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If you’re running a plumbing, electrical, or HVAC business, have you thought about how your pricing plays a role in your company’s success?
In working with service contractors through ServiceKey, I’ve learned that a lot of business owners believe that offering the lowest prices in their market is the key to making more money. Have you taken that same approach, thinking that it will help you maximize profits by bringing in more customers? And don’t try to tell me your market is different.
The prices you set for your services need to follow a few guidelines, namely: the types of services you offer, your target audience, and your overall corporate strategy. That strategy should be built on what sets you apart from your competition – your competitive advantage. It could be a unique service that no one else offers; it could be how far you go in your service areas; or it could be a unique marketing technique you use.
If you try to use low pricing as your competitive advantage, you’ll lose. Companies who build a strategy around low prices have to maintain a focus on keeping those prices low. It might draw bargain hunters to a company, but it doesn’t really set it apart – or inspire loyalty in customers.
So what sets you apart? Figure that out first – and then base your pricing strategy on that.
Pricing is just one part of business mastery – I’m covering it all in my upcoming three day $23 Million Dollar Contracting Business Blueprint! Follow the link to find out how to register for this incredible, intensive business-building event!
Mike Agugliaro, “Business Ninja”
Founder of the $23 Million Dollar Service Blueprint and Service Warrior Business Mastermind
I know you want to master your business and take it to the next level. I know you want to make more money, build a great team, and experience financial and personal freedom like you’ve never seen before.
Running a service contracting business is a fulfilling, rewarding, FUN job. But there’s a lot of less fun stuff you’ve got to do too. HVAC contractors, plumbers, and electricians – you’ve got to take care of business. And that means taxes.
Don’t worry, though – once you get into the habit of doing your taxes, it gets a lot easier. That being said, there are a few things that you always need to keep in mind when it comes to reporting your earnings to the government. Consider these tips:
Of course, filing taxes successfully is just a portion of running a profitable business. With ServiceKey, I’m helping service contractors like yourself unlock all the secrets of business mastery. Contact me today, or register for a free strategy call or my upcoming $23 Million Dollar Contracting Business Blueprint!
Mike Agugliaro, “Business Ninja”
Founder of the $23 Million Dollar Service Blueprint and Service Warrior Business Mastermind
Social media is a fact of life these days – and it’s not going anywhere, so if you haven’t already, it’s time to start making use of this outlet for marketing your residential home service business.
Websites like Facebook, Google Plus, Twitter, and LinkedIn can be powerful tools to help you take your business to the next level. If you want to find make your phone ring, make more money, and gain more personal freedom, social media marketing is an essential modern resource to help you do so. And best of all, with some planning, it’s one of the easiest marketing techniques out there. But for HVAC, plumbing, and electrical contractors, social media marketing may not come as naturally as your technical skills. That’s okay – it just means you need to know how to get started.
Start by determining your goals. Do you want to position yourself as an expert in your industry? Are you trying to help customers in your target market find your business? Do you want to build personal relationships with your customers, or find an easy way to offer discounts and specials? Do some research – each social network has different features that make it ideal for certain purposes. For instance, use of hashtags on Twitter makes it easy for customers to find you – you can hashtag your services and your location, such as “#HVAC” and "#Atlanta." Facebook and Google Plus are great for building a business page and growing fans and followers – you can post links your customers might find interesting, ask them questions, and promote customer loyalty plans or special discounts. LinkedIn is great for answering questions and positioning yourself as an expert in your field – look for opportunities to join groups or “Answers” discussions.
It’s important to know where your target audience spends the most time online. This will vary by location, age, and economic status – so knowing your market is crucial to social media marketing success. And you must be careful not to spam your customers – make an effort to engage with them, but don’t be annoying about it. That means the majority of your posts should be helpful to customers, not self-promotional – an 80-20 percentage is a good rule of thumb to follow.
Be sure you, as the business owner, are not managing your social media accounts yourself – assign someone else on your team to do it, or hire a professional. You need your own focus to be on growing the business, not handling the day-to-day management of tasks like social media.
Finally, make sure your social media and other marketing efforts all work well together. Every piece of marketing should integrate and help you grow your company.
Social media marketing is just one of the keys to growing your service business. Do you need more help getting started on the steps to taking your company to the next level? That’s why I started ServiceKey. Register for one of my FREE strategy calls, or my $23 Million Dollar Contracting Business Blueprint Workshop and Boot Camp today, and learn all the secrets I’ve used to grow my own business, and why I know they’ll work for you. Reserve your spot now!
