Generating local leads does not require one to have a website, necessarily. It can be a benefit to have a web presence, but how do you wade through all the competition and capture the attention of the reader or seeker of your product/service? This article will provide some strategies that help you define the issue.
One of the issues with websites is the owner’s desire to educate the seeker about every aspect of their business. Often, the home page is packed full of all kinds of related but cluttering information. The viewer can become overwhelmed by information overload and click off to find another simpler site. There are those who are information hounds and it is good to have links from your home page to other pages with all the information one would like to educate the consumer on.
Local service leads and local contractor leads are generally being sought by companies wanting to do business in their local area. Local customers are usually seeking someone in their area to do services for them because of a loyalty to hometown businesses and a sense of community. The idea of having a local company perform work is usually more comforting to the consumer so that in the event some additional work or warranty work is needed, the company is close by and can take care of the issue quickly. Another reason is because a local company doing the required work provides a perception of better prices than calling someone from across town. The cost of fuel is beginning to become a major factor in costs of doing business.
How does one go about attracting local business most economically? One method is to hire a company that will do a several thousand dollar SEO job on your existing website. This can be a good move and if you have unlimited funding you can continue to employ that service to keep your website high in the search engines through continuing climbing rates of cost per click advertising, changing strategies specifically for your site because of Google’s constantly changing algorithms, and just the sheer brute strength of building backlinks and placing banner ads, at an additional cost with local business websites. There are hundreds of companies charging thousands of dollars to initiate campaigns for your website with ongoing maintenance fees of $500.00 per month or more.
Another method is to go with a company that furnishes you with contractor leads, service leads, or other types of business specific leads. Companies that fall into this category include Service Magic, Reliable Remodeler, and a host of other services which have built huge structures of websites to capture people looking for services, contractors, and home maintenance work. Prices range from $25 to $150 per lead depending on the type of lead or “exclusivity” of the leads.
Allow for a word of caution here. Most of these companies are not really providing an exclusive lead. The claim is that the lead is shared only with three to ten or more competitors in your area. Don’t count on it! There are so many companies performing this kind of service that many are selling and reselling the leads to each other. There is an aftermarket for leads several weeks old that get sold at cheaper and cheaper prices. The problem is that by the time you receive the customer information they are often already in the midst of the project with another company, or they are exasperated from having a dozen companies calling them trying to get their business. Many of these leads are costing the lead providers up to $25.00 through pay per click advertising or affiliate advertising. A recent research of cost per click leads for motorized scooters indicated a $50 per click cost. How many times and at what cost must this information be sold to recover the investment? » Read more: Generating Local Leads With and Without a Website
