(As Published in Replacement Contractor Magazine)

Before we can begin to improve our lead generation and lead handling practices, we need to understand the very basics. So our first step will be to understand how to properly classify or categorize leads. What do I mean by that you ask? Well as an industry, home remodeling contractors tend to do a poor job at comprehending the different phases of the buying cycle in which consumers may reside. Let us explore these categories.

The primary category is the A category. Consumers that fall in this segment of the shopping process are ready to pull the trigger on their next home improvement within the next thirty days, or maybe even sooner. It is not a matter of if, but with which company they will decide to move forward.

Consumers that fall in the next category, or the B category, acknowledge both a want and need for the home project, but they just don’t see how it would be affordable at the present time. These types of prospects are often very open to an estimate for planning purposes but are not very optimistic about the likelihood of making a purchase.

Finally, the last variety of lead type which falls in the C category, is a consumer that has never really given the home improvement much thought at all. After some enticement from your marketing efforts they do recognize some benefits of ownership, however they are really only willing to sit for an estimate because you are offering some type of special, or because you just so happen to be in the area estimating other projects.

Below is a link to a video where I discuss these categories in further detail during a presentation at the Starmark Window Conference in Atlantic City:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jlJ4JRljlJQ

Now that we have a better understanding of these distinctly different categories of lead classification, we will be much more equipped to handle them appropriately. Keep your eyes peeled for next month’s tips as we examine these lead types more closely…