Remember you are doing two things all the time when you are marketing a contracting business: you are picking the low hanging fruit and you are ripening up the green fruit. You are responding to the hot prospects and you are constantly warming up cold ones in your sales hopper, so that they will be ready to buy soon.



The top ways you can promote your contracting business are:

1.Referrals

2.Signs

3.Business Cards & Flyers

4.Professional Contacts

5.Demo Ponds w/ Signs

6.Relationships

7.Home-shows

8.Website

#1 Getting Referrals

In this article we are going to discuss the first way to promote your business – referrals.

Things to say or ask your customers to get a Referral

You don’t just call someone up and say “Do you have any referrals?" You could, but others have found a better way to do this. It is important to stress that the main thing you are doing when you are warming your leads is you and your company are becoming more and more real to the prospect. You are building a relationship. Calling and saying “hey, do you have leads" is not going to do this. But sending a Christmas card or a Birthday card or remembering their dog’s name or sending them a newsletter about something of real interest or a personal letter or a press release about your company will do more than another post card.

Below are some successful examples from Brian Buffini. Brian Buffini has a course on how one can build a whole business on referrals and never have to use another source. So if you get really good at this you might be surprised at how successful you could become.

Referral and “warming" scripts by Brian Buffini

Example #1

“Oh by the way, (pause) if you were looking to buy some paving or a waterscape pond (pause) or had a friend or family member who was, do you have a contractor you would refer them to?

“I devote myself to serving the needs of my customers before, during, and after each transaction. All I ask is that while I’m working for you, I would like you to refer me to people of comparable quality to yourself, who are thinking about buying a pond or landscape, and who would appreciate the same level of service I provide you.

“You see, as long as you and my other customers keep referring me, I don’t have to go out prospecting like everyone else, and I can do an even better job working for you… Does that make sense?

“But until I build up my referral list I still need to prospect for new identities."

Example #2

“Hi John, this is ______________ calling. How are you? Just wanted to check in and see if there is anything I can help you with and remind you that if you need a referral to a good tradesperson or professional, because I’m active in the market, I come across some really good people."

Get or develop a list of people that you can give out.

Example #3

“I want you to know how much I value you as a customer. It was my pleasure to build a pond for you recently how are you enjoying it? (Handle any questions or comments then return to asking for business statement.) My business is built by working with people like yourself and taking care of you, your family, your friends, and associates."

Example #4

“If you know of someone who is looking for a great pond and service that I provide and would appreciate this same kind of service, I’d love to help them. So, when you come across these people, just give me a call with their name and number and I’ll be happy to follow up and take great care of them."

If you produce an excellent pond and a very happy customer you will inflow tons of referrals (assuming you outflow by asking the customer for referrals).

Referrals from Your Sales Hopper and Warming it up

Pick up a stack of small personal cards from Staples or Office Depot with the envelopes for mailing quick notes to customers and potential customers.

Write to past customers, family or friends:

“I tried calling you today but I missed you, I realize it’s been a long time since we talked and wanted to let you know we’re getting better and better at building ponds – there is some new revolutionary pond stuff…."

The following is excerpted from the “Activity Tracker" created by Brian Buffini

More examples to get you started:

“I found myself thinking about you today, so I thought I would write a quick…

“How is your home working out? It’s been _____ months/years since…

“Thanks for taking the time to ______ today.

“I know how busy you are, so it means a lot…

“Just wanted to let you know how delighted I was to receive Mr. and Mrs. (customer) as a referral from you. Being recommended by you means a lot to me.

“I had a ball today playing _____ with you! I look forward to the next opportunity we have to do it again.

“Again, thank you for the great service today! We could use more people like you in this world.

“I was going through my files and realized it’s been too long since…

“I tried calling you today, but missed you. I just wanted to tell you…

“Here is some information I thought you might find ________

(Attach article, comic, quote, etc.)

“I was very impressed today when you… (Said or did something). Just thought you’d like to know…

“I don’t know the last time I said thanks, but THANKS!

“I see you often, but I don’t think I’ve said… (Thanks, good job, you’re appreciated, etc.)

“Thanks for the _______ (call today, letter, information you sent, etc.). It really means a lot.

“I met someone today who reminded me of you, so I thought I’d say “Hi."

“A brief note just to let you know it was a real pleasure meeting you at the housewarming for (First Name) and (First Name). Because my business is built strictly on referrals, I have the good fortune of practically always working with people who are pleasant and fair-minded. With this in mind, I look forward to staying in contact with you on a regular basis.

Drill:

A)Think of five people you could write a “personal note" to and write their names down on this paper.

B)Now pick one of the subjects from the “personal note" section by Brian Buffini and write a “personal note" (on the next page) to each of the above five people.

C)When you get home tonight actually write the note on a “thank you" note (that you purchased from Office Depot) and mail it to the person in tomorrow’s mail.