Anybody use Instagram to grow your business? Is it worth a plug nickel? I'm old. I use Facebook sometimes... maybe. But not often because I think it's dumb and I don't think it does a dang thing. I see a lot of guys like us on "the gram" or "insta" or whatever we're supposed to call it. I mean, anything to generate a lead, right? Thoughts?
I think the whole instagram or facebook famous is probably a lot of work. The money can be there if you have good content and can attract followers. I think it makes a difference if you want to just attract leads, or want to generate revenue from content. I think for the people that become famous, it would become a animal, i.e. you do the work to generate content, and eventually, its more about the content than the work. We get to do some interesting stuff, but I wouldn't want the endless drama and production of a "gold rush" or the alaska fishing boat show. There's a couple guys that just do wrecker recoveries and I think I'd get sick of always being on camera. I think my guys didn't really sign up for being on the internet either. Matt's recovery in Utah did a youtube where he talked about the production time for making their content, and its just as many people and time as the actual work of recovery. So, that said, I don't do any advertising on facebook, insta, or any other sites. I'm on google, but don't pay for any clicks. I think you get work by doing what you say you are going to do, treating the customer like you would want to be treated. Reputation is everything. So if I was in your shoes, and slow, I think I'd be on the phone and knocking on doors. Project work for the rental houses- equipment that they can't get around to fixing. Contractor's big and small, who have equipment that you like to work on or specialize in. Whether that's dirt equipment, road trucks, or welders. I've got a full time mechanic, but there are times where I wish I had a good guy to call in for a couple days to give my guy a hand. Or to go replace a hose or fix a no start, when my guy is busy. Find the guys like that in your area. For me, a guy that showed up with a card, or came with a recommendation from someone I knew, is worth way more than a facebook ad.
Yellow pages was the last platform I used. "Let your fingers do the walking". Guess that kinda applies these days- just with a different device. If I'm looking a business, I still prefer a website. Feels to me like it took an effort to create and it costs to maintain. Not sure about instagram but FB is free? I just think out of everything available present day a website has the most credibility.
There is a channel on YouTube named TriStar digging, (sam) real nice guy, he said that YouTube may or may not help bring in work in his area but it definitely closes the deal. The collection of videos (or content as these trade fluencers call it) is his portfolio of work. One of my concrete guys laborer's girlfriend is on all the social media platforms she makes $10k a month doing make up tutorials and product reviews. I see it the way crane operator does, the content becomes the job especially when you hit 1000 subs that is when you get start getting paid for clicks, and you just start making videos to make videos and keep you audience engaged. The post production, answering questions or responding to comments is what you can look forward when you get home from work. A smart guy would only put out a video once a week and sprinkle some shorts in there like teasers but who has time for that? your time should be spent calling potential clients that actually might be in your work zone and might actually hire you. But then again you might be the next big thing on YouTube and you missed out because everyone told you it was a waste of time lol
I tried my hand at being a YouTuber. It turns out I have a face for radio . I don't have the time it takes to be an influencer or creator or whatever either. Stopping in at jobsites and handing out business cards is how I got started. If the foreman didn't throw my card on the ground and tell me to get off his site, chances are, I heard from him within a month or 2. That's really the only real way I've ever generated business. My website has generated a few leads, as in 3 or 4 maybe. I even had one guy last year say he found me on Facebook. With all the time I spend generating content for YouTube and Facebook over the years, it only generating one lead, hasn't proven to be a good business strategy. Word of mouth has also proven to work out well for me too. Maybe I better just stick with the old ways. Maybe I need to hire a bikini babe to head out to jobsites for me . Of course, that might generate a kind of traffic I'm not interested in.
