by tradespeopleinsights | Oct 20, 2020 | Marketing Tips, Marketing Tools
No matter what kind of promotion you’re doing, when going after the professional tradesmen, the bottom line is you want them to ask for more info and ultimately make a sale. You can’t do that in an ad (print or digital) by itself. You need those that are interested in whatever it is you’re selling to go somewhere to get more info. Effective landing pages make it clear what the visitor is going to get by visiting the site.
A landing page is ideal for a next step in the lead process. A good landing page will target a particular audience using a unique page that allows visitors to download the appropriate content (you wouldn’t have the same offer for say a tradesman and for a design engineer). They also help you track and monitor activity by offers so you know what works and what doesn’t.
Landing pages help segment markets, capture leads and make it possible to monitor advertising effectiveness.
- By directing them to a specific page with an offer and the appropriate form to fill out, it makes it more likely that they will complete the form and convert to a lead.
- If your visitors decide to download your offer, why not invite them to share your content?
- Lead nurturing is a very important part of the process. 50% of those who respond aren’t ready to buy just yet.
- 78% of sales that start with a web inquiry get won by the first company that responds.
- By sending a follow-up thank you to those that downloaded material, you have the opportunity to offer them additional info and downloads, as well as asking them to share it with others via social media.
If you like this post, you might want to read:
Are You Using Landing Pages to Help Qualify Leads?
Tips on Making Your Landing Pages Better
by tradespeopleinsights | Oct 12, 2020 | Marketing Tools, Trades, Tradespeople Insights
Many contractors have trouble navigating the digital scene. Here are tips that you can share with them to help them get noticed and sell more of your stuff!
Contractor’s Online Success Strategy: Get Listed on These Four Websites
For service-providing businesses, like contracting companies, greater online visibility can almost immediately bring more business. People’s primary way of finding somebody to do a job for them is by doing quick online research. In order to increase your chance of being found online, one of the simplest things you can do is get listed on websites for contractor services. Here are some websites worth considering.
HomeAdvisor
HomeAdvisor.com
With over 487,000 likes on Facebook, 26,200 followers on Instagram and more than 40,400 followers on Twitter, HomeAdvisor is one of the most popular websites for home service professionals.
HomeAdvisor’s web platform is extremely user-friendly. There is a very wide array of home improvement categories to choose from. Homeowners pick one, describe their needs and they get matched with up to four professionals. They can also read reviews of a particular contractor’s services.
HomeAdvisor offers contractors a robust, user-friendly system that lets you categorize and organize your leads, keep track of communications, and connect with prospects via phone or email with the touch of a button. Its mobile app lets you take these tools on the road to help you stay on top of your pipeline.
CraftJack
CraftJack.com
CraftJack is a very versatile web tool which allows you to do a lot more than just get listed in a search directory.
CraftJack works much like a social network but one geared exclusively towards contractors. Each contractor has a unique profile page, which they can use to promote their business. You can use it to showcase your finished work by posting photos and videos. Plus, the page will display your overall customer rating.
The CraftJack Pro app allows contractors to connect with homeowners, receive job alerts, schedule work, and request reviews right from their mobile device. CraftJack comes with a feature called Lead Manager, which can help you get more leads and referrals. You can even get discounts on the leads you win (e.g. by contacting a lead within 30 minutes of receiving the notification).
ACCA
Acca.org
ACCA stands for the Air Conditioning Contractors of America. But that doesn’t mean that only HVAC contractors can get listed. The website also works for contractors in refrigeration, plumbing, home and building performance, etc.
The way the website works is very simple. There is a search engine which homeowners, builders or building owners can use to find a contractor based on a variety of criteria, such as proximity, the kind of work they perform and the market segment in which they operate – commercial, residential or government. Site visitors can also find instructions on how to choose the most suitable contractor and see a list of questions they may want to ask the contractor before the work begins.
While you can get listed even if you are not a member, becoming one will grant you some extra benefits, such as opportunities to network during ACCA events or discounts on accreditation programs.
