Can Flyers make your trade business fly?

Marketing with flyers has been a long term strategy for many trades people and can be a great way to promote your business in the local area if done properly, however marketing your trade business in this way needs some consideration and there are a few factors you should take into account;

1. Expect a less than 1% return on your campaign 
2. Not everyone will need your service at that particular time
3. Your Flyer needs to grab attention
4. Consider the time they go out
5. Go for a call to action that will make them engage with you longer term.

Expect a less than 1% return on your flyer marketing campaign

It is widely know that flyers often give little return, generally less than 1% very few get above this, I've done flyers a few times and had this result, That said if you get a couple of jobs from it....well that will easily cover the cost. I always say expect nothing and consider the money you invest in this marketing as gone, then when you get a return it's a bonus.

Not everyone will need your service at that particular time

I think it goes without saying that not everyone will need their boiler serviced or replaced, an extension built or their house decorated. Also think about the area you have targeted if it's an area where there are lots of let property or it's council area then they may never be able to use your service so your time and money will be wasted. Do a little research before you start!

People often need to see something up to around 18 times before it's sunk in and they are ready to buy, so you'll be better off targeting a smaller area and doing it a few times, once is not enough and on that basis you'd be better off targeting better properties.

Personally I would also not try to promote all of your services or all the things you can do for example for a plumber/ Heating engineer - I would target your campaign coming up to winter when people have had their heating off all summer and come to winter they turn their heating on and it's not working! you can of course add your services in a smaller font at the bottom right hand corner, just don't make it a focal point.

Your flyer needs to grab attention

Make sure your flyer isn't taken up by your logo, people don't care about your logo or business name, they care about their needs, you need to show them that you can help them and this is where your Unique Selling Point comes in, make sure it's the first thing that is seen. 

Consider the time your marketing flyers go out

Most flyers get delivered during the week day, if using a delivery service, so they just get picked up and thrown out, Flyers almost never get delivered during evenings or weekends, so this is unusual and breaks the expected pattern, therefore people will pay more attention to them, The best time to send them out is early Sunday morning, most people are home and if going out, don't go out until later, also they are more relaxed and will take time to read it.

Go for a call to action that will make them engage with you longer term.

Obviously you need to have your phone number on the flyer, I think it's best to have a local landline number, but only do this if you know 100% you can answer it or have someone answer it for you. If you have to have a mobile number I'd have a landline number under it but in a smaller font size.

You can also add your social media link address, I would only have one and that would be to your facebook page (so you need to make sure it has content on) I would have this because most people who are your target market are on there at the moment (I expect Google+ to take over). It may also be worth having a QR code on there to take people to your FB page on their phone although QR codes haven't taken off quite yet!

As I said at the beginning flyers can be a great way to market your trade, whether a interior designer, electrician, flooring contractor or other trade it does cost money and is one of the more expensive ways to reach your audience, so considering there are cheaper and free ways to get your name out there this should be done after you've exhausted those marketing methods

To your success

Paul Jennings