Prospecting Contractors with Home Office

[robtmccarthy]

Anyone have any tried and true ways of reaching small contractors with home offices. ie landscapers, electricians etc...

In my area in NY a significant majority of businesses are run this way. Cold calling seems to be the only option... can't just drop in at someone's home uninvited. Mailers go straight into the trash...

Just looking for some ideas from those that have had some success with this type of thing.

Thanks!

 

[Air Jer]

Cold call early in the morning before 8 or after 4PM in the afternoon. Not a lot of money with one man operations.

 

[Bertolinoins]

Small contractors in the NE = Dunkin Donuts in the morning and the local bar/vfw or elks lodge in the late afternoon. Go where your prospects are and buy a round or two.

 

[markschneider86]

"Small contractors in the NE = Dunkin Donuts in the morning and the local bar/vfw or elks lodge in the late afternoon. Go where your prospects are and buy a round or two."

Lol,, very true, contractors are very flakey though...

 

[robtmccarthy]

Cold call early in the morning before 8 or after 4PM in the afternoon. Not a lot of money with one man operations.

Agree not a lot of money but there are so many of them in this area.
It is the way the majority of these guys work, and not all of them are one man operations they just don't rent a physical office. You might be surprised how much some of these guys are paying in premium.

Cold calling early is probably the best bet i guess.

 

[the mayor]

Small contractors in the NE = Dunkin Donuts in the morning and the local bar/vfw or elks lodge in the late afternoon. Go where your prospects are and buy a round or two.

How does a guy from CA know about Dunkins??
And both you and Air Jer are spot on with where to meet them ( great info as usual).
You will also find them in strip garages..hit them early morn or late afternoon.

I do fairly well with these type of businesses...BUT..
You will find a lot of them have no insurance.
You will find a lot of them will have payment problems.
They may be a lot of service ( certs,etc)
So you do have to give them the hard sniff test.

BUT...you never know and don't judge the book by it's cover. I ran into a laid back guy with a ratty van who was a painter that turned out to be worth a $50k policy for me ( and has given me some good referrals).

You will also find that these guys talk to each other. Helping one will lead to others. And if you get a cert request from someone they are working for, that opens a door.

 

[robtmccarthy]

Good point about the no insurance...

I know there will be a bit of service with the accounts but we all only dream of the 50K account that requires zero work =)

Mayor, beyond referrals how have you gotten your foot in the door?

 

[the mayor]

Good point about the no insurance...

I know there will be a bit of service with the accounts but we all only dream of the 50K account that requires zero work =)

Mayor, beyond referrals how have you gotten your foot in the door?

Yes...if they don't have insurance now..why will they buy it from you..or pay for it. Also..remember work comp is from payroll...and a lot of contractors have reduced payrolls..which means you'll get a surprise call after an audit.

I don't mind the service on the $50k account....but the $1500 account, not so much.

How do I get my foot in the door? I start by asking ( with a strong Boston accent), "How ahh you doing?". I hit coffee and breakfast places on rainy mornings. Hit spec/strip garage bays early morn or late afternoon. Hit a sub shop at lunch. Hit job sites. You can hit all those place before,between and after appointments.
Oh...and lose the tie. Those guys hate them.

 

[thall]

I lost my tie a long time ago. I've found it easier to talk to contractors here in the south about disability and critical insurance, which will always lead to life, health etc.

 

[Bertolinoins]

"How does a guy from CA know about Dunkins??"



My dad's family is from South Philly and I spent two summers in the NE playing summer baseball and working for the local parks districts of Danbury, CT and Brewster, MA.


I used to write a lot of small/med contractors and they can be very profitable if you are picky. Go for union shops and guys that do mostly commercial work and bonded jobs.. they cannot let their insurance lapse and they have more steady work. The guys that don't require a lot of stock and equipment (painters, plasterers, roofers, framers) often have a home office or little job trailer somewhere. Enviromential contractors are a goldmine.