Mike Agugliaro, “Business Ninja”
Founder of the $23 Million Dollar Service Blueprint and Service Warrior Business Mastermind
No matter how strong your financial goals, how good your marketing efforts, or how well-trained your technicians, ultimately your customers will determine whether your service business succeeds or fails. If homeowners are happy with the service you offer, they will keep coming back to you, and they’ll tell other people about your company as well. If they’re dissatisfied, you’ll lose not only those customers but the opportunity for others.
I talk a lot about customer service with my ServiceKey clients. In the electrical, HVAC, or plumbing industries, business owners and their employees are usually very good at what they do. I’ve met lots of service contractors who are genius at diagnosing a problem and fixing that problem, in an efficient, affordable fashion. However, so many times in our industry, contractors and technicians don’t have a great bedside manner – and that can have a negative impact on the customer service.
So, if you want to bring in more customers, help your business make more money, and find more freedom for yourself, you’ve got to go above and beyond in your customer care. Let’s look at some of the things that entails.
Each of your customers knows that he or she isn’t the only person you serve. That being said, everyone wants to feel special. Don’t you enjoy it when you do business with a company and they offer that little bit of personalized service that makes you feel like you really matter? Your own customers appreciate the same thing. That means treating them with warmth and kindness, getting to know them personally, and making it clear that you are there to help them. Surprise them from time to time with special discounts or extra services, as a thanks for their loyalty. Remember that the little things count – show extra effort to meet their needs. After a repair or installation, follow up with a call to make sure everything is working properly and to see if they need anything else. Stay true to your word – deliver on what you offer and don’t try to hide anything from customers.
If you deliver exceptional service to each customer, they will stick with you, and they’re more likely to recommend your services to friends and family. That’s one of the biggest keys to growing your business and taking it to the next level.
But it’s not the only key. In my $23 Million Dollar Contracting Business Blueprint Workshop and Boot Camp, I talk about all the secrets I used, and still use, to grow my business – and how you can do exactly the same thing. Be sure you sign up so you don’t miss the next one.
Mike Agugliaro, “Business Ninja”
Founder of the $23 Million Dollar Service Blueprint and Service Warrior Business Mastermind
Are your marketing efforts making the phone ring? If you’re not continually getting more customers, it might be time to freshen things up a bit.
Service business owners like HVAC, plumbing, and electrical contractors rely on customers to keep their businesses running – and to continue growing. If you want to make more money and gain more freedom in the rest of your life, then you need a steady stream of customers making use of your services.
I talk a lot about marketing with my ServiceKey clients, and how it’s one of the most important tools in your business toolbox. But I’ve found that even when service business owners are making use of marketing techniques, many times they just keep using the same tactics because they’re “tried and true.” If you want to keep your existing customer base, then keep doing what you’re doing. But if your goal is to reach new customers and grow your business, then it might be time to freshen your marketing tactics.
To start, it might be worthwhile to do some market research – especially if you’re trying to expand into a new market or demographic. Even if you don’t want to pay for these statistics, spend some time getting to know your target audience, and figuring out what will appeal to them. If you find out something you’re already doing won’t work on your target market, be willing to adjust or try something new.
It might be time to refresh your image or even rebrand your company. In our internet age, it’s so much easier to find service companies than it used to be, and with all the online reviewing services there are out there, your reputation is key. If you find that your target market doesn’t really know your company, consider a new logo, newly branded trucks, even a fresh slogan or name change.
Then, think about the marketing tactics you’re using now, and how you can reach a wider audience. Many service companies aren’t taking advantage of all the available online resources, like search engine optimization (SEO) on your website, blogging, and social media interaction. These are all free or relatively inexpensive ways to attract new customers. Use hashtags on Twitter to help people find you. Ask questions on Facebook or Google+ to encourage customer engagement. Post regular blogs or website updates so you show up higher in search engine results.
And don’t discount going back to basics with marketing techniques, such as handing out flyers, leaflets, or coupons. Consider a direct mail campaign, or sign up for a pay-per-click online advertisement. Submit bylined articles to local papers and trade publications – it’s great publicity for you and extra content for editors.
Marketing is just one of the things we’ll talk about when you sign up for my $23 Million Dollar Contracting Business Blueprint. Be sure to register today to learn all my secrets that will help you take your business to the next level!
