One of the most challenging aspects of being a self-employed independent contractor is generating new business and finding clients to work with. This is especially true in the beginning of one’s independent contracting career in North Carolina. Once you have worked with many clients and impressed them with your skills, the ball often keeps on rolling all on its own, through word of mouth, your stellar reputation, and more. However, getting to that point often isn’t easy. Here are some tips for independent contractors to help bring more clients into their business!
#1 – Visit the Neighbors
When you’re working on a project for a client you have already secured, it’s a good idea to reach out to nearby homeowners while you are at the site in question. Go next door and introduce yourself and explain to them that you are doing work on their neighbor’s home. Explain to them that you want to go the extra mile to keep their neighborhood happy throughout the construction process. This makes a good impression to the neighbors that you want to make sure they are not bothered by the construction, and it also gets your name out there.
When you follow up with a client after a project is done, this is another good opportunity to stop by the neighbor’s homes again and offer them a quote for any work they may need completed. To further entice them to accept your offer, you can offer a proximity discount. Offering them a discount because you will be saving time on travel (as you are already working at a site in the same neighborhood) will often result in more offers accepted.
#2 – Boost Current Marketing Efforts
If you aren’t getting the business you want for your brand, then the marketing efforts you have in place probably aren’t sufficient. Revitalizing them with a fresh look can often help bring in new clients. Make sure your marketing materials are eye catching and that they effectively highlight what makes you better than your competition. These can be anything from job site signs, to door hangers, to thank you cards.
Of course, you should give special attention to your business cards and website, as they are your most accessible and widely used promotional pieces. While you’re at it, don’t neglect social media marketing either! Social outlets like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and more offer quick and cost-effective methods to reach a wide number of potential clients. Conduct a bit of research and find out what social media outlets your target audience is most likely to be on and try to post once every day. Every “share” and “like” could be one step closer to your next project!
#3 – Offer Free Touch Ups
This might sound like a lot of work, but it’s a small thing that can offer a lot in the way of new clients. Try providing free touch ups on your projects – believe it or not, this can go a long way to generating new business. When following up with clients after a project is completed, ask if any of your work needs some touch ups. If they take you up on your offer, you can point out any other work that needs doing and use the opportunity to reach out to neighbors while you’re there. Not only that, but offering free touch ups does a lot to impress your clients and boost your reputation – leading to more referrals of your services!
The Verdict
These simple steps can go a long way to helping you bring more clients in the door, ensuring that you never have very long to wait between one project finishing and the next beginning. And of course, this is important as a contractor, to make sure that there isn’t a long break between paychecks either.
Being able to put in more time and effort into finding clients, which in turn helps you to take on more projects and bring in more income, is one of the best things about being an independent contractor. It offers many workers a sense of financial freedom!
If you think being an independent contractor is right for you, and all that is standing in your way of staring your own business is a contractor’s license, sign up for a course at Contractor’s Institute today to get started!