What a lot of people don't realise when approaching the subject of marketing their business is there is no point in building a website, or any other piece of advertising material that looks and says exactly the same as everyone else's. Marketing is about projecting your companies image and it is the way you project that image that compels people to call you rather than a competitor.
So if it is about how you project your image, you've got to decide what that image is because the first rule of marketing is, ‘be different!’ that begs the question, ‘how do I look different?’ Well first of all you've got to decide which part of the market you are aiming for, or put another way, which type of customers you want to do business with. Customers at the bottom end of the market will only do business with the cheapest, so your USP (unique selling proposition) would have to be all about price. The quality end of the market is populated by people looking for a quality job and are willing to pay more to ensure they get it. So your USP then becomes about quality and therefore price should never be mentioned in your marketing material. So with your target customer defined, you then shape your marketing material at that market. To do that effectively you need to understand what your target customer is looking for, what their fears and concerns are and then use what space you have to address those issues. When people start looking for a carpet cleaner, they will keep searching until they find a company that fits their idea of what it is they are looking for in a carpet cleaner. The cheap people will look for the cheapest, the quality people will look for a cleaner that is professional looking , either way, you want your marketing material to move them into their ‘comfort zone,’ whether that comfort zone is defined by price, or the suggestion of quality. Suggestion comes about by using certain keywords that fits your chosen market, a £ sign with a nice low figure will get the phone ringing at the cheap end. The people looking for quality over price will scoff at a low price and not even contemplate using such companies, but will respond favourably to the suggestion of quality, service integrity and value for money.
Websites are by far the best form of marketing and can reach across towns and cities in your area very cost effectively. But it is what your website says that will decide whether you get a phone call from a target customer or not.
Getting a web designer who has done carpet cleaning websites before isn't in my view a good idea, as they all tend to look and say the same and are filled with stock pictures of a baby sitting on a carpet or a settee sitting in a nice front room, or other images that do not speak to the customer about what you do and are therefore a waste of space. You could use your own photos, videos and testimonials. If you're in the price game then you can list out your prices and maybe the tag line, ‘The Cheapest in Town.’
If into the middle of the market you could introduce yourself, ‘My name is xxxx and I am your local professional carpet cleaner,’ and go on to use other lines and phrases suggestive of superior quality, even going as far as saying, ‘ I'm not the cheapest carpet cleaner in town! Why? Because to be so would mean missing out vital elements of what it takes to get your carpet, not just nearly clean – but REALLY clean and I am not prepared to do that simply to win your business, only to leave you disappointed. Everything I do, from first contact is focused on providing you with a first class experience at a value for money price.’
(This automatically excludes the price shoppers who won't ring you because you've already told they you are the cheapest, but at the same time spikes the interest in those looking for something better.
If you've got this bit right, you should start getting calls from the right people, from there on its all about you.
Everything you do, from answering the phone, to saying good bye – is marketing. In fact it is the most powerful and effective form of marketing that you can do, so powerful in fact that it can either make, or break your business.
And so to orphans. Orphans are people who have had their carpet cleaned before but rather than ring the last guy, ring someone else. The last guy should, but clearly didn't impress the customer sufficiently for them to come to seeing him as, ‘their carpet cleaner,’ so here is your chance, not just to gain a customer, but to have them come back to you without even thinking of ringing anyone else and, just as importantly have them recommend you to other people.
That's marketing – at least from perspective.