Why Some Pool Builders Grow in a Downturn…

..and what we can learn from them.

By Brett Lloyd Abbott, MYM Austin Inc.

The last two years have been tough for most pool builders. While a few builders saw growth, most continue to fall short of their sales for the previous year. And this year doesn’t promise to be much better. So let me take a moment to show you why “a lucky few” do well in a downturn, and what you might do to finish stronger this year.

I work closely with a lot of different pool builders all over the US and beyond, so I have a special perspective on “what works” and “what doesn’t.” I’ve found that amongst the pool builders who are still doing well, they all have at least one of these things in common:

• They’re still advertising
• They have a strong & compelling “story” in their marketing (especially their website)
• They’ve fine-tuned their selling skills & selling process
• They have a consistent follow-up system
• They’ve maintained a strong “referral channel”

Let me offer some ideas of how you can emulate their success without spending a ton of money….

ADVERTISING -In most cases, these guys don’t “advertise like crazy.” In fact, in most cases they’ve cut back on their ad spending. However, by testing all results, they were able to shift spending away from lousy performing media, and over to better performing lead sources. (I’ll share some results and suggestions in a future email.) BOTTOM LINE – If “advertising” (as opposed to “referrals” or “internet”) is a key source of leads for you, then it’s important to continue some level of advertising through the downturn.

A COMPELLING STORY – There are fewer buyers now than there were two years ago. And these buyers are generally more skeptical and reluctant than in the past. So each pool builder comes under much greater scrutiny in the buying process. Decisions aren’t being made solely on the performance of the sales rep. Your “believable story” (on your website and in your brochures) that proves why you’re a better choice will play a much greater role. Empty promises and meaningless platitudes score worse than zero . A clunky or under-compelling website has a similar effect. Have you updated your website lately? Have you developed and practiced your ” elevator pitch “?

SELLING SKILLS – As desperation seeps in, many builders are resorting to price cuts to steal the business from the competition. We call that a ” going out of business ” strategy. Much better to focus on giving the homeowner what she really wants, which is almost never “the cheapest pool I can buy.” Not an easy task, I’ll admit, so let me share with you one quick tip that’s worked well in 2008 – The owner will tag-along on the sales call. The sales rep still handles the call; the owner is just there for moral support. The homeowners told us that the presence of the business owner gave them the confidence they needed to go ahead and buy. If your business is down, consider taking a ride with your sales reps.

CONSISTENT FOLLOW-UP -Many a homeowner has decided “now is not the time,” and then a year or two later decided to proceed. They almost always zero-in on whoever has reached out to them most recently. (Which has absolutely nothing to do with the quality or value of the product they build.) Most sales reps are too busy chasing current leads to also continually reach out to past prospects that won’t return phone calls . And admittedly, the return rate on these prospects is generally low.

So the solution is not to beat up the sales reps. The solution is to set up a system that reaches out to “cold leads” automatically at least once, preferably twice a year, A postcard system is best, because if they’re still thinking about a pool, your postcard will get their attention. Custom greeting cards from www.SendOutCards.com/mymaustin are good too. A low-cost e-mail system such as Constant Contact or Vertical Response can work too, but only if you have their email addresses.

PROACTIVE REFERRALS – Nobody has to be talked into wanting or taking referrals. What I’ve found challenging is teaching builders and sales reps to take all the necessary “little steps” to win over the hearts of your customers, and generate referrals automatically . I’m not opposed to referral checks, but I consider it a secondary and inferior strategy to proactively converting your customers into “raving fans.”

If your customers love you, you won’t have to bribe them with a referral check . Some sales reps do this instinctively, and get all the referrals they can handle. Most do not. As a minimum, make sure your sales rep has a conversation with the homeowner several times throughout the construction process, and at least once after the pool is finished. Gifts can work well too; more about that later.

I hope you’ve picked up a few tips in here to help you through these challenging times. I’ll share more suggestions and ideas in future newsletters, as you remain subscribed.

