I started an event hire business in a major city 10 years ago & I did that just through SEO. 4 years ago I moved to a regional town of 40K people & started the same business. My initial thought was since I had virtually no online competition I would be able to do well. I have been able to dominate Google search no problem but it hasn't translated well into sales. I probably get about 2 days a week of work. 2 possibilities came to mind:
1. There simply isn't enough demand in a town this size OR
2. I'm just not marketed well enough.
#1 Size of Demand
-I looked at other towns around my state & it looks like you need a population of about 20K to sustain a decent event hire business i.e. one with premises & a couple of staff. The guy in the next town about 40 minutes away actually has 10 staff & it's the same sized town. They do have a national car race there each year (Bathurst) & they do some work here as well as travelling to other car races around the state so he's a bit of an exception but still it gives some insight. In summary then it looks like there should easily be enough demand in my town for my type of business.
#2 Marketing Exposure
-I get the distinct feeling that online search isn't as big in the country. A number of customers have said they didn't know about me despite them seeming quite tech savvy.
-Word of mouth seems to be a big thing in the country. There's a strong community Facebook group & people are always asking for recommendations & people seem to love to recommend their favorite supplier. For example recent requests for the following got this many responses: electrician 24, removalist 21, handyman 16, wedding photographer 31, carpet cleaner 12 etc. As an experiment I got someone to ask about my type of business. There was only one response! (a past customer) - fortunately they did recommend me but that's an extreme difference in the number of recommendations. I guess that means that there's not much awareness in the general community.
In the past I've always dismissed brand type advertising as only being for large companies with a mass market product e.g. Coke or McDonalds. I've tended to lean more towards direct response ideas instead. Perhaps in a small town where you could afford to get your brand out to everyone, maybe branding ads would make sense. I could probably show ads to everyone on Facebook for under $500.
I might address this more in another post but there are 2 other factors that might come into play:
3. Personal network &
4. Playing bigger.
#3 Networking. I've noticed something with a lot of successful local businesses. They have a lot of followers on Facebook i.e in the hundreds or thousands whilst I only have 32! I know people are happy with my service & I have way more Google reviews but I'm a bit of an introvert.
#4 Playing Bigger.
I currently operate from my garage at home. About 30% of customers visit me in person. I wonder if not having proper premises is preventing me from getting the bigger clients. I'm loathed to get a warehouse though & I have capacity to 3x my business still working from home.
Anyway I'd love to hear people's ideas on all this.
Thanks.
1. There simply isn't enough demand in a town this size OR
2. I'm just not marketed well enough.
#1 Size of Demand
-I looked at other towns around my state & it looks like you need a population of about 20K to sustain a decent event hire business i.e. one with premises & a couple of staff. The guy in the next town about 40 minutes away actually has 10 staff & it's the same sized town. They do have a national car race there each year (Bathurst) & they do some work here as well as travelling to other car races around the state so he's a bit of an exception but still it gives some insight. In summary then it looks like there should easily be enough demand in my town for my type of business.
#2 Marketing Exposure
-I get the distinct feeling that online search isn't as big in the country. A number of customers have said they didn't know about me despite them seeming quite tech savvy.
-Word of mouth seems to be a big thing in the country. There's a strong community Facebook group & people are always asking for recommendations & people seem to love to recommend their favorite supplier. For example recent requests for the following got this many responses: electrician 24, removalist 21, handyman 16, wedding photographer 31, carpet cleaