You’ve already got your website up and running, you’ve created content, and you’re working all the angles you can think of. But you may still be missing out on getting leads to your moving company business.
There are a few ‘extra’ ideas you can try that are excellent lead generators. And you may find that they are perfect additions to your existing marketing strategy.
But a quick tip before we dive in…
Be sure to know your numbers
It is important to know how much you spend in order to acquire or keep customers, as well as whether your advertising is well targeted. If you decide to run ads that include UGC for example and choose Google Ads and Facebook as the platforms that you will use to run these ads, you need to be able to track how much you spend on each platform and ad and see which one is bringing in a higher Return on Investment(ROI).
This way, you will be able to make the necessary changes and do away with whatever does not work. You could cut off from your budget what is not working and add the extra to what is.
If you do not know how to interpret the data you get from your ads, you could work with an expert or someone from your marketing team. You need to know whether you have reached the right audience, location and whether the ad copy communicated the intended message.
With that being said, here are a few tips on getting more leads.
Generate qualified leads
How do you ensure that you have customers working with you every time they need to move? Better still, new customers who choose you when looking for moving companies?
Lead magnets
You can work with people in related niches give something to their clients in exchange for customer information. You can have businesses in related niches give moving guides to their customers, in exchange for their contact information on referral cards. That way, you can follow up with them directly. Be careful about personal information, though. In the wake of discussions around data privacy, you need to have clients sign that they have given consent for their personal information to be collected and used.
Referral marketing
Referral marketing can be a smashing hit for you, particularly because much of your business probably already generates from word of mouth.
Happy customers will tell other people about the great experience they had with your moving company. Unhappy customers will too. You need to strive to create more happy customers. How do you go about that?
- Be on time
- Go the extra mile (deliver more that is expected)
- Train and ensure that your team cleans up after the job is done
- Listen to your customers, whether they are happy or complaining
- Use referral programs or pages
Referral programs
Sometimes, depending on your budget, your moving referral program may be just one page on your site that you have set aside for customers to refer other people. Remember to reward the customers who go out of their way to refer others. It could be a discount on the referred friend’s move for example and a commission for the referrer.
You need to work with your team to promote your referral program. For example, when serving or communicating with clients, they can mention that they can get rewards for signing up on your referral program and for referring others.
It could help to work with other businesses in related niches like real estate and mortgages. You can ask them to refer clients who need moving services and give them a commission in return.
Moving company referral program examples
There are moving companies that are creatively using referral programs. Let’s explore their approaches below:
Let’s Get Moving’s referral program
Let’s Get Moving’s referral program is probably one of the few companies that have gone beyond simply filling a form. After you fill their referral form, you earn a $50 commission for moves worth at least $300. This happens when the move is successfully completed. The program has 3 tiers – silver, gold, and platinum.
The first tier – silver is for a maximum of 10 referrals monthly, where the referrer earns $50 per successful referral. The second tier – 11 to 20 successful referrals monthly. The referrer earns $65 per referral, and the highest tier – at least 21 referrals monthly. The referrer earns $75 per referral.
This company even goes ahead to give their customers ideas on how to give referrals – posting a review online or referring a friend. It also specifies that the program aims at new customers only.
FlatRate Moving
FlatRate Moving company has a welcoming referrals page where the people who refer others are called ‘partners’. This approach would make any customer happy to be associated with the brand and be known as the brand’s partner. The call to action here is ‘become a partner’, which is also quite captivating.
The company then goes on to introduce its services, and its target market using language that is highly descriptive. It then emphasizes the importance of partnering with them. They explain the signup process and then avail the sign-up button which redirects you to their online portal. You are also able to check the status of the referrals that you have made.
Note that this referral program is meant for people and brands in services that are related to moving – brokers, building services, and concierge. They have separate pages for returning partners and those who are signing up for the first time.
Best practices for referral marketing
Exceptional customer service
Your customers will refer your moving business based on the service they received, and how they felt as customers after dealing with your brand. Aspects of great customer service include arriving on time, doing more than customers expect you to, ensuring clear and concise information, and cleaning up.
Encourage customers to refer others
One way to do this is to ensure that your referral program is simple to use and understand. One of the companies that we have looked at above even goes out of their way to tell their clients how they can get referrals – by sharing on social media. You can give more incentives for customers who share their experiences with others on social platforms, or write reviews. An example of an incentive here would be moving boxes.
Request for referrals
If you do not ask for referrals, then your customers may not actually give them. You need to ask your customers for referrals either via social media, signing up to your referral program, or simply by word of mouth. Learn how to get more customer referrals.
Work with influencers
You can identify influencers in your local area. You can approach them and ask if you could help them with a move in exchange for a referral. If possible, get a video referral from them. This one may be a little tricky, but you may get lucky and move a popular blogger who you can ask to create content about their move.
A celebrity or blogger may be willing to journal their encounter. For example, you may use blogging in your marketing strategy which could pave the way for influencers.
Here’s an example of how you can be in a blog, without it necessarily being your own.
Get BBB accredited
According to BBB (Better Business Bureau), movers were among one of the most searched businesses. In 2017, the site received over 1.4 million requests from people who were looking to move. What does this mean for your business? That you could be losing customers just by not being listed as accredited by this site.
Let’s go back to the screenshot earlier where I showed you an example of “Moving company in Los Angeles”:
Pure Movers is not only number one but it has an A+ BBB rating. The benefits are both in search results and word of mouth.
Online reviews
People want to talk about companies they trust, whether that be third-party services like BBB or from personal referrals. There are a number of ways to improve your online reviews.
Personalize
When you use email to request for customer reviews, you need to make each email personalized. Sending out a mass email will not get you reviews as the email will not appeal to the customer as an individual.
You can make a follow-up call if the client has not responded after some time. It is also an opportunity to see how else you can help better their experience with your brand.
Make it simple
It is important to remember that a customer who gives a review is doing you and your brand a favor. You need to make their work as simple as possible. Give simple instructions about what to include in the review. Be specific about the kind of feedback that you are aiming for. Better still, ask questions and use the answers as your review.
Incentivize
We had mentioned that customers who give you reviews are actually doing you and your brand a favor. Your customers have a lot of things that need their attention. They need a reason why they should invest their limited time in giving you a review. An incentive is a great way to do this. As a moving company, your incentives could be a discount on their next move or even something is not related to your brand, for instance, a movie ticket. You, however, need to check with your state bar whether your company is allowed to give incentives in order to get reviews.
Train your staff members to request for reviews
You need to guide your employees on how they would go about requesting your clients for reviews. A great place to start is by sharing the knowledge acquired from this article. You can also challenge them to do a bit of research on the same, in order to contribute to solutions that will benefit not only you, but them. If there is more business, they could benefit from a bonus, raise or treat.
Request for reviews in the right places
We have already looked at various modes of asking for reviews – email, in person, or on your site. You may want to direct your customers to a review site online. You need to direct them to the sites your brand is likely to get the most traction from. If you do not do this, the clients may use whichever sites that they prefer, which may not benefit your brand much. Do not limit their options too much though.
Here are review sites that you can look at and choose the one that best suits your brand:
- YellowPages
- Google My Business
- Yelp
- BBB
Start getting more leads
We have explored marketing strategies that moving companies can use and how you can implement them. Which ones do you think would work for you?