Angi’s List
Angi’s is for contractors who work in the areas of home and yard improvement, as well as auto and health services. The website claims to be used by more than 6 million US households.
There are two ways your business can get listed in Angi’s List’s search directory. The first one is if a customer that is really pleased with your services adds you there and recommends you as a professional. The second one is if you create your own free profile where you can list your areas of expertise, follow your ratings and respond to customer feedback.
If you receive a negative review, Angi’s List will give you the opportunity to talk to the reviewer and hopefully have the review removed. Bear in mind that you should have a valid license, because Angi’s List gives homeowners the option to check if you are licensed and bonded.
Some Additional Advice
These four websites will give your business great visibility and increase your chances of getting more business. But there are two other things you should also do. First, get listed on Google My Business, so your business can appear in the “sponsored ads” column of Google search results. Second, try to get listed in the .gov website of your state, as this will give you some extra credibility.
What steps are you taking to advertise your business and make sure you are visible online?
by tradespeopleinsights | Sep 28, 2020 | Tradespeople Insights
As we enter into the final quarter of 2020, (and we think we can say with absolute certainty that we are all anxious for 2020 to be over!) we find ourselves in the midst of strategic planning for the upcoming year.
Our friends over at Long & Short of It, masters of ideation, customer insights and market research, provided some thoughts on strategic planning during this unprecedented time. Their mantra is “dig and find lots of data and then turn it into actionable insights.” Following is their guest post.
We’re all a bit tired. Psychologists are calling it pandemic fatigue and even Zoom fatigue. It’s basically just getting burned out because our normal routines have changed for a prolonged period of time and we don’t have a good sense of when we’ll finally settle into our new normal (not our favorite term either).
STARTING A NEW WORK INITIATIVE MAY BE HARDER THAN IN THE PAST.
But there are some basics that must continue or are now in need of a reboot, such as updating your strategic plan. If your organization doesn’t have a strategic plan for 2021 or if it was created pre-pandemic, now is the time to either create one or revise the one you had. Customer purchasing patterns, competitor strategies and other factors have dramatically changed since early this year.
According to McKinsey, over 75% of U.S. consumers have tried a new shopping behavior since the outbreak of COVID-19. They have either tried new brands or shopped at a different retailer. They are also caring more about how companies take care of the safety of their employees and the company’s purpose.
Companies are also pivoting in what’s being called the big reset. Leaders are modifying how they manage, technology use has increased, core processes modified, and they are finding new ways to innovate. It’s very likely your organization has been doing a lot of these same things. If so, your strategic plan needs to reflect these changes.
A GOOD STRATEGIC PLAN IS GROUNDED BY YOUR MISSION AND BUSINESS OBJECTIVES.
Once those are established,
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Update the insights you have on your customers, competition, financial performance/drivers, and other areas as needed (legislation or political landscape, technology developments, employee engagement, etc.).
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Review and validate if your vision for where you want to be in the next 3 to 5 years is still what you want to achieve.
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Review or develop the strategies and supporting tactics to achieve your vision.
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Finally, ensure metrics are in place to measure your progress along with how the plan will be managed.
A PLANNING SESSION CAN HAPPEN VIRTUALLY.
With many teams working somewhat remotely, this can be done virtually. We’ve done it this way and can help you with it. Let’s chat and learn how to effectively run a strategic planning process virtually. It can be surprisingly fun and more productive than some in-person sessions. It’s important to do this now and not hope that your original map is good enough since the road to your destination is very different.
Here’s another guest post from Long & Short Of It: “Generic Values=Generic Culture”
by tradespeopleinsights | Sep 21, 2020 | Marketing Trends, Tips, Tradespeople Insights
As a marketing communications firm dedicated to the business-to-tradesmen (B2T) industry, we quickly realized the tremendous impact COVID-19 would have on all facets of our business. We set out to develop resources to help businesses during the pandemic, and also educate ourselves by hearing from all types of industry voices on the effects of the pandemic.
