Local Marketing Observations

Are you observing the contracting projects going on in your world?  What are they tell you?

Today, I took my morning bike ride a little late.  Temp was up to 88 degrees at 930 am.  Headphones in, a little God Smack playing to get the mental up to the physical part of the ride.

By the second block I started noticing the amount of work being done and by all different types of small businesses.  The first was the big orange tree service (Asplundh) doing the power line summer maintenance.  Looking to the right at the first stop sign, I see Sparks, a local concrete company doing a driveway expansion.  Further down the road, I see my neighbor who has a power-washing business, washing a duplex that just went on the market.

By the time I reach my destination, Rachel’s Deli, to get my morning OJ and sit at the river for a few, I counted 12 small businesses, if I count Asplundh, which is not really small.

Local Contractors Projects

Here is what I SAW.

4 lawn care companies.  Doing maintenance cuts.

3 tree services.  One grinding a fresh cut stump, one doing a removal and Asplundh doing trimmings.

2 roofing companies doing two re-roofing projects.  God bless them. It’s hot and I don’t miss those days.

1 concrete company doing a driveway expansion.

1 exterior contractor doing seamless gutter.  These storms are good for gutter sales.

1 remodeler doing a bathroom.  They brought out a vanity, easy detective work here.

Local Contractor Market Research

Here is what I was THINKING

Lawn care is very competitive.  Two of the four were just pick up trucks, no name, no logo, just one man, a truck and a trailer with basic tools.  The other two had enclosed trailers, full logo and a team of two. They were cutting the same size properties, with the same demographics.

The tree services were working on old growth trees.  From the size of the stump, it looked to be a big swamp maple.  The removal was a large red oak in a back yard, about 36 inches.  The big orange was trimming a maple that was to close to the lines.  As a marketing business, I noticed they were older neighborhoods, built in the 70’s and 80’s like mine. That’s were the action is at.

Speaking of older neighborhoods, this must be why the roofers are here in this part of town.  Living here all my life, I bet these homes are getting their third roof.  Maybe, I will ask the one roofer, he is a friend and client of mine.

The concrete contractor, was working for an old union carpenter 80 years old now I’d guess.  Used to goose hunt with him.  But, thought of how local and loyal some people are to a company.  By the way, that 80 years old, still does contracting work.  I see him often and talk.  All his work is word of mouth, everyone knows him here.

The bathroom remodeler, was an out of state company (Delaware).  When I got back here, I did a little searching.  I see they are running Google ads for bathrooms, as their name came up with a little green ads square under their listing.

So, what does a short bike ride of 20 minutes, covering about a mile and a half, have to do with anything?

It tells me work is out there, for all kinds of businesses.  It tells me to think networking and advertising locally, I mean micro-local.

It also tells me life is good and man is it hot.

Stay hydrated and safe out there.