Do You Have a “What’s Next?” Approach To Marketing?

Back in March of this year (2023), we shared a few prac­ti­cal tips for mar­ket­ing your con­tract­ing busi­ness in a tight econ­o­my. Since then, we saw an uptick in leads among our clients that we could chalk up to sea­son­al­i­ty — lots of folks want to paint their house in the sum­mer­time, right?

Now, how­ev­er, we’re start­ing to feel the pinch again. Leads are slow­ing, elec­tive projects are put on hold, plus home­own­ers are busy think­ing about oth­er things as the hol­i­days loom.

You have two options:

1. Take a con­ser­v­a­tive approach and weath­er the storm as best you can

2. Get proac­tive, get hun­gry, and start think­ing out­side the lead gen box

We’re going to assume that Option 2 sounds bet­ter. Keep reading!

What’s the Good News? Peo­ple Are Ready To Invest in Their Hous­es Right Now

Real estate is EXPEN­SIVE and inter­est rates are climb­ing. Not a good com­bo for peo­ple who may have been think­ing about mov­ing… So yes, your tar­get audi­ence might be slow­er to open their wal­let, but they’re even slow­er to actu­al­ly move out of their home (why trade in that 3 – 5% fixed mort­gage rate, right?). 

This is where con­sis­ten­cy in your mes­sag­ing pays off. It could take 3, 4, or 5 touch points, but your audi­ence is think­ing about that project and wants to call you. Give them a good rea­son to, and stay in front of them. 

A lit­tle emo­tion-based mar­ket­ing helps, too. Use this oppor­tu­ni­ty to inspire with before/​after per­spec­tives, plus edu­cate them con­sis­tent­ly about why YOUR ser­vices are supe­ri­or. Not in a sales-dri­ven way, but in a gen­uine, edu­ca­tion­al way that explains your val­ue propo­si­tion. If you become the go-to resource and author­i­ty, it not only inspires con­fi­dence in what you offer but also sows doubt in your competition. 

“What’s next?” main­te­nance plans mat­ter more than ever

Here’s the ​“What’s next?” approach that we allud­ed to before…

When you fin­ish a job, don’t just walk away. Make a plan. Get a com­mit­ment from the cus­tomer on the spot, estab­lish­ing a rela­tion­ship. A part­ner­ship, if you will, in which you’re BOTH com­mit­ted to the suc­cess and longevi­ty of the work that was done. Per­mis­sion-based mar­ket­ing is key: ​“We’re so thrilled that you love your new paint job! How about we come back in the spring for an inspec­tion and pow­er washing?”

It’s a lit­tle like when you fin­ish a check­up at your doctor’s office. They don’t just let you leave, but have you per­form a quick ​“check-out” process that includes set­ting up your next appointment. 

So go ahead: set up that next appoint­ment with the home­own­er, prop­er­ty man­ag­er, or busi­ness own­er. Show that your invest­ed and secure your posi­tion as their go-to paint­ing company.

“What’s next?” works BEFORE the job is sold, too

Espe­cial­ly in this econ­o­my, home­own­ers want to feel con­fi­dent that they’re mak­ing a SMART invest­ment, and few things fos­ter that con­fi­dence more than a sense of value. 

When you dis­cuss the next steps dur­ing the esti­ma­tion process, include the next main­te­nance steps, too. ​“Here’s how it all works, and here’s what hap­pens a year lat­er… We’re com­mit­ted to mak­ing sure your sur­faces look incred­i­ble and per­form the way you need them to.” It’s a sim­ple, turnkey process that elim­i­nates wor­ry or stress. 

This is super impor­tant to your com­mer­cial clients too. If a busy prop­er­ty own­er or man­ag­er knows that there’s a set main­te­nance sched­ule that hap­pens with­out their orches­tra­tion or time com­mit­ment, it takes work off their plate and sim­pli­fies their to-do list. One less thing, right? 

So, what’s next for YOU?

If you need more ideas for how to dom­i­nate your fall and win­ter time mar­ket­ing, be sure to check out these blogs pub­lished ear­li­er this year. Trust us: you’re think­ing about all these things, and we are too. 

• 8 Ways To Help Your Con­tract­ing Busi­ness Weath­er Eco­nom­ic Uncertainty

• Con­trac­tors! Dur­ing a tight econ­o­my, think small for big opportunities

• Start Fall Mar­ket­ing NOW for Your Home Improve­ment Busi­ness: Get a Head Start on a Suc­cess­ful Lead Gen­er­a­tion Season

• Mar­ket­ing Help for Painter

Have any oth­er spe­cif­ic ques­tions? Please feel free to con­tact us. We’re always hap­py to have a brain­storm­ing ses­sion and dis­cuss ways that you can not just sur­vive, but actu­al­ly thrive, as we walk through a lean­er season.