If you are responsible for water softener marketing for your business then I hope you will find these 7 top tips valuable, so please read on.
The first step to winning more water softener installation jobs is to think like a potential client who has an issue with hard water as it causes a mineral buildup in water pipes, heating systems and appliances, and its poor soap and/or detergent cleaning performance when compared with soft water. Put yourself in your potential water softener clients shoes.
What thought processes will they go through? Which websites do people visit when they are looking to learn about options on how to soften hard water? How can you engineer so they “see you” online when they are searching for a solution?
TOP TIP 1
Initially, potential customers will be searching online for information. Maybe they are looking for a DIY water softener solution. This is your ideal opportunity to become their trusted advisor. Have information on your website to educate them on the problem they are experiencing and looking to solve, and even give them help on the solution. It may seem counter-intuitive to give free advice but this really does build you as the trusted advisor and even though some people will solve the problem themselves with a DIY solution there will be others who simply want to call in an expert when they do not have the time or the job is bigger than a DIY job. So this can be blog posts, PDF guides or videos. I recommend this book to my clients on how to create content that draws clients to you. They Ask, You Answer by Marcus Sheridan. And this becomes even more powerful when it can be linked to a marketing automation system, see point 4 below.
TOP TIP 2
Be visible online. These days the first port of call, when someone is interested to learn about water softener options will be the internet and primarily using Google. It is imperative that your water softener installation business is visible on Google.
So do a check – how do you appear on Google right now in your local area. Because most of the time people will be looking first for a local water softener installer.
Step 1 – Go to Google, and for example enter the name of your local area followed by phrases like “new water softener” “buy water softener”, “water softener installer” into the Google search bar.
Example: London water softener installer, buy water softener London
Step 2 – Make a note of the websites that come up on Page 1. Study them and get inspiration for your own ideas. Is your water softener installation business on the list? If not…
TOP TIP 3
You need to get your website listed.
Google Adwords are the ads top and bottom of the search results page. Advertising is a quick win, but can be expensive and you need to know what you are doing. I would recommend hiring a Google Adwords Expert as it can be complex to set up Adwords and expensive if you get it wrong. (I would definitely recommend using Google Remarketing, this enables you to display ads to your website visitors AFTER they leave your site – the ads follow them all over the internet. These work great and costs next to nothing).
Search Engine Optimisation (SEO). This is the process to optimise your website so that Google lists it in the rankings. You need to be on page 1 of Google. The good news is that this is free, the bad news is that it can take many months of work to achieve a result. But once you do you will reap the rewards for a long time. SEO is a huge subject so you can either hire an expert or if you have the time and inclination you can teach yourself, check out the book I mention in TOP TIP 1.
TOP TIP 4
Have a water softener marketing and sales follow up system.
This is what the majority of water softener installation businesses do not have or understand. In points 1 to 3 above we are looking at ways to generate interest in our service, which is essential. But what you have to realise is that of those who visit your website only one or two in every 100 are ready to buy today. So if they do not buy today then that means 98% leave your website and the chances are they will never come back. That 98% is where the gold is for your business. So you have to have a system in place that enables you to consistently follow up with EVERYONE who expresses an interest in water softener services. This can be really simple – paper based or Excel, it is possible but it is a definite chore that requires dedication and time to manage. And that leads me nicely on to what I do. I specialise in helping clients set up a marketing automation system called Keap / Infusionsoft and this is the leading marketing automation system for small/medium size enterprises.
Check out my blog post – Water Softener sales leads. Do you really need more new water softener sales leads?
Check out my blog post – One of my water softener clients won awards for business growth
TOP TIP 5
Referrals. Even in this online world, word of mouth advertising is still the best. How can you encourage previous clients to talk about your water softener products and service? Can you offer them an incentive if one of their friends buys your service? Can you reach out to all your previous water softener clients and remind them about your service, this is really easy if you have a marketing system in place, see Top Tip 4 and an efficient Water Softener Installation System, see Top Tip 7.
On this note. Are you listed with the likes of Trusted Trader and/or any other review sites? Social proof these days is so important. How many times have you decided between one or other hotel or restaurant based on the reviews from previous customers? This social proof is key these days and you should be actively asking your customers for a review on each job you do.
TOP TIP 6
Distributing leaflets door to door is a popular and successful marketing tactic for water softener installers. But you can take this tactic one step further and also drop leaflets at neighbours houses when you do a water softener install or maintenance. So make it a rule for your installers to drop leaflets at neighbours houses – 5 houses to the right and 5 houses to the left, and then the ones opposite. So this way you quickly get 20 households flyered who probably have the same hard water issue as your customer had prior to your water softener installation.
TOP TIP 7
Water Softener Installation Systemisation
OK, so you have been busy marketing and you now have water softener enquiries and orders. But the job is still not finished. Now we have to ensure we look and act professionally and do a top-notch installation job so that we WOW and retain those hard-won clients. How do you manage you and your team’s on-site jobs currently? As the business grows you will need a system to make this as efficient and professional as possible so that clients not only return again to us later on, but they refer us to their friends and family. One very impressive service I have recommended to installation service clients for the past 4 years is ServiceM8.
If you are interested to learn more about how to build your own water softener marketing and sales system then please schedule a free 1-hour Discovery call.
This book goes hand in hand with Work The System (No. 4 above). It is all about how to plan and set up systems so that you can take a full month out of your business initially and prove to yourself that your business no longer requires you to work in the business, rather you become the designer of your business.
