marketing

Is your plumbing business experiencing a drought? Things drying up a little bit? Jokes aside, it can be disheartening for things to slow down for your business, especially when you work for yourself. But while things might seem a little quiet right now, it doesn’t have to be this way for long. With some simple steps you can help pick yourself back up, ready for a busy summer. 

Take a look at some things you can do to give your plumbing services a boost this summer.

Reconnect with existing clients

If your clients aren’t coming to you, perhaps it’s time to go to them! While you might be looking for ways to get more repeat customers, it doesn’t hurt to focus on the ones you already have. A courtesy call or email to see if there’s anything they need could be a good way to book in some work. You might even be able to offer a discount on your typical rates as an incentive. 

Push summer-related services

While a lot of people need plumbing services in the winter, you could be surprised at how busy the summer months can get. Outdoor plumbing can face all kinds of issues, which isn’t ideal for your customers who need to maintain their lawns and keep their flowers healthy. It’s also a great time for people to create water features, maintain their pools, etc. Do some promotion around your summer-related services to see if you can bring some new customers on board. 

Give your customers what they want

Do your plumbing services cater to your customers’ needs? Different developments in the industry could mean that you’re behind your competition in terms of what you offer. One simple and fast way of upgrading your business is to get a chip reader so that you can accept card payments from your customers – it’s a little thing, but it can make a big difference to customers who can’t pay in cash. You should also ask about the kinds of services they’d like to see and work out if this is something you can offer your clients. 

Use social media to build up recognition

Social media isn’t just for big companies with big budgets to make a splash, it’s perfect for small, local businesses like yours too. There are some effective ways of using social media for your small business, including some paid-for ads using local targeting. Even showing off your latest work can be a good way to get people interested – start following some people local to your area and start pushing your services.

It’s normal for businesses to experience quiet periods, but that doesn’t mean you have to stay idle during this time. You can use this time to market your services, but it can also be a chance to do some additional training so that you can offer even more services to your clients. It could also be an excuse to take a much-needed vacation, so that you’re nice and refreshed ready for the next busy period!

As the owner of a plumbing company, fixing faults is only one feature of what you do. Frankly, branding and marketing is an essential aspect if you wish to achieve sustained success. After all, without clients, your business cannot survive.

Keeping up appearances is a key component of a thriving system. However, you will also need to ensure that it doesn’t affect your flow of productivity. Focus on the four features below, and you won’t go far wrong. 

Building An Online Reputation

In today’s climate, virtually every business can benefit from a strong online presence. Even when your plumbing firm is focused on a small geographic reach, the fact is that a strong digital presence is needed. Because your clients are actively searching for brands on their various devices.

A well-designed website should look good and feel easier to navigate. Visit https://codal.com/solutions/ to find WordPress experts. As well as a powerful site, you should look to achieve a solid social media presence. While followers won’t necessarily translate to direct conversions, it can make the company look bigger.

Learn to stand out on Google with SEO and Google My Business listings for optimal results.

Mastering Offline Marketing

While online marketing is essential, you must not forget local offline marketing practices. Your business is primarily focused on clients in your region, which makes it a lot easier to tailor your strategies. When you reach the target audience in an effective way, conversions without huge expenses should follow.

The direct data and mailing marketing system can work wonders for raising local awareness in a cost-effective way. Visit https://www.action-mailing.com/data-services to learn more about implementing a strategy to reduce waste. If you offer both B2B and B2C plumbing services, be sure to separate the two data groups.

When offering a service like plumbing, offline marketing also builds trust from your leads.

Invest In The Team

A strong branding strategy is nothing without the accompaniment of a world-class plumbing service. If you are a sole trader, you’ll only have to worry about yourself and potentially one work partner. If, however, you run a small company, you need to know that all workers will support the brand image.

The value of appreciating your employees cannot be emphasized enough. A happier atmosphere leads to improved productivity, fewer mistakes, and better client interactions. You can support the process further by investing in staff uniforms. Elsewhere, a dedicated virtual receptionist can help manage enquiries.

Customers call plumbers when situations need resolving. Supporting them properly is vital.

