How to boost your results when contacting homeowners, setting appointments and ensuring they’re present when you show up to make your pitch?
Think texting.
Now, texting may not have been the answer you expected to hear from me. But it’s actually a powerful tool that should be in your company’s sales arsenal.
Why does texting work? Because it connects you to homeowners where they live most – on their phones. In fact, statistics show that
98 percent of all text messages are opened by the recipient – that’s an incredible read rate! Just imagine…getting 98% of your outbound calls actually answered…or 98% of your e-mails opened.
There are two key benefits to texting. First, texting boosts your contact rate on the Web forms you receive. If you can’t immediate connect by phone with a homeowner who’s submitted a Web form, automatically texting him or her can dramatically increase your subsequent ability to get in touch. The homeowner either calls you back or texts you back, or answers the next time you call at much higher rates. That leads to more appointments, and ultimately more sales.
Second, texting improves your ability to confirm your upcoming sales appointments. Once you schedule an appointment with a homeowner, it’s often difficult to get that homeowner back on the phone to confirm that he and/or she will actually be there when you arrive. Texting confirmations to homeowners in addition leads to a much higher confirmation rate on these appointments.
By raising your contact rates and boosting your sit (in-home demonstrations) rates, you’re only naturally going to drive more sales. Texting is a great asset in your call center tool kit that enables you to do all of that. Plus, texting costs are negligible, relative to the upside for your business.
While I don’t typically promote specific companies in my articles, I do want to put in a plug for Marlimar. This company provides a texting solution that integrates with the customer relationship management platforms that many home improvement companies use. Marlimar offers a low-maintenance solution specific to home services that you can implement without too much effort.
To streamline customer interactions and to increase your KPIs, give text a chance.
