What are you doing to help your customers?

In today's slow economy, some companies have experienced a decrease in new customers and fewer repeat customers. This is true for our inventory service as well as most others in the service industries. People still want their homes and businesses inventoried. Homeowners and business owners don't stop wanting to hire their lawn maintenance service. Busy professionals don't want to stop having their house cleaned. Many still won't want to paint the interior or exterior of their house themselves. Most will still want to visit the dentist for their 6-month check-up and cleaning. But these new or returning customers might need help being able to justify or afford the expense.

So what can you do?

We have implemented a few options that might work for you, too. First, of course, is a discount. Though we all know that price is not always the best distinguisher, a slow economy can justify this tactic as long as it's for a very limited time. Try a few alternatives. We offered an extremely generous discount, but limited it to a 3-week period. We also offered a discount (again with an expiration date) if we inventoried both a business and the owner's home.

Use a theme for a special offer. For example, garage sale season begins soon in the Midwest. Our special will be called a "garage sale" which means we won't charge for documenting the contents in garages. An eye-catching phrase that ties in with something currently going on. Themes can be centered around holidays, seasons and even activities that are local (we'll probably come up with an Indy 500 special in May).

Payment plans are very attractive to many. Most service businesses are cash-based. When a customer wants your service, but just can fit it into their budget, offer a payment plan instead of the full amount up front. Depending on the cost of your service, consider from 2 months to as many as you are comfortable with. You won't lose the business, you can receive full price for your service and your customers will appreciate your willingness to work with them.

Offer something free. Do you have an add-on that you normally charge for? During the slow times, offer one of these add-ons for free. We provide annual renewals and updates for our inventory customers. Some received a 2nd annual update at no charge; that encouraged them to 'buy now'. Others, who would normally be charged a trip fee due to the travel costs, had that $100 waived.

How can you help your customers continue to use your service? What can you do to continue to find new customers? The economy is picking up. People will start spending again. What will you do to make sure you're still around for them?

Oh, and by the way - are you waiting for the economy to improve before you hire your inventory service? Don't wait. Disasters don't wait. Financial and estate planning needs won't wait. Give us a call. Especially now, if you have a need to file a claim, it will be even more difficult to recover!