It's All About Balance

This is a year of adjustment. And a good one at that. Yes, I used the word "good." There are times that competition is just too thick (real estate) or the money too easy (sub-prime mortgages) and the result is a watershed. Natural ebb and flow. Don't expect this editorial to be a regular face-washing of fearsome facts; expect instead practical responses, techniques, and adaptive recourses. Strength required.

Fortunately, the strong will get stronger. Had a teleconference last week with 88 of the strongest students/fellow marketers (but posing as contractors!) I could've ever wanted. The 11 "Gold" members had questions, one after another, about doing better this year than last, news be torpedoed along with those silly enough to cower as a result. Amen to their commitments, and happy to stride together on that.

Yet, no matter WHAT time of ANY year, I hear this all the time: "I NEED MORE LEADS!"

Thus, most all contractors would contend, the more leads you get the better. True to a point but keep a couple things in mind, oh ye of hyper-aggressive tendencies...

• A flood of leads that creates diminishing service thereto is the easiest way I know to screw up a good reputation... with great unlikeliness of gaining it back easily.
• Pushing the "BUY ME NOW" coercion button with your trusted, coveted customer base, is an excellent way to force loss of same. You have any friends you can do that with? You have any EX-friends who used to try to sell you something every time they saw you?
• Having a "Best Offer Ever! No, I Really Mean It This Time" every other week is a fantastic method of credibility destruction.

Yes, I'm a Direct Response copywriter, paid decently for the craft, which I dearly love. Yet, a realist. I'm concerned with ANYONE attempting to put an arm around a customer relationship while regularly shoving the other hand into their back pocket to extract a Visa card.

If you want to see your customers again and again (THE GOAL of in-home service contracting, by the way), this method is better reserved for late night infomercials. It also happens to be an excellent way to be targeted in your local news' next contractor sting. Just a thought.

It's about balance. And right now, working to generate a ton of leads, while working to build a real customer relationship with each of them is the far wiser path. Leads to more referrals, more upsells, less stress over "where are my sales coming from?" Hey, they overwhelmingly come from warm prospects and customers, far more rarely from complete strangers.

Many upcoming opportunities to move into "known" realm among your market exist.

• The Guerilla marketing tactics for being 'known' (TOMA) are in your PowerPack.
• Home Show results are actually stronger this year, so far. (Could it be the "Chicken Little" theory already in place?) Your TradeShow Secrets book is full of info on that. (If you don't have a PowerPack, half of what I suggest may sound daunting to recreate, or like gibberish. Sorry. I assume "customership" for most of you. A tactic you'd be wise to emulate when speaking to 'your' market.)
• Gold-plated opportunities for the aggressive Retention expert abound. Thank you cards, requests for testimonials, requests for referrals, movie passes, fruit or chocolate gifts will endear and differentiate you. I will be playing heavily upon the "work your customer base" theme for the next 90 days. Either take notes and take action or take offense and look elsewhere.
• AutoResponder sophistication on your website - More 'easy' ways to sign up, better communication thereafter, relationship building throughout. THIS IS NOT A REPLACEMENT for REAL MAIL follow- up, by the way. That backlash has already occurred. Advanced Tip: Your website is a way to calm and educate customers about "real" ways to save and stay comfortable that have NOTHING TO DO with anything you sell. You get creds for that, my friend.