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Are you looking to market your company’s moving services, but having trouble figuring out the best strategies? Well, you’re in luck. Below are some actionable local moving service marketing strategies that will help you attract more customers.
Like in any other business, a local mover attempts to take action to ensure that their potential clients are aware of their moving services. In this article, we will try to summarize some proven moving services marketing methods so that your local moving business can excel.
Why Local moving service is a Unique Business
Tangible assets
While most small businesses don’t have much in the way of tangible assets, a moving company is different. You will need physical equipment such as trucks, dollies, and packing supplies. By investing in these assets you are taking on risks and increasing your investment in the company.
Good cash flow
Running your own business means you will be responsible for generating revenue for your company. With a moving company, you can work with clients to create flexible payment plans that work around their schedules and budgets. This allows you to generate additional revenue without having to worry about covering payroll or administrative costs.
Control over profits
By starting your own moving business, you have complete control over how much you earn. If you want to run a successful company you will need to ensure that all of your customers are satisfied with your services, but if you do this by providing them with affordable rates they will likely use your services again in the future which will increase your revenue.
You can make money by doing what you love
You can excel at a task that you enjoy and that you are good at. You can be your boss and make your hours while maintaining a flexible schedule. If these things sound appealing, then starting up a moving business might just be the right choice for you.
You will have control over the price of your work
When it comes to moving services, customers are often surprised by how much movers charge for their services. But as a business owner, you will have complete control over the cost of your labor and materials. Prices for moving services can fluctuate based on time of day, distance of travel, and availability of materials at a given moment. By becoming a mover yourself, you can set different rates based on these criteria or offer discounted rates when they are needed most.
Investment support
There are dozens of small business grants that can help you fund your local moving company’s startup costs. Some grants can cover up to 75% of your expenses, allowing you to put more funds toward equipment, insurance, and marketing materials to get customers through the door.
Endless opportunities for expansion and growth
You can always add new services or locations if you feel they will attract more customers or help boost sales. For example, if your company has been established for some time, consider offering packing services to clients who want help preparing their homes for moving day. This will increase profits and help make your customers happier than ever before.
Work anywhere in the world
This is a great advantage if you love traveling and visiting new places. As an independent contractor, you can choose which cities or states you wish to drive to and begin the process of making arrangements to move someone’s belongings.
Local Moving Service Business Challenges
Payment processing fees
The “break-even” point is the point where all these expenses are covered by the amount of money you collect in income from customers. If your business is a sole proprietorship or partnership owned by you and your spouse: You will typically report all business income or loss on your income tax return.
Finding the right office space
The first challenge is to find the right office space. The office space should be at a prime location so that it can attract more clients. It should have good lighting, enough parking space and amenities like a receptionist, conference room, etc. It should also be easily accessible for potential customers.
Current Employees
Employees who work for your moving service can pose problems for your company. You need to make sure that they are reliable and trustworthy so that you can keep costs low, but at the same time make sure that they are doing a good job. If they aren’t performing well, you need to let them go because your customers will not be happy with them.
Massive competition
If you are considering entering the moving business, realize that many people already have done so. You will be competing with large national companies as well as local businesses. However, even within the local market, there can be a lot of competition because of how fragmented the industry is.
Pros and Cons of Local Moving Service
Pros
- You have the chance to earn bonuses, profit sharing, and commissions if you work hard.
- You decide when to work and when to take time off.
- You don’t need special training or a lot of money to start your own moving company.
- If you’re looking for extra income, working in this industry can help you learn new job skills.
- You can invest in the future of your business by buying new trucks or hiring employees to help with larger jobs.
Cons
- Truck maintenance and repairs.
- Selecting the ideal insurance policy for a local moving company.
- Getting a moving company license can also be difficult as you may not know where to start.
- It’s physically exhausting work.
- Risk going bankrupt if your mover causes harm to customers’ property.
- Have the added burden of a high level of government regulation and paperwork.
Best Local Moving Service Marketing Strategies
Use your shipping and delivery vehicles as mobile ads
Have you ever considered using your moving trucks as mobile advertisements for your moving company? Trucks are a great place to advertise your business and get additional exposure for your brand.
The following section will guide you through the process of creating and using a truck wrap to get more customers. Truck wraps can be an effective part of your local marketing strategy because they are highly visible and can be placed on any size vehicle, including box trucks and cargo vans.
They are also cost-effective, especially when compared to other forms of print advertising. For example, you might pay $100 for a single ad in a newspaper or magazine; however, you can create an entire truck wrap for less than $800.
Here are some suggestions for using your delivery vehicles as local moving marketing tools:
1. Use your logo on all of your delivery vehicles to establish your brand identity within the community where you operate your business.
2. Make sure you have contact information listed on all sides of your delivery trucks; this is important information for people who may need movers.
3. Your moving van needs to be kept clean and well maintained at all times as this will help reinforce the image of quality associated with your business. You want the vehicle to look professional and trustworthy so make sure that you keep it in good shape.
4. Make sure that your vehicle is easy to recognize, especially once it is on the road. You don’t want someone else’s moving van parked in front of your clients’ homes because they might think that you sent them there to take their belongings away. So, make sure that you use a bright color that can be easily spotted by people passing by.
Offer free consultation on moving
There are several things to consider when deciding how to offer free consultation on moving as your local moving service marketing strategy.
With a growing number of companies offering home and office moving services, how do you stand out?
Trying to figure out how to offer free consultation on moving as your local moving service marketing strategy will result in an increased customer base, which is what you are looking for when trying to grow your business.
Protip: You should offer this free service even if you do not plan on working with that potential client. The reason is, they are more likely to tell others about their experience with your company, which leads to increased revenue from the increased influx of clients looking for a professional moving service.
When you offer a free consultation for moving services, there are certain things you must do for this to be successful:
Offer a wide variety of moving services. Find out what services your client needs and make sure that you can offer all of them. This will help you close more deals when a client realizes that he or she needs something else besides just packing and loading.
Get feedback and comments from previous clients. If possible, get feedback from your previous clients and use those as testimonials on your website. This will help other potential clients realize that they can trust you with the job and it will increase the chances of them hiring you if they were considering another moving company.
Be strategic in selecting the area that you want to offer free consultation on moving. It will be much easier to get clients if you target a certain group of people who need your services such as those people who have just recently moved, military or apartment dwellers, or those people who are planning to move soon.
You need to make sure that you have enough time and energy to devote yourself to these consultations and do follow up with them.
You also need to be flexible with your time because sometimes you might need to visit them at home or schedule an appointment with them for one reason or another even if it is not really necessary for you to do so but it is still part of your job so always make sure that you keep yourself updated about this matter.
Make a schedule for conducting the initial consultation appointments and then follow it up regularly until all the schedules are complete.
Local press coverage
Local press coverage is a powerful tool in the arsenal of a leading local moving service. By leveraging your local press, you can increase brand awareness and generate new leads for your business.
Tapping into the power of local press coverage can be the key to your success as a local moving service. But how do you get started?
You’ve noticed that some of your competitors have been getting lots of great local press coverage in your area. And you want to know if there is a way to do the same thing. Of course, there is! All you need to do is create a strategic plan for getting the local press coverage that will enhance your business and help you generate more leads.
Once you’ve got a good idea of which publications to target, it’s time to put together a media kit for reporters, editors, and producers. Media kits should be tailored for each type of media, but some items (such as a company overview) are good for all of them.
Your media kit should include:
- Your contact information (including email address and website).
- A photo or two of you and/or your employees (if you’re an individual proprietor, use a family photo).
- A short description of your moving company.
- Your mission statement (for larger companies).
- A client list or testimonials (for larger companies).
- A description of your services, including details such as travel time and hourly rates (for moving companies only).
Leverage review sites and listings
Review sites and listings are some of the best methods to get free exposure to potential customers.
If you are a local moving company, these are two ways to reach thousands of people.
The best part is that you do not have to spend any money on advertising or marketing campaigns.
Here are some review sites that you can use:
Yelp: Yelp is the largest online review site and it has many categories so most, if not all, of your customers, can leave a review. It’s not easy to get a listing on Yelp. There are certain requirements that you must meet like having a brick-and-mortar location, opening an account with them, etc. You can get a listing on Yelp by connecting with the business owners in your area who already have a listing there.
Merchant Circle: This site is similar to Yelp. You will need to pay for their services but I think it’s worth it in the end if you want to get more customers. The nice thing about this site is that you don’t have to be physically located anywhere. You can be anywhere in the world and still manage your listing on this site. To attract more customers, they offer free listings and upgrades.
Truelocal.com: Truelocal allows you to put your business in front of the people who matter most. These consumers have a need or are looking to get a job done, but they don’t know where to go to get it done. With Truelocal, you can be in front of the people who need your services right when they are ready to hire a provider like you.
Google My Business: Google My Business is a free directory that helps businesses find new customers by helping customers find businesses. When new customers search for keywords that relate to your business, Google will pull up your business listing and add it to their Google Map results as well as other places across Google’s network of affiliates and websites.
Superpages: Superpages is another website geared toward helping people find local businesses. It has comprehensive listings of most businesses in each category, including moving companies.
Foursquare: Foursquare lists local businesses and allows users to check in with them when they arrive at their location. Search for local movers in your area and let them know that you would like to be on the list so that you can gain more customers by showing off your high ratings from happy customers.
Embrace social media
People no longer seek out local moving companies. Instead, it’s the businesses that market themselves in a way that attracts customers and clients.
This section will help you understand how to use social media as your local moving service marketing strategy to get more customers and clients.
1: Post photos of your company trucks, equipment, employees, and customers on your social media pages. These photos show people what they can expect as a customer of yours.
2: Create a page on Facebook for your business. Post photos of your trucks, equipment, and employees, describe what you do and how you can help people with their moves.
3: Post videos of your company trucks, equipment, employees, or customers on YouTube or Vimeo. People love videos and often watch them before deciding to hire a moving company or not. You can even post short testimonial videos from happy customers.
4: Engage in social conversation about moving issues or helpful tips related to moving. Be helpful and answer questions that might be asked by prospects who are looking for help with a move. It shows that you care about people and want to be helpful in any way possible when it comes to their move. Plus, this can lead to new business opportunities.
Tailor to the local population
Tailoring your moving company marketing strategy to local populations is a great way to make sure you’re getting the most out of your marketing budget.
Moving companies are local businesses and so their customer base is also local. This means that every time you move a customer to a new location if you do it right, you’ll gain another customer in that area.
How do you go about tailoring your moving company marketing strategy to local populations? Here are some tips:
Learn about the new culture. You can find out about the local history and traditions by reading publications or talking with locals. This way, you’ll be able to better market your business and appeal to potential customers.
Make sure that your language skills are up to par. Not speaking the local language fluently means that you won’t be able to communicate effectively with customers or employees. Find time to practice this skill until you become fluent.
Research what makes people in the area unique, whether it’s their customs or their interests and hobbies. If appropriate, incorporate this into your public relations plan and social media strategy, as well as into your marketing materials and business cards. Do not just slap a sticker on the side of your truck and call it a day; make sure that everything is professional.
Look at what competitors are doing. It’s always valuable to see what your competitors are doing and how they market themselves. What kind of ads are they placing? Where do they advertise? Do they have a website? Is it mobile optimized? By looking at this information, you can get an idea of what’s working for them locally and what isn’t.
Offer free estimates for out-of-town moves. People moving from one city to another may not know how much their move will cost until they get an estimate from several companies. Offer free estimates for people moving outside of your local area to build trust and gain more customers in the future.
Create a partnership with local companies
Being a partner to local companies is one of the most effective ways of local moving service marketing. When you partner with local companies, you get the chance to spread your brand’s name and services far and wide. So how do you plan such a partnership?
Find out which business fits well into your target market. If you want to attract customers who are interested in gardening, then it would be best if you partner up with a gardening center. In the same manner, if you want to target college students, try partnering up with a nearby university or college.
Final Thoughts
So, before you come up with a local moving service advertising plan, make sure you have considered what you are going to advertise, where you will advertise your company, and how much to advertise.
If you have done all that; then it will be much easier for you to start a successful local moving service of your own.