Mike Agugliaro, “Business Ninja”
Founder of the $23 Million Dollar Service Blueprint and Service Warrior Business Mastermind
Where do you see yourself – and your service business – in five or ten years? Would you like to have more money? Would you like to be reaching out to more customers? Maybe you’re just longing for more freedom, giving you time to spend with your family instead of at work.
I have been in your exact shoes. A decade ago, my company, Gold Medal Services, wasn’t making nearly the revenue I wanted it to – and I was working all the time, missing out on the rest of my life, with no end in sight. So I decided to make a change. And one of the keys to that change was setting some major financial goals.
Now, I teach other plumbing, HVAC, and electrical service contractors like myself how to set the same kind of goals that helped me grow Gold Medal Service into a $23-million a year company – and are already helping me grow it to the next level. You can do it too, if you’re willing to put in the effort. Studies have shown that entrepreneurs who set very specific goals are more likely to achieve success in meeting – and even exceeding – them.
It starts with crunching some numbers. Get out a piece of paper and a pen and sit down. Figure out where you are now. Determine where you’d like to be in five years, ten years, or beyond. Be sure to include your company revenue and your own personal income in those goals.
Now, break those goals down. You know how when you’re making a long drive, you use mile markers to determine how much farther you’ve got to go? Similarly, you need “mile markers” for reaching your goals. This makes them more manageable, too. Once you’ve got your five-year or ten-year plan in place, break it down by year. Figure out how much you need to grow each year to meet that long-term goal. Then, break it down even further – by month, by week, by day, whatever it takes to make each goal seem even more reachable. I promise when you do this no goal will seem daunting, no matter how big it is!
Make sure your team is on board. At Gold Medal Service, we recently created a “Painted Vision” document for our whole crew, outlining where we want to be by 2020 and exactly how we’re going to get there. Get your employees excited about growing the business – help them feel invested in it too.
If you’ve got your goals set, I promise there will be no stopping you. But if you’re not sure how to achieve them, that’s where I can help. Contact ServiceKey today for a free strategy call, or fill out a form to register for my next $23 Million Dollar Contracting Business Blueprint Workshop and Boot Camp. I’ll show you exactly how I set my goals in motion and how to do the same in your own business!
Mike Agugliaro, “Business Ninja”
Founder of the $23 Million Dollar Service Blueprint and Service Warrior Business Mastermind
Do your prospective customers know who you are? They’ve got to be able to find you in order to hire you for services.
I know that when you’re trying to run a plumbing, HVAC, or electrical contracting business, you want to turn a good, sustainable profit – which means your business needs to continue to grow. To do that, you need to invest in some marketing for your business. Done right, marketing can give you a big return on your investment – and give you more customers, more money, and more free time.
Since I started Gold Medal Service 20 years ago, I’ve learned a lot about marketing through trial and error. It’s important to set aside a budget for marketing – but how can you make that budget work as hard for you as possible?
With ServiceKey, I’m reaching out to service business owners like myself to show them exactly how I grew Gold Medal Service into a $23-million-a-year company – and how I’m using those same techniques today to grow even larger. Marketing is a big part of that – here are a few ways I’ve discovered to stretch that marketing budget.
1. Look for free marketing opportunities. This is easier than ever today, with an abundance of free marketing resources on the internet. Social media, blogs, and online articles offer you the opportunity to post information that not only promotes your business, but positions you as an expert in your industry. It’s known as “content marketing,” and it’s crucial in our technological world. I do, however, recommend investing in a public relations or marketing expert who can help you craft your content to present your business in the best way possible.
2. Repurpose material. You’ll need to spend some money on having photos, graphics and other creative services, and copywriting done for all your marketing materials, but you can get more bang for your buck by reusing these pieces. Photos will work for flyers and ads, as well as press releases and articles, as well as internal company materials. Copy can almost always be reworked in different ways.
3. Create customizable, modular materials. How varied is your target market? If you need to target different types of homeowners, or different areas, you can create basic ads and brochures that have mostly the same information, with just a few movable parts that can be changed out to suit each market. This can stretch your marketing budget a great deal.
4. Write articles. Want some free publicity? Offer to write an article for your local newspaper, or an industry newsletter or magazine. Post the article on your website. It gets your name out to the public, and builds your content marketing online as well.
5. Stick with what works. If your current advertising and marketing campaign seems to be working, keep it up! It’s worth it to reassess from time to time, to see if anything needs to be updated, but if you find parts of your marketing campaign have helped build brand recognition, don’t try to overhaul them for something you’re not sure will work.