Use Advanced Tech

Dealings with customers are often easier for plumbers than other businesses. But that should not stop you from using sophisticated solutions. It’s the type of move that will make your business more memorable. In turn, you will gain their repeat business and enjoy the benefits of referrals.

Investing in the best tools to identify and investigate problems is vital. Likewise, you should use the right parts to correct any faults. However, you may find that it is equally rewarding to invest in SMS appointment reminders to provide transparency. Meanwhile, providing the right level of aftercare with video tutorials or guides can work wonders.

When the brand image is right, you can dedicate more time to your actual profession. Perfect.

The trades have always been competitive and very word-of-mouth and reputation-led, even in these online times. This means that it’s essentially important for any business, no matter if they’re involved in construction, repairs or specialized outfitting, to focus on how to gain, retain, and satisfy their clients. This much is obvious.

That said, there are many competing businesses out there doing the exact same thing. Unfortunately, if you’re not first choice for a client, then odds are you won’t secure work from them. In this post, we’ll discuss a few strategies you can take to help your trade business become more competitive, deliver a better result, and enhance the value that you provide to the end client.

We hope to gear these tips for mostly everyone no matter where they are in the industry, from a somewhat humble outfit to a larger, multi-state operation that can attend many houses or commercial buildings rain or shine. In this respect, we can more competently understand how to move forward and deliver the full weight of our productivity going forward:

Offer Aftercare Services

Of course, it’s important to note that the work we commit to is not always the work that will remain. This isn’t to say that your quality assurance is lacking or that you should be expected to make continual repairs ad nauseum, but an aftercare service can be essential. Perhaps, after fully servicing a roof, you find it worthwhile to come back and inspect it after five years, making adjustments and repairs where necessary as part of your bargain.

This kind of longevity of service not only ensures that your client feels they can trust you in the long term, but it helps them refer to you as their only port of call if other issues take place. Not only that, but coming back to inspect or repair within your acceptable window is often seen to as a mark of trustworthiness, and it’ll keep your repairs or installations looking as good as possible for as long as possible. This can help emphasize yourself not only as a trade or construction service but that of a craftsman who may gain new clients via word of mouth alone.

Use Trustworthy Contractors

It’s very important to use trustworthy contractors where appropriate. This might involve hiring the best concrete contractors https://www.keflatwork.com/ to sort out a commercial building project’s drive-in area or foundations, or it might mean utilizing a service to come and finish off your structure with decorations and the installation of various utilities.

Trustworthy suppliers are also essential. Make sure you inspect the quality of your materials used, and services rendered. This might involve the kind of wood you use to implement fixtures, or it may mean investing in worthwhile safety equipment to protect your staff from difficult conditions. Ultimately, the services and tools we use to help deliver our product speaks to the competence and coherence of our brand, and that’s going to be a large part of what you have to offer.

Repeat Project Discounts

Of course, the only thing better than a new customer is a returning customer. For this reason, it’s a good idea to try and figure out how to make this a possibility. For instance, you might decide that if they return to you the next time they need their driveway servicing, you’ll offer them a 20% discount.

This can be achieved by simply having your client recorded on your books, or offering discount codes and seasonal promotions where necessary, using your website as a key instance. That kind of approach can be tremendously useful.

Promotions, Offers, Marketing Possibilities

Of course, all businesses are having to inspire further consumer confidence after Covid-19 has rocked many homeowner’s spending power. For this reason, getting the word out there is important. This can involve the use of promotions, offers, and additional marketing possibilities. The latter, for instance, might involve knocking off a certain price from work conducted if they advertise using a sign in their garden or driveway.

This way, the whole neighborhood can see the extent of a job well done, while also becoming aware of once again aware of your services in the local community. That may help drum up additional business, or simply give you the justification you need to begin opening those possible conversations.

Utilize SEO Techniques

Utilizing SEO techniques to help build your brand and become seen as the ‘default’ entity in your local area can be a great use of your time. SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization, which is a process of moderating your content and web presence to ultimately be favored by Google’s search algorithm, raising you higher in the search term rankings of your local area.

