If you want to win more customers for your trades business, then below are some essential steps to take:
# 1. Quality
What is the most important thing that a tradesperson can offer their customer? This would be quality. If you do not give your customers quality workmanship and results, they will never return again.
How do you offer quality work?
One of the best ways you can offer high-quality work is to provide your customer with a guarantee. For example, if you are a synthetic grass installer, you might want to offer 1 Year Installation Warranty. By guaranteeing your workmanship, you are making your customers feel that you are trustworthy.
Another way you can offer quality work is by going above and beyond on each project you do for your customers. For example, if you are a floor sander, if you work on a residential project, make sure to clean up the place before you leave.
Homeowners would be so happy to see that their premises have been cleaned up. Not only they’ll be satisfied, but they’ll also probably leave your website, social media pages or Google My Business page with a lovely 5-star review!
# 2. Realistic
Make sure that you are realistic when giving your customers an estimate of how long it will take to complete the job. If you provide them with a time scale that is too long, they might become annoyed with you and look for another tradesperson who can do the work in less time. On the other hand, if they have to wait too long for you to complete the job, they might lose patience.
You need to be realistic with your timeframe, and quote too. If you mentioned that you would beat any written quote on your website, make sure you will. Otherwise, customers would start thinking that you are not true to your words. Making your customers feel that they can trust you is empirical, especially that you have so many competitors in the industry.
For example, suppose you are in the construction industry. In that case, you want to make sure that you are building a good reputation because Australia’s construction industry is worth $360 billion, which means the competition is massive. If you want your business to thrive, make sure that you are realistic.
# 3. Understands
Make sure that your customer understands your work for them, so they know what is happening and feel at ease with you. If a customer does not know what you are doing, it could cause feelings of uncertainty, leading to finding another tradesperson.
For example, if you are a painter, you want to explain to your customers the process involved in the painting project. If it would take a week before the painting job is complete, explain that to the homeowner. If there are other things about the project that you need to discuss with the customer, take the time to explain everything to them and also allow them to ask questions.
Clarity is the key to a successful project. So clarify things with your customer and make them understand your process.
# 4. Availability
Ensure that you are available to your customers when they need you, especially if the project is ongoing or has just been finished. Making yourself unavailable for your customer could lead to negative consequences because the job will remain incomplete until you return. In addition, this could result in your customer losing patience with you.
If your business says you are available seven days a week, then be there for your clients on weekends. If you are available when your client needs you, they will trust you more and recommend you to their peers.
For example, if you are running a plumbing business – you want to ensure that plumbers are available during off-hours. But, unfortunately, plumbing issues happen when homeowners least expect it.
If you’re available when others are not, customers will always favour you over your competition.
# 5. Good Work Ethics
Ensure that you have good work ethics because this will give your customers the impression that you are a professional individual who is willing to do what it takes to ensure that their problem is resolved quickly and effectively.
Good ethics involves how you speak, how you present yourself and how you deal with your customers.
If you are running a concrete business with 5 to 10 people, ensure that your team wears the appropriate workwear. For example, a shirt with your logo on it would be great!
See an example below. – Credit to Quality Me
# 6. Resolving Problems
Ensure that you do not miss out on any critical step to resolve the problem faced by your customer, as this could result in them becoming unhappy with your work and the way you conduct yourself as a business person. They might also feel annoyed that they had to wait for you to return for them to get the job completed.
A classic example is if a client lost his car keys, and you are trying to help unlock his car. As a car locksmith, you want to make sure you resolve the client’s problem. You need to go above and beyond to fix their problem, so they will trust you more and recommend you to everyone they know who might need your expertise. Do not underestimate the power of words!
# 7. Give Them Importance
If you let your customer know that their concerns are important to you, this will give them confidence in your work ethic, leading them to come back to you if they need further services. Therefore, you must keep your customers happy to become loyal to you and return to you for future work.
How do you make your customers feel important?
Easy.
How do other people make you feel important? What others are doing to you to make you feel important is also the same with your customers. So, you must understand empathy here.
