Low risk, high gain marketing is a must
If installation businesses haven’t already seriously reviewed their marketing tactics in 2024, now is the time to start, according to Rhonda Ridge of Ab Initio.
Although at the time of writing we have finally had some good news in the form of the UK coming out of a recession, there is no denying the impact of the economic difficulties on the home improvement industry.
The high-profile example of Everest being the latest name to go into administration has brought the state of the market into sharp focus. No-one wants to be the next casualty, so the emphasis continues to be on keeping the pipeline populated, in the most cost-effective way. Installation businesses need low risk marketing tactics that deliver a high return on investment.
A lot of companies within the window and door industry – and beyond – are turning back to e-mail marketing for this very reason. In 2024, it is thought that 89% of marketers in the US are using e-mail marketing as their primary channel to generate leads, while according to Optinmonster, 80% of consumers say they’re more likely to do business with a company that uses personalisation in their marketing communications. E-mail campaigns are generally cost effective to generate and bring in good results. But as with any other marketing tactics, they need to be done well to ensure they succeed.
Personal messaging
Every installation business will be different in terms of the messages they know work with their different audiences. No-one knows their business and local area like they do. But there are a few things that apply across the board. Everyone likes being treated like they are special.
The business model of larger companies selling high volumes of windows and doors at a lower cost worked when more orders were there for the taking, but the current more condensed marketplace is more considered. People like marketing messages that feel more personal.
It’s not enough to understand what your existing and future customers want, you need to show them you understand what they want. Put simply, the more personalised the message, the more successful the campaign. Installation businesses that we are working with are seeing great success in targeted campaigns.
For example, e-mails to previous customers with a limited special offer if they recommend a friend or if they place an order for some follow-on work. Similarly, special offers designed specifically for prospects that have shown an interest in a particular product in the past are proving very successful in giving prospects the gentle nudge they need to persuade them to buy. This level of targeted e-mails though needs a reliable infrastructure of data behind it.
Easy to access data
AdminBase is an installer management system that centralises everything, so all data is live and easy to access at all times. This means the entire business shares one central system containing all contacts for customers and prospects, and all information pertaining to each contract or project.
There is also the option to add on its e-mail campaigns feature, AdminBase Campaigns, to eliminate the need to export data out of this central system and import it into third party mailing software.
Sometimes when e-mail campaigns are conducted via third party mailing software, information can be lost in the export and import of data during an e-mail campaign. AdminBase offers installation companies the ability to send bulk e-mails directly from the system to make sure it’s easy and no data is lost.
E-mail marketing is a popular and successful way to generate leads and can prove particularly useful with previous customer contacts when enquiries from other sources slow down. Installation businesses are facing a challenging market at the moment and proactivity in the right areas will make all the difference, but it needs to be proactivity that isn’t implausibly time consuming, or too difficult to maintain.
Running e-mail campaigns directly from an already centralised system allows installation businesses to benefit from low-cost high-quality leads, without the hassle.
