Contractor Marketing Strategies That Drive Sales

The Contractor Marketing Pyramid: Building a Support System That Drives Sales

When it comes to contractor marketing, strategy is crucial. Without a clear goal and a definitive plan to reach it, you're unlikely to see a good return on your marketing investment.

So, how do you create a contractor marketing system that drives sales and pays off for your company and contractor partners? Start with a firm foundation, and build on that.

The Fundamentals of a Contractor Marketing Pyramid

Think about a pyramid — this stable building design has stood the test of time (millennia!) That's because it has a solid base that can support all the layers on top of it.

The contractor marketing pyramid leverages the same concept:

1. Base layer: Your company's essential marketing materials

2. Middle layer: Support systems and resources for implementation

3. Top layer: Advanced strategies and tools to improve results

This strategic design can give your marketing efforts the best chance to succeed.

The Foundation Layer: Basic Contractor Marketing Elements

Let's start with the base layer — the essential elements that define your branding:

• Brand guidelines: Develop clear, comprehensive guidelines for your brand. Generally, these should include specifics like brand voice and tone, ideal client/target audience, key value proposition, mission, and messaging.

• Core marketing materials: Define your logos, colors, fonts, taglines, and slogans. Make sure you have digital and print elements so you can run cohesive marketing campaigns.

• Essential templates: Give your contractor partners access to on-brand templates they can use to create digital and physical promos, like ads, flyers, brochures, and postcards.

• Fundamental training: Provide training to your in-house marketing team and contractor partners so everyone is on the same page. Focus on essentials like branding, promotions, and messaging so employees and contractors have the essential knowledge to create and distribute effective marketing materials.

Giving your contractors access to pre-approved templates and marketing materials saves them time and makes it easier to control your brand identity.

The Support Layer: Systems & Resources

Once you've created a solid foundation of marketing essentials, you can build on it. This layer is all about giving your contractors the tools and resources they need to design, create, and distribute marketing materials that align with your brand.

• Online marketing portal: Create a central repository of marketing assets and resources your contractors can access online. Doing so eliminates messy email chains and encourages contractors to use pre-approved templates and brand elements instead of creating campaign materials from scratch.

• Asset library: Expand on the essential templates and give your contractors access to additional resources like brand visuals, seasonal promos, and design elements.

• Order management: Give contractors a quick, easy way to track their marketing materials from design to print to distribution.

• Technical support: Most contractors aren't marketing experts (and they're busy), so it's understandable if they get frustrated when they run into problems. Give them access to reliable technical support so they can get help whenever they need it.

Here at Lexinet, we offer systems and tools to make this section of the contractor marketing pyramid as simple and effective as possible. 

Our customized online portals give your contractors easy access to templates and pre-approved marketing assets, so they can quickly design promo materials. Plus, we offer integrated USPS support to take care of distribution and a full team of human experts (no bots) for fast, effective customer service.

The Strategy Layer: Advanced Contractor Marketing Tools

If you want to take your marketing campaign to the next level, finish the top of the pyramid. This is where you can add the strategic elements that increase efficiency and improve results for the best ROI.

• Custom campaign development: Once you have your core marketing campaign all set, you can narrow down your focus for better results. Consider working with a marketing expert to design precise, targeted materials that speak to the core needs of your ideal client.

• Analytics and reporting: Marketing isn't a one-and-done endeavor. You must be able to adapt and evolve your approach to meet a changing market. Analytics and reporting tools give you the information you need to understand what's working and what's not so you can make data-driven decisions going forward. 

• Automation: Managing every element of marketing by hand is time-consuming and prone to errors. Strategic automations save time and improve results. Modern technology can automate mailing list management, client communications, data entry, and many other tedious tasks.

• Advanced training: Once you've provided basic training to your in-house team and contractors, you can offer advanced training in specific areas. Targeted training can help contractors nail your brand voice, plan better promotions, and better target your ideal client.

These advanced tools and strategies can help you get the best results from your marketing. But remember, they only work if they have support from a solid foundation of marketing essentials and streamlined systems. 

Implementing the Contractor Marketing Pyramid

Are you ready to see what the contractor marketing pyramid can do for your business? Follow these steps:

1. Assessment: Start by evaluating your current contractor marketing system. Identify problems and set clear goals for your new marketing strategy.

2. Foundation building: Next, implement those foundational essentials. Clarify your brand voice and messaging, identify your target audience, and develop logos and brand visuals. Don't forget to provide essential training to your team and contractor partners.

3. System integration: Next, focus on streamlining your system. Create standardized marketing assets and give your contractors a centralized place to access them. Set up systems to track the creation and distribution of marketing materials, and make sure everyone has access to reliable technical support.

4. Advanced strategy deployment: Once you have the basics in place and they're working well, you can start focusing on targeted campaigns, automations, and advanced training resources.

It can take some time to fully implement the contractor marketing pyramid. Be patient, and plan ahead so you have a strategy to address some of the most common challenges.

Common implementation challenges & solutions

Here are some tips for overcoming common marketing challenges:

• Resistance to change: It's normal for people to feel wary of something new. When presenting this plan to your employees and contractor partners, focus on the positives — saving time, simplifying marketing, and improving results.

• Technology adoption: It can be hard for some people to pick up new technology right away. Make sure you have training and technical support in place before you roll out the changes to your team.

• Resource allocation: Implementing a new marketing system/strategy usually requires you to invest some time and money. Focus on the benefits so everyone understands why you are investing in this change.

• Performance tracking: Set up systems to track the essential parts of implementation. Make sure you have a way to see what's working and what's not, and encourage your team and contractors to provide feedback.

You don't need to track every single aspect of your new marketing approach — focus on the most important metrics.

Key metrics to track

Keep tabs on these essentials:

• Contractor engagement/adoption rates

• Material usage and cost statistics

• Sales/revenue correlations

• ROI calculations

Every business is different, so you may want to track some additional metrics specific to your company's goals.

Take the First Steps Toward Better Contractor Marketing Today

Implementing the contractor marketing pyramid can streamline your marketing and improve your partnerships with your contractors. It can also save time and increase sales, enhancing your company's overall profitability.

Adopting a new marketing system can take time, and it's important not to rush things. Make sure you have the foundation of your pyramid in place before you start on the next level.

Would you like to learn more about how to optimize your contractor marketing system for better sales? We've got a free guide for you! Download The Contractor Marketing Blueprint now!