When it’s super hot outside, your thermometer is doing your marketing for you, (so tell it thank you.) Just think of all that marketing money you’re saving! But wait a second here.…

If you’re not doing much marketing, and your competition is not doing any, I guess this means all those phone calls pouring in to all the HVAC dealers in town are from each company’s very own personal customer list, right? Not on your life.

Of the calls you’re getting, 60-65% had better be from your customers. Since service calls dominate the incoming leads during peak season (actually July 21 is the average U.S. highest summer traffic day), your sales leads will probably be more from breakdown than from current marketing.

If you did what we’ve been advising since the dawn of time (or at least the past 12 years), and made the weather your partner and not your slave driver, then you are getting leads and referrals from your database.

Many of you have a customer retention program and have found that the peak benefits are in the peak seasons.  Why would they call someone else when they already have a relationship with a contractor? And, presumably, it's you. Keep it that way using the insider info in this issue of SMI.

Don’t forget to check out this issue’s “Marketing in a Minute”

Your marketing message is one leg of a three-legged stool that also includes market and media, and it’s a fundamental building block for a successful marketing program. Do you know your message? Sadly, many contractors don’t.

We critique thousands of ads and letters here and find the most glaringly poor examples all focus the message on themselves. It’s “we” this and “our” that and it all comes off as a brag-master to one’s own perceived greatness. Good copywriting puts your points about experience, reliability, standards and services in a way that serves the prospect.

By placing the customer in the center of the ad or salesperson’s dialogue, you’ll find your message begins to answer the only real question on their mind, which is: “What’s in it for me?” Make your message about your benefits, not features.

Listen to the difference even in discussing just one part of a Maintenance Agreement program.…

A - Get your coils cleaned and up to a pound of refrigerant as part of our deluxe Maintenance Agreement contract - Feature

B - Save energy dollars and lengthen equipment life with planned maintenance that pays for itself - Benefit

Do you see the difference? The benefit statement gives power; the feature statement is tech talk. If you mention features, only do so when you can qualify it with a corresponding benefit. Never leave it to the prospect or customer to draw the line from A to B - they’ll seldom do it or get it right.

Also, never give prospects or customers a reason to say, “so what?” For example, “We’ve been in business for 35 years” – so what? “Our technicians are certified and efficient” – so what?

You must put the customer’s perspective into the feature by following it with a clear benefit. That’s also done by shifting the focus from you to them, so it becomes “You get 35 years of caring experience” or “Certified technicians calm your fears and put the comfort back in your home, fast.”

I recently got an email from a customer of ours who – after attending a seminar of ours - changed his marketing message from the “We’ve got” to “You get” approach. He also exchanged all the harsh sales words (such as “contract” instead of “agreement” from a list of 21 such common word exchanges) and told me his leads increased and his closing ratio went from 34% to 55%, “….virtually overnight”.

Results like this from across the country continue to remind us that the marketing message is not about you, it’s about prospects and customers. By taking this approach, you’ll also find you become a standout among the majority who feel the message is about them. Don’t believe it? Open the Yellow Page book to any page you choose, you’ll see. Let us know how we can help you.

In last week’s 1 hour and 11 minute Coaching Session, Adams ripped through.…

• The top 10 Ways to Boost credibility for greater closes at higher prices
• The reason your techs hate the word "selling" and what to change NOW
• Phrases your techs are using to kill sales… and the best ones to exchange for more closes
• A 3 step process for 100% accurate follow up from every tech, on every call, every time
• Reinforcing that in THIS economy, SPEED is an asset of mammoth proportions - Get it.
• Follow up methods your CSR can use to close the unclosed
• Plus, hear the Coaching Member who said, "We just did an $800,000 install, and have another $350,000 one in a couple weeks. How do I close the smaller $25-$30,000 jobs faster so I can move on?" Whoa. Listen to the response!

If you missed it, log in to the Member’s Only website and get ready to take notes!

A high quality postcard with a well-placed retention message (not a hard-driving ‘sales’ message) gains credibility, sales, referrals and great TOMA (top of mind awareness). Plus, postcards require no envelope, can be metered, and are very inexpensive to print. They can be out to your entire database almost immediately. When developing your postcard, follow these guidelines:

• Focus on a singular summer-themed headline. This is simple since you can refer to the “heat” of summer versus the “cool” of your service and systems. You can also use a July 4th theme since that is a powerful and popular tie-in. (See samples on our website.)
  
  
• Tie the headline to an appealing photo. Not equipment or trucks! Royalty-free photos are available at many websites and can have thousands of photos. (Caution: the discs can be $2,500, but this beats a professional photographer at $300 per photo.) We sift through 300-400 to find the “right” ones, but this process is what draws the reader or turns them away. Best bet: Children in summer activities rank #1 in female-oriented focus groups, which account for nearly 70% of the readership. Review the samples on our website for reference.
  
  
• “Sell” them on your relationship with a soft call to action. This means to draw the reader into the copy, then remind them of your service and that you can “fix” many of the ills connected with the hot weather or plumbing related issues.
  
  
• Two extra “lead bumps” for smart marketers. You can include a request for referrals such as, “We’d be delighted to hear from you or your friends anytime.” Also you can turn the postcard into a $10 off coupon (or whatever amount) with one sentence at the end or on the front.

Remember, the summer sales season can make or break your business. Don’t wait on the weather or “hope” your customers remember you. Make sure it happens by driving your name farther into the market to get more leads, sales, and profits. The calls are out there. Make sure they’re coming to you.

"Marketing’s mission is to produce leads at all costs."

This is popular with total Direct Response devotees and I myself am a reformed devotee of sorts. Let me explain. “Leads at all cost” for a Direct Response maven means screaming about opportunities and offers until your “too good to be true” shouting can’t be heard any longer. In other words, you become The Contractor Who Cried Wolf. Your credibility drops. Your professionalism takes a suspicious, skeptical slant. And in truth – your honesty is brought into question with each new “better than ever” offer.

How often can you say, “This is the best offer we’ve ever had and may never be repeated!” without looking like a total fool? That’s why after years of doling out nothing but Direct Response, I advocate a healthy mixture of Image, Direct Response, Top-of-the Mind-Awareness (TOMA), Retention and other.

Leads are important. Very important. But to gain them at the sacrifice of your public trust is shortsighted at best. You’ve got to build credibility, image, and sales for the long term or you’ll be washed along the shore, littered with non-trustworthy contracting has-beens. And remember – it’ll cost you four times as much to rebuild your damaged image as it took to build it in the first place.