ICYMI - March CommuniTEA networking hour recap

DustiO

This month we've had dozens of pros join myself and other Thumbtack team members for CommuniTEA — a biweekly networking hour where our Community members are invited to come together to network and share ideas. We wanted to share some highlights, and invite the rest of you to join us next time.

Community members shared tips & tricks and helped each other find solutions. There were so many great topics, but we wanted to highlight one in particular. Pros shared their ideas for their most effective messaging with a new customer. Here's what they had to say:

• @ShaquealThomas: "It's very simple — good morning, afternoon, or evening and straight to when you can do an on-site estimate. And always stay on a positive note. Even if the customer doesn't hire you today, they may hire you down the road."
• @Theresa: "In the first sentence always address what the customer's problem or project is so they know you’ve heard them." And, "In the name of your business put expectations that you want to make sure people see before they reach out." For example:
  • Theresa says "NO INSURANCE" in her business name. She took this advice from @soonerkimmy in previous sessions, who does this for her remote services so people know clearly that she is not local. Both shared that this practice has helped eliminate a lot of "bad" leads and increase "good" leads.
• @soonerkimmy: "People don’t want to scroll through a really long message so be as concise as you can be — you only have a few seconds to make that first impression."
• @AllAroundMusic: "Ask specifically about what the client’s vision is. Focus on starting a conversation — create a list of questions that you know will help open people up and get them to talk. Create a relationship with the prospective client."
• Read more best practices for communicating with customers here.

What are your best practices for those initial messages to a customer? Let us know in the comments! And, thanks to all of our amazing pros who contribute to these sessions every other week — your expertise and your advice are priceless.

DustiO

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