Through extensive research and interviews with a number of key industry stakeholders, we began creating this content at the start of the pandemic and continued throughout the ensuing months to examine the effects and compare them to effects that were initially predicted for the future of the industry.
In our “COVID-19 Tip Sheet,” you’ll discover how manufacturers, media, distributors and influencers adjusted to the challenges of this new normal. The coverage of the topic includes a five-part series with several editors, publishers and key personnel from the trade media industry, a three-part series of interviews with industry influencers, advice for COVID-19 internal and external communications and content and interviews from the distributor’s perspective.
You can sign up to download this comprehensive resource guide full of information regarding COVID-19 and its effects on the niche that Sonnhalter serves, here.
Need help with navigating your marketing strategies through this difficult time? Contact us. And check out our other Tip Sheets here.
by tradespeopleinsights | Sep 4, 2020 | Marketing Tips, Marketing Tools, Social Marketing, Tradespeople Insights
We’re all trying to do more with less. When it comes to social media, it’s no different. We should be focused on content and use automated tools to help spread the word on social platforms. Every industry is different but following are some automation tools you should consider and an infographic on the best times to post.
Here’s a list of tools that will help you schedule and post your content at the best time:
- SocialOomph – Provides scheduled social posting services for individuals and teams. Has been around since 2008.
- HootSuite – Allows you to manage up to 50 social media profiles, schedule your content and report your analytics.
- Sendible – Allows you to efficiently craft tailored posts for each social media platform and collaborate with your clients and teams.
- AgoraPulse – An easy-to use-social media management software that allows you to drive engagement and build authentic relationships on one platform.
- Buffer – Helps you manage multiple social media accounts at once and easily schedule content.
- ManageFlitter – Tools that help to optimize your Twitter account and identify your Twitter accounts’ prime time.
- Facebook Insights – Provides information about your Facebook audience and how they are interacting with your page.
- Later – Founded as the first-to-market Instagram scheduler in 2014, Later (formerly Latergramme) has grown from a simple Instagram tool to the number one visual marketing platform for Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest.
The following infographic by Zenesys will give you a ballpark of the best and worst times to post on various social media platforms.
by tradespeopleinsights | Aug 23, 2020 | Trades, Tradespeople Insights
by Lisa Michaels, guest columnist
The construction industry is slowly embracing digital transformation and using it in its design, project estimation, and safety perspectives.
However, some of the players are still hesitant about the new technological changes, making it hard to develop strategies aimed at streamlining the whole process.
Digital transformation is vital in construction. It helps to simplify complex processes such as resource traceability, communication, on-time project completion, productivity, and employee safety. These are all major hindrances to profitability and customer satisfaction.
Introducing digital solutions is a good move that allows construction experts to face and tackle the challenges faced during project management.
What Digital Transformation Means in Construction
Transforming the construction industry is not just about bringing in the latest technologies and incorporating them into the processes. It means addressing all old challenges using new technology.
This includes assessing the business and project needs, strategizing, and mapping the journey to ensure all future work is based on improved interrelated processes.
Digitization is a fundamental shift in business operations to ensure growth, efficiency, and profitability.
By adopting data-enabled field software and hardware and other vital digital tools, you’ll be able to sustain growth for your firm.
For instance, if you use drones or other UAVs for aerial photography, you’ll expedite the land survey using the best imaging techniques, data analytics, and topographic mapping software for informing the building strategy.
These tools can also help inspect sites for structural issues or safety hazards, helping to secure the sites. When used alongside 3D printing, progress reporting, and automated equipment tracking, these techniques can reduce the time, cost, and effort exerted in the entire construction process.
Common Challenges Related to Digital Transformation in Construction
Many new technologies are available to help construction businesses become more efficient and productive. While you may be enthusiastic and ready to embrace change, you also have to ensure that all stakeholders are on board as well. (more…)
