March Madness and Marketing

I have been a college basketball fan ever since my alma mater, George Mason University, made an inexplicable run to the Final Four in 2006.

Before that? Couldn’t care less.

Why the change? Because I got caught up in the Cinderella story of GMU, a sleepy, commuter school in the Virginia suburbs thrust into the national spotlight after beating teams like Michigan State, North Carolina and Connecticut. Now, not only do I follow GMU hoops, I also follow some of the other local college teams. I enjoy sitting down and watching a game. And I’m looking forward to March Madness.

That might be a little odd for a middle age woman who never played basketball. (For the record, I could play a mean game of horse with my brother and his friends!) But the point is we never really know what is going to capture our attention. And the same holds true with our prospects.

Our prospects move along through their busy lives until, one day, they begin to think about a remodeling project. We don’t know what starts the thought—a television show, a friend’s project, a lifestyle change. It truly could be a thousand different reasons. It may be the beginning of a plan to remodel, one that gets tossed around for quite some time. Or the idea may take hold and become uppermost in our prospect’s mind immediately. We really don’t know when and why the idea comes to mind. Just that it does.

And once it does, we must capitalize on that attention. And build on it. And that’s where our marketing comes in. We need to be “out there” so that when the prospect begins to explore the idea of remodeling, our company pops up. It might be in the form of an ad in a newspaper or magazine, or maybe a postcard, possibly our website comes up during a search. And it’s not going to be just once. The prospect will need to see us over and over again. That’s where our marketing plan helps us to be seen by as many prospects as possible and in a variety of venues.

Make sure that your marketing plan gives you the most bang for your buck. And be ready for the madness to begin.

Upselling is everywhere

I stopped in my local Starbucks the other day to grab a latte. I like (and always order when I go) a grande latte. I don’t go often because I have a hard time paying so much for a cup of coffee. But I decided to treat myself.

The person taking my order immediately asked me if I’d like a venti (large) instead. I said no. She then asked if I wanted a flavor. No, I replied. Finally, she asked me if I’d like to add a pastry or muffin. No, just the coffee.

Upselling is everywhere these days. I’ve been noticing it more and more. There’s the perennial upseller, McDonald's, with their now famous phrase, would you like to supersize that? Annette told me she went into Yankee Candle, a retail store that sells scented candles and accessories, the other day and the clerk gave her several options for buying up.

If you pay close attention, you will see it. And, if it’s done well, you will hardly notice it. Pay attention to the upselling that’s going on all around you. Try to incorporate it into your own sales. Offering a few more options with any job is a great way to give your customer additional value and increase the price of the job. But remember you only want to give upsell options that your customer may want to purchase or would benefit from. Simply trying to get your customer to spend more money with you is no way to go about upselling. If you know your customer, you will know what options are most valuable.

Good business is built on strong foundations

A strong successful business is built on a strong foundation.

Think about our industry. Whether it’s a one-story ranch or a 100 story skyscraper, the foundation must go in first and it must be built to last.

If the foundation is off just a bit or there is a small crack, there will be problems with the building. But start with a strong foundation, and the structure can last for years.

Build your business on a strong foundation and it will serve you well for years to come.

A small business' unique position

As a small business owner, you are in a uniquely powerful situation. You have the ability to implement an idea very quickly. In most cases you are the board of directors, owner, and manager all rolled into one. You make the decisions while larger companies must run those new ideas through the proper channels.

Immediate action can help you turn your company quickly in the proper direction.

A common factor for success

Can you guess what the one common factor in successful people might be?

If you guessed education or experience or money, you’d be wrong.

Give up?

The one common factor among successful people is speed of implementation.

When successful people get an idea, they begin working on it! They don’t run it by their spouse or friends or co-workers. They don’t think about it and mull it over for a couple of weeks.

They begin working on it – immediately.

Needed boost for the remodeling and home improvement industry

OK remodeling and home improvement company owners. Our stimulus package has arrived!

The federal government just gave the remodeling and home improvement industry a huge boost in the form of modifications to the energy efficient improvements credit.

For 2009 and 2010 homeowners can receive a tax credit of 30% of the cost of specific energy efficient products added to the home up to a lifetime cap of $1500. Those products include electric heat pumps, central air, water heaters, gas furnaces, exterior windows, doors and skylights, just to name a few.

Check out this article in Nation’s Building News or the Congressional Record for the actual bill.

Past studies have shown that existing homes, especially those built more than 20 years ago, are responsible for a large amount of our nation’s energy consumption. Retrofitting these existing homes with energy-efficient features is more effective in reducing energy consumption than making changes to new housing energy efficiency requirements.

The bill is very specific about what products qualify for the tax credit. For example, not all Energy Star rated replacement windows qualify. Qualified windows will also need to meet an additional requirement that the window is equal to or below a U factor of 0.30 and SHGC of 0.30.

So study up on which of your products qualify. Contact your suppliers and manufacturers to get factual, precise information. Get some marketing together and get it out there to your past customers and targeted new customers. And get back to selling.

Your customer wants to connect with you

You may think that customers want to do business with your business. But what they really want is to do business with you.

Customers are individuals and they want nothing more than to connect with other individuals.

Give your customers that close personal attention and make a personal connection