While home repair services were generally considered essential and, therefore, available even during COVID-19 shutdowns, if you run a home services business you’re likely seeing increased demand in 2021. In fact, the top search queries among Nextdoor neighbors during the first quarter of 2021 revolved around the home.
Some customers may have waited until they felt safe before completing urgent repairs or home improvement projects. But now, they’re ready to book your services.
So, how can you keep your loyal customers well-informed as they potentially encounter longer waiting times before you can start the job?
In this guide, we’ll address local marketing strategies for managing demand and addressing delays.
How to Manage Increased Demand
With the built-up demand for home repairs, you’ll need to manage your calendar carefully.
But as a service provider, putting together your weekly and monthly schedule can be a challenge. For example:
- If you’re an electrician or technician, you know a job could always be more complicated than it appears at first glance. You might even need to prepare yourself for unexpected repairs, whether due to chewed-through wiring, a disorganized electrical panel, or any other electrical issues that need urgent repairs.
- If you’re a carpenter, your deck building or roof repair gig could extend for days or weeks after a bout of rainy weather.
- If you need permits to conduct demolition work or other safety permits as part of a job, delays with the city could leave you backlogged.
But the better you plan your calendar, the less likely you’ll end up having to push back a job’s start date.
The following tactics will help you get organized and prepare your customers for a potential wait.
Anticipate Customer’s Needs
Depending on your field of service, you might already have a sense of what customers might need from you in the coming months.
Willow Greenhouse in Michigan saw skyrocketing demand in 2020, often from first-time homebuyers investing in hardscaping supplies. Now that last year’s crop of buyers have made progress in their outdoor spaces, landscapers could potentially anticipate more clients who want consultations on gardening and annual plants.
If you anticipate high demand for a particular service, start communicating with existing clients now, inviting them to book soon (or by a certain date).
Explain COVID-19 Protocol
What’s changed in your business due to COVID-19?
- Maybe you book fewer jobs per day to avoid potential community spread amongst unvaccinated clients.
- Perhaps you’re following enhanced worksite cleaning protocol and more safety measures, which means each job takes a little bit longer.
- You may even schedule remote consultations rather than giving estimates on site.
Any of these protocols can change the client service experience. The more clearly you set expectations and explain changes, the more prepared your clients will be for any delays.
Invest in Technology that Streamlines Interaction
In Phoenix, Arizona, Amigo Plumbing has been busier than it was before COVID. The business was able to meet demand by automating and upgrading its scheduling services.
When you’re busy, you don’t want to figure out your daily schedule by inspecting Post-it notes, and phone numbers scrawled on napkins.
If you don’t have a small business website or use a calendar system to set up client appointments, now could be the time for a high-tech solution. Put the onus on clients to write down their needs and find a time in your calendar rather than playing phone tag.
Consider tools like the following:
If you ask customers to hold their appointment with credit card information, you can even charge fees for canceled appointments.
If you’re unsure about how to implement high-tech tools, consider hiring a summer intern or worker who can help with scheduling and get to know the ins and outs of your trade.
Share Your Plan and Gather Customer Feedback on Nextdoor
Nextdoor is the neighborhood hub that connects your business to the community. It allows you to easily reach neighbors to communicate any scheduling changes and delays with potential clients in your community.
Use Nextdoor to communicate at the start of your busy season.
Create a Business Page to pave the way for closer connections within your community.
- Creating a Business Page is free. Update your page with your contact information, hours of operation, services, and story.
- Share monthly business Posts. Once your business is registered, you’ll have access to two free Business Posts. Share your plan for handling scheduling and delays during the COVID-19 pandemic. Since customers can respond to your posts, you’ll get plenty of feedback, questions, and customer leads.
- Gather recommendations from previous clients. The more recommendations you have, the more visible your business will be on Nextdoor.
How to Address Delays
No matter how carefully you plan your schedule, delays are inevitable.
After all, life happens—whether a client’s sewage pipe bursts, you discover a concrete driveway underneath the asphalt you were hired to tear up, or you simply need a day to rest.
When something goes wrong, communication is key.
Communicate Via the Customer’s Chosen Method
If you know you are going to be late or can no longer make it to the job…
- Contact your client via their preferred method 24 hours in advance (hopefully, you have this information from their intake form).
- Get in touch with your client as soon as you know there might be a delay. Explain exactly what’s causing the problem (without revealing more personal detail than is needed).
- Tell them the latest date and time by which you’ll make a decision about rescheduling. If you do need to reschedule, what would the new start date be? Make sure this date works for both of you.
Returning Calls and Emails
No matter how clear you’ve been, there’s always a chance you’ll have a customer who keeps checking in. “Just wondering if you could squeeze me in any sooner.”
While this can feel pestering, it’s important to respond to customer inquiries. Set some time aside at the end of each workday to return all communications.
Be straightforward and polite, referring customers back to your website to understand your policies and timelines.
Avoid the temptation to Book Up the Gaps
Say you hoped to reschedule a job for Friday, but the client will be out of town on that date. You agree to start Monday instead.
What should you do on Friday?
It could be incredibly tempting to call up a client with a pending one-day job and get a little ahead of schedule. But what if that job takes longer than expected, too, and you’re in the weeds at your rescheduled appointment?
Instead, when you end up with gaps in your schedule, spend the time on one of the following:
- Visiting prospective clients to provide estimates
- Updating your calendar and availability
- Marketing on Nextdoor and other channels
- Getting your receipts ready for tax season
If all else fails, you could actually take the day to rest, refuel, and relax.
Post Your Changes Clearly
Say you’ve been running behind schedule for weeks and there’s no good way to catch up. Your loyal customers understand (after all, you’re not the only home service professional who’s swamped).
But a few customers could get antsy.
If delays have become pervasive, it’s important to communicate any resulting changes to your schedule or procedures.
- If your waitlist now extends months ahead, post the information on your website and Nextdoor page. Hopefully, a decrease in your number of queries can help take the pressure off your scheduling system.
- Likewise, if you need to pause new bookings, communicate that information on your sales channels and to your current customers. Let them know that you’d still love them to refer friends—as long as their projects aren’t urgent.
- If you’re unable to take on emergency repair or services, provide referral information for clients in need.
Be sure to use a friendly, kind tone rather than expressing your own frustration or overwhelm. It’s normal to vent about your business schedule—just not to your customers.
Reward Loyalty After the Long Wait
In most cases, your customers will completely understand that you’re busy and completely booked.
In fact, being in demand is often a selling point. It shows your services are top-notch.
But that doesn’t mean you should take clients’ business for granted. Instead, consider a way to show gratitude for their patience, especially when there have been significant delays.
This could mean:
- Saying “thank you” and verbally expressing appreciation once the job has wrapped up.
- Offering a small discount on their next service, i.e., 10% off for returning customers, or free hot water heater maintenance with any other plumbing repair service.
- Partnering with another local business to offer a gift at the time of service. It’s a great time of year to gift customers free flowers or potted plants, and a local nursery or gift shop may be willing to donate or discount items in exchange for free publicity.
Keeping Your Customers Safe and Happy
In return for their business, your customers anticipate excellent customer service and a clear strategy for addressing the risks of COVID-19.
First, create expectations around your schedule and procedures. Then, communicate on Nextdoor and other channels to help customers understand and plan around any unforeseen circumstances.
As a home service provider, you enrich people’s daily lives, whether by troubleshooting potentially hazardous structural problems or beautifying their yards. As long as you keep your mission at the forefront, you’ll be able to navigate delays and waitlists with ease.
Sources:
Contractor Magazine. Amigo plumbing and the COVID-19 pandemic. https://www.contractormag.com/plumbing/plumbing-contractor/article/21145179/amigo-plumbing-and-the-covid-comeback
Michigan Live. Gardening industry went from shutdown to tsunami of demand. https://www.mlive.com/public-interest/2021/04/gardening-industry-went-from-shutdown-to-tsunami-of-demand-in-2020-farmers-hope-it-sticks.html
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