Customer acquisition is the driving force behind all successful home improvement companies. As projects are completed, you need to keep the pipeline full of qualified leads to keep your business engine running.

But how do you accumulate leads–especially now when the economy is slower than usual?

Buying leads from aggregators is one way to feed the funnel as you qualify leads and get more business. These leads are competitive, so you have to move fast. But they can be an effective tool for growing your business.

This article explores how lead aggregation works, lists a few of the most popular services and suggests ways to qualify leads once you have them.

Lead aggregators are not the same as lead generators

You can generate leads from your website. You can leave door hangers around the neighborhood. You can use pay-per-click services like Google Ads to generate leads. These are just a few of the many ways to develop leads for your business.

Lead aggregators are different.

According to Marketing Optimizer, “Lead aggregation is a way of collecting leads that have already been generated, and then sorting and distributing them.” In other words, Home Advisor will purchase leads at wholesale from all over the country in several home improvement categories, sort them into specialties and geographic locations and then disburse them to the appropriate home improvement pros in specific regions.

JobFLEX reports Houzz, HomeAdvisor, Angie’s List and Porch are considered the top four lead generation/aggregators for home improvement pros by number of visits per month. There are several other lead generation companies that specialize in remodeling, but they are set up differently. Feel free to contact us for more information about the many home-improvement lead generation options available.

How to qualify leads and move them down the funnel

According to experts, the quicker you jump on new leads, the better your chances of moving them down the funnel. Some lead-gen companies offer exclusive leads at a premium. The aggregators may sell leads to dozens, possibly hundreds, of contractors at a time.

Know which areas to target. Roofers and window installers should know if there has been storm damage in the area. Plumbers and electricians should review meteorological reports for local flooding.

During the first conversation with your customer, be sure to ask the right questions up front: What’s their budget and timeline? Is your sales rep picking up a sense of urgency from them? What are the project details? Home improvement marketing pro David Lupberger suggests letting the customer talk 80 percent of time; don’t try to sell your services up front. Your salespeople can learn a lot and begin to build rapport.

That first conversation is also a good time to review the scope of work. If you’re not the right company for the job, refer them to one that is. It builds goodwill that may come back as a referral – or business down the road.

Make sure all decision makers are included in the face-to-face sales call/estimate – no “one-legger” appointments.

As your leads filter in, you should also consider automated marketing solutions designed to optimize and convert unbranded leads. Drip campaigns are a great way to cut operational costs, ensure that soft inquiries don’t become missed opportunities, schedule more hard bookings and increase revenue.

Be prepared and move quickly

Whether you use an aggregator or other marketing tools to generate leads, the important thing is to make the most of those leads and qualify them as quickly as possible. Don’t waste your time chasing prospects who are not ready to buy now or don’t have the budget for their projects. Think Unlimited’s TLO software takes the guesswork out of qualifying leads upfront. Let Think Unlimited show you more ways to keep your pipeline full and your company busy. 

Talk to a member of our team today.