Getting your name out in a new market, regardless of what you do, is never easy. It is especially hard if you are in an industry and community that is very much referral-based. In my experience, the majority of anything to do with the home market is based on referrals. If you need a plumber, you ask a friend. If you need a roof put on, you ask a coworker. If you need someone to design an addition or new home, you ask your family. In my career, it took me a long time to figure out why referral-based business is so common. Recently I have been really focused on this. What I have thought for many years now is being affirmed daily.
Regardless of someone’s experience in a particular field, most people ask the ones they trust if they “know a guy”. When you have been in a business for years you go with “the guy you know” because you trust them. At the end of the day, we are inclined to go with what we know or what we trust, whether it is working or not. With personal referrals for business, this is still very true.
I am not in sales or marketing. I am a field inspector, and I perform new construction inspections. There is a drive in me to grow the company and represent myself in a professional and trustworthy way. I have been out to new areas just simply trying to get my name and our company name in the community. I tend to get the same answers when I introduce myself, even after letting them know who I am and what we do as a company. It typically is the “we know a guy” response. I respect that answer, especially when you have a good relationship with a business partner. It is tough to go against what you know to work.
But what if the way you are doing things could be done faster, cheaper, or safer? Would that be worth the time to listen for 20 minutes, or even an hour?
At the end of the day, we are inclined to auto-respond to certain questions, even if something is not working, or we know that we do need help changing things up. In my experience, this tends to be because the answer might be coming to us in a way that we don’t think we can trust. It’s hard to branch out beyond referrals for finding new people and companies to work with.
The construction industry, in all aspects, is changing on a yearly basis. The products are improving, the designs are more effective, and processes are more efficient. Change is something we all need to embrace and trust. I was once told the only thing constant is change. You must find a way to change with the times, or you’ll be left behind. As things change, relying only on personal referrals instead of taking a chance on a company that can offer top-notch, holistic services might mean your project gets less than the best.
I want to make sure that the people and businesses we work with are never left behind. I want to make sure that everyone we work with can trust us. I want to ensure they know I am local to the community: I live here, I work here, my kids go to school here.
So, if you are a business that is looking for change, and want to work with a group of individuals and a company you can trust, EVstudio can handle any design, structure, or inspection you might have. At EVstudio, we are changing the world with each project we create. And if you haven’t worked with us before, give us a chance to be your future answer when someone asks you if you “know a guy”.
