THIS Business Action Plan - Part I

Attracting clients to your home inventory service business requires action on your part. This series of blog posts will provide a mixture of tips -- some that are meant to be implemented in the short-term and some that can be developed over time. A few are designed to produce a one-time boost, while others are geared towards multiple exposures to targeted audiences.

1. Write a news release for your local newspaper. Anyone can submit a news release. News releases don't have to be long or flashy to be effective. But they do have to be newsworthy. There's lot of newsworthy items about your HIS business -- the fact that you started one (they're still pretty rare, which makes it newsworthy), educating the public about the need for an inventory, and what it entails, and announcements of new services, or community outreach you're conducting (workshops, seminars).

2. Send thank you notes after your client receives their final inventory report. You can use generic thank you notes or create customized thank you cards featuring your business logo. Tuck two or three business cards into the notecard and write a short, personal message.

3. Produce a client newsletter. Write your own articles or purchase pre-written stories. Send it out quarterly (at a minimum) to clients, friends, family, referral sources, the media, estate attorneys, and real estate agents.

4. Call companies that provide business inventories. Most of these companies only document physical inventories ("widgets"). Explore the opportunity to partner with them to provide full documentation services to their clients (including equipment and supplies). Offer to pay them 15-20% of the total fees for the referral.

5. Host a workshop. Develop and promote a one- or two-hour workshop. Possible topics are disaster planning and emergency preparedness or even "Conducting a home inventory." You will be targeting qualified prospects. Charge $10-$50, depending on the value of the information you present. (If you offer the workshop on "Conducting a home inventory," charge $25 for a 45-minute workshop, and offer to apply that fee to your service fee if they decide to engage your services.)