James Dewane's blog

Will sign writing my van get me more customers?

I wanted to go back to basics on todays post by talking about your van. Nothing unusual about that you might be thinking, however I was following a discussion just last week on the social media about the type of van that electricians want to be driving.

The conversation soon turned to the subject of sign writing. To me sign writing a van is a no brainer for two reasons:

Electricians – how to make money from email marketing

One of the most valuable marketing methods for your electrical contracting business can be built up quite easily by simply having an email list. Used in the right way, your email list will produce repeat business, recommendations and also further enhance your reputation as the 'go to' electrician in your local area.

Leafleting – a straightforward way for electricians to get work in their local area

I call leafleting my virtual cash machine. If I am in need of a cash boost into my electrical contracting business, then I use leafleting as a sure-fire way to bring in that cash.

Making leafleting work

How to make advertising work for your electrical contracting business

When it comes to advertising, I always recommend selecting local publications over other methods. This is because the aim is to get your advert seen by people in your local area. For advertising to work best in your interests, it is important to have control over your advertisement.

Where to advertise

How to identify your core message in a customer friendly way

Your core message determines in a nutshell what your electrical business is about. Every successful business needs to have a core message whether it reflects the high quality workmanship or amazing customer services – or both. You need to identify a strength in your business that you can offer to each and every customer – a good reason why they should come to you over a competitor. Every customer likes to have some form of trust or promise that covers more than just the work. At Kent Electrics we put our name and reputation behind every job we take on.

How to make blogging work for your electrical business

Blogging is so much more than words on a page. Done correctly you will increase visitors to your site, improve search engine rankings and become an authoritative on electrical work. The purpose of blogging is to provide regular, informative and relevant content on your website which in turn makes your website more likely to be found within the search engines. How to write a great blog post Firstly your blogging needs to be relevant to the electrical industry. Many electricians focus on a market share that they would like to target for example landlords.

Planning your marketing strategy

One of the questions I get asked on a regular basis is how to introduce special offers without appearing to be desperate for work. I actually recommend having special offers all year round – not only will you be in regular contact with potential customers offering reasonable prices, you will not be giving any indication of your current state of cash flow. It is not difficult to think of well known high street brands that offer year round sales – when you need their services, you will know who to call.

Customer relations - how to avoid mis-understandings

Great! Your marketing efforts are paying off and you get your first customers – all seems to be going well until you come across a customer who despite your best efforts, just isn't happy. Let's assume that there is no problem with the work – as far as you as the electrician is concerned, you have carried out the job as requested but the customer is still refusing to pay up. How to protect yourself from this scenario This situation has occurred through mis-understanding. Your client is not happy as you have not met their expectations.

How to unleash the power of direct mail

In the days of electronic mail, you might be thinking that the traditional postage lead direct mail is dead. That couldn't be further from the truth, direct mail is still very much alive and kicking and carried out in the correct way – by making it personal – it can prove to be a very profitable venture. The Facts Personalised direct mail has a far higher response rate than a mass mailing campaign. So forget sending out masses of impersonal mailings as these are likely to end up in the bin – only 2% of mass mailing campaigns produce a response.

Want to run your own business?....AND be successful?

Being your own boss....being self employed.....what does it even mean? Is it the preserve of the rich or clever....or just the plain crazy? Well if you are thinking the latter then you're somewhere near to the life of a SUCCESSFUL business owner. If you like the thrill of the ride, and by that I mean you like being busy from 6am to 9pm where the phone never stops ringing and the job never really ends then being self employed might be just what you are looking for.

Marketing for Sparks