What can a Contractor do in todays economy to get more business?

May 6th, 2009

Are you a Contractor who has been affected by the tough economic times & wondering what you should be doing?

Don’t feel alone, theres alot of Contractors & Builders experiencing a tough time. I can tell you that I experienced exactly what youre going through first hand a few years ago. I had been going through a really tough time in business & was scratching my head at what I should do. First I can tell you that I was SO close to MY problem that I couldnt see it myself. I needed someone other than myself to talk to & discuss what other possibilities might be available. Its was then, when I decided to meet with someone that everything started clickin. This person was my personal Coach & I met with him on a weekly basis to discuss; What I wanted, Where I wanted to go in my business & write my plan of actin to go after it! This helped immensely! Theres alot of you saying, ya, sure, I can’t afford a personal coach to meet with. I’ll tell you what, I didn’t either. I took a big step of faith & trusted that if I was willing to meet with someone, listen to them & work hard that I’d make the extra money that would be needed to pay the coach. Having a coach to support you on a regular basis is a MUST!

Now that Ive gained focus on what I want for my companies , Im able to stay focused on marketing my businesses. Most of you proable have a website, maybe you place an ad or two on Craigslist.com  & call it good. NO NOT GOOD! Theres so much more that you could be doing to drive customers to your site. Whether it placing ads on classified sites or marketing on Google or Yahoo on their Pay Per click ads, youve got to stay active & continue to be online & maeket your construction company. Another idea is to sign up on some of the Ask a Professional websites where people log on & type in a question to a professional for your advice. This is a fantastic to create name recognition online. Make sure to go to http://www.allexperts.com/ and become an expert. You can sign up fo whatever professional experience you have & be able to assist people with the questions they have. When you receive a question, make sure that when you answer it, to sign your name & website along the bottom. This will create more popularity to your website. This will also get you recognized as a professional in your specific industry. Now you can let your clients & people visiting your site that you are an Industry Expert. Ive done this for years & it works great. Its also a great way to give back & help people who have questions.

If you’re interested in working with me & having me Coach you, feel free to send me an email to Marc@ContractorsResourceGroup.com. Let me know that you’ve read my Contractors BLOG & interested in having me call you for a FREE 15 minute consultation!

Have a profitable & successful Tuesday.

Your Contractors Coach, Marc Byerley

www.ContractorsResourceGroup.com

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Are you staying busy or being productive?

May 5th, 2009

Well, I know I was guilty of this for years! I would line my day up with things to do & be like” wow, that was quite a day, I sure was busy” . Ya, I may have been busy but I wasn’t being very productive. Sometimes it’s so easy to get up & just let whatever start happening to our day & keep it going all day. Then we wonder why were not achieving the goals we once had set.

Listen, its too easy  to just let “LIFE” happen without you planning for what it is you need to do to be productive. In my earlier BLOG, I talked about using a daily planner to schedule out your day. Its important if its your goal to be a successfulr contractor. Trust me, if you don’t write down stuff you need to do inside your planner, someone WILL come along and be able to distract you from what you should be doing. 

Take a look at what youre doing & really look at it! Ask this question. “What am I avoiding doing right now that would really help me achieve my goals”?  Trust me, if you really look at that question and answer it honest, you’ll walk away with some pretty good information for what you should be really doing.

Everyone needs someone to hold them accountable & mentor us in our Construction companies to make sure were doing the things we need to do. For those of you who aren’t supported by anyone should consider enrolling in my Contractors Coaching program. I work with Contractors weekly, individually for anywhere from 1- 2 hours at a time & go over goal setting & what you really need to be focusing on to grow your business. We offer FREE 15 minute phone consultations if you visit our website & sign up. To learn more about Contractor Coaching, visit  our site Contractors Coaching. I hope I have the pleasure of speaking with you.