Marketing is just one of the keys to business mastery. Contact ServiceKey today to find out how you can get in on my next $23 Million Contracting Business Blueprint Workshop and Boot Camp. You won’t want to miss this three-day event where I’ll share all the exact secrets I used to grow my own business – and learn how to incorporate them into your own!
Mike Agugliaro, “Business Ninja”
Founder of the $23 Million Dollar Service Blueprint and Service Warrior Business Mastermind
Are your employees happy? If they’re not, do you know why – and do you know what to do about it?
I know firsthand that employee satisfaction is one of the keys to customer care. I started the company Gold Medal Service after years of being frustrated with my previous job. The home services industry has a lot of job turnover, as it’s extremely rare to find a plumbing, electrical, or HVAC company where employees feel connected to the job. Many times, employees do not view their job as a career, which leads a workers not being committed to the goals and success of the company. After several years of working through turnover after turnover, I made it a priority to help my team feel valued and supported, which has made a huge difference in how we help our customers.
Ultimately, your employees are the ones who are meeting face to face with customers. If they’re not happy, the customers will see that – and they won’t be happy either. So, if you want more customers, if you want to make more money, if you want to have a great team that you can rely on so you can get more freedom, then you’ve got to take care of them.
I’ve made it a priority to create a company culture that encourages teamwork. We’ve identified goals – right now we are on target to take Gold Medal to the next level by 2020 – which helps us create motivation and vision for the company. If everyone feels like a team VIP, they will do whatever they can do to ensure a win.
So what’s are the keys to employee care? It starts with pay. Your workers need to feel like they’re getting paid what they’re worth. But it goes beyond that, too. No amount of money matters if workers don’t feel like they matter. You need to offer opportunities for advancement. Invest in ongoing training and mentoring. Provide the resources they need. Make sure they know that any goals you’ve set are for the benefit of everyone, not just you – that will make them want to work harder to achieve those goals.
And your customers will notice the effort. If your employees are engaged, they will be more enthusiastic on the phone, when going out on service calls, and when following up with customers. In short, if you’re meeting your employees’ needs, they’ll meet your customers’ needs. And, that fosters loyalty in both groups of people.
Through ServiceKey, I show service contractors, like myself, how to build a good team environment and show company’s how to grow their businesses beyond their wildest dreams. Contact me today and we can set up a time for you to see my facility and learn exactly what I’ve done to grow my company – and why I know it will work for you, too.
Mike Agugliaro, “Business Ninja”
Founder of the $23 Million Dollar Service Blueprint and Service Warrior Business Mastermind
You’re not the only one in your area offering plumbing, electrical, or HVAC services. But what are you doing to set yourself apart from the competition? If you want to see untold success, you have to differentiate yourself from everyone else.
To set my company, Gold Medal Services, apart from the competition, I revamped it into a one-stop shop for home services. I wanted customers all over New Jersey to know that they were going to get a great selection of services, with a high level of customer service and a satisfying experience. That helped me grow the company into a $23-million-a-year business.
Now, with ServiceKey, I bring other service business owners into my shop to show them exactly how I did it. And if you talk to me, I’m going to tell you the same thing: to make more sales, bring in more money, build a great team, and take your business to the next level, you’re going to have to set yourself apart from the rest.
So what does it take to do that? There are a few keys to differentiation. First, you need to really assess your business and what sets you apart. If you can’t find anything in that assessment, figure out how you can take steps to set yourself apart.
In our business, customers are looking for a few important things: convenience, value, and superior service. What can you do to increase your value in any of those ways to your target market? Can you offer a guarantee that you’ll always be available within an hour, at any time of the day or night? Can you offer some specials to either new or loyal customers – maybe a package deal on multiple services, or coupons after so many service visits? Would you consider starting a customer care membership, to encourage your customers to keep up with preventative maintenance? Do you view your customers not just as a source of cash, but as your friends? Showing how much you value your customers will go a long way toward making them value you too.
Establishing strong values as a company can go a long way toward differentiating you too. Try to determine what your personal and professional values are, and then do whatever you can to incorporate those values into everything you do in your business. Your customers will notice – and they’ll appreciate it.
And if you’re still feeling stumped, be sure you sign up for one of my free strategy calls today. I’ll show you exactly how I differentiated my business – and why I believe you can do the same.
Mike Agugliaro, “Business Ninja”
Founder of the $23 Million Dollar Service Blueprint and Service Warrior Business Mastermind
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