Marketing Tips
Here are some tips to use when you're out doing your foot marketing. These are the things that seem to work for me and some which I have heard work for you:
- "Hi, I'm from Pop-A-Lock locksmith services. I was just opening a car door across the street there for someone that had locked their keys in their car. Can I leave some of our cards with you in case it happens again to any of your customers?"
- "We do it for free when there's a child locked inside"—works well with women.
- If they seem interested in the EDU program: "it happens a lot. We do about 100 of those PER DAY nationwide"—you must mention nationwide if using this.
- "We're 24/7"—works well with parking lots, valets, 7-11's, and other locations that are open late.
- "We've got a couple people right in this area, so we can get here really quick"
- "Car door unlocking is kind of our specialty"
Here are some questions I get when I'm doing foot marketing:
- Question: "How much does it cost?"
Answer: "It's $39.95 during the daytime"—you must mention the during-the-daytime part. Sometimes I also add "…and that's cheaper than all of the other locksmiths." Specifically, I have called all other locksmiths that have at least a half-page ad in the yellow pages and our nearest competition (The Car Key People) charge $55. There could be tow truck drivers doing it for less, but it wouldn't be much less, and we're better, plain and simple. By the way, we're $10 more after 6pm and another $10 after midnight.
- Question: "Where are you located?"
Answer: "We have a shop in San Jose but up here, we've got 5 emergency response vehicles roaming all over the area." or "Although we have a locksmith shop in the South Bay, we're a mobile locksmith here in the city, so we just travel from job to job."
- Question: "What's my cut for referring business to you?"
Answer: "We're a discounted service already, so we can't give referral bonuses, sorry. But hey, we're cheap, fast, and car door unlocking is our specialty."
- Question: "How soon can you get here when we call you?"
Answer: "Our dispatch will always say 30 minutes, but we can usually get here within 15 to 20 minutes."
- Question: "We're already using this other guy…"
Answer: "That's too bad. Well, will you take our cards anyways? And if your guy can't get a car open or can't make it in time, then give us a call. We're 24/7 and can usually get here within 15 to 20 minutes."
Do you have anymore tips you can add? Get any other questions people ask you?
Also, I should mention: When you get a call that is a result of foot marketing, please, please thank the person that gave the customer our information.
If you ever hear of some place giving us multiple referrals, please bring that to my attention. Stonestown Mall is a good example. I’ve ordered some coffee mugs to bring over to them there so they know it doesn't go unnoticed. Also, I've got some super-nice knives and leatherman tools for you to give out to repeat referrers.
Thanks