Marc Byerley

www.ContractorsResourceGroup.com

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ALL Contractors should have a Daily Planner

May 2nd, 2009

I am amazed with how many Contractors DON’T have a daily planner with a well defined schedule for where they need to be at what time for both Business & Personal throughout the day?
Don’t wonder why you’re late to appointments or feel in such a rush! You’re creating it. If contractors would just take the time to sit down Sunday & map out the upcoming week by first starting with the most important things:
1. Birthdays, Anniversary, Your children’s activities,
2. Estimates- ETC
First start by putting this into your planner that way when you need to make an appointment you know what time you have available. Do not push your important things to do around for someone who needs or requests that time. Let them know which days & time you have available & make it clear. Now, I understand if “THE BIG JOB” calls & you need to move some things around, be sure to check in with the other appointment to make sure it’s okay. Just by you checking in with that appointment, you’ve gained some point by caring enough not to just cancel the time you had with them by checking with them first. IMPORTANT, make sure to reschedule a new time if need be.

Be sure to write in your planner what time you will be home from work! This is extremely important for those of you who have families & really want to begin taking control of your life back & have a healthy family. I know first hand how easy it is to just keep working & working. But if you write it down & stay committed to honoring your schedule, it will begin to create & healthy pattern to living what will feel like a life with order.
                                                                            I’m not sure about you guys, but I could use a little more order in my life!!!

Look, I began using a daily planner years ago & it has been wonderful. Don’t get me wrong, when I first started it was tough. I wasn’t use to sitting down & writing in a planner. After a while it became normal. Now, I couldn’t imagine any other way. It has created guidance for my day & week & I now know what I can say yes & no to & what times of the day Ive got available.

Go to Staples or Office Depot today, get a Daily planner & start organizing your life, it’ll feel great.

 

Marc Byerley

www.ContractorsResourceGroup.com 

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#1 Why are you in Business?

October 1st, 2008

Well heres our first of 6 keys to creating a winning Marketing plan. The first question to answer is “Why are you in Business?” For so many Contractors in the Construction industry, I don’t think that you’ve ever taken the time out to know why. Now I know, some of you think you know why youre in business & most of you are saying because we were tired of working for someone else & making them all the money while I do all the work.

Sound familiar?

Mine personally was because I knew that I was smarter , better & faster at doing anything & everything the owner was doing & if they could do it, then for sure I could do it. (It was alot harder than I realized) 

Well I would like each & every one of you reading this, to take some quiet time to really explore why? What in the world ever made you think that you wanted to be a Contractor?

  • Is it the money?
  • Is it the freedom?
  • Was it by accident & just happened because you couldn’t keep a job?
  • Are you saying because you have always loved working with your hands?
  • Are you saying come on, it’s because I have always been smarter than everyone I’ve ever worked for & I just had to start my own Construction Company?

Well, have you written down why? Once you’ve discovered why, write it down.

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How to create a winning Marketing plan for your Construction Company

September 27th, 2008

Making a plan for your Construction Companies marketing can be a bit overwhelming. I know first hand how tough it can be. I believe the difference between a successful Construction Company who thrives & continues to grow & a Construction Company who continues to struggle & fight to survive could be summed up in one of the most important roles in your Company, ” MARKETING”. I believe that marketing is the difference especially when you take the time to put together a successful marketing plan.

Lets first look at the work “MARKETING” to see what the word means.

  Marketing is an ongoing process of planning and executing the marketing mix (Product, Price, Place, Promotion often referred to as the 4 Ps) for products, services or ideas to create exchange between individuals and organizations.

Marketing tends to be seen as a creative industry, which includes advertising, distribution and selling. It is also concerned with anticipating the customers’ future needs and wants, which are often discovered through market research.

Essentially, marketing is the process of creating or directing an organization to be successful in selling a product or service that people not only desire, but are willing to buy.

Therefore good marketing must be able to create a “proposition” or set of benefits for the end customer that deliver’s value through products or services.

Question: How’s your company doing?

 Now that Wikipedia has given all of us the definition of “MARKETING”, it’s time for you go go sit down & take a look at what you’ve been doing & or what you’re up to. Its time for you to create a    WINNING  marketing plan. An effective Marketing Plan begins with answering the following questions:

  1. Why are you in Business?
  2. What Business are you in?
  3. What your Business does?
  4. Who your client is?
  5. What does your Business sell or offer?
  6. Where do you do Business?

Over the next few BLOGS, we will be discussing the 6 key items listed above in depth.

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