Webinar Explains How Contractors Can Significantly Grow Their Business

Increasing performance in 6 key areas by as little as 10% can cumulatively add up to a huge jump in sales, according to Tim Musch, the Director of Business Development for MarketSharp Software.

Musch explained these 6 keys during a free webinar hosted by Renoworks Pro. (For a free replay of the webinar, click here).

Musch demonstrated that if you improve each of these areas by at least 10%, it can lead to an overall sales increase of 61%. There is more details on that below, but first here are the 6 key areas to focus on:

Key Area #1 – Getting Leads. There are several important factors to getting more leads, but it all starts with creating a powerful Unique Selling Proposition (There is a link to free resources at the end of this post that includes a worksheet for crafting a fantastic USP).

Musch also emphasized how crucial it is to have a professional website. Many home improvement contractor websites are not done to the highest standards and leave would-be prospects with a poor impression. Statistics show that a minimum of 80% of potential leads are checking you out online before deciding whether to contact you.

Key Area #2 – The Call. How fast are you getting back to leads that reach out to you through your website? If the answer is more than a minute, you’re losing leads. For some that might sound ‘crazy fast,’ but Musch provided proof that people move on almost immediately if they’re not contacted back right away.

The good news? Implementing a system of rapid ‘Response-Ability’ is not difficult if you use the right technology. Systems can be put into place for key staff members to receive instant text messages on any web inquiry.

Key Area #3 – Lead Warming. Once you are capturing more leads, the next step is to make sure you ‘warm them up.’ Musch recommends having a set system for contacting all prospects before the appointment.

This ‘Pre-Positioning’ contact can be anything from a simple email to a mailed package of materials about you and your products. The important thing is to communicate with the prospect in a way that makes them feel more comfortable with you before your sales presentation.

Key Area #4 – The Presentation. All home improvement contracting companies know that quality sales presentations are the linchpin of success. But as Musch pointed out, many companies are still not making full use of technology to make their presentations as strong as possible.

Musch’s suggested using a visualizer when talking with prospects. This will allow your prospects to see your products on a photo of their home. Musch also recommended using an estimator app. The ability to calculate and present an estimate directly on a tablet creates a very professional image and it means you’ll never be fumbling for numbers.

Key Area #5 Follow-Up. Musch provided some eye-opening statistics during the webinar, including facts on why follow-up is so important. Data shows that on average 3 out of 10 home improvement prospects will ‘buy now’ after a sales presentation.

Of the 7 prospects that don’t buy immediately, 4.2 will buy from someone within a year. (2.8 of the leads will either never buy, or buy after a period of longer than a year).

Musch pointed out that if you combine the 30% of prospects that buy right away with the 42% that will buy within a year, that is a conversion potential of 72%!

But if you don’t have a systematic way to nurture leads, you’re going to lose out on the additional 42% that don’t buy right away. Musch said that using a system that can follow-up automatically is a proven way to increase sales.

Key Area #6 Repeat/Referral Strategies. The key here is to be proactive. The first step is to deliver the kind of remarkable experience that makes your customer want to refer you.

Musch also noted that positive online reviews are crucial now and can no longer be overlooked. Home improvement contractors need to have a system in place to gather customer feedback and encourage reviews.

Near the end of the webinar, Musch circled back to his theme: if you increase your performance in each key area by just 10%, the effect on your sales will be extraordinary.

Here’s why it works: when you increase leads, you’re increasing the amount of potential business pouring into your sales funnel, but that is only the first step. As you increase performance in each area of your funnel, you are “leaking” fewer and fewer leads at each step.

That means by the time you reach the point of converting those leads into sales, there are many more leads still in the funnel. There are not only more leads going into the funnel, plus less leads are being lost at each step. Cumulatively, this adds up to converting many more prospects into sales.

In fact, as Musch demonstrated on the webinar, increasing performance by 10% in each individual area can actually increase your sales by 61% overall.

What To Do To Learn More & Increase Leads

We recommend watching a replay of the webinar. It’s packed with information that is very valuable for home improvement contractors that want to see significant sales growth.

We also recommend visiting marketsharp.com/resources to take advantage of the free downloads there. The tools available on that page complement the webinar and allow you to practically implement the ideas Musch presented.

Would you like to see a replay of this webinar? Click here.

If you are interested in how a visualizer can help you make your sales presentations stronger, go here to request a free demo.