Canvassing for Contractors

By Benjamin Hardy

Contractors have numerous available ways they can market their business. Canvassing is one method that deserves consideration, as it can quickly translate to increased leads.

The Basics of Canvassing

Canvassing is a practice often used by political campaigns, fundraising organizations, and religious groups. It is a method of direct contact marketing that can yield tremendous result for small businesses, particularly contractor businesses. Canvassing is essentially a door-to-door effort, which puts a face to the business name, and, if done right, a pamphlet or brochure in the hands of the homeowner. The purpose of canvassing is to compel the homeowner to pick up the phone, call your business, and request an estimate or a demonstration. If you as the contractor decide to do the canvassing, be prepared to schedule a time for an estimate or a demonstration. This is the desired result.

The canvassing that is done for your contractor business can be done by the owner, employees, or by part-time paid canvassers hired by the owner or the canvassing manager. On that note, hiring a canvassing manager or placing that responsibility on the shoulders of an existing employee is a wise way to go. Conducting a canvassing campaign takes a reasonable amount of work-it involves interviewing, hiring, training, managing, and tracking all the part-timers doing the actual canvassing. As the contractor business owner, you probably won't want to devote all your time in this one area. So consider hiring someone. Looking within the company is a good idea, as you will be hiring someone already intimate with the machinations of the business. If you choose to go outside, consider using the newspaper or http://www.craiglist.com/ to advertise for the position.

Canvassing 202-A Deeper Look

Canvassing experts advise contractors to consider conducting some canvassing in the areas where installs are already happening. After all, you are already in the vicinity, and when going door-to-door you (or your employee, or part-time canvassers) can point homeowners down the road to take a look at some of your work. (Be sure you get permission from the homeowners on your current job before sending neighbors their way). In this way, your existing customer becomes an instant, trusted reference.

Canvassing is not a marketing endeavor to be undertaken hastily. Some important planning and preparation goes into an effective campaign. Canvassers are wise to have a "script," which is essentially a practiced list of questions or statements that move the interaction along quickly and efficiently, building some sense of urgency to have the homeowner call for or schedule an estimate or a demonstration. Also, the sales folk back at the office will need to be prepped on how to deal with a canvassing lead, as they can be a little different from leads generated from newspaper ads and such. Canvassing leads may require more follow-up, more nurturing, and more convincing. Too many sales people are unprepared for canvassing leads, and let them slip away. Don't ignore this vital step.

Finally, it is important to track your canvassing campaign. Keep tabs on which neighborhoods you've been into. If you are canvassing where you are doing installs, this should be easily done.

Dollars and Sense

So what will a canvassing campaign cost for a contractor business? Good question. This depends on how you run it. Here is a bulleted list of potential costs:

• Flyers or pamphlets
• Payroll for canvassers (think $8 per hour, 4 hours a day, 5 days a week)
• Payroll for canvassing manager
• Bonus system (this is a great thing to put into place, to encourage your canvassers-if they yield a certain number of estimates or demonstrations, they earn a bonus).

Canvassing puts your business face-to-face with the potential customer. A contractor business can generate a lot of leads from canvassing, though even with a properly trained sales staff only 50% or so of those leads may result in an estimate or a demonstration.

Contractor businesses interested in adding canvassing methods to their overall marketing plan can consider hiring a professional canvassing consulting company to train canvassers and canvassing managers, sales staff, and put together a script for those people to use. The costs for this kind of service may vary. CanvassKing LLC (http://www.canvassking.com/) is one such company. They charge $297 per month to work with contractor businesses on getting a canvassing campaign going. Their service includes over-the-phone training and consulting, templates for flyers, scripts for canvassers and sales rep guidance as well.

Canvassing is a great marketing option that can give any business a leg up on the competition. Contractors would be wise to consider it.