How do you feel when you go to a restaurant where you have to wait for over an hour when the hostess told you it would only be 15 minutes? Out Of Control!
How do you feel the mechanic told you your car would be ready by noon but it was not when you got there? Out Of Control!
How do you feel when the check your customer promised to send two weeks ago still has not arrived? Out Of Control!
How do you feel when you were put on hold for five minutes when you were told, "Just a second?" Out Of Control!
And, how do you feel when you were transferred to another person after you've just been on hold for five minutes? Out Of Control!
As you can see, there are so many situations that can make you feel "out of control." The same thing is true with your clients. So, if they're going to give you their hard-earned money, they need to feel that they have some control of the situation. After all, in the home improvement industry, your client is, more often than not, paying you to destroy a portion of their home with nothing but faith that you will do as you said and leave a finished product as promised. Many homeowners go years without doing a necessary home improvement project out of fear of being out of control over their own home!
If you want to launch an effective marketing plan and see your sales soar you need to establish a system that always gets consistent and predictable results. Your clients need to see that you have a system for conducting a professional business. The more efficient systems, the more control your client feels they have over the process. And, if your client notifications they have control, you help eliminate one of the largest sales hurdles there is: FEAR.
To maximize your profits and to create a business that will allow you to work on your business instead of being a slave to your business, you need to systematize your daily activities, so no matter the same way every time . This is why most, franchises succeed … effective business systems. But extremely, systems give your clients peace of mind and a sense of control! From the first contact they have with you, you are giving them a silent sale; you are selling yourself as something different that your competitor by the systems your business has in place.
The larger your business grows the more systems you will need to create and monitor. To achieve maximum results, you should at least set up these 17 different systems in your firm …
Answering the phone (the same way every time)
Greeting clients (the same way every time)
Qualifying potential clients (Use a worksheet to ensure it is consistent)
Site evaluations / Measure calls (Use the same procedures / forms every time)
Preparing estimates / proposals
Providing written estimates / proposals to prospects (Make it professional)
Completing Contracts
Ordering Products
Billing and Accounts Payable
Hiring, Training and Evaluating employees
Collecting Payments / Accounts Receivable (Always use the same method for Every client, otherwise confusion will arrise)
Manage Cash Flow (Use and run your business with an annual budget, do not just spend what comes in)
Establishing a yearly Marketing Plan
Ending / Wrap-up of a project (do not lose all your good will by failing here)
Thanking your clients
Conducting surveys with past clients
Astonishing your clients multiple times a year (referral marketing)
You may already use several of these items in your business. Many others you may be using intermittently either way way take the time to actually put each system in writing and then do not deviate from that procedure unless you agree it … in writing. This is the difference between a $ 500,000 firm and a $ 3,000,000 firm. You can not put systems in place after you arrive, for it is the systems that allow you to not just grow your business but most importantly control your growth to maintain profit.
Because your clients rarely get to experience the feeling of being in control from other firms, it'll make you stand head and shoulders above everyone else! This type of marketing is branding, and you do it every day wherever you are aware of it or not. The only question is it a positive or negative brand you are creating? Using systems helps create a positive brand that can catapult your marketing efforts in the coming year.