Once you’ve made the decision to invest in purchasing a volumetric mixer for your business, it’s important to let people know that you can offer a valuable service. To successfully market your volumetric mixer business, there are a few considerations to make when creating your marketing plan. The more energy you invest in getting crystal clear about the areas we are about to cover, the better your chances will be of making a return on your investment.
The first thing you need to consider is how to clearly define your target market and understand their main points. The markets a concrete producer can serve are many. Contractors, homeowners, municipalities, mining companies and pre-cast companies are all examples of markets that could be your potential customers. But as the saying goes, “You can’t be all things to all people.” The same holds true in marketing.
The most successful businesses are focused on a single or small group of niche markets. That’s not to say that you can’t take on jobs in other areas. But by being laser-focused on specific markets, you can develop a better understanding of the needs of those markets and concentrate your marketing dollars more effectively.
You also need to be able to clearly articulate your service offering and be able to make it easy for customers to understand what makes you different. Following are a few benefits you may consider highlighting in your marketing materials.
Flexibility: With the addition of a volumetric mixer, you now have the flexibility to offer customers a variety of quality concrete formats. You are able to add colour to your concrete with a simple additive. You are able to offer flow-able fill just by changing your aggregate type. Slurries, latex and other custom mix designs help you offer the concrete that the customer wants with ease. You can now offer quality concrete that has not already settled on the delivery, with a water ratio that makes the concrete both workable and strong.
Pay for what you use: Tailor-made to volumetric mixers, the services that you can now offer are one of the biggest reasons for people to choose you. The “pay only for what you use” messaging is a powerful way to position your business that offers great benefits for customers.
Access remote areas: Being able to serve remote areas is also a key differentiator. A ready-mix truck cannot drive two hours away for a pour and expect quality concrete. With volumetric mixers, the correlation between quality of concrete and distance of delivery is non-existent.
Short load deliveries: These can be a nuisance for ready mix companies because the time difference between short load and large load deliveries is low and the profit is minimized. However, with a volumetric mixer you can have one truck to do four or five small deliveries without returning to the batch plant.
Availability: Being willing to work weekends and holidays can be very valuable. Often personal projects that may require concrete are done on weekends and holidays because that is the only time it may work for the customer. Night deliveries can be valuable as well. Roadwork is often done at night when there is little traffic. This is a way to offer value to your customers.
With a clear understanding of your target market and your offering, you need to find ways to bring your message to the public. While there is no one right way of marketing your business, it is often a combination of doing a few focused things that lead to success. It is important to have a multi-faceted marketing plan for establishing your brand and generating leads. Here are a few areas to consider:
Have a professional website. A website is often how you make a first impression with potential customers. Therefore it is important to have a site that looks modern and is easy to navigate. Potential customers are more likely to reach out to a company that they feel is credible. If you don’t have a website, or have an outdated website, invest in having one developed. For smaller companies or those with limited budgets, there are do-it-yourself website platforms like squarespace.com and wix.com where you can easily create a clean and simple site.
Claim and complete your “Google My Business” listing. If there is one thing to take from this article, it is this: your business must be listed on Google. You can use sites like the Yellow pages, but ultimately the most effective online presence is having your business listed on Google. If someone searches: “Concrete in (Your Location)” and sees a list of businesses not including yours, you’ve missed an opportunity to gain a new customer. To create a full listing for your business, you must first claim the business in order to make edits. You can learn more about how to claim your listing here: https://support.google.com/business/answer/4566671?hl=en
Take advantage of a moving advertising opportunity. Branding your vehicles with eye-catching decals that include easy-to-read contact information is a great way to advertise your services on sites and while travelling between sites. Vehicles can be branded as a part of the design process. Decals can be also added after production by an aftermarket company.
Get active on social media. Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, whatever it is, don’t let people forget you exist. Regular posts are a must. Simple updates on the progress of your crew, new equipment or completed jobs are a subtle way of keeping top of mind with the marketplace so that they think of you when they are ready.
Consider on-line advertising. One of the primary ways that consumers find services in today’s age is through on-line searching. Investing in Facebook or Google AdWords advertising can increase your chances of being found on-line.
Form alliances with Ready-Mix Companies. You should not view Ready Mix Companies as rivals. In fact, they can be very valuable partners. In some cases, they may forward on the small pours that they are not interested in.