Last year was challenging on a level no one was quite expecting. The pandemic made it extremely difficult to pull through, given how the challenges were not limited to the professional world, but on a personal level as well.
We’re still not out of the woods regarding the pandemic just yet, but better days are closer and it’s time to look into the future of your business with positivity. So, what does your contractor business need to not just survive, but thrive in 2021?
Give your clients what they want
It’s crucial to understand your clients’ needs and make a deliberate effort to give them what they want. But what does that mean in practical terms?
Try to send out feedback requests via email, especially after a job is done and ask your clients to reply a few questions anonymously. But you can also figure out your main woes by being observant.
With a handful of answers, you can already start noticing patterns.
- Do you need to improve customer service?
- Are your prices competitive in the market?
- Is your website up to par with your ambitions?
- Can clients easily contact you if they have doubts and do you reply promptly?
You can solve any of these difficulties, so long as you know where to focus!
Have a backup plan
Having a plan is always a good idea. If nothing else, last year proved why that’s important, because we never know what challenges may come our way.
Obviously, it’s impossible to be prepared for everything. A backup plan is more about having some money for potential drought periods, so that your business can get through tough times without going red financially.
Use social media for marketing
I’m sure you’re tired of hearing about it, but there’s a reason everyone says social media is one of your greatest tools. It’s where all the people are, and therefore, where you have the potential to find the most clients.
Before, social media used to be about nation or worldwide marketing, but now there are many tools perfect for regional marketing, which is perfect for the contractor business. You can create a profile page and target your promoted posts to circulate only in the area you cover.
Automate whatever you can
There are tons of repetitive and time-consuming processes that you can automate nowadays. Sending out emails, generating invoices, managing financial sheets, and much more. If you find yourself spending a lot of time every day or every week performing one task, try to figure out a way to automate it – or at least, some of it. It will already save you a lot of time in the long run.
Focus on building a reputation
Your reputation is your most valuable asset. Working on your reputation will improve basically everything about your workflow, landing you more jobs consistently, and making it easier to sustain your business on the long run.
But building a reputation isn’t a simple task. It takes a lot of time and effort, so it should always be a priority throughout your days.
Branding
Same as building a reputation, having solid branding does wonders for your business. It’s all about making your brand easily recognizable and a staple in quality service. Combine a great reputation with branding and you will have a huge amount of potential clients who look at your logo and immediately recognize it as a respectable business. You can’t put a price on that.
Working remote
Remote work isn’t going anywhere, even after the pandemic is long gone. There were already major benefits, but a lot of people only noticed them after being forced to adopt these practices.
You can use video calls for meetings that would otherwise be difficult or impossible to reach. You can have all your documents on the cloud for access anywhere, including on the field via a tablet or smartphone. These are major benefits for the contractor business that so often relies on live meetings and driving.
That’s not to say “completely ditch live meetings” – there’s a huge value attached to meeting your clients in person! But you can use other tools when it’s more convenient to not miss out on good opportunities.
Customer satisfaction
It’s no use landing all the jobs in your region if your customer satisfaction is low. This will only damage your reputation and make it harder to get more jobs in the future. Always make an effort to ensure your clients are satisfied with your service, and if not, learn what can you do to make them happy or improve in the future.
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