How to Sell Construction Work in Fire Areas
A fire is always unexpected even in areas prone to fires. No one ever thinks it will happen to them. Fires leave both business owners and homeowners devastated. Construction companies can help them put the pieces back together again. To win the business to restore a building or a home after fire damage, the primaries running construction companies transfer the talents they have with their hands to their talents for building relationships.
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Instructions
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Locate the areas most prone to fires. Review public records or read reports issued by the state's fire and protection agency. Save the addresses of the homes, offices and buildings that have been damaged in the last one to three months.
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Create a contact file. Start with customers you have done work for in the past and haven't heard from in a while. Put this information into a database or a mail merge program that will allow you to print addresses onto a letter. Encourage your friends, family and even supply vendors to save address information on properties they learn of who have experienced fire damage.
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Make a list of benefits potential customers would find most important. When it comes to construction, cost, the time to complete the construction job and the ability to produce exactly what the customer wants are going to be at the top of the list. Write the benefits of services up into a handy one sheet flier or a brochure to give to customers whenever prompted.
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Start a direct mail campaign. Write an introductory letter to disaster relief agencies, insurance companies and state-run recovery organizations to let them know you are available to assist their clients with getting things back to normal after their fire. Write a letter to business owners and homeowners.
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Send out your direct mail letter. Follow it up with an email to encourage a phone call. A week later, follow that up with a phone call.
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Request an in-person meeting. Use the direct mail as a lead in and a reference. Mention the letter in the call and let them know that you're following up on the letter. Explain that you'd like to schedule a meeting to go into further detail.
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Gather information on your initial meeting. Don't try to close the deal in one sitting. Listen to the customer's wants and needs. Get an understanding of what the customer had before the fire. Ask about their past experiences with contractors. Ask about their expectations.
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Create a proposal based on your meeting. Include as many visuals, such as charts and photographs of past work, as you can. Explain in the proposal why you are the best construction company to handle this particular fire restoration project. Offer solutions to problems they mentioned in the meeting. In the book "Marketing and Selling Professional Services in Architecture and Construction," Basil Sawczuk says, "To increase your chances of securing the assignment and hitting all the right buttons, you need to keep the potential client involved during the preparation stage." Send a written copy of your proposal. Schedule a meeting to present it in person.
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Ask for the sale before you leave. Respond to any rebuttals. If the customer agrees, discuss contract terms. Negotiate terms and expectations from both parties. Agree on building materials, rates and the labor necessary to complete the work. Put everything in writing in the form of a construction contract.
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Leave a copy of the contract with the customer if he must have his legal team review it.
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Follow up frequently by mail and phone several times a week until you get the signed contract.
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Provide exceptional service that encourages the customer to refer you to others. In an interview with "All Business," Patricia Block, a marketing professional with Meridian Builders, suggested that word of mouth is the best method of marketing. She suggests speaking through your work. Perform the jobs to perfection so you are referred to other potential customers.
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