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Ideas to Help Electrical Contractor? (My Brother)

by MIB Mastermind
11 replies
Hey,

My brother just started his own electrical contracting company, naturally it's been slow the first couple of weeks, I'm in the process of helping him with his website and his local listings etc. This will obviously take a little bit of time before he see's results, although I believe it should be pretty simple as the competition isn't so tough.

What strategies and tactics work best for this type of business?

I'm aware there are dozens of ways we can promote his new business but, as he's on a very limited budget I'm hoping to implement the ones with the best chance of producing a positive ROI out the gate.

I'm in the process of helping him develop a USP, which we can put on his van and all other marketing and promotional materials.

I was thinking of placing a quarter page ad in the local paper with his offer, USP and call to action.

Possibly postcards to pre defined areas or businesses.

What types of online/offline media are working well for this type of industry? youtube videos? FB fan page?

Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks
#brother #contractor #electrical #ideas
  • Profile picture of the author Barry Unruh
    Is he, or you, going to pickup the phone and start calling carpenters, businesses, contractors, and real estate agents to let them know he is in business and ready to bid on projects?
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    • Profile picture of the author MIB Mastermind
      Originally Posted by Barry Unruh View Post

      Is he, or you, going to pickup the phone and start calling carpenters, businesses, contractors, and real estate agents to let them know he is in business and ready to bid on projects?
      My brother has had conversations with dozens of joiner/building contractors, he's managed to get work from 2 or 3 of them, most he's spoken with are happy with there current electrical contractors though.

      You tend to find the smaller builders and joiners use the same contractors over and over
      and don't put work out for bid. Once they have a good contractor they tend to use them
      exclusively.

      The more major house builders here in the UK put projects out for bid but you need to be
      a company of a certain size to get those jobs, plus the profit margins are very slim.
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      • Profile picture of the author wbinst2
        Think of a few things that customers of electricians hate most and then make the opposite of that your USP. Just as the ad above has done. Thats how you find your USP.

        Hate the mess left = we vacuum after every job.
        Hate being late = were on time every time or 20% off the fee.
        Hate not sticking to a price = we fix our price. No surprises.

        You get the idea.
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  • Profile picture of the author Synnuh
    Homepage - Local Client Takeover is free now and has the specific training you need to get the phone ringing. They're good dudes.

    It's only designed to do that, though -- get the phone ringing. Not positioning or anything else.
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  • Profile picture of the author savidge4
    USP regardless of the medium in which you communicate with potential customers is KEY. you have to ask yourself ( in your case your brother ) what is the #1 reason people call for his services?

    Lets take a plumber for example. lets pretend its winter time. why do people call plumbers? their pipes froze! THAT is a USP. seasonal sure, but there are no rules that say you cant change the USP as needed.

    The more than average trip wire for a Electrician is home inspections. do you have arcing plugs? do you have flickering lights? I have an electrician client and we are trying the "Want to make your Garage more functional for those week end projects?" angle. Throw in a "Garage storage specialist" into the mix.. and it becomes a very viable angle actually.

    I can only speak for the market that I am in... but new home garages have 3 plugs, one for the garage door opener ( ceiling ), and one to the left and one to the right. More often than not, the circuit box is located in the Garage as well. Its a no brainer easy upgrade that adds value to the do it yourself type home owner.

    But again.. its the USP, why do people call? Match your message to those that are seeking your brothers service.

    Might also suggest incomebully.com as a good site to get some ideas on the local web related aspects of SEO and online business listing.

    Originally Posted by MIB Mastermind View Post

    Hey,

    My brother just started his own electrical contracting company, naturally it's been slow the first couple of weeks, I'm in the process of helping him with his website and his local listings etc. This will obviously take a little bit of time before he see's results, although I believe it should be pretty simple as the competition isn't so tough.

    What strategies and tactics work best for this type of business?

    I'm aware there are dozens of ways we can promote his new business but, as he's on a very limited budget I'm hoping to implement the ones with the best chance of producing a positive ROI out the gate.

    I'm in the process of helping him develop a USP, which we can put on his van and all other marketing and promotional materials.

    I was thinking of placing a quarter page ad in the local paper with his offer, USP and call to action.

    Possibly postcards to pre defined areas or businesses.

    What types of online/offline media are working well for this type of industry? youtube videos? FB fan page?

    Any help would be appreciated.

    Thanks
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    Success is an ACT not an idea
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    • Profile picture of the author ewenmack
      A client modeled this ad on the right for his electrical contractor client,
      put it in a different media, in a different country...
      and brought in an extra $30 k month income stream.

      Best,
      Doctor E. Vile

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      • Profile picture of the author MIB Mastermind
        Originally Posted by ewenmack View Post

        A client modeled this ad on the right for his electrical contractor client,
        put it in a different media, in a different country...
        and brought in an extra $30 k month income stream.

        Best,
        Doctor E. Vile
        Thanks ewenmack.

        I stumbled across that ad the other day while searching the forum, you can see why it would work so well for this type of industry.

        Another thing that really bothers clients is when they're quoted a price for having the work done and are then sent a much higher bill at the end of the job, I believe this happen frequently in this type of industry.

        I'm trying to formulate a USP that touches on some of the points in your headline example like: "being there on time" "always cleaning up" & and "never paying more than initial quote"

        Are you able to elaborate on what other media this was used successfully in buy your client?

        Would you suggest having this type of headline/USP on your website above the fold?

        Thanks
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        • Profile picture of the author ewenmack
          Originally Posted by MIB Mastermind View Post

          Are you able to elaborate on what other media this was used successfully in buy your client?
          This ad is designed for buyers...those who have decided to buy,
          but not sure who from.

          Knowing that, ask yourself where do buyers go looking
          for electrical work?

          That's the media for this style of ad.

          Best,
          Doctor E. Vile
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        • Profile picture of the author ewenmack
          Originally Posted by MIB Mastermind View Post

          Would you suggest having this type of headline/USP on your website above the fold?

          Thanks
          Yes.

          Because it's the most important thing to a buyer,
          therefore give what they want.

          Best,
          Doctor E. Vile
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  • Profile picture of the author SiteSmarty
    Copy whatever the best electrician in your city is doing until the loot starts rolling in, then optimize your system better than whatever the competition is doing. He needs to do it all. Online, offline, everything and never stop.
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  • Profile picture of the author DavidZin
    They very interesting.Customer will like what do they want .And We can sell products.
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