Alchatek Blog

So you’re a contractor with an amazing business model and have superior results under your belt. Whether your focus is in soil stabilization, leak seal, or slab lifting, it’s a known fact that growing your contracting business is hard work. As a technical consultant, I am aware that many contractors focus so much time on generating new leads that they may overlook another great source of new revenue: re-engaging past customers.

In case you didn’t know, it costs about 5 times more money to attract a new customer than to sell to an existing customer. I’m speaking to your pockets aren’t I? And it's 50% easier to sell to an existing customer than to a new customer. It has also been said that 80% of most business revenue comes from just 20% of its existing customers. (Source: Forbes Magazine's "Five Customer Retention Tips for Entrepreneurs".)

Here's a list of customer types who are likely to provide repeat business...

• Large scale commercial property owners
• Large scale residential owners
• Chain stores
• City education department's/districts
• Municipalities/govt agencies

If you put your mind to it, I'm sure you can think of a few more. You can also reach out to individual residental and small business customers ocassionally.

Customer Retention Tips

Remember, customers do not owe you their loyalty, it has to be earned. You may be the most qualified and diversified contractor in the area, but if you want to get that repeat business you have to implement a retention program. Here are a few suggestions...

Create an email newsletter. Send out tips and advice that your customer base may find helpful. You can also include case studies or success stories from recent jobs. Holiday greetings are always good as well. Throw in a promotion or discounted service offer every now and then, but make sure your communications are always primarily focused on useful content.

Gifts, holiday cards and birthday cards are a nice way to express customer appreciation. Mailing them items like this will help you stand out from the crowd a bit, as more and more people are moving towards a "digital only" approach.

Take a moment on a regular basis to check up on your past customers' social media accounts. Like, favorite and share anything you find relevant or interesting. This is just another way to remind them that you're interested in how they're doing and that you're available, should they need any further assistance.

Anyways, you get the idea. Take some time to brainstorm and I bet you'll come up with some unique approaches of your own. If you're too busy to do this kind of stuff, hire a part-time assistant. The jobs you get as a result of these activities may pay for the assistant, and then some. Give it a shot and find out.

Many of the contractors I’ve worked with over the years have had to give a presentation at one time or another. In some cases they need to make a pitch to a potential client (for example at municipality or state agency contract meetings). In other cases they have the opportunity to market their services by giving presentations at trade shows, “lunch and learn” seminars, webinars, home owner association meetings, professional association events, etc.

Presentation opportunities can sometimes arise on short notice. This is why you can benefit from creating presentations ahead of time. If you’d like, you can ask our marketing team to critique your presentation. You can also inquire about getting a member of our sales team to co-present when an opportunity does come along.

Incorporate the following tips to create a powerful presentation for your contracting business. Some of these suggestions may seem contrary to everyday conventional practice, but who wants a run of the mill presentation? We’ve tested this approach time and time again, with consistent positive results. It will be worth your while to at least give it a shot.

Less Words

As a detail oriented professional, you may be inclined to pack your presentation slides with lots of text in order to get all your important points across. This is not the most effective way to give a presentation. It can lead to information overload and a drowsy, impatient audience. When creating a presentation, you want to condense the information and only include text that is absolutely essential.

Powerful Images

Now that you have seriously scaled back your text use, the next step is to make the presentation livelier. The audience needs to be actively engaged rather than bombarded with data. If you associate a powerful image with each essential point, the audience is better able to visualize and remember the concept.

Engaging Stories

Once you have simplified your text and added visually striking images, you can add extra punch by incorporating stories to get your points across. As a contractor you probably have many stories from the trenches. Telling a story is a surefire way to make sure a message sticks.

White Paper Instead of Note-Taking

One thing that dilutes the impact of even the most powerful presentations is audience note-taking. This habit guarantees that half their time is spent looking down at their desk rather than paying attention to you. That’s why it’s helpful to prepare a whitepaper (basically a multi-page essay with any essential graphics) that summarizes all the key points from your presentation. Inform the audience up front that there is no need to take notes, as they will receive a written summary afterwards. Explain to them that they’ll get a lot more out of the presentation if they provide their full attention.

Conclusion

Since I believe in giving credit where credit is due, I'd like to acknowlede that most of these ideas came from the book Presentation Zen: Simple Ideas on Presentation Design and Delivery by Garr Reynolds.

For more tips on how to create a powerful presentation for your contracting business, or to inquire about co-presenting with one of our specialists, give us a call at 404-618-0438.

Want more ideas for marketing your contracting business?

Aging sewer and storm water systems across the country are plagued by infiltration and inflow; especially in areas with high water tables and sandy soils. Over time, compacted soils around catch basins, manholes, and culverts relax and result in deflection of joints and pipe connections. The end result is infiltration of ground water into the storm and waste water systems. This infiltration erodes the soils surrounding below grade drainage structures resulting in sinkholes, settling roadways, and property damage; not to mention the extra cost of treating that uninvited ground water.

The solution is a combination of sealing leaking joints both from within the drainage structures and through point grouting from street level. Expansive polyurethanes such as AP Seal 500 and AP Fill 700 produced by Alchemy-Spetec can be injected directly into pipe and manhole connections where they react with infiltrating water and expand to seal off leaking joints. Additional point grouting from street level fills voids and permeates loose soils. This relieves hydrostatic pressure from the structures and strengthens the ground to support the above roadways and sidewalks.

For below grade structures that a man can safely enter, direct polyurethane injection is the best option. Holes can be drilled directly into the joints or leaking cracks, injection ports are then installed, and AP Seal 500 is directly injected to permanently seal active leaks.

