Guerilla marketing for construction companies

Small businesses come in all shapes and forms, from roof repair and replacement contractors in Calgary, Alberta, to the local banana shop in Zimbabwe. No matter where a small business is located or what it sells, it will do marketing. And since newbies often can’t afford big efforts, we small business owners turn to a thing called Guerrilla Marketing. Also known as the “whatever works” approach. This short article covers some of the recent Guerrilla Marketing successes I have experienced; I trust they can light a little fire of intelligence within you, perhaps stimulate your creative side and hopefully help you come up with some new ideas of your own.

Websites: Big website companies charge tens of thousands of dollars for multi-level, super-functional, graphic-laden sites that often do nothing. It’s very easy for an executive to believe that “you get what you pay for” and throw the wallet at a big-name designer. But what about the results? Guys on the web are often interested in creating beautiful websites, but what about websites that actually sell?

Imagine that you are interested in replacing the roof of your beautiful house. You want the right company to do a good job. Does this website earn your trust? Does it provide you with good information? Perhaps even provide more information than you want in an easy-to-understand format? It’s up to you. Easy things. For less than $1,500.00 plus GST up front plus about 40 hours of my time, I got this site up and running and it produced beautiful results. Remember, I am not here to sell websites. My point is LOOK damn, for marketing that produces results. Great results for little money.

Event creation: make some noise, stimulate word of mouth, entice the thrill of seeing through people’s pores, let’s have some fun! A good event (with lots of photos and videos, of course) goes a long way. And it can’t cost anything. I did several a few years ago, here was my basic approach:

1. Tell people there is an event going on. It promises a big name speaker, lots of food, live entertainment, trade show booths, a beautiful room, gold (colored) dog tags, great networking, and anything else your heart desires. Tickets are only $75, but the special sale (ie right now) is only $50. Stands $500 regular, $300 today. Sell ​​the tickets. Yeah…sell them before you’ve finished planning what you promised. If you wait until all the lights are green before leaving your house, you will never leave your house.

2. Telephone 20 reputable public speakers (or reputable enough). Search speaking forums, check with chamber of commerce, google public speakers in your area. You will find locals, or people a bit close to you with a claim to fame and who want to talk. These guys typically charge $2,000 to $10,000 for a gig, but you’re not going to pay for it. Here’s the deal. Be honest and tell them that you don’t have the budget to pay them, but there will be a room full of good people for them to put themselves out there. They might sell some books, get some leads for more jobs, maybe generate interest in a course they sell, and who knows what else. It is a place for them to hang out. Yes, do this before you finish planning what you promised.

3. Do the same for live entertainment, catering services, event location, and corporate sponsors. Have you been intimidated yet? If not, you may be crazy. If so, you may be new to this. I’ll tell you one thing, nerves are a sign of things that are about to manifest. Take that how you want.

4. Do it and don’t screw it up. Walk your talk. And remember… if you wait until all the lights are green before you leave your house, you will never leave your house.

happy marketing.