<\/a>In sales, there’s an old expression; A-B-C.\u00a0 It means \u201cAlways Be Closing”.\u00a0 Years ago, before consumers became empowered with things like the internet, the only way salespeople sold anything was through pushy sales tactics, the mantra was to always focus on closing the deal no matter what.\u00a0 There’s some benefit to this style of selling that translates to contractor marketing…in a positive way!<\/p>\n

Always be qualifying!<\/strong><\/p>\n

Most contractors are excited when the phone rings and a prospect is on the telephone.\u00a0 The typical consumer questions are about price and time frame. Rather than talking only about the work, you need to take charge of the conversation in the beginning by asking \u201cHow did you hear about us”?<\/p>\n

This usually leads to a conversation about a referral source or advertising campaign.\u00a0 Regardless of the answer, Drive down into the source of the lead. Determine what caused this person get in touch with you, and ask if there was any other source they used. You see, most people will only tell you about the LAST method used to reach you (Google search, Yellow Pages) when they could very well have used multiple mediums to find you.<\/p>\n

Once you confirm, move on<\/strong><\/p>\n

Once you KNOW how they found you, then move onto the details of the job.\u00a0 Later, after you have won the job (fingers crossed), mention the referral source again.\u00a0 This lets them know that you paid attention and you are considerate of their opinion. This time ask them why they chose you in particular – price, appearance, availability, etc. Then you file their answer in your mental Rolodex to improve on your next marketing campaign.<\/p>\n

After the work is done<\/strong><\/p>\n

Once the job is complete, ask the client if they would be willing to give you either a written or video testimonial. You can use these testimonials in future advertising as well as on your website. And since referrals are the best type of business to get – buy them. Offer your client a gift certificate to a local restaurant for their testimonial. Trust me; a page full of testimonials goes a long way in closing new business I promise you!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In sales, there’s an old expression; A-B-C.\u00a0 It means \u201cAlways Be Closing”.\u00a0 Years ago, before consumers became empowered with things like the internet, the only way salespeople sold anything was through pushy sales tactics, the mantra was to always focus on closing the deal no matter what.\u00a0 There’s some benefit to this style of selling […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[73,71,4,74,75,76,77],"class_list":{"0":"post-764","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-lead-generation","7":"tag-consumer-questions","8":"tag-contracting-company","9":"tag-marketing-advertising","10":"tag-marketing-campaign","11":"tag-referral-source","12":"tag-sales-tactics","13":"tag-video-testimonial","14":"entry"},"yoast_head":"\n