If interior access is limited, point grouting technique can be implemented. This involved driving pipes into the vicinity of the active leaks on the outside of the structures and injecting AP Fill 700.
 

If you would like to discuss either of these products or procedures, please call us at 404-618-0438.

Want more info on infrastructure leak seal and void fill?

As a technical consultant I am able to document significant repairs in action while advising customers on on polyurethane application. In this case we were dealing with a water filled void.

Water filed voids can be filled with two component polymer foam designed to work in wet conditions. AP 475 foam will cure to 90% full strength in 15 minutes. Polyurethane foam conforms to void shape more accurately than cement grout, and - unlike cement - it doesn't shrink or sink over time.

Take a look at the video to see for yourself...

In the video clip at the bottom of this post, you'll see polyurethane being used to seal air leaks in new manholes before they were vacuum tested. I was on this "do or die" job as a consultant. Apparently they had been having trouble with the first type of product they tried.

I remember stepping out of my truck and being greeted by our customer with the words, "I don't wanna' hear can't! I don't wanna hear won't! We gotta make this work!" Based on my experience working with polyurthane, I wasn't too worried. It all worked out in the end and the manholes passed the vacuum seal tests. Take a look at the video for an overview of the polyurethane leak seal process...

Want in-depth info on polyurethane leak seal?

While consulting with a customer on a recent job, I happened to capture a great video clip of the MixMaster Pro slab lifting gun in action. I've included the footage at the bottom of this blog post. It's important to note that this video was NOT sped up. You'll see a slab lifted in real time by the MixMaster Pro.

This two-component resin injection gun is manufactured specifically for lifting concrete slabs, and is designed to handle back-pressure. 

Want more info on the MixMaster Pro?

We've partnered with Accord Financial Group to assist our customers with equipment financing.  Here's what makes them unique...

• Financing equipment purchases since 1992
• Average 1,000 transactions per year
• $300,000,000 total financings
• Nation-wide coverage
• Both new and used equipment
• About any kind of capital asset — from $5,000 to $1,000,000
• A portfolio of programs accommodate different customer sizes, types of business, and credit quality
• Unique payment structures are available for differing customer needs
• Great terms for customers with stronger credit
• For challenged credits, they take the time to get to know a customer's special strengths

Want to discuss financing your next equipment purchase?

As the end of the year approaches, it feels appropriate to take a look back at some the most popular Alchemy Polymers blog posts.  A quick look at the stats on the day I write this article reveals the top posts to be Slab Jacking with Polyurethane Foam – How Strong is Strong Enough?, Stop Erosion Through Your Seawall with Polyurethane and Permeation vs. Compaction Grouting in Sandy Soils.

Slab Jacking with Polyurethane Foam – How Strong is Strong Enough?

This is one of our earlier posts and it still proves to be immensely popular. It's not hard to figure why so many people look into an article on this particular subject. One of the first questions to come to mind for anyone new to this "foam" technology is - will it hold up? The answer, of course, is a resounding YES! In this post I explain why that is the case. If you're interested in the strengths of our various lifting foams, how they hold up compared to clay and bedrock, and what types of jobs you can do with them - you need to read Slab Jacking with Polyurethane Foam – How Strong is Strong Enough?

Stop Erosion Through Your Seawall with Polyurethane

This post lays out the causes of seawall erosion, the costs of replacement, and the case for repair with polyurethane resin. More and more people are repairing seawalls with our environmentally safe polymers. We have a great deal of literature and information regarding this process if you're interested. In the meantime, for a basic overview, check out Stop Erosion Through Your Seawall with Polyurethane.

Permeation vs. Compaction Grouting in Sandy Soils

This article compares two different types of soil stabilization techniques for sandy soils: permeation grouting and compaction grouting (aka fracture grouting). Permeation grouting is done using a one component, low viscosity resin that slowly soaks into the soils with minimal disruption. Compaction/fracture grouting is done using a plural component, high viscosity resin that pushes the soil together in a more forceful manner. For more on this subject, read Permeation vs. Compaction Grouting in Sandy Soils.

Want more in-depth info on slab jacking, seawall repair and soil stabilization?

Single component, water activated, hydrophobic, low viscosity, closed cell polyurethane injection resin. As the ideal leak seal for cutting off high-flow, underground leaks, AP Fill 700 is a proven polyurethane leak stopper and void filler for all types of concrete structures. Also see our AP Seal 500 Concrete Crack Sealant.

Applications

• Cutting off high flow leaks.
• Concrete void filling for all types of structures.
• Cutting off underground water flows.
• Consolidating loose soil.
• Filling voids under concrete slabs.

Advantages

• Very low viscosity.
• Water impermeable polyurethane resin.
• Adjustable set time – as fast as 20 seconds.
• Injected as a single component.
• Phthalate free available (more environmentally friendly).
• Certified To NSF 61-5 (approved for contact with drinking water).

Check out the AP Fill 700 sample demo! 

Want in-depth info on cutting off high flow leaks?

As one of the most impenetrable permeation grouting products on the market, the AP Soil 600 is a single component, moisture activated, hydrophobic, low viscosity, polyurethane soil grout. This permeation grout is ideal for stabilizing loose sand and soil around all types of concrete structures, as well as sinkhole remediation. Also see our AP Lift 475 for Compaction Grouting.

Applications

• Permeation grouting.
• Stabilizing loose sand and soil.
• Sinkhole remediation.

Advantages

• Encapsulates and strengthens loose soil.
• Very low viscosity for good soil penetration.
• Watertight.
• Adjustable set time.
• Pumped as single component.
• Phthalate free (more environmentally friendly).
• Certified To NSF 61-5 (approved for contact with drinking water).

Check out the AP Soil 600 sample demo!

Want in-depth info on soil stabilization?