Hudson, Ink


The number one contractor marketing question is, “What do I do?”  The second is, “When do I do it?”   The right answer to each question takes planning.  And the effective marketer knows the answers long before the questions are asked. 

A simple marketing “attack” plan gives you a strategy that considers the needs of your market and provides a year-round plan to meet those needs.  It gives you a calm, rational approach to anticipate the slow times and gives you ways to keep promoting yourself when business is booming.

The trouble is, three out of four contractors don’t have one.  If you’re in the sad majority, don’t worry.  Help’s on the way.  To get your “strategic thinking” in gear, look to these ways to get on the right course: 

  1. Quit thinking your “old” marketing will suddenly have “new” results. Amazingly, electrical contractors crumble up thousands of dollars in “dead” ads a year. If it’s not helping your image or your lead count, chunk it. Get fresh and watch your market respond.
  2. Quit depending on the Yellow Pages as your salvation. Over 70% of contractors spend half their entire marketing budgets here. If it’s not pulling an equivalent lead count, that’s a big mistake. Trim your YP down to 24-31 % of your marketing budget. If you can get away with less, do it.  (For a free critique of your YP ad, fax the ad and your request to us at 334-262-1115.)
  3. Quit thinking of “co-op” as your main requirement for advertising. Use co-op to supplement advertising. “Brand” your company with your own ads, your benefits, and why customers should choose you, not just the equipment. Your company is worth its own unique message.  
  4. Zig while your competition zags. You cannot stand out by sameness. That’s so obvious, but contractors still use the competition as a model. And that’s a bad idea. Your ads and marketing message should be the most unique thing you have. Parade your unique benefits over the “same old thing” offered by your boring competition.
  5. Quit “Manic Marketing.” Instead of panicking at the last minute, or “throwing something together,” have ads ready to run in different media. All it takes is a little forethought. You already know the seasons, your product line, the service offerings, and perhaps even the financing offers. So why not have ads ready that fit the situation?
  6. Set a marketing budget. This is so simple, yet not 1 in 8 contractors do this right. If you’re aggressively pursuing market share, it’ll cost you 8-10% of your sales; moderate marketers spend 5-8%; conservative marketers spend 3.5-5%. If you’re trying to be “aggressive” but spending 2% of your sales on marketing, you’re looking for diamonds at the price of cubic zirconium. Spend what it takes.

Set a marketing plan in motion, no matter how small. At the most basic level, divide your year into quarters and define which ones are your peak seasons and which are “off-peak.”  Figure exactly what you’ll spend to promote what during that time. Then decide “how” you’ll deliver that message (media). You’re ahead of most of your competition just by doing this.