Can Your Business Thrive If You Do Not Market?
Over the years I have seen many painting and contracting companies stay the same size and struggle to survive: stay in business and not make enough money. I don’t know about you, if I am not making money in my business and working just to pay the bills, I do not want the stress to stay in business. That is survival mode! I don’t want to survive in my business. I and most business owners want to thrive. We want to make money and provide a quality business we are proud to serve up to our customers and hopefully pass on to someone else or sell someday.
Back to my blog topic, can your business thrive if you do not spend money or time on marketing? The short answer is no, you can’t! You will just survive. It is very difficult for a home improvement company, especially a painting contractor, to grow their business strictly relying on referrals and praying that people will appreciate their amazing quality and call them for a bid. These are the contractors I have seen year after year at conferences that do not grow. They are stuck in a rut. These are the folks that think marketing is a waste of time and money. These are the contractors who will always struggle to make it!
Back to my blog topic, can your business thrive if you do not spend money or time on marketing? The short answer is no, you can’t! You will just survive. It is very difficult for a home improvement company, especially a painting contractor, to grow their business strictly relying on referrals and praying that people will appreciate their amazing quality and call them for a bid. These are the contractors I have seen year after year at conferences that do not grow. They are stuck in a rut. These are the folks that think marketing is a waste of time and money. These are the contractors who will always struggle to make it!
Why Is Not Marketing A Problem
First step to any recovery: admit you have a problem! If you do not invest the time or resources into marketing your business, it is very challenging to produce enough ongoing leads and sales. You will tend to have too many highs and lows in your lead flow. When the economy is very strong, this is when contractors make the mistake of either stopping all marketing efforts or cutting way back. The exact opposite should take place. You want to prepare for the times when you know, historically, that the phone is quiet and the leads are down. You need to be consistent and not stop! You need to take risk, have a plan, and work it. The more time and energy you spend working on your business to increase systems, productivity and market share, the more will you see your business grow. The guys who do not market or are not consistent blame it on the fact that they cannot afford to market. Every business should have a marketing budget. I do not say this because I am a marketing guy and it keeps me in business. I am sharing this with you, because I guarantee that you will not have a thriving business without a consistent and steady marketing plan for your contracting company. You will be amazed when you take risk and focus on branding your business month after month. So if you have a problem, the next step is to propose making some changes!What Should I Do Now?
- Step 1: Raise your prices! I am serious. If you are not marketing, you are also not charging enough for your services. You need to be able to afford to market. So budget a good 3 – 5% of your revenue to the marketing department.
- Create a marketing budget for the year
- Review your history of sales: If you can, check the previous few years on leads and sales. This will help you understand the highs and lows in your business. If you know that leads slowdown from Dec-Feb, you need to develop a plan and prepare to increase sales possibly in the Fall. If you tend to get booked solid from April — Sept., you need to have a plan that prepares your customers to book early. You might also want to look at hiring early to prepare for those busy seasons.
- Track your progress: Always make sure you track your marketing expenses and lead flow. Invest in a good Customer Relationship Management CRM) program. When you track and have good data, you can make more intelligent decisions on where to invest your time and resources.
- Be purposeful in your marketing: Don’t just put all your money into Angie’s List, a Print Ad or _____. Carefully think about your clients and how to best reach them. It normally requires a number of marketing efforts.
About David Chism
David Chism started his business out of a passion for helping small contracting businesses grow, be more profitable and become better known to their target clients. One lifelong hobby of David is using techie gadgets. So this blog is a place where he writes about technology, marketing ideas, just for fun (humor), personal thoughts on small business and more.
