How to Market Your Gunsmithing Services for Holiday Season Sales
If you’re looking to build your business (and honestly, who isn’t?), the winter holiday season is essential for getting your accounts back in the black. Or, at least, a little further from the red. Even big name business can feel the squeeze of the post-holiday months when customers are paying down debts and cutting down on spending, so don’t miss your chance to drum up some business- and hopefully attract some repeat customers. Here are a few tried-and-true suggestions that may help you get one step ahead this holiday season.
The Credit You Deserve
Your customers are probably pretty likely to sing your praises if someone asks them where to find a great gunsmith. But, hey, a little added motivation to do so will make their proverbial song even sweeter. If they refer a friend, give your loyal customer a much-deserved discount on a future service. And, if you can, give them a choice in what they’d like. You probably know your customers’ needs better than some of them know themselves, but you never know what someone might be putting off due to price. While you may get a lot of routine maintenance work (depending upon your specialization), some jobs that include pillar and glass bedding, re-crowning muzzles, restorations, engravings, and so on, may be likely to fall under the category of nice to have rather than need it done yesterday for some customers. The holidays are all about that nice-to-have category, and extending a little credit to a loyal customer in exchange for a recommendation is a pretty great gift exchange.
So, what does that recommendation look like? If possible, it would be great to have a discount tier for social media posts made on your behalf, and one for completed transactions with referred customers. If you remember your middle school science class (I know, we’ve all had other things on our minds since then) we’re talking about potential energy vs. Kinetic energy. The social media referral creates energy stored up for a future sale, and the completed transaction with a referred customer has grown your client base. Both scenarios have undeniable value, but the latter is putting that sale’s energy into motion right now, so the credit extended should be valued accordingly.
Holiday Season Gift Vouchers
If you’ve never lost or just plain forgotten that you had a gift card, I commend you on your amazing bookkeeping skills. Many of us out there, though, have. And for that reason, some people will always shy away from gift cards- because anything that’s here today, gone tomorrow just isn’t worth the investment to some people. Sure, if you lose your card, you can still use it as long as you’ve memorized the twenty gazillion-digit code on the back, or if a vendor has the forethought to give you an account that can easily be accessed. But even that may require the burden of keeping up with information. You, as a talented businessperson, can keep your own records on gift vouchers, and when someone is ready to use their credit, they need only ask. How’s that for easy access?
And, if you can make it happen, let go of the temptation to attach an expiration date to a gift voucher. They should be good as long as your business is. Heck, I recommend letting someone regift their credit with a decade-old fruit cake if they like. The new owner’s name might not be in your records, but it most definitely will be once you’ve gotten their business. A gift voucher, ideally, should be a one-and-done purchase, and not one more thing to keep track of.
Terrestrial Radio
It’s probably not new to you that Facebook and Instagram have rules about promoting the sale of firearms, and potentially even the services that go a long with them. But terrestrial radio stations have their own policies in place. “But, wait a minute,” you say. “Not many people listen to terrestrial radio these days.” And, hey, that’s very true, but the next time you visit a sporting goods store, see if you can hear terrestrial radio playing somewhere. The same can be said at garages, plumbing supply shops, lumber yards, and most any place where people are getting to work with a little extra elbow grease. And how many of those folks are likely to hit the range or go hunting on their next weekend off? And how about their customers?
Terrestrial radio is still a constant companion for a lot of people during their workdays. It’s free, and it lets them know what’s going on in their communities without scrolling through a social media feed. Sure, advertising can be a huge investment of time and money, but how cool would it be to have someone hear your ad right after one of their favorite songs? Have I sold you on the idea yet (bad pun intended)?
Conclusion
Everyone has their ear to the ground for good holiday deals. It’s an expensive time of year. So, it’s probably worth your while to let customers know that your deals, like the holidays, won’t always be here. But, hey, I don’t need to tell you how this works. You’ve got this. So go make some holiday magic- or at least some holiday cash- come your way this winter.
Written by: Lanna Perkins, Educational Writer
