When you run a moving services company, you are offering something that will always be in demand. While relocations and people’s ability to pay for help with them may fluctuate somewhat with the economy, moving services remains a necessity rather than a luxury in many cases. However, you’re still in competition with other companies that do the same thing, so you’ll need to think about how you can set yourself apart from them. Below are several ways that you can improve your company.
Fleet Management
Effective fleet management has positive reverberations throughout most of the other areas of your company, from customer service to cutting costs to greater efficiency and more. Failing to provide your fleet with what they need, including well-maintained vehicles and realistic performance expectations, can in turn impact all of those areas in a negative way. You also need to make sure that you provide the right tools, including dispatch software, which helps ensure your drivers are using the best routes. There are several things you should consider when choosing the right dispatch software, including how easy it is to install, whether a mobile app is included for drivers and what kind of real-time information will be shared.
Customer Service
If you look at reviews for various moving companies, you’ll start to see a pattern in some of the complaints. Customers are often upset about delays in having their furniture and other items delivered, the condition of their belongings when they do arrive and cost. Moving is stressful and expensive for everyone, and if customers know that they can reduce the stress of moving and rely on your company to deliver their goods on time, in good condition and at a reasonable price, you’ll put yourself ahead of the competition. While you may not thrive on repeat business the way other companies do simply because most people do not move frequently, your customers will recommend you to others if your performance is satisfactory. Satisfactory performance rests on an organized work flow and good communication. Both your employees on the ground and the ones in your office answering phones, texts or emails about issues that may arise need to be skilled at problem solving and working with people.
The best way forward is to deliver excellent service in the first place, but it’s inevitable that sometimes things will go wrong. Finding effective solutions when this happens is the other part of good customer service. You need well-trained staff who can provide accurate information and take the necessary steps to address problems such as late delivery and damaged goods. Customers should feel confident that they have a way to reach someone if they have a question, and their questions should be answered promptly and courteously. Training your staff and empowering them to implement solutions rather than micromanaging their decisions can make a big difference.
Marketing and Sales
While doing everything discussed above is important, it’s to no avail if you aren’t reaching the people who can use your moving company in the first place. There are a number of things you can do to improve your marketing and sales. First, it’s important to keep in mind that most people go online when they get ready to look at companies in preparation for a big move. That means that you need to do some digital marketing. Your site needs to work well on mobile. On the other hand, it also means that some old school ways of marketing might actually work better than they did when they were more popular because they will actually stand out. Since far fewer companies use direct mail these days, it might actually be worthwhile for your company to try it since you won’t be just one flyer in a sea of advertising as you might have been 20 years ago.
You could also think about targeting specific groups. Maybe you are located in an area with college students and young people who tend to do DIY moves. What if you could market yourself as an affordable alternative? Alternately, you might want to highlight a specialty, such as moving valuable, fragile items, or artwork. Responding to both good and bad reviews can also be an effective marketing technique. In fact, a bad review can actually do you a favor if you show yourself as willing to try to work with the individual to address their problems. That person may or may not get in touch with you again, but others will see your response and feel more confident that if they run into issues, your company will be responsive.
We hope you found this blog post on Tips for Improving Your Moving Services Company useful. Be sure to check out our post on The 7 Best Things About Moving Companies for more great tips!
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