Here's my two cents: There are two types of buyers: Someone who knows they need to buy something and those who don't yet know they need to buy something Most advertising deals with the latter. Companies tell someone they need something they didn't think they needed like "You need to drink our patented Ultra-Beet juice infused with hydrolyzed kelp seaweed crap to keep your kidneys healthy" and BOOM- now you're wondering the best way to keep your kidneys healthy! But for excavation, construction, dirt work, or such, I'm guessing that person is already knowing they need to buy it...they just don't know who to hire yet. So where do they first start searching for a contractor like you? I'm betting they google something like "excavation businesses near Sheridan, CO." Or maybe search Angi's list or such. Or they put a question out to a group on Facebooks or such. This is where they get their first list of people to look at. You need to be in that first list of people that pop up. What are those lists and how you get on them are the magic questions to be asking.
This. Wish I had an independent mechanic we could call for service work at your yard or the field.
Online stuff is crazy. There is a young couple in Australia. He is Australian and she is German. They are dancers. They make stupid little dance videos. They are up to 27 million subscribers. That must be their life as they put out 3 or 4 videos a day. They bought a house, a Porsche 911 and a new cyber truck. If they were smart they would be saving their money. Fame is fleeting
I made the mistake of calling Angie's list to inquiring about being a contractor, there is some up front cost and per lead cost. I wasn't interested in that and told them thank but I go to enough jobs to give a bid that I don't win I sure don't want to pay to do the same. It took a year 2-3 times per week of them calling me and trying to sell me on the idea before they finally stopped calling. I have never been good at marketing myself or my services to the masses. Neither in my flooring business or now my excavation business. All my jobs came from referrals. I was slammed as a flooring guy, but I had been in it for close to 20 years and had lots of contacts other guys in the trade that I could team up with on jobs. I started excavating as a by product of doing snow removal and the equipment I acquired, I met concrete, asphalt and playground installers and boat load of landscaping guys. The concrete/asphalt and playground guys kept me fairly busy but were very unorganized resulting in wasted trips and wasted time on site, so I started cold calling electricians, that has turned in to the majority of my business installing pipe. Along the way they gave my number out and my boring guy has turned me on to some of his electricians as well and he seems to know everybody. My supply house has turned me on to some of their electricians and they have customers appreciation or store opening events. My salesman that sold me my grade controls turned me on to one of their developers that has produced some big jobs. Cold calling was a experience, we got a guy, we do our own digging/we don't do underground/I will call you back or don't ever call me again or I have been looking for a guy I am glad you called
Same with ConstructConnect and Planhub. If I go look at a project on either I usually get a phone call or 10 emails trying to sell me a subscription. Don't pay for any of them.
I think companies in the 5-10-15 pieces of equipment size, would be ideal for the independent mechanics. The company isn't big enough for a full time mechanic, but big enough that there's a problem a couple times a month. 6-8 or so companies of that size, would keep a independent guy busy. Maybe you need to get a little more specialized? Maybe its working for farmers, specializing in balers, maybe its landscapers, specializing in mowers in the summer and snowplow equipment in the winter. Maybe you become the go to guy for working on concrete pump trucks or mixers. Maybe you become the GPS guru. There's a guy local to us that specializes in rock crushers/ quarry equipment. He probably drives a little more distance, just because there's a limited market, but he stays busy. I think as equipment gets more and more specialized, it would be harder to work on everything, so finding a niche is important. That said, a blown hyd. hose is a blown hose, and a bad starter or set of batteries doesn't take a rocket scientist. What are you working on most of the time right now, and maybe more importantly- what do you really like working on? If its hobby farm tractors, maybe you need to be at the next horse show? For myself, we're kind of a specialized business to begin with (cranes), there's some sign companies around that are cheaper than me, and that's okay. I often refer to our business as "everyone's method of last resort". They have likely already tried with the telehandler, excavator or manlift- whatever it is that they are trying to do. And when they can't get it, I'm fortunate that they call us.