Sincerely,

Brett Abbott

2010 Brett Lloyd Abbott / MYM Austin Inc.  May not be used without permission.

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“In Search of Twenty-Ten Vision”

Marketing Predictions for the year(s) ahead…

By Brett Lloyd Abbott, MYM Austin Inc.

I’m sure you recall that “20-20 vision” is how doctors refer to “normal vision.” This means that what you see at 20 feet is the same as what a “normal” person sees at 20 feet. Well, I’m not into “being normal.” I want “20-10 vision.” I want to see at 20 feet what the normal or average person can’t see beyond 10 feet.  And that’s where our focus (no pun intended) needs to be right now. In the year of Twenty-Ten, we should all be striving for 20-10 vision.

Naturally, with this new decade upon us, there are plenty of marketing pontificators and prognosticators telling us “what’s changing in 2010 and beyond.” You’re probably hearing about “social media” and “mobile apps” and “Google wave” and “multichannel reach” and the long predicted “demise of the Yellow Pages.”  At the risk of sounding like another pontificating prognosticator, let me share with you my vision of 2010. (Again, no pun intended.)

First, let me describe what I see as four major overriding societal trends that are currently driving human attitudes and habits. Then we’ll talk about how your marketing strategies and tactics need to change to deal with these societal changes.

• “Sincerity & transparency is everything.” (Thank you Gen X & Gen Y)

• “Disdain shall not be quieted.” (Thank you Social Media)

• “Speed is getting faster.” (Thank you wireless, mobile and many other technologies)

• “The simple / complexity paradox.” (Actually, it’s complicated…)

SINCERITY: After 40 years of self-indulgent ad-speak, platitudes, hype and hyperbole, our younger generations (and older generations too) have figured out that when it comes to advertising, “It’s all a bunch of crap. You can’t trust the self promoters, so don’t even bother listening to them.” Would you care to take a wild guess as to why Facebook and the entire field of social networking is so wildly popular today? (If you guessed “Sincerity” and “No ad speak,” then congratulations.) Don’t be fake.  People want to know the real you.

DISDAIN: With such a consummate desire and quest for sincerity, our new generations have developed a very low tolerance for B.S. They are highly connected, and when they get the sense they’re being lied to or ripped off, they strike back with a vengeance. On Facebook; on Skype; on Yelp.com; on Twitter; on Angie’s List; on Complaints.com, and about a thousand other places.  And now, with the new ìSideWikiî from Google, your disillusioned prospects can share their derisive comments about you and your company directly on your own website.. Are we getting nervous yet?

SPEED: Forgive the trite sounding nature of this, but in truth, “everything is getting faster.” The new generation cell phones have brought a world of information and access to our fingertips, no matter where we are, or what time of day or night. These phones are not only faster and more powerful than desktop computers of a few years ago, but they’re also more intelligent.  Right now, you can literally point your cell phone at the outside of a storefront, and instantly read on-line reviews of what other people think of that business. (Thank you Google street view.)  Talk about instant decision-making ability!

“What’s hot” is changing fast too.  MySpace — all the rage just three years ago, is all but dead.  And now rumors abound that the demise of Twitter is imminent.  (Yes, I know, you haven’t even signed up for your Twitter account yet.  Like I said, things are moving fast.) The science and art of Search Engine Optimization is also moving at warp speed.  Some of the stuff we were doing a year ago is already obsolete.  And some of the stuff you learned in a seminar last month will be obsolete by Christmas.  SEO is going to require a substantially larger investment of time and money in order to keep up the pace.

COMPLEXITY: The tragic paradox here is that all these tools and technology that make our life simpler are getting increasingly difficult to implement.  Do you recall the pain you had the last time you upgraded your computer?  (Perhaps that explains why two generations later, most PC users still prefer Windows XP.) Today, you’ll feel the simple-complexity paradox when you try to initiate your new super-simple Google-based Android smart phone. People are spending days, weeks and even months trying to figure out how to set up their e-mail, calendar and contacts. And there are so many applications available that they now have apps to control and manage your apps. (!!!)

