How Well Do You Know Where Your Business Comes From?
One of the benefits the internet was supposed to create for the home services business was an easier way for contractors to connect with their customers. Of course, it didn’t take long for the tech wizards to figure out how to monetize that process. It took even less time before business owners found themselves spending a lot of their money and time in pursuit of leads.
Leads Are Your Lifeblood
Leads have become the lifeblood of businesses like yours. Sure, we know there’s a lot of value in the reputation you’ve earned and your long list of happy customers. But if you want your business to grow – or even just hope to keep treading water – you need to feed it with an adequate supply of leads. Using factors like the real (not your ideal) number of calls our clients’ techs handle in an average day and what percentage of their leads generate revenue, we can pinpoint the number of leads they need every month … along with the most cost-effective way to invest in the right ones.
They Come From Many Sources
Now, not every lead carries a cost. You didn’t pay anything when the neighbor of the house where you sold that heat pump called. But that’s still a lead. In fact, every call, text, and email you receive from someone who may have a reason to do business with you counts as a lead – not just the ones you buy online.
Precise Targeting Is Possible
Keep in mind that today’s home service businesses invest in all sorts of channels designed to precisely identify and approach likely customers. Want to reach people in your community who type “AC repair near me” into Google? Easily done – it just depends on how much you want to spend to guarantee those people see your name.
Few Companies Track Sources
Unfortunately, while owners are increasingly more precise in targeting the customers they’re after, they’re far less precise when it comes to matching leads with their sources. Far too many spend more than necessary to keep the lead funnel full. When we see overspending, we’re pretty confident the company can’t identify where their leads come from. Nor do they know which of those sources produces the leads that are most likely to turn into profitable business.
Are You Just Guessing?
Put another way, if you don’t bother to take the extra couple of minutes to identify the source of every single lead, how can you know which marketing channels are worth your continued investment – and which you might want to walk away from? Say you’re paying for multiple keywords – we’ll say eight of them at any given time. If you’re not tracking the sources, you won’t know that just two of the eight you’re buying produce 94% of your sales. Put what you’ve been spending on the other six into the top two, then prepare for growth.
Important, but Not Always Easy
When tracking leads, sometimes you may have to use your judgment. Suppose you’ve been sending direct mail offers to homeowners six times a year. We both know few homeowners will actually hang onto your mailer so they can remember and access it when the blower motor stops spinning. Instead, they’ll probably type the service they need and the words “near me.” When your LSA ad pops up in response to their query, they see and remember your name. That makes them far more likely to click on the link and arrive at your website – or simply get there organically.
So What’s the True Source of That Lead?
You might assume it’s the phone call, but the website is what sealed the deal … and the customer chose you because they recognized your name, thanks to those mailers. If you simply classify it as a web or phone lead, your mailer won’t get the credit it deserves. That’s why whoever answers the phone needs to be trained in how to politely dig a little deeper. That’s how you get more insight into a lead’s potential, along with its source.
Just Sharing What We Know
Knowledge and proven strategies like these are how Cornerstone has helped home services companies throughout the U.S. and Canada achieve growth their owners didn’t believe was possible. We’ve shared this and 11 other critical questions to help you determine whether your marketing is an effective investment or a frustrating expense in our white paper: “12 Questions to Assess Your Marketing’s Efficiency…with Answers That Can Supercharge Your Marketing ROI.” You can access it here.