How to make your moving leads more effective (and book them faster).
We have done a small tutorial on how to get the best out of the moving leads you buy. No matter the lead source, there are certain things that you and your sales team can do to book a higher percentage of the leads you are already buying. By the way, you can also buy moving leads directly from us.
1. Call the customer as soon as you receive the lead
Don’t waste time – be the first to call the hot lead.
Most of the leads you buy are sent to at least 2-3 other moving companies. It is paramount that you are the first to call the lead and grab the attention. The first to call usually receives the most attention.
2. Second to call? Give discounts
However, if you miss to be the first to call your potential client, try to compensate by providing a competitive price for the relocation or a discount based on a percentage of the total cost of the move.
The good old sales technique still works like a charm.
3. Call your customers on Saturdays (even Sundays)
You will be surprised how many moving companies don’t answer calls or serve customers over the phone during the weekend. Use that to your advantage.
With this simple trick, you can efficiently increase the booking ratio of your moving leads while other salesmen try to call the same customer on Monday (when you have already closed the deal).
4. Text your customers (SMS message)
With the millennials, texting comes in natural. Ask the customer about convenient time (and ways) to contact via a text message. You will be surprised by the results.
Keep it short.
Keep in mind that millennials send and receive a lot of text messages on a regular basis and most certainly other salesmen will not be using this type of communication so you will definitely stand out.
You may even continue the conversation on one of the popular messaging apps like Whats App, Facebook Messenger, Snapchat, Skype or Viber.
5. Find them on the social networks (use the email address)
Everybody is on Facebook and Twitter these days. Did you know that by doing a simple search on Facebook for the lead’s email address you may find the user on the social networks?
You can try to search for the user’s email address on sites like Pipl.com and Spokeo.com and see if they have more information about you can use.
Having this information will provide you this extra competitive edge when building your sales strategy. You can be more personal and establish a relationship easier.
6. Send customized emails
Design a custom template and shoot an email to the user as soon as you have received the lead.
Optimize your time – if you use a moving software you can do that automatically in the software and it will handle that automated greeting email. You may also try to automate texting via your software as well.
7. Provide in-home estimates
Having the opportunity to speak with the customer in person will greatly increase your chances of booking the move.
Prepare a professional set of printed materials to leave at the customer’s residence. Having a great folder standing on the coffee table will greatly increase the chances to receive a call with a deposit for the move.
8. Can’t do an in-home estimate? Use technology
Sometimes it is just impossible to do a visual estimate on site, either because of the great distance you need to drive to the customer or because of time constraints.
In cases like that, you can use technology. Here are some simple ways to do that:
- sk the customer to do a video walk-through of their home, room by room, and send you the video. If the video is too long, ask them to upload it to YouTube as a private video and send you the link.
- Do a Skype walk-through. Call the lead via Skype with the camera on so you can see the items being transported. Of course, there are some other popular video conferencing alternatives you can use.
- Use smartphone mobile apps that users can use to do their own home inventories. Try MoveAdvisor as it has a pretty simple to use drag-and-drop inventory users can email you. There are some other apps that do that as well.
9. Follow up
Just don’t forget to follow up. If you are not able to immediately get in touch with the person, don’t give up.
Sometimes customers may be busy (especially during business hours), so you can set up smart reminders to follow up later the same day or early in the morning on the following day.
Be persistent!
10. Build a list with references
Make a list of happy past customers (names, emails, phone number, move origin and destinations) and send referrals based on the new lead’s details.
For example, if you receive a lead for somebody that is moving from New York to San Francisco, try to find past customers that are willing to be used as references that have moved on a similar route. This old and yet effective technique could bring your customers you’d otherwise lose.
11. Brag with your online reputation
Build a list of review sites that you perform great at. Send that list to your future customers to build additional trust with them. Check out this guide for more in-depth info.
12. Be personal, be available
Present your service with a personal touch.
Assign a designated sales person to every new lead. Provide a direct phone number to the designated person and make sure that the salesperson is available when the customer needs them.
Some people will choose their moving company solely based on availability for communication.
See our 10 amazing marketing tips for moving companies here and learn how to acquire new customers today.