itswillist 14 Report post Posted May 26, 2007 Is it just me or has business slowed down ?? Trying to find out if it's the economy or just my local area with competition ???? * Things have slowed for me the past few weeks, any ideas ? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
0 We Wash Concrete 64 Report post Posted May 26, 2007 Busy as can be here in SC. Got 20,000 square feet of concrete to clean tonight. Don't forget to target all areas of pressure washing when it gets slow, not just your usual nich cleaning, if you have one. Hope business picks up for you soon! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
0 Beth n Rod 1,279 Report post Posted May 26, 2007 Are you advertising? Beth Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
0 PressurePros 248 Report post Posted May 26, 2007 Its your first year. You will get about a 1:5 to maybe 1:6 return on your advertising dollars. Spend $5000 you may get back about $30K which should give you an annual salary this year of about $15K. You should not be slow in May though. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
0 Ron Musgraves 240 Report post Posted May 26, 2007 Thats about a weeks gas and postage fr the month. do i get anything back for that? LOL Kens numbers i may not agree with but telling you to advertise is correct. I keep empty crews out ahead of all my advertising. Filling up and not being able to keep up with your demand can cost you more than having people standing around. Your a one man show i assume? send out mailers again even if you had just done it. often on teh second delivery people remember to call and often will even say i'm glad you sent a second one because i lost the first one. marketing is retention, if you have alot of free time knock some doors down. I'm affraid the residential is only going to get worse as the election approaches. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
0 PressurePros 248 Report post Posted May 26, 2007 Those numbers represent between a 15%-20% advertising budget on gross income. They are fairly accurate for a residential start up. You can get it higher with the right know-how but for the most part, first year advertising is hit and miss. Each year as referrals rise your advertising will drop until it is around 5% of gross for most guys. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
0 Ron Musgraves 240 Report post Posted May 26, 2007 I'm sure your right, I have no idea about the residential thing. I have no marketing except myself that high. If I could expect that return i would spend 100,000 a month on advertisment. My investment on customers is much lower, although mine are not one hit wonders. I can see in the res market you need a higher margin. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
0 John Orr 206 Report post Posted May 27, 2007 I wash almost exclusively residential - and this April/May and even June (so far) is WAY ahead of previous years. I am washing many more "For Sale" homes - the way it used to be. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
0 newlook 265 Report post Posted May 27, 2007 Though we took a giant step away from doing residentials at the beginning of the year we are receiving numerous calls to still do residential. Called 2 repeat customers back just today to advise them that we are no longer in the residential washing business. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
0 itswillist 14 Report post Posted May 27, 2007 yeah I don't know, my advertising has stayed the same ... phone book, and news paper .. I was getting close to a call a day from it all ... 3 weeks ago they just stopped .... I get most of my calls from the news paper .. I'll send you a link .. 2theadvocate.com Classifieds I'm the first link, I noticed when the "Ballard" guy started advertising I received alot fewer calls... Any ideas as to how I should word my next ad ???? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
0 HotShot 34 Report post Posted May 27, 2007 John...do you just have Realtors that you work with? Or is it mainly from Home Owners that you are getting this work from? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
0 itswillist 14 Report post Posted May 27, 2007 don't forget the original purpose of this thread ....... any ideas with regard to my last thread ... ??? 2 threads above this one ? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
0 racechaser 64 Report post Posted May 27, 2007 John I haven't advertised this spring yet because I'm trying to finish a remodel/addition on my house. Last year though it was slow "late spring and early summer" around here. That is one reason I waited to do the work on my house now, I had a feeling it was going to be slow. If you ask me it's baseball, graduation, and all the other thing going on right now and every year. I would expect some calls though in a three week period. But think about it, if your ad was working before and not now, it's probably just real slow. $3.25 a gallon for gas has everyone around here in a panic. You know the average person around here has a low disposable income, so high gas prices and saving for summer vacation is crimping most families. Everybody here is a great source for advice, but some you must take with a grain of salt, so to speak. We are one of the poorest states with a low disposable income. We also have a unique culture that many don't realize because they don't live here. I mean high school football for example, there a lot of places that totally can't believe how big a deal this is here. They leave scratching their head. They don't understand how peoples lives and plans revolve around an extracurricular activity at school. I mean if Ken Fenner says to do something, don't hesitate, do it. But if somebody says you should be blowing and going right now because everbody else is, don't panic. You are in a unique market, just keep your chin up. Scott Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
0 Doug Dahlke 114 Report post Posted May 27, 2007 I am getting some calls for residential quotes but the takers are few. I have kept my pricing stable and I think the high gas prices are hurting things here. I actually did more residential earlier in the year when gas was lower. We are also in a draught here and I think some people beleive they can't have their house washed because of water restrictions which don't apply to businesses. Thank God for the commercial stuff. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
0 Beth n Rod 1,279 Report post Posted May 27, 2007 Are you advertising? If so, how? How many places are you advertising? Is your pricing in line with or greater than your competition? What sets you apart from them? Are you easy to find when a potential client looks for a company to hire? How long have you been in business? Do you have an existing client base you can mail to, to suggest other services to have performed? Have you done that? Have you placed yourself in front of a large group of people to promote services? ( ie table with fliers and cards in a high traffic area, similar to a home show booth) Are you walking neighborhoods looking for folks in front of their homes to talk to them? Have you tried direct mail to a specific neighborhood? Have you spoken to the HOA for a neighborhood and gotten into neighborhood newsletters? You don't need to answer all these in a thread if you don't want to, but your answers should tell you something. Beth Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
