The owner of a construction company recently told me how much difficulty he was having generating sales leads for his company. When I asked him how he was looking for those leads, he explained that he had purchased a list of phone numbers for homeowners in his state, and had given it to his receptionist to call when she was not busy answering the phone.
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Now, I could critique the approach he was using to make those calls. He had not prepared a phone script for his receptionist to use — she was more or less asking, “Do you need any construction work done?” But my real purpose today is to point out that if your company is digging for strong sales leads in a small geographic area — maybe in just a town or two — the key to success is to think small. After all, you know exactly where your customers are. So finding them can be a pretty straightforward process if you apply some simple strategies:
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Get some young legs walking for you. Hire some high school students to blanket your area and put postcards or brochures in mailboxes. Or use door hangers — those die-cut flyers that hang on doorknobs — instead. They are one of my favorite promotional items, because homeowners can’t miss them. If you offer something irresistible, like a free yard clean up or a free Pilates class, people are far more likely to respond.
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Network locally. Community organizations, like your local Chamber of Commerce, offer excellent platforms for finding sales leads. So can community activities, such as religious institutions, your children’s schools and athletic teams, and more. You may not want to network too aggressively in some of these settings — but neither do you want to miss out on opportunities by being too shy. I know an accountant who got a big account after striking up a conversation with another mom as they were watching their sons’ little league team in action.
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Put your name on the back of shirts. In other words, sponsor local sports teams, events, charities and causes. These traditional strategies have always provided good lead-generating returns. Even in this age of electronic marketing, they have not outlived their usefulness. Another good option? Fund a college scholarship for a deserving local student. (A scholarship of only a few thousand dollars demonstrates your good will and will be mentioned in local media.) Then go to the high school when the scholarship is being awarded and talk to parents.
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Ask non-competing companies in your area to exchange their customers’ contact information with you. If you operate a picture framing shop, for example, the customers who patronize a nearby day spa could become your customers too.
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Teach a class at a local adult school or community college. Maybe this sounds like a “small potatoes” way to generate sales leads. But I know a masonry contractor who taught a class called, “How to Use Interlocking Pavers” for his local adult school and got three contracts afterwards when students realized they didn’t really want to use those interlocking pavers themselves.
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Ask your vendors and suppliers to recommend potential customers. The wider you spread your net and ask for sales leads, the greater your chance of identifying likely prospects and making sales.