For example, if you are a synthetic grass supplier and your customer is not knowledgeable about artificial grass features. The customer will most likely ask many questions like, how long will my artificial lawns last? I have kids who are prone to allergies. Is your artificial grass safe? I live near the coast, is fake grass the right option for me? And so on.
If your patience wears thin, there is a tendency that you’ll miss answering some of the questions. However, as a business owner, it is your core responsibility to attend to your customer’s queries to make them feel important.
# 8. High-Standards
Make sure your work is at a high standard because this could result in word-of-mouth recommendations from customers who have been impressed with the work you do. This is certainly something that will help win more customers for your business.
Without standards, things perish quickly. For example, if you are a fencing contractor, you want to ensure you supply and install Australian Made Colorbond Fencing. Fencing’s job is to keep home and business owners safe from the bad guys and intruders. Substandard materials will never last. If your customer finds out that your materials are not up to standards, they will badmouth your business, and it will be tough for you to uphold a good reputation for your business.
So when it comes to business, make sure you use High-quality materials and of excellent standards.
# 9. Make Them Happy
Ensuring that your customers are happy with the work completed will give you a good reputation as a tradesperson and make people more likely to come back to you if their problem happens again.
Repeat customers! Yes, you need them!
So how are you going to make your customers happy?
For example, you are a carpenter in Perth. When working on projects, you want to ensure high-quality materials are the best option for all carpentry requirements. However, some customers want to go cheaper. As a professional carpenter, you would need to explain to them the downside of substandard materials. Explain to them so that they will understand your intention, which is mainly for their benefit.
Once customers understand that you genuinely care about their welfare, they will be happier to work with you – for all their carpentry needs.
# 10. Reasonable Price
Ensure that your quotes for jobs are reasonable because there is no point in having low prices if you do not offer quality workmanship. This will give your customer the idea that they are receiving good value for money, resulting in them becoming loyal to you and returning for more services.
# 11. Go The Extra Mile
Make sure that when a customer does give you a job, you always go the extra mile because this will make them feel very satisfied.
According to studies, large and small businesses alike boost revenue up to 8 percent above their market when making a better customer service experience a top priority. However, to offer excellent customer service, you need first to distinguish the primary needs of your customers.
For example, you are a concreter in Sydney. Your business had just started a year ago. We know that you are still building your customer base – and the most brilliant way to get ahead of your competitors is to define what makes your business unique from the rest.
So you want to go the extra mile for your clients. One of the best ways to do that is to clean up the space when the project is complete. Some concreters just leave the work area without even cleaning up spilled concrete on tiles or walls. If you do it, customers will be happier and would gladly recommend you to their friends.
# 12. Transparency
When quoting prices for jobs, remember to factor in all materials costs,, including tools and travel time. Transparency fosters a sense of trust, and when customers feel that they can trust you, they will be more than willing to choose you over your competitors.
# 13. Communicate
If a customer requests something to be done and you feel like it is unnecessary, then make sure that you let them know why and try and negotiate with them about the work that needs to be done. You need to respect your customers’ wishes about how they want the job completed.
Communication is one of the most critical skills you have to acquire to have a successful business.
# 14. Timeline
When quoting for jobs, give them an estimate on when they can expect the work to be completed because this will show them that you are interested in getting the job done fast and effectively. This could result in you winning more customers for your business.
Be the kind of business owner who is on time and on a budget too! If you promise to finish the project within a week, make sure to deliver in that timeframe.
If you want to make a mark in your industry, consistently deliver more than expected.
# 15. Remember
Remember all the things mentioned above, and carry them out in your day to day interactions with your customers. If you do, you will not only get more customers but you will also grow significantly!
Again, word of mouth is powerful! It’s free, so take advantage of it!
How can we help you?
We can help you win more customers by:
- Creating you a beautiful website that converts traffic into leads
- Bring your business in front of your customers through SEO, Google Ads, & Social Media Ads
So, if you need help getting more customers for your trades business, give us a call on the numbers below or click here to request your FREE Consultation.
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