Most of my home improvement clients bank on getting good leads at home shows in January, February, March and April. Here are some things that will help you get more from home shows and REACH magazine:

1) Engage with prospects: At home shows there are people who do really well making lots of good contacts with prospective clients and there are people who do poorly and feel homes shows are a waste of time. In many ways it is like social media. If you just hand out brochures and business cards, you will not do as well as the company who has someone who engages with the prospects. If consumers are looking for a home improvement company, they are looking for the person they feel most comfortable with who also has the credentials to do the job. They are looking for a person, not a brochure. The best way to engage people is to ask questions. Rather than blathering about what you do, ask them if they are considering kitchen or bathroom remodeling this year (or whatever your business might be). If they say, “No” you might continue with, “what kind of projects are you considering? or what kind of products are you looking for”. Here is the thing, if this consumer is going to work on something that you don’t do, but you know someone who does that type of work give them a referral or just walk them over to the vendor that you know. This is what I call engaging your prospects.

2) Try for the appointment NOW: Rather than give someone your card or just getting their name and phone number, you will be amazed at how much more you will get from a home show if you will (after #1 engaging the prospects) actually ask for a time to stop by and go over their project and prepare an informed estimate. Have a large appointment book open on the table to show that others are making appointments and ask them when the best time to discuss their project might be. Now, obviously, you do not want to be pushy, but instead inviting in your attitude. If someone declines your invitation, it is appropriate to hand them your brochure or card and mention that they may know someone who needs your services and to please pass on the information if there is opportunity.

If you just gather names and phone numbers at the home show, guess what, there are 150 other companies at the show doing the same thing. Consumers are difficult to reach at home and after 5 other companies have set their appointments, they may say no thanks, even if you felt you hit it off pretty well at the show. What is the saying about a bird in the hand…. 25 good appointments are better than 300 leads from a home show.

3. Talk with the other vendors: The more people you know, the more likely that you can be an asset and a help to any prospect you meet. Why is that important? Because if you can help them with something and it is something that you don’t do, they may comment about you and your services to their friends. How many friends do they have? Who knows. It may be they have three friends that need your services right now. It may be that they have 400 friends on facebook or 200 twitter followers. Give them some extra cards and suggest that they mention you to their friends and tell them you were glad you could help.

4. Always have a human answer your phone: One thing that can kill good marketing better than anything is voice mail or an answering machine. If someone is looking for a solution, they may have half a dozen options in front of them. If they do not know your personally, rather than leaving their name and phone number, they will just call the next place on their list. That means you have lost that customer. With REACH magazine we have had similar businesses run similar ads with one owner saying, “REACH is fantastic” and the other saying,”REACH didn’t work for me.” Sometimes this is due to reputation or the incentive offers being presented, but sometimes we find out it is because the business was unreachable. If I call a REACH client 5 times and get voice mail or an answering machine more than once or twice, there is a significant problem that needs to be addressed. If that problem cannot be fixed then marketing money and efforts are being wasted.

5. What if you don’t participate in the Home Show: Home shows draw 10,000 or sometimes 20,000 people. Many are just looking for ideas that they can do themselves. Others are ready to start on various home improvement projects. But, in the Dayton area we mail REACH magazine to 260,000 homes. Only 1/10th of those home owners will make it to the home shows this season. Yet in late winter and early spring many who did not attend a home show will be doing home improvements of many kinds. Magnify your efforts at the home show with additional advertising to reach the people who do not attend home shows. Late winter and early spring is when they too will be considering who to hire. Exposure in multiple locations from multiple sources is like multiplication on you marketing efforts. What is the other saying…don’t put all your eggs in one basket.

I hope you found this helpful.  I am interested in knowing your thoughts. Please click on the comment link and add something or comment on this blog post. If you would like to discuss a marketing/advertising idea, I have 20 years experience here in the Dayton market. I’d love to hear your thoughts and questions. Peter DeMott 937-478-6222

Here is the cover of our December REACH magazine. Our January edition is put to bed, and we are now working on the February and March issues.