Contractor Slow Season
The seasons are changing, and with that comes a shift in contractor demand. For many contractors, slow season is right around the corner. Whatever service industry you’re in, recognizing this issue and facing it head-on is essential to keeping up your revenue.
Your customers may not be looking to upkeep their homes, but the opportunities for consistent cash flows are still present. There are many ways to prepare for your slow season and to improve business productivity as it approaches. Your busy season is winding down and now is the time to incorporate some new strategies.
Preparation
Researching
Dedicate some time and effort during your busy months to collect information on your customers’ needs. This will be a great resource for you to reference for the slow season as it will help you figure out what you should be offering. You can also begin to offer these services leading up to the slow season.
Budgeting
Prepare for your slow season by assessing your finances. Plan to run your business on a smaller budget. One way to do this is by reducing administrative costs if you don’t require them as much, or at all, during your slow season. Do not hire or allocate resources for any extra business you are anticipating.
Marketing
Start your marketing efforts for slow season services early on. Marketing campaigns take time to be fully effective. Let your customers know what services you are offering that are relevant to the season. Emphasize the importance of maintaining their home systems year-round.
Consider having your technicians share your company’s new promotions and deals through a flyer, brochure or during a service call. You can also reach out to your customer base by sending out mail or an email sharing your new promotions. Read our blog post on marketing for service businesses to learn about other ways to grow your marketing.
Services to Offer
There is a variety of services you can offer before and during the slow season to maintain your revenue. Getting a head start by providing these services will ensure you have enough cash to run your business later on.
Service Agreements
A common way contractors meet their bottom line during a slow season is relying on service agreements. You can offer different tiers of service agreements for different customer needs. Some customers might want a basic plan that covers the labor fee of future service calls. Others might prefer to pay a premium and have any parts or materials covered in their agreement.
Offer these plans as an insurance for your customers, assuring them that you can provide services year-round. Focusing extra efforts towards selling service agreements in preparation for your slow season can account for most of your income during your slow season.
Preventative Maintenance
Preventative maintenance services allow customers to have their home systems evaluated by your technicians. The customer will realize their home needs servicing and schedule future service calls. A huge benefit of selling to the customer is that they can prevent any future breakdowns or excessive bills by having the work done sooner. This is a good option to offer customers who are not interested in service agreements, but still want to have their home systems in top shape.
New Services
A business might experience a slow season when their services are not being demanded. Your slow season is a good time to offer services your business might not usually offer. Start thinking about what services your community might need, and how to train your employees for those services. For example, snow removal services do not require much equipment or training. Therefore, snow removal services are easy to implement into your employee’s skillset for the winter season.
Inventory Clearance
If your business sells equipment or tools, consider having a “end of season” sale to increase sales revenues and provide customers with items that will improve their current systems. Create a sense of urgency and value in these products you are clearing out.
Looking Ahead
While there may be a lack of demand in the upcoming months, there is still a great deal of work for your business to tackle. Managing your business and increasing your revenues earlier will help your business stay successful in its slow season. Look at how your business can continue to stay relevant to your customers, and work harder than you have been in your busy season to keep demand high.