Fence guy I know mentioned the constructConnect, I hadn't looked in to it probably wasn't going to but now I definitely won't, thanks for the heads up. I assume that all of those type of sites work for some people, but I really don't want to do volume at discount prices or compromise my standards to feel like I am making money. I have never been of that mind. I got friend that owns a landscape company I call him a "C" contractor he feels like if 3 jobs go off with out a hitch, 1 has a call back but can be fixed and the 5th is a complete failure he still makes money. And he is probably right but that 5th job is never going to refer him and job number 4 may or may not. He use the terms good enough,call it good, yeah that will fly. Yeah right in to the ocean you bag of turds. ZERO attention to detail
Great discussion and timely. I think FB provides the biggest bang for the buck, at the moment. I was just talking with my Office Manager about getting active on FB. I’ve tried hiring it out. Pay by the post. Here are some cool pictures, here is an update, post some cute pictures of Raven the Safety Dog. Let, people know when the tank tour in in their town, in case they need some help while we are there. The ladies in my life. Hey, you spend too much time on FB with your BFF’s, can you help me with my account? I’ll pay you to be my social media director. Oh’ well, I don’t know anything about FB. I don’t know what I’m doing. What? You posted 20 things on your page today. lol
I’ve had potential clients and a lender tell me, “I don’t see you on FB or on the internet, are you really a company?”. I think there must be a healthy balance of social media. I think web pages may be on the way out, unless you are using it as a store front. And that’s another topic in itself. Gotta peddle that “Merch”.
Oh that would **** me off!
Yup That’s me. Quality Repair and Learing Center of Alaska. At your service.
I have watched some of TriStar Sam's video's and the nice looking jobs he does must get him some work no doubt. A good picture is worth a thousand words. Simon C
To the OP, like I said I am not good at advertising me services but I put some more thought in to your original question, you should advertise anywhere you can, free places like FB, Instagram, YouTube, as you can upload videos of your work for free. That can be your portfolio. Business cards, flyers,word of mouth, website, cold calls, walk in's, meet and greets. My independent rental rep from equipment share and Hertz every single thing I mentioned I am doing the present a solution like oh we rent that or I know a gal that rents those. Super pushy but the get commission so they don't waste any opportunities or conversations that may lead to a check In my first business I got cards made and mentioned to a friend I wasn't getting any where with that, he asked how cards did you get, how many have you handed out, the number was low and I said I didn't want to waste the cards. He laughed and said if you get 1 call out of 100 you are doing pretty good. You need to give them out like Sonic hands out mints, every single person you meet gets a card, or a handful to pass out to there people. Now when ever I work with a lineman I have never met, I give him at least 20 cards in the hope he will pass that along to a electrician that he meets on other jobs. Just some food for thought
I’ve got an Instagram page and also a fb business page. I have made some contacts on instagram but it’s not because I post much. It’s more because it’s a small world and I tend to follow the local businesses in my area such as logging or dirt companies. Also there is a handful of independents around and it’s nice to be able to ask questions with someone who is in the same field. I’ve never really been a fb guy. I actually avoided it until I went to Texas. I made a business page and put up a couple posts on local pages and within an hour I had a job. Recently I put up an ad looking to hire another employee. I had a friend help me sharing it and I got a couple candidates out of the deal. They are both excellent time killers. Really easy to fall in the rabbit hole and lose an hour.
Kinda like HEF
I think it depends on the type of business. I have a website for my MX track but have heard from some that it's too much trouble to go on to see if I'm open even though it's right on the front page. A few people have said Facebook is better because there are groups of people with the same interests and they can hype a track they like or dislike. Also Instagram is supposed to be better. Some people make a killing just doing you-tube video's. I think good video's are a great way to promote a business but if you're small who does the video's and editing etc. CEE in Australia is one man shop and his wife shoots the video's of his repair work. They are very well done and I'm sure he gets a lot business from the video's. Even with Facebook you need to keep up with new content which is hard if you're if you're trying to do it all yourself. Word of mouth is always the best but it takes time to get that established.