There are 10.4 million residential pools and another 300,000 or so public pools in America. And the average homeowner spends anywhere from $475 to $800 a month on pool service. What all that means is that there are plenty of business opportunities for you to grow a pool business. But you need to use the right strategies. Here are a few to get you started:
1. Digitize your business
How far have you gone in digitizing your business? Have you started yet? Well, you need to.
In this digital era, pool service business software is essential. It will help you keep digital records about every aspect of your business, from existing customers to leads. You can also use it to keep business records such as invoices and drafts of sales letters.
Digitizing your records makes your business more streamlined. It becomes much easier to keep track of all your business information. And you can access that information no matter where you are in the world, so long as you use cloud storage. That makes running a business easier, even when you travel. You can still manage your team of employees remotely.
2. Use the right marketing tools
You need to use several types of marketing tools available to market to potential customers. One of the simple ones to use is the business card. Do you know that for every 2,000 cards that you pass out, sales increase by 2.5%?
So if your pool service business is currently making $100,000, and you pass out 2,000 cards, you might be able to increase your revenues by 2,500. It might not seem like much, but over time and as your revenues increase, there is a significant cumulative effect. It is easy to pass out business cards once you have one client in the neighborhood you service. You can also distribute those cards in networking events that you attend.
Other marketing tools you can use include websites, social media, radio and TV adverts, etc. Determine what works out for your business and invest some money.
3. Offer effective customer incentives
Never take your customers for granted. To keep them loyal, show appreciation once in a while. Offer your customer incentives so that they can continue giving you their business. You should also offer them incentives to refer more customers to your business.
A gift card is a good incentive. You can offer digital gift vouchers that they can use to buy things on sites like Amazon. Do this for special occasions like Christmas or when you get a referral from them. It does not have to be costly. Even a $10 will do. Customers will be happy that you appreciate them.
Also, consider offering incentives for customers to stay with you for longer. You could offer a discount of 5-10% if a customer paid upfront for the entire annual service. That guarantees that you have a customer for at least a year.
Other customer incentives you can use to market your business include free upgrades for a month, physical gifts, free service trials, free consultation, and quotes. Use those that work well for your company.
Your pool service business has plenty of room to grow. And you can dominate the market in your local area if you use the right strategies. Thus, streamline your business with good software, incentivize your customers, and use practical marketing tools to create awareness. Invest now to build a bigger business tomorrow.
