The tree service market has a lot of competition and selling more tree work might feel elusive. But there are some approaches you can take to be more successful. At Joshua Tree Experts home services franchise, we understand the importance of building up enough work to keep everyone busy.
Here are four ways that we advise our franchise owners to grow their tree service sales which you might be able to utilize, too.
1. Maintain consistency in marketing and branding
In order to sell more tree work, prospective clients need to know and trust your brand. No matter where you are putting out your company's message, it's important that you maintain a consistent voice, tone, and style. We advise using a brand style guide that clearly states exactly how your company, or "brand," should be displayed. This includes everything from word choice preferences to colors, font, and more. The better that you become at building a brand and becoming recognizable, the easier it will become to sell more work.
2. Make communication a priority
This sounds so simple but it's an area where business owners often fall short. We get it! Life (and work) are busy. But we happen to live in a time when people expect prompt answers and when you don't provide them, you risk losing a lead over something pretty simple. Prioritizing communication and working on your responsiveness is a clear way to sell more tree work. At Joshua Tree Experts, we have set a guideline of contacting a prospect within zero to seven hours of their initial time reaching out to us.
3. Don't chase down every single lead
Another tip for selling more tree work is to qualify your leads and avoid chasing down every single one that comes in. When a business is relatively new, most owners chase after every potential lead that comes their way. But that's an easy way to waste a lot of time on jobs that aren't really going to go anywhere (or be profitable enough for you). That's why it's important to establish criteria of what your business considers a qualified lead.
At Joshua Tree Experts, we have already determined some guidelines that constitute a desirable lead for our franchises. We determine if a lead meets those criteria by asking questions ahead of visiting. An example of an undesired lead would be a prospective client who is price-hunting. We are rarely the cheapest option and we are upfront in telling prospects that information.
4. Establish yourself (and your business) as the expert
Finally, if you've done these other things and you're getting good leads coming in, now is the time to take control of the situation and turn a lead into a sale. One of the best ways to do this is to establish yourself (and your company) as the experts.
One of the top criteria that prospective clients are looking for is a company that they can trust to get the job done right.
Of course, even though you should establish yourself as the expert, you shouldn't overlook the importance of listening to the client. Don't talk over them or fail to listen to their questions in an effort to show your expertise. So much of being an expert comes down to listening to what the client's wants and needs are, and then demonstrating that you can provide solutions. It's a balance between listening and offering advice.
Finding the road to success
Sometimes selling more work is a bit of a trial-and-error process. Hopefully, you can employ some of these tips and start learning what works best for you. By paying attention to what's working best for your salespeople, you can help set them up for success and drive more leads to your business.