0 John Orr 206 Report post Posted May 27, 2007 John...do you just have Realtors that you work with? Or is it mainly from Home Owners that you are getting this work from? Realtors make-up a fraction of my business, but for the last few years they haven't been calling. I have a few (and I recommend that everyone find some to work with) regular realtors, but most of my customers are individual homeowners. Those that have money will spend it. Those without, won't. If a few dollars per week additional expense for gas squeezes your customers' budget to the extent that they can't maintain their homes - you need to find different/better customers. When I first started, I went door-to-door looking for dirty houses...in nice neighborhoods only. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
0 sthom21 14 Report post Posted May 27, 2007 I checked out your ad from the link you provided. Not a bad start, but in my opinion, a little generic. Unless you pay by the word, or are limited to a certain number of lines or characters, add something more specific. And tell them to Call Today, or Call Today for their free estimate. Assuming you do free estimates. Come up with a couple potential ads and run them all by your close friends and relatives. Ask which one would motivate them to call you the most, and then ask why. It's the why that may help you out the most in finding what will work best for you. I learned alot when I tried this. I did not ask for any help on my first 2 mailing campaigns. I knew what I was doing and what I wanted to say. WHAT A DISASTER!! 2000 postcards generated 3 calls which turned into one job, and I was lucky to get that one. My family tore my postcards apart and gave ALOT of great advice. My next mailing was much more productive. I actually made money!! Good luck. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
0 Beth n Rod 1,279 Report post Posted May 27, 2007 If you like this thread you may also enjoy... http://www.thegrimescene.com/forums/marketing-advertising-sales/9567-its-copy.html Beth Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
0 mas3372 14 Report post Posted May 27, 2007 I think your ad is weak. It is no different than the others. Try "Free estimates" "Highest quality work guarenteed", something, anything! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
0 yazbird8 17 Report post Posted May 27, 2007 Add some visual wording like.. "Stunning results"..."Picture perfect quaulity"..."Friendly, knowledgable professionals"......Also let them know you have lots of..."References, references, refrences".....Plus you are prompt..."Same day call back guaranteed"....... Stephen Andrews Power Washing Home & Property Care & Maintenance Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
0 PressurePros 248 Report post Posted May 27, 2007 I just looked at it after Mike posted that. He's right. That won't get you any calls. You are also not putting out enough advertising. Run quickly to a graphic artist (Keith at KBK or your own) and get some door hangers made up and printed. This will be most cost effective for you. Keith loves "satisfaction guaranteed" Its not really an effective slogan. I'd rather see "amazing results" or something more catchy. Remember.. Engage: "Is Mold Ruining Your Exterior?" Educate: "Mold spores destory siding" Offer solution: "Let a licensed and insured professional take care of it" Entice follow through: "We are working in your area. Call now and receive 10% off any of our services" and "visit us on the web at_______" This is obviously just an outline. You need to get something out there quick. You have about 30 days before you slow down. Set daily goals right now. On Tuesday I will call Keith. On Wednesday I will cold call 10 commercial accounts. etc etc. Each day when you accomplish your goal you will feel worthy and interested in your business. If you don't do his, you will panic, worry and sit around wondering why you ever bought a machine. You cannot wait for things to happen. Do the footwork and God will provide for you. PS: Get some pictures on your website. Most people will look at it for 2 seconds and click out. I also recommend buying a new domain name to point to your website. "Earthcrawl" denotes heavy equipment. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
0 itswillist 14 Report post Posted May 27, 2007 Thanks for the advice, I'm going to create a few sample ad's and post them on this discussion later today and see what you guys think ... Thanks for the confirmation Scott, it really helped out .. It's true, our market is a lil. different here .... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
0 mas3372 14 Report post Posted May 27, 2007 Every market is different from region to region, state to state and even town to town. Don't let that distract you in any way. Find your target audience, the people or companies that need and can afford your service and advertise to them. The fact that you have already identified the demographics for your area is huge, now you need to isolate the group within that area and reach out to them. Be persistant, the first time someone sees your name they dismiss it, the 2nd time they ignore it, the 3rd time they read it, the 4th time they may remember it, by the 8th or 9th time you should have thier attention. If you are targeting a certain neighborhood, get in thier local paper, send post cards or door hangers and put up a few signs. Repetition. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
0 Tmrrptr 164 Report post Posted May 27, 2007 Hi John, You noted a drop after ballard posted ad? IMO, earthcrawl is just NOT a pretty thing to imagine. I'm sure you have a great reason for that choice, but I like warm and fuzzy buzzwords like CLEAN BRITE POWER FREE and words like that... r Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
0 PressurePros 248 Report post Posted May 27, 2007 I'll sell you www.freepressurewash.com ;-) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
0 racechaser 64 Report post Posted May 27, 2007 IMO, earthcrawl is just NOT a pretty thing to imagine. I'm sure you have a great reason for that choice, but I like warm and fuzzy buzzwords John is Earthcrawl because of your aerial photography business? Scott Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Is it just me or has business slowed down ?? Trying to find out if it's the economy or just my local area with competition ????
* Things have slowed for me the past few weeks, any ideas ?
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