Do you have a marketable point of difference? Is your message clear? Or, is your strategy to regurgitate the same? Everyone else says??
Help your potential customer decide to hire you!
Many folks new to the game miss this, but that’s what potential customers are really looking for. Whenever someone clicks on your website, reads your mailer/flyer, or sees your Facebook/Social media post. They are looking for something that makes your company stand out above the rest. They want that added value. They are looking for something you either do or offer that differentiates your company. So, why not figure out what that is and make it easy to find?
Offer a pool inspection as part of your initial service visit, but don’t just offer it – Boast about it! …
Same ?, Different Website
Don’t fall into that trap! Your first instinct may be to explain that it is your knowledge or training that sets you apart… Take a look at your competition’s marketing material. They are boasting the same thing. I’m not saying that, but it should not be the bottom line message you are trying to get across. Telling me that I should hire you because you know what you are doing will not drive me to make contact. Who’s going to tell me that they DON’T KNOW WHAT THEY’RE DOING? Whether they do or they don’t, everyone is going to say that they do.
Are you in a market that does not require Pool Operator Certification for the services you offer? Attend the 2-day class and add that Certification logo to your website, social media, business card, mailers, etc.
? #CERTIFIED
It doesn’t matter how great your website looks if the message is the same as every other site that potential customer has found in their search engine results. Did you pick your favorite football team? Because they had the prettiest helmets? Then why would you expect someone to choose you for those reasons? It’s great to have a landing page that’s sleek and clean like a Macy’s window display, but you also need to put something in that window that people want or they’re not gonna come into your store. That is unless you plan to compete on price vs. service ?. Undercutting the market damages the industry and erodes your own company’s value – Not a good plan!
An unsearchable group on Social Media, providing exclusive membership to your clientele, affords a heightened level of communication and involvement…
Print Materials are Expensive – They Should Be Unique
You brush the Pool every week; you skim, you empty baskets and your vacuum. Really???? Isn’t that what everyone says? Isn’t that what swimming pool service does? Why would you spend money to tell me that your company does what a pool service is supposed to do? Think about that. I know not everyone does the job correctly, but your potential customer doesn’t know who is lying and telling the truth. These things are expected. Yes, do them. Yes, mention them. However, this should not be your bottom line message. Word of mouth will take care of that. Who’s going to say, “If you hire our pool service company, we’ll always skip brushing the walls if we think we can get away with it.”? No One!!!
If you forward a photo of the pool to the pool owner following every service visit and no one else in your market does, that should be included in the highlight of your mailings…
Yes, you need a social media presence.
C’mon, Y2K was twenty years ago. You do need a social media presence, and you should be continually looking for content. Not just any content (enuff with the freaking cat ? memes, unless you are in the business of herding cats), you need content relevant and reinforces your message. The only acceptable cat picture should be of the cat? Hanging out by the pool.
If you carry a leaf blower and blow the leaves from the pool deck on every visit when no one else in your market does, your Social Media posts should include photos/videos of you blowing leaves from the pool deck and note that this is part of your service…
Consistency is Key
No matter what you offer that gives you a marketable point of difference, you’ll need to be consistent. Think to a brand. What’s the hamburger place that will let you have it your way? Your bottom line message doesn’t even have to be something costly that you do. What expense is involved in taking a photo with your cell phone and forwarding it to a customer? ? Whatever it is that you come up with, that message should appear across the board as the focus in everything that you do: Website, Direct mail, Social Media, Business Cards, Vehicle marking, Blog, Podcast, Phone calls, and Face to Face.
A greater level of communication through a monthly (or quarterly) e-newsletter may set you apart from your competition. Consider a professional platform like constant contact, WordPress, or equivalent…
Why should I hire your company??♀️
Here is a simple exercise. Get a pen and a pad of paper. Now, I want you to imagine that someone just asked you why he or she should hire your company. Write down your answer on the paper. Now, look at it. If the answer you just wrote down is the same thing, everyone else is going to tell me (whether it is true or not), if it is something that appears on the website, social media, flyer, and/or postcard of your competitor – crumple it up and throw it away. Now, try again.
Not so easy, is it. This may be the single most important question you will have to come up with an answer to. Once you do, you should embrace, you should share it, you should be proud of it, and it should appear in every means of contact you have with your potential clientele. People will pay more for a service if you can justify the cost. Think added value. Offer a premium service. Raise the bar?️♀️
Similar Article: Why Fire Your Customer? ?
Great advice – I have a friend who owns a pool company, so I’ll pass this along.
Thank you Pam & Thank you for reading. Please pass along ?
A clear and simple guide, nice emojis ?
Thank you Penny & Thank you for reading ? I do like my emojis ?