It’s perfectly safe and completely legal if done right, in fact, Google actively encourage this approach and industries have spawned around it. Companies can utilize the services of SEO firms, or they can help their own stature by methods such as running a business website blog with informative articles. Through writing their landing pages well, having essential information on hand and using keywords, they can also make sure their actual website pages raise higher in the search term rankings, too. This means that you’re much more likely to be seen by others when they’re searching for services like yours in the area, as simply being one search ranking above another service could potentially secure you the client, and vice versa.

As such, service-oriented businesses like yours could prosper in their marketing strategy provided they’re willing to utilize the best SEO practices and habits geared at getting them there.

Attend Trade Events & Shows

It’s good to be seen as a face of and in your industry, and that means attending trade shows and events can be a great idea. This might involve showing off a product you have designed, or your portfolio, giving a talk, or just being a presence there, promoting your business and talking to other players in your field. It might be, for instance, that you’re an officially approved vendor of a certain product, and as such, it’s a good idea to be there to discuss its very many applications. 

Not only is this a good place to network and be seen, but you may learn more about the movers and shakers in your industry, the standards they set, and more. As such, industry trade events are more than worth your time.

Become Licensed With Certain Manufacturers

Of course, contractors, builders and construction outfits work hand in hand with manufacturers to make sure that adequate services are rendered and the best products are installed. From proprietary driveway resin materials to certain double glazing options, manufacturers may require official approval before you are entitled to order or install their products.

It’s not uncommon for our potential clients to be aware of this arrangement, or at least the brand name of a certain product they would like, and so investing in our firm to be able to install those products is essential. This might involve sending your staff to training seminars, completing qualifications yourself, or perhaps entering into an exclusivity deal with such a manufacturer. Then, and perhaps only then, may you be able to adequately provide the manufacturer’s product as required. It can’t hurt to follow this process, as it both could and should raise your attractiveness to particularly informed clients.

With this advice, you’re sure to make your trade firm that much more competitive. After a year like 2020 and the first half of 2021, that’s more important than ever.

Being your own boss in the plumbing sector has a lot to offer; when you’ve got the skills for it, and you know there’s a need for your services in the local area, you could make a very good profit here! However, there are quite a few things to get to grips with before you get started; being a business owner, especially in this industry, can get complicated, and it’s good to know what you’re walking into. And with that in mind, let’s go through three of the most important points below. 

It’s Not Just About Plumbing

Plumbing is what your business does well, of course, but it’s not the only thing your business will need to do well – you’re going to need to pick up a few other skills, to make sure the ends meet and the books are balanced and the right people are working alongside you. 

Indeed, the numbers issue alone is something you’ll have to face up to as soon as you get the idea to open a business. As a plumber, you’re already technically minded, and that should make taking on an accounting cpe entirely in your stride – a little bit of the right knowhow, and a bit of experience in paying taxes and cross examining your profits and loss margins, and you should be good to go. 

You’ll Probably Need to Pick a Side

When it comes to plumbing, there are two worlds you’ll have to fit yourself into: domestic and commercial. Both sides have their advantages and their drawbacks, of course, but when you’re just starting out, you’re going to need to pick a side for the time being. 

Most first time plumbers choose domestic, as it doesn’t take as much startup equipment. Similarly, domestic plumbing is much easier to cope with, as it’s smaller, far less used, and the jobs tend to be quick. However, working in the commercial world could open up quite a few more doors for you, in terms of contracts, and if you’re comfortable with industrial systems, why not go for it? 

Working Out Your Salary

Then you’ll need to work out how you’re going to price yourself. A good thing to do first is work out what the average salary for a plumber is in your area, and what the national average is as well. According to Indeed, the average hourly pay for a plumber in the US is $24.60 an hour – is this a rate you’ll be comfortable working for? 

Because if not, you can price yourself above it, but you’ll need to ensure the quality is reflected in your work. Of course, if there are few plumbers in the area, you’ve got a much better chance of creating your own salary, but if not, you’ll need to be more competitively priced. 

Opening a plumbing business of your own is about more than just the plumbing. Make sure you’re capable of counting the numbers, negotiating, and marketing yourself to the area.