO, Blogging and Social Media, and most of the group had the “deer in the headlight look” when I asked them if they knew much about Facebook and online marketing. But, I’m quite surprised when I see a contractor who does not have a Facebook page whether they use it or even know what it is or does!
So, why my blog post title? When your employee comes to you and says, “Hey boss. We need a Facebook page. We are so early 2000ish!” Don’t just say, “Go for it…sign up…get it done!” Be a little more cautious. What I’ve discovered is if an employee is going to have access to your company Facebook and then gets fired, quits or is laid off, you will have a very hard time figuring out how to login when you are ready to begin using Facebook for marketing. I recently spoke to a painter who asked for my help marketing on Facebook, and we were unable to get into their Facebook login page. In this case, they had hired an outside company to sign them up for Facebook. That is even worst. Because they cancelled services, the company would NOT release the login information. So now this paint company has a live company Facebook page with no access! Another large paint company recently laid off an admin assistant who had signed them up for email marketing services on iContact. When I tried to access the site, I could not. No one in the company knew the password, so we had to start from scratch!
The bottom line is this: if you decide to have a marketing company or an employee sign you up for Facebook, any online program/campaign or even create your website, make sure you are the Administrator and know all the passwords. The email addresses should be yours, not your employees. Also, read the fine print if you are dealing with an outside company.
Take a look at what TORO has done with their Social Media Marketing (SMM) by spending time on their YouTube channel. Toro sells all sorts of lawn products. Boring eh? Well, they’ve made it not so boring by creating interesting videos that they feel will be well received. So far, they’ve had over 250,000 visitors watching their short clips. You won’t find a lot of promotional commercials. Instead you’ll see how Toro does “low budget” videos that shows their products in action. Consumers are tired of commercial, and TORO understands the power of Social Media. That is why they took “real life” footage and made believable clips. Great job TORO!
Guest Blogger: Zeke Camusio, founder of 
