1. Examine external trends

Scanning the external environment is the key to discovering trends that will impact your industry and consequently the success of your business. Trends can either be highly detrimental to your business or can be used as an opportunity that you can effectively capitalise on. Take note of the changing home lifestyle of your consumers and the needs that would be required and focus on your services depending on their needs. For instance, the decrease in household sizes and smaller backyard sizes in suburban and urban areas will reduce the prevalence of swimming pools and increases the demand for swim spas. A higher environmental consciousness will change the service requirements and demands where the most energy efficient fans, air conditioners and cooling systems will be higher in demand. Owing to the impacts of the rainy and windy seasons, power cleaning on pavements and driveways will become a popular service. The footpaths will have clogged up and caught dirt and will need to be pressure washed to prepare for barefoot walking in Summer.
Another effective way of determining Summer trends is by gathering insights from your clients. Through your consumers’ opinions, you will be able to establish which services to focus on during the Summer months. Ask your clients directly or create surveys to gather data on what services they would require in the Summer to gain a more accurate idea of the machinery, equipment and supplies to invest in.
 
 

1. Use technology

To remain competitive within the home improvement industry, you will utilise software to further increase revenue and sales. Investing in management software is an effective way to increase efficiencies and minimise delays and misunderstandings during the service process. ServiceTitan HVAC Software allows your business to connect to the field and office in real-time for live updates, accurate reporting and communication through using ‘big data’. The software also improves customer satisfaction and experience through direct text/email and the implementation of a Tech Tracker Map to enhance transparency. Through allowing you to manage your marketing campaigns, financial and accounting data all in one platform, this can create conveniences for your business to thrive within the Summer months, especially during busy peak times. With your ability to store data, you will also be able to measure growth projections and compare against your objective targets and current financial status.

1. Cut down costs

To prepare yourself for the high demand of your services in the Summer, seek ways to decrease costs to attain a larger profit margin or to reduce prices for customers. Ask your suppliers for cheaper ways to purchase your supplies such buying in bulk or create a contract. Reduce supplier process and delivery costs by collecting supplies directly from their site. Consider the needs of your equipment and machinery to find cost-efficiencies in leasing or purchasing. Do the equipment need to be upgraded regularly? Does the lease of the machine cost more than the cost price and will used for long duration? What is the cost of repairing and tuning the equipment? Buying used tools are also a cost-efficient way of attaining tools at a lower cost. Look at competitive costs and identify the best buy for each equipment that you are using.

1. Alter prices

A tactic that you can capitalise throughout the Summer months is to raise prices instead of discounting prices. This will be greatly effective for services that are highly required in the Summer months such as outdoor repairs and cooling systems. Consider your competitive landscape and determine your pricing based on your competitors. Are charging less, more or equal to other home improvement businesses in your area? To achieve a premium and high-quality brand image, pricing higher will market to your consumers a perception that your service is reliable and trustworthy.
You can also choose to lower your prices to a discounted price depending on the services that are high or low in demand. This another pricing tactic that will instead target price conscious consumers. Determine this through the consumer insights and trends that you have gathered. You can also take the opportunity to offer additional promotional features for a discounted price, although overall increasing the number of sales.
 

1. Marketing

Track
To determine profitability and business growth you will need to track marketing results. Evaluating marketing data will allow you to not only showcase the popularity of your business, but also can generate consumer insights to better develop and improve your services. Track your results through social media analytics to distinguish your idea and actual target markets. You can also improve your business through other digital marketing approaches such as improving SEO, EDM and email campaigns.
Relationship marketing
You will require networking skills to effectively engage in relationship marketing. Developing connections with complementary service providers and real estates will allow you gain partnerships and lock in contracts to employ your services and secure continuous sales. You can also develop strong client relationships with your customers to gain positive reviews and personal referrals.
Outdoor
Another avenue of increasing awareness of your business before the Summer hits, is by promoting your services in outdoor locations. Showcase print promotional material in high traffic areas as well as locations that correspond with Summer such as the beach. You can also take the opportunity to further invest your promotional efforts by listing your advertisement in the local newspaper or online classifieds.
 
To ensure that you properly prepare for any season, you will need to organised your business ahead of each season and take advantage of opportunities that approach you. Which tips will you use to enhance your home improvement business before the Summer season?

For the best deals, try to schedule the installation of your new roof during the roofing industry’s slow seasons. Here’s more on this.

Fall

Fall is a busy time of year for roofing contractors. Cooler weather coincides with homeowners realizing that their roof (and most likely the rest of their home, too) isn’t quite ready for the upcoming winter. Unless you have already made arrangements, you’re likely to encounter a bit of a wait for your roof installation project. The abundance of work also means that roofing contractors generally don’t offer major discounts for their services.

Winter

Winter, by contrast, is a slow season for roofing. With roofers competing for winter contracts, you might be able to take advantage of lower rates ora considerable discount. Keep in mind that roofing is highly dependent on weather, and winter storms and high winds are likely to cause delays. Roofers will only tear off what they can replace of your roof for the day, so a run of consecutive bad days can affect your contractor’s ability to finish the job quickly.

If you are interested in having asphalt shingles installed, your roofer must take special precautions when working in cold temperatures. The cold makes shingles more brittle and prone to breakage, and the shingles will take longer to bond together. Freezing temperatures also create safety concerns for workers as the danger of slipping on ice is now added to the already dangerous occupation of roofing.

Spring

Spring is another busy season for roofers. Many homeowners take advantage of tax refunds to fund roof work in the spring, and the warming temperatures make conditions more favorable for installation.

Summer

Summer continues a steady stream of roofing work. The largest percentage of roofs are installed between May and September, with the period running from the Fourth of July to Labor Day being ideal for installation of all roof types. By late summer, warm days and fairly predictable weather can allow your roofer to make short work of the installation.

Planning ahead will ensure that you get the best prices, and are able to engage the services of your preferred roofing company. You should secure a schedule with a contractor at least two to three weeks ahead, and draw up a contract to lock in prevailing prices for labor and materials. 

Author’s Bio

As Marketing Manager of The Roofing & Remodeling Company, Cara Theiss gets to interact closely with customers and team members on a daily basis. She loves the opportunity to learn the latest trends and technologies in home improvement, and share those with homeowners.