Advertising And Competitors Pricing?

manhattan

hi,fellow moneysavers.

i have a few questions about small business advertising and competitors pricing.

i have a few ideas about how and where to advertise for business but would just like your ideas or oppinions on where or how to advertise.

i have thought of the usual yellow pages,thomson directory,local papers,shop windows,door flyers etc any other ideas from you guys?

also,how do i go about finding out how much the competition are charging for there services or the going rate for a certain type of job?is it just a case of phoning a few companies in the yellow pages for a sneaky quote ??? any help would be most greatful.
i am just trying to gather as much information before i start my small business as i want everything to go as smooth as possible! thanks in advance guys(and girls)

Savvy_Sue

I would suggest that you give some thought to where people will look for you and under what circumstances they will use you. Even if I knew your business I wouldn't necessarily be well placed to give you advice, but it does depend whether your service is a very local one or covers a wider geographical area. What I have limited experience of is an out of school club, therefore it was a local service.

If your service appeals to parents in a particular area, then IMO the most cost effective form of advertising is "satchel post", ie regular fliers sent home with the children via the local schools. Obviously you need to be on good terms with the local schools to be able to do this.

Other ways of getting your name in front of people for a LOCAL service is through LOCAL outlets. It is usually ruinously expensive to advertise in the local paper, but there are often church magazines which take adverts. And again, schools often have Christmas, Easter and Summer Fairs for which they produce programmes, and they may accept paid advertising in them as well for a very reasonable sum. Or there are tenants and community associations who may produce newsletters and be prepared to take adverts.

If you're selling something, then again it is worth seeing if you can get a stall at local events. You may not make a lot of money this way, but you should raise your profile a bit.

The only thing I would beg of you is that when people phone you for a quote, if yours is that kind of service, that you give them one and don't just leave them hanging on and on ...

As well as phoning for quotes it may also be worth asking friends, relatives etc what they'd be prepared to pay for whatever you're offering, or if they know what people charge. You may find that people are prepared to pay more than you expect - or not! Also - again this may be more relevant for a locally based service - you may realise there is a gap in the market you can specialise in. For example there may already be several dog walking services, but you can also offer a nail clipping and teeth cleaning service, plus a shampoo and sets for poodles ...

Hope that helps and that if you need advice for a non-geographical service you will say so so that people who know about that can help as well.

manhattan

ahhhh, thanks for that savvy_sue.

sorry,
i forgot to say what sort of business i will be doing.

it will mainly be digital tv aerial and satellite installations/servicing to private and commercial customers within a 35-40 mile radius and possibly satellite broadband installations and various other related services.

what does anyone think about flyers through letterboxes?or promoting discounts with the flyers etc?

also what would be the most professional way of contacting various companies regarding contract work? im not sure if a company headed written letter or phone call would be best?

thanks ,m.

Savvy_Sue

I can't talk about the effectiveness of particular forms of advertising in your field of work, but I can tell you my response to leaflets through the door. If it's a service I want, or might want, and it's offering a discount, I will keep it until I need it IF it looks professional. Doesn't have to be glossy, but it does have to be nicely laid out, well copied, and no spelling mistakes. When I need it, I will probably be phoning for quotes from at least two companies, so anyone who doesn't respond effectively is pretty much without hope.

(I'm sorry if my prejudice against people who can't spell offends anyone: I know in some fields of work it doesn't matter. But I reckon that anyone who takes the trouble to present their service well is more likely to do a good job than someone who scrawls a handwritten note, photocopies it using a duff copier, and screws it up on the way through the letterbox. If you can't spell, use a friend who can to proofread rigourously! And nothing personal, if you want to write without spaces and capital letters on this forum that's fine, but if you do it on an advertising leaflet which hits my doormat it'll be in the bin pdq. )

In your field of work it would be worth talking to local electrical shops and see if they will take a stock of your cards. Local shops may put posters up for a fee, but you're covering quite a wide area so that's a fair bit of legwork. I don't know how much it costs to get a leaflet delivered with the local free paper, if you have one, but I do look at them each week and I guess some people find them effective because they advertise fairly regularly.

Also for leaflets and posters, I find that black ink on coloured paper is more striking than coloured ink on white paper. (And cheaper.) If I'm riffling through a large heap of paper looking for YOUR leaflet, I'll find it quicker if it's bright yellow than if it's white paper with multicoloured ink. I'll probably remember it was bright yellow, come to that, but I'm a bit sad sometimes ...

The only way you'll know what's effective is to ask people where they saw you advertised. Some business mogul once said something along the lines of "I know half of my advertising budget isn't effective. If only I could work out which half it was!" That's why companies say "Quote code MSE1" on leaflets, offers etc, so they can track where adverts are seen.

Others will know more about this than me, but as a 'consumer' I'd say you will need to do a fair bit of repeat advertising because you are going to be more of a one-off service for individuals. People will see your leaflet and think "Oh I must remember that next time the aeriel blows off the roof" and then forget all about you. If your leaflet plops through your door with the local paper every week then your name will begin to sink in. I do look at the 'small ads' in the church, community, and school newsletters and fete programmes which come my way, and I do notice the people who repeat advertise, and if they stick around until I need them they stand a good chance of getting a call from me.

Oh, and I know nothing about costs etc of display ads in Yellow Pages etc, but you can get a free line entry easily enough. If you haven't yet chosen your name, do so carefully after looking at the Yellow Pages. Why are there so many Taxi Services starting with an A? You know, A1, AA, ABC, A&A etc. Because there are lots of taxi firms and most people start at A and work their way through until they find a suitable firm. Probably not so much of a problem for you, but worth checking on first.

Also look into local websites: there are some which give free listings for local businesses (I think) and increasingly people do look online, although I always go for Thomweb or Yell, which I think come free with your line entry in the paper version.

I hope that helps, hopefully someone can give you some advice from the business rather than a consumer point of view soon ...

bridiej

Yellow Pages do give a discount for the first advert if you're a new business.

I've advertised this year in Yellow Pages & Thomson - not one enquiry from Thomson yet but a few from YP.

I also advertise in the local parish newsletter, which has led to a few clients, and have a website, which is the best way of finding new business. Also, tell as many of your friends, family etc as you can - my next door neighbours has put me in touch with my two busiest clients!!

I have tried leaflets but didnt do anything, I've also done mailshots, out of over 400 letters I got four clients, which isn't bad as they're repeat business now.

Hope this is some help

WHA

In my experience, the only way to grow your business is to have an excellent reputation and encourage personal recommendation.

Obviously, you need to do some advertising and marketing to get your first few customers. Shop window cards, local newspaper adverts, mailshots and leaflets through doors are all excellent ways of getting a bit of work, but aren't really a long term option as it is an expensive and time consuming exercise. Do it for the first few weeks only.

You then need a permanent presence in the telephone directories and with a website, so that those who have previously seen your adverts or heard about you can readily find your number. Now that there are so many "business" telephone directories, with Yellow Pages, Thomson Local, Business finder, and the new business sections of the normal directory, you can't afford large adverts in them all - make sure you are in each with at least the "free line entry" and have a larger advert in one or two only.

Have your van professionally sign-written with your name and what you do. It is a very under-rated form of advertising - potential customers will see it on the roads as you travel, and the neighbours of each job you do will know who did the work and may ask their neighbour whether you were any good! If you have a blank "white van", the neighbours won't know whether you're painting the walls or unblocking the sink and are unlikely to ask! Also, keep it clean and tidy and be careful how you drive - don't honk and give two fingers to your potential customers, however bad they are driving!

When you have some enquiries and customers, treat them well. Reply promptly to enquiries, turn up on time, do the work properly and tidily, honour your promises, don't smoke or bring your pets in your customer's home, wipe your shoes on the doormat, stay on the job until it is finished. Tell your customers to contact you if there are any problems, and if so, correct them promptly. I have always found most people to be happy to pay a bit more for a good job, well done. Many times, I have heard people say things like "he's a bit pricey, but he's good" when talking about tradesmen etc.

Leave a few business cards with your invoice and invite your customers to recommend you. These days, people are surprised when they get good service and are likely to tell their family and friends. You will soon find that your reputation and recommendations bring more than enough work (as long as it is something that people want).

Don't undercharge for your work. You need to know the going rate and be confident in charging at least that amount. People WILL pay extra for excellent service.

Never, never, never rip off your customers or give bad service. You can only get away with this if you are not thinking of staying around for long. The jungle drums will soon inform your potential customers not to deal with you. Once you have a bad reputation, you will find it hard, if not impossible, to reverse it.

manhattan

thanks wha,
that is very good advice! thankyou.

its nice to hear what people expect from a tradesman.

i think the most important things are quality,respect,and good workmanship.(lets not forget the other things though!).


what would be the most professional way of contacting a company regarding asking for contract work from them?

bridiej

Difficult one, but I would have said a letter would be best - nothing worse than being in the middle of something and someone phones you up trying to sell you something. If you send a letter people sometimes keep them for months (happened to me!) BUT be prepared to send a lot of letters for a small return - there's a statistic somewhere that only a small percentage actually respond BUT if that small percentage each spends, say, £500 then it's worth it.

Good luck and keep us posted

si_minton

try a local magazine....i don't know if anything like this exists in your area but in the chelmsford area (essex) there is a free publication called 'the edge' ( http://theedge.uk.com/ ) that is placed in the main shopping centre, train station, shops and everywhere else in chelmsford every month. There was an article a while ago from an advertiser saying that usually a 2% response to advertising is really good...the edge managed to return a 4.5% response rate.

Because it's left at the station in a prime position commuters pick them up as they go up the stairs as they want something to read on the journey (i should know, im one of them!) and because the advertising is specific to the chelmsford area it can reach its target group very easily.

See if something similar exists to this in your area and my advice is to buy some space in that...after all with at least 10000 people seeing your advert in a month you can't fail to get some business from it!

manhattan

that is something i didnt think about,there is a free local glossy magazine which does get around the area quite well.

i will look into that ,thanks.

i was thinking about a small advertisement in the yellow pages only, as i think that is what most people use when looking for a local service and go for the free line entry in the others.

i have already registered my company domain name and i am in the progress of designing the web page.

thanks again,m

Savvy_Sue

manhattan wrote:

i was thinking about a small advertisement in the yellow pages only, as i think that is what most people use when looking for a local service and go for the free line entry in the others.

Depends how local: I tend to start with the Thomson directory because it's smaller! but I stress I know nothing about the cost-effectiveness of these things, I speak as a consumer!

Also check out local business directories, your local council may produce one in which you can get a free entry (and I will often start with them in preference to Yellow Pages etc because I can read them without getting my glasses out!) The council may have someone specialising in encouraging local enterprise but I'm sorry I don't know which department it might come under.