Greetings Floor Dealers!

Over the space of just a couple of months, I had the bad fortune of getting three holes knocked into the sheetrock of my home.  One was caused by my daughter’s head when she fell over backward from a chair in her room.  Another was caused by my son when he was running through the house and slammed his hip into a wall in the hallway.  It broke a section of drywall about two feet long and six inches high.  The other was when a doorstop in the washroom failed to stop the door: the doorknob punched a nice round hole in the wall.  Thankfully no one was hurt in any of these incidents (including the doorknob), but I now had highly visible and unattractive holes that needed fixin’.  They were way too big for a simple, do-it-yourself putty job, plus there was texturing that needed to be matched.  Since I’m not a drywall expert, I decided to hire a professional to make the repairs.

My wife called around and got some references for a fellow that fixed drywall.  He came out right away and repaired the damage.  He did a phenomenal job.  You could not tell there had ever been any holes.  Even the huge hole my son made was patched and textured such that it flowed seamlessly with the rest of the wall.  On top of that, the repairman was on time and he got the work done quickly.

Fast forward a few years.  I now have several more holes in my drywall that need repairing.  Thankfully they are in places where they aren’t immediately visible. (A bookcase is in front of one.)  But they will need to be repaired.  However, I cannot remember who the guy was who did the original repairs.  I can’t even remember who referred him to us.  So when I finally get around to hiring someone, my wife or I will phone around for references and maybe we’ll locate Mr. Drywall again, but chances are we won’t.  Which means one of his competitors will likely get the work.

Mr. Drywall did a great job.  His customer service was good.  He’s skilled at his craft.  But that didn’t help me remember his name and phone number several years later when I need him again.

This is just a small patch job he’s losing.  But what if I needed an addition to my home drywalled?  Or I was remodeling my kitchen or bath?

Or what if one of the 200-400 people in my sphere of influence mentioned that they were building a house, or doing a large remodel job, or were building an office complex and needed a drywall contractor.  I’d love to be able to refer Mr. Drywall, but he’s out of luck.

Now, I’m not his only customer; he could easily have 1,000 others.  So multiply this situation times a thousand and how much money do you think Mr. Drywall is losing each and every year?  Every decade?  Over the course of his career?

Probably millions.

This entire sad situation is caused because Mr. Drywall approaches his business like a hunter.  And like a hunter wandering the woods and fields looking for a deer to shoot, he wanders his marketplace looking for a customer to sell to.  When he finds one he bags it and then begins hunting again.

Then he gets up the next day and does it all over again.

And the next.

And the next.

Yeah, you can put food on the table being a hunter, but it’s a lot of manual labor grunt-work, and it gets very old very quickly.  Hunters never truly own a business.  They are perpetually “self-employed.”  They never have stability in their business.  Hunters have to constantly worry about the availability of game.  They have to worry about other hunters poaching their prospects.

Contrast that with a rancher.  A rancher knows exactly where his cattle are located; no wandering the countryside needed in order to find them because they’re right outside his door.  He knows exactly how many head of cattle he has.  He has fences that keep the herd in and poachers out.

He knows from one month to the next how much money his herd will generate.  He knows by what percentage his herd will grow each year.  He can hire people to help him run his ranch.  He can take a vacation from ranching and when he gets back his herd will be right where he left it, and it will have grown while he is gone.

Mr. Drywall could go a long way towards transforming himself from a hunter to a rancher with one tool: A monthly direct-response newsletter, like the Neighborhood Advisor. If I’d been getting his newsletter for the past several years I wouldn’t have to remember his name and phone number.  I’d have it.  If he was smart and savvy (like my Inner Circle members) and promoted his referral program in the newsletter, my ears would be open when someone in my sphere mentioned needing a drywall contractor.

To further his transformation from a hunter to a rancher, I’d also recommend he do the following:

  • Implement a referral program
  • Use Testimonials
  • Use a 5-Around strategy
  • Create Joint Venture partnerships

So my question to you is this: Are you a hunter or a rancher?

 

To Tons Of Customers!
Jim Augustus Armstrong is The “Coach”

Jim Augustus Armstrong is the President of Flooring Success Systems, a program that equips dealers to double their profits, cut their work hours in half and beat the boxes! Many dealers have totally transformed their businesses and their lives for the better after joining Flooring Success Systems.
See what real, live dealers are saying!