Category Archives: Lead Generation

Your Leads May Have A 2nd Life

Apr 12 2013

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Buying leads is often a necessity for many small businesses as a well established form of advertising, to increase a company’s work flow. Here at CraftJack, we often stress the principals of one’s close ratio in factoring the cost per job versus the more commonly used (and frequently misguided) cost per lead. An example I have been known to use by comparison is advertising your business on a billboard by the side of the highway. Assuming an average of 5,000 cars drive past the sign in a given period and 5 calls (not projects) were a direct result of that advert, you wouldn’t call and request a refund for the other 4,995 cars. You would absolutely need to find out how much business you received from commuters who called after noticing the sign to accurately calculate what your cost per job was in order to determine if that billboard is a profitable form of advertisement for your business. The same is true for lead generation.
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3 Ways Forums Can Generate Leads

Nov 26 2012

Seeing as you are reading this blog post right now, chances are you are savvy enough to navigate the internet and are already using some form of lead generation online. Many contractors and small business owners find helpful information to better improve their own businesses while reading websites, blogs and forums online. These are great sources for finding out the latest innovations and hot topics surrounding your professional field. There are plenty of great forums out there where contractors, like yourself, actively participate in group discussions about anything pertaining to their specific industry and where homeowners can ask for expert advice. Here are 3 ways you can increase inbound leads though online forums:
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5 Signs It’s Time to Hire a Salesperson

Sep 21 2012

One topic that seems to pop up often is whether or not contractors should hire salespeople to handle their leads. Contractors often ask themselves if they really need one or can afford one? Sometimes the answers to these questions are sitting right in front of you. If you are unsure when you should hire a salesperson, ask yourself these 5 questions:
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First Come, First Serve

Nov 17 2011

I know I’ve had prior posts all about calling leads asap and the importance of having a standard follow-up schedule in place, but I think it bears repeating. Calling a lead minutes after receiving the notification, even if you are in the field, gives you the absolute best opportunity to speak with that homeowner while hoping to be the first to call. The contractor who establishes contact first has a real head start on building a relationship with the homeowner while reserving the opportunity to make the first impression.
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Which lead generation sites are the best for contractors?

Oct 23 2011

As a member on a number of contractor forums, it seems that every day another user posts the same question: “What is the best lead gen site for contractors” or “Has anyone tried?”

These types of posts tend to get replies ranging from flattering to furious. XYZ Contractor swears by a company while ACME Contractor swears AT the same company and Joe The Plumber damns ALL lead generation companies to hell.

So, who should you listen to?
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What Contractors Should Look For In a Lead Generation Company

Oct 11 2011

If you are a home improvement contractor, chances are you get a good number of sales calls, emails, postcards from a lead generation company trying to sell you their leads.

Assuming that a lead generation site is a good strategy for your business (that’s another topic all together), how should you decide which company is right for you? Here are some important things to consider when working with a home improvement lead generation company:
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How do you feel about buying leads?

Sep 27 2011

I had an interesting call with a client (Steve) the other day. Steve runs a very successful house painting company in Bridgeport, CT, which he’s built up over the past 25 years. He called me to transfer his LocalPainterQuotes.com account (our old service) to CraftJack Profiles.

In the process of setting up his account we got to talking about the lead generation business, sales, and how to be a successful painting company. Now, Steve has more opinions than a talk show radio host and you can feel his passion for his business when he speaks. About half way through our one hour and fifteen minute call, Steve unleashed his opinions on lead generating services.
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