Systematic Selling:
Promotions That Obtain Leads   

by Dave Gleason

Over the past ten years there has always been one or two common questions in every class.  One question always asked is what I consider the most productive type of promotion to get prospects.  My answer is always the same one: use your satisfied user list to get new prospects.

I tell the story of a fellow I knew who had a business that was into its third generation and the fourth was working in the shop.  I had known the owner for many years, in fact I knew his Dad as well.  Ray ran ads in the local newspapers, had a shop on a main street with a "Tin-man" outside and knowing Ray and his Dad they had never disappointed a customer.   Every year Ray and I would sit and talk about his promotion money and how he was going to spend it during the coming year.  Newspapers, Yellow pages, billboards, the local Little League team, printing of the door knockers used when they were in an area and all the common ways contractors spent their co-op and non-co-op dollars.

After we had finished our annual promotional discussion, I asked Ray what was in all the cardboard boxes in the next room.  He said that they were the job folders of all their customers.  Now to describe this area, it was 12 foot by 12 foot and 8 foot high filled from floor to ceiling with these temporary file boxes.  After looking in one box we decided that there were well over 15,000 homes that had been serviced or had a new installation completed by this Heating & Air Conditioning company over the past 75+ years.

Think about this, we were spending money every year looking for prospects who may not have heard of this company and did not know its reputation.  Yet right here in front of us was a source of new business with satisfied customers.  We decided to make some changes in our advertising and promotion for the coming year.  Ray had a daughter in college and was trying to find her a summer job when she came home from college.  The whole thing was put together in a matter of minutes and here's what happened.

 We developed a letter to be sent out as a direct mailing piece to all these past customers.  It was simple and to the point.  In part this is what it said:
"During the past 75 years we have been in business, my grandfather, my Dad and I have installed and serviced many homes in this area.  According to our records we have either serviced or installed the heating and/or air conditioning in the home you live in now.  You may not know us because quality installation and service doesn't attract much attention for the owner."
"According to our records your house had: (A listing of the equipment per our records) We would like very much to re-introduce ourselves to you and offer you a once in a lifetime opportunity.
  1. Either call our office at 333-781-9876 or stop by and say hello.

  2. Tell the person in our office that you are an "old customer" and want the "Old Customer Special".
The "Old Customer Special" is being offered to the occupant of the address on this letter.   It will give you cleaning and spring start-up for $35.00 (This is a $100 value without this letter.)   What is the reason we are making this offer?  We spend a lot of money advertising to get customers to use our services but we have never asked our list of satisfied customers.   This year we want to say thank you for your past business and ask if there isn't something else you would like us to do."
 Ray's daughter spent all her free time working on the "boxes" putting together a database that has to be the envy of every HVACR contractor in his trading area.  The database resulted in over 10,000 locations.  In the first mailing to this database Ray received enough work to put on two more installation crews and he has stopped most of the normal promotions he had done in the past.  I've told this story many times in my sales workshops and have seen people writing notes and reminders to create a database of their old customers.

To contact Ruth King call 800-511-6844 or send an e-mail to ruthking@hvacchannel.tv.

This article is reprinted with permission from the 3rd Quarter, 2005, issue of HVAC Insider.