So, with that insight of what’s happening with our society, what does our 20-10 vision tell us we should be doing in the year 2010? Without going into detail, let me share a few guidelines which should help you see the road ahead. (I’ll offer more insight on some of these in a future newsletter.)

Websites – It’s more important than ever.  It continues to grow in importance as other media shrink.  It’s also an ideal venue to offer simple solutions and demonstrate your sincerity.

Search Engine Optimization – It too is more important than ever.   (People want easy successful searches.) And this too will leave you in the dust if you ignore it too long.

Value – As important as ever. No one wants to waste money, regardless of whether the recession is over or not.

Social media – Get on board. It’s changing fast, but the longer you wait, the harder it will be to catch up. Start by creating your own Facebook pages – one for you, and one for your company. Connect with some friends. Then get on Linked-In.

Mobile – People will increasingly communicate with you through their mobile phone, though not by voice.  You’ll need to make sure your website and e-mail communications are mobile-phone-friendly.

“Branding” – This old marketing paradigm is not so much “a goal” anymore, as it is a result of the socially connected world around you. Here, the smartest thing you can do is pay close attention to your customers and prospects, and respond overwhelmingly in their favor when something goes wrong.  (Otherwise, you will be “flamed.”)

Multi-channel Advertising – All of your advertising efforts should be driving people to your website, where they get all the answers and details they’re looking for, and more.  

Direct mail – Still a good medium for reaching targeted prospects, but it needs to be part of a multichannel strategy.

Print advertising – Diminishing effectiveness, as Yellow Pages and even newspapers go the way of the dinosaur.  EXCEPTION: Selected magazines such as “Luxury Pools” or “The Home Mag” can still be effective, provided you’re a good fit for that target market.

Ad speak / Platitudes – This is poison.  Avoid it at all costs.

So again, if you want to have 20-10 vision for the year 2010, then pay close attention to these unstoppable trends, and let the recommendations above be your guide.

To your success,

Brett

2010 Brett Lloyd Abbott / MYM Austin Inc.  May not be used without permission.

____________________________________________

Check out the Pool Genius Academy…

This is great business education program designed specifically for pool builders, retailers and service companies. Check it out at “The Pool Genius Academy.”

Workshops occur every Wednesday:

9:00am PT, 10:00am MT, 11:00am CT, 12:00pm ET

Trying to Keep Up with SEO…

(And why does it keep changing so flipping fast?!?)

By Brett Lloyd Abbott, MYM Austin Inc.

Early last year, I wrote an article about how Google was once again “changing the game” of search engine optimization. “In 2009, Video is King!” decried Google, and so I dutifully passed on the cutting-edge news to you. 

That was the first major publicly announced shift in Google SEO strategy in nearly 2 years.  Prior to that, it was “keywords, content, and inbound links.”   Go back a couple more years, and it was “keywords & content,” which replaced the original long-standing Google SEO strategy of simply “keywords.”

Why the constant changing?  Well, it’s because you are evil.

Actually, I don’t mean that you personally are evil. What I mean is that you, me, the populace, and all non-Google-employees are evil. Because we’re all trying to “crack the code” on search engine optimization, and find a way to gain an unfair advantage for ourselves.  (There’s a lot of money to be made by producing and achieving “first page of results” on Google, you know.)

So like “cops and robbers” and “Cowboys and Indians” (and maybe now it’s “Marines and Taliban”), the battle rages between the programmers at the giant Google search engine machine, and the thousands of SEO specialists who try to cheat the system. I guess we could call it “Programmers and SEO Specialists.” (Think that’ll catch on with our children and grandchildren?  Nah, me neither.)

Search engine optimization truly is little more than a game whereby SEO specialists try to figure out Google’s strategy, and then find ways to circumvent the system and put their clients on page 1. Meanwhile, poor Google just keeps trying to give the searching public what they really want: a relevant search result.

Google’s primary goal has driven all their major strategy changes since the beginning, including their latest strategy for 2010. Here’s a 20 second summary of the major strategy changes over the last 8 to 10-years of this game:

• When the evil specialists started using bogus keywords like “naked” and “Brittany Spears”, Google said “the content and the keywords have to match.”

• When the specialists started hiding the content in white text on a white background, Google said “Caught ya!  You are evil, and hereby banned from my rankings.”

• Then Google said “inbound links from other sites that point to you will prove that you are indeed relevant.” Then “blogs” were created, and life was good for a few months.

• Then Google took note of a strange new animal called “YouTube.” And as YouTube’s popularity grew by leaps and bounds (now ranked #4 busiest website in the world), Google said “Hey, people seem to like this YouTube thing. It must be honest and relevant.  And entertaining too.  So we will use it to influence your search engine rankings.  We have decided that Video is King.”

Oh my, that is all so “last year.” Keywords, content, links and video are all still good.  But there’s another animal on the scene now that’s bigger and badder than YouTube. It’s that interesting new fellow down the street known as “Facebook.” And with a worldwide website popularity ranking of #2 , you can bet this new neighbor has Google’s attention. (Just imagine how the folks at Yahoo felt when they got bumped from their long-held #2 position by an upstart morph of that childish little “MySpace.” Probably a lot like the angry German and Japanese executives in last year’s hilarious Hyundai commercial. )

So as of a couple of months ago, Google is now actively monitoring all traffic and discussions on Facebook . That’s bad news and good news for you.

The bad news is that “the programmers” have “upped the ante,” which means “the SEO specialists” are having to work longer and harder than ever.   What previously took an hour or two a month is now taking an hour or two a week — maybe more.  (And it’s only expected to get worse.) Whatever you’re currently paying for SEO services, I predict you are either going to see a price increase or a decline in results in the not-too-distant future.

This also means you’ll have to be extra careful about choosing an SEO company today.  Because some of those “specialists” are still playing by the old rules of “keywords and content” or “keywords, content and links.” Ask them about Facebook.  Their answer should tell you whether or not they’re on the cutting edge of SEO.

Now the good news — Google likes Facebook.   And Facebook is free.  And it’s actually pretty easy if you’ll just give it a chance. So you now have a golden opportunity to boost your own search engine rankings for free with just a little bit of “playtime” on Facebook.

If you haven’t started doing this already (you’ve probably heard me make this recommendation several times already, right?), here’s what I recommend you do starting today:

1. Sign up for a personal page on Facebook .  And post a picture of yourself. (You won’t be taken seriously if you don’t have a profile photo.)

2. Now create a “fan page” for your company on Facebook.  Link your fan page to your website.  Then upload your logo as a photo.  (It will probably look goofy in a square format, but don’t worry about it.  Nobody cares anyway.)

3. Now start posting updates to your Facebook page every day.   Have your supervisor take photographs of every job in progress, and post them daily by customer name.

4. Now tell your customers to go check out the latest photos of their job on your Facebook page.

Do you know what’s really cool about this strategy?  Not only is it free, but it’s actually relevant.   People will be going to your Facebook page (and potentially your website) not because you’ve tricked them, but because they’re actually interested in seeing what you put in there. 

And that’s all Google really wants anyway – is for people to be happy with the results they get when they search.  So let’s stop fighting Google, and start posting content that people want to see. It’s a popularity contest, and I really want you to win.

To your success,

Brett

2010 Brett Lloyd Abbott / MYM Austin Inc.  May not be used without permission.

______________________________________________

Check out the Pool Genius Academy…

This is great business education program designed specifically for pool builders, retailers and pool service companies.

Check it out at ” The Pool Genius Academy .”

Workshops occur every Wednesday :

9:00am PT, 10:00am MT, 11:00am CT, 12:00pm ET