Recently at a tradeshow, I was having a conversation with a business owner. It is my job to find out about his business and as our conversation (and happy hour) progressed he casually opened up, admitting to me he had no clue how, nor desire, to grow. He had reached a plateau. Now, I know not everyone has aspirations of a multiple location flooring empire, but in this case I felt like the gentleman had potential to increase his profits dramatically within his current scope. He seemed afraid of what the increased profitability might require and as a defense mechanism, he actually told me he didn’t want to grow.
I asked him what he was doing for marketing and he got a “deer in the headlights” look. BINGO, I immediately guessed what he was afraid of…technology! We have come to an intersection of knowing that website lead generation, SEO, online reviews, social media, etc., are necessary, but most are still not familiar enough with how to navigate these channels successfully.
Virtually all aspects of life, especially communication within society and culture, are changing with advancing technologies. Your business is no exception. Similar to the decision I make as a father of three young children, you can choose to seek shelter from, or accept and control the advantages of technology.
Here are a few ways to increase your flooring sales through technology, without having to “know” technology:
SMS Marketing
The relationships between you and your customers are no different than any other type of relationship; communication is key. Reaching your consumers through text message or SMS marketing is the fastest and most direct business-to-consumer channel out there. The open rates are considerably higher than email and less intrusive than a cold call. You can tailor and schedule your messages by anniversary, birthdays, holidays etc. and automate this process to reach hundreds and even thousands of people in seconds. By staying in front of them, your customers become customers for life. Through QFloors and our partners, you have access to features that will allow you to mass text an introduction and then respond one by one to those who reply, in almost the exact same way you text your friends and family everyday. And should you worry about being intrusive, with a simple response of “stop” your customers can choose to be automatically removed from any future messages.
Social Media
Marketing is all about meeting your customers where they are and inviting them to “follow” you to what they need. It’s very basic. For better or worse, most are on social media. I interact with my grandma, who lives hours away from me, on Facebook more than any other way. Take your message and mission to where the people already are. Now, the most difficult challenge of this is being consistent. I would recommend that if being the face of your company doesn’t come natural, then find a professional to do it. Let someone else do the heavy lifting, bringing people to your doorstep where you can then take over and do what you do best.
Word-of-Mouth
Any skilled craftsman throughout the ages has benefited from word-of-mouth marketing. This may seem like a deviation from my message, but let me explain. Word-of-mouth in today’s world includes the previous points in two ways. First, you should use the same tools to communicate with your referrals as you do your customers. Text them and contact them online efficiently and consistently through professional automated processes. Second, empower your customers by creating and giving links and other content for them to text and post online. Incorporate giveaways and other rewards to incentivize the continued spread of your good reputation.
CRM
Having a hub to organize all the information required in the above steps is another crucial point. I cannot stress it enough. There will be days where people are not kicking down your door to buy your products. Having lists of past opportunities and details make renewed connections possible. A good CRM can not only help you keep up with the day-to-day pre-sale activities, but also help you prepare for any storms coming in future days. A good CRM can fill those rainy less-active days with views of your pipeline. Start with the hottest stages and work backwards to the colder opportunities, and things will never slip between the cracks. You will also gather the details for accountability and reporting. Knowing your ROI on marketing channels, campaigns, human resources, etc. provides clear visibility and will expel fear from decision making and change.
If any of these counsels become time consuming or over-managed, they will break down and fail. Doing them is half the battle, doing them consistently and efficiently requires technology. This is an invitation to do what you already know you need to do, work smarter. You do not need to “KNOW” technology to benefit from all it has to offer. Partners like QFloors will take what we do well, to support what you do well, and your success becomes ours.
