{"id":1194,"date":"2022-02-08T13:43:34","date_gmt":"2022-02-08T18:43:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.homesteadoutdoorproducts.com\/blog\/?p=1194"},"modified":"2022-02-10T12:57:50","modified_gmt":"2022-02-10T17:57:50","slug":"marketing-tips-to-start-the-year-off-on-the-right-foot","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.homesteadoutdoorproducts.com\/blog\/2022\/02\/08\/marketing-tips-to-start-the-year-off-on-the-right-foot\/","title":{"rendered":"Marketing Tips to Start the Year Off on the Right Foot"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"p1\"><em>By: Stuart Jeffcoat\u2014CEO, Burgard<\/em><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span style=\"color: #488ba6;\"><b> Can you believe it\u2019s already 2022?! As folks have returned from the holidays and are back in their regular daily routines, many are thinking about upcoming home improvement and building projects. It\u2019s time for contractors to seize the opportunity by launching their sales and marketing efforts for the New Year. <span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span><\/b><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p2\">But where to begin? So many tactics and strategies exist to kick-start the sales cycle! To help make the process less daunting and to get your year off to a strong start, we\u2019re sharing some time-tested tips.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span style=\"color: #648e65;\"><b>1. Outline your sales process.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span><\/b><\/span><\/h3>\n<p class=\"p2\">Likely, the journey from that first phone call with a prospect to the final payment is similar from customer to customer. Write down the process and keep track of how it impacts your business; doing so will provide several benefits:<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li class=\"p5\"><span class=\"s2\"><b>Efficiency: <\/b><\/span>By identifying what steps you take with clients, you can remove parts of the process that are redundant or aren\u2019t offering value.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li class=\"p5\"><span class=\"s2\"><b>Consistency:<\/b><\/span> While not every customer is the same, providing a consistent experience is a great way to ensure top-quality service. By observing what you\u2019re doing, you can concentrate on repeating good habits and eliminating bad ones.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li class=\"p5\"><span class=\"s2\"><b>Improvement:<\/b><\/span><b> <\/b>When you have a handle on what\u2019s happening in your process and the outcomes, you have the information you need<br \/>\nto improve. For example, if your sales numbers are lagging, or you simply want to grow your business, identifying what\u2019s working and what\u2019s<br \/>\nnot is the first step.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3 class=\"p4\"><span style=\"color: #648e65;\"><b>2. Understand your market.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span><\/b><\/span><\/h3>\n<p class=\"p2\">Clients come to you instead of the other guys for a reason. Maybe you have extensive expertise and experience in certain projects, or perhaps you provide a price point that your competitors can\u2019t match. Regardless of your distinctive competitive advantage, understanding your market allows you to:<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li class=\"p5\"><span class=\"s2\"><b>Communicate the value you provide (and your company values): <\/b><\/span>Sharing what you do best and what your company stands for gives prospects a reason to choose you over the competition.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li class=\"p5\"><span class=\"s2\"><b>Understand what you DON\u2019T do: <\/b><\/span>There are probably types of jobs you don\u2019t like, or that aren\u2019t your specialty, or that don\u2019t turn a healthy profit. Deciding to pass on that work can save you time, money, and hassles. And it will allow you to focus on what you do well.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3 class=\"p4\"><span style=\"color: #648e65;\"><b>3. Get the word out.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span><\/b><\/span><\/h3>\n<p class=\"p2\">Sales and marketing aren\u2019t just for big companies with large teams and massive budgets. In 2022, it\u2019s essential to put yourself out there so that prospective customers know you exist. Marketing your company is also critical for reminding past customers you\u2019re still here to serve their needs.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p2\">Ways to promote yourself, regardless of the size of your business, include:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li class=\"p5\"><span class=\"s2\"><b>Website: <\/b><\/span>Websites come in all shapes and sizes. Some are big, robust, and expensive\u2014designed and maintained by a professional website developer. Others are cheap and simple\u2014created using free tools (like WIX). Whatever option you choose, having a website is an important tool to make your company visible and to connect with prospects and customers.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li class=\"p5\"><span class=\"s2\"><b>Google My Business&#x2122; profile: <\/b><\/span>Most consumers find service providers in two ways:\n<ol>\n<li class=\"p5\">Asking friends.<\/li>\n<li class=\"p5\">Searching on Google. Having a Google My Business profile helps to ensure your business turns up on Google when folks search online for contractors in their area. The best part? It\u2019s free!<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\" style=\"font-size: 1rem;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p class=\"p1\"><b><i>We wish you a successful 2022! If you have questions about any of these strategies or want to discuss your marketing challenges, feel free to contact me: <a href=\"mailto:stuart@burgardagency.com\">stuart@burgardagency.com<\/a> or 717-693-2204.<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By: Stuart Jeffcoat\u2014CEO, Burgard Can you believe it\u2019s already 2022?! As folks have returned from the holidays and are back in their regular daily routines, many are thinking about upcoming home improvement and building projects. It\u2019s time for contractors to seize the opportunity by launching their sales and marketing efforts for the New Year. \u00a0&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1194","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-blog"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.homesteadoutdoorproducts.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1194","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.homesteadoutdoorproducts.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.homesteadoutdoorproducts.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.homesteadoutdoorproducts.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.homesteadoutdoorproducts.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1194"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.homesteadoutdoorproducts.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1194\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1196,"href":"https:\/\/www.homesteadoutdoorproducts.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1194\/revisions\/1196"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.homesteadoutdoorproducts.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1194"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.homesteadoutdoorproducts.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1194"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.homesteadoutdoorproducts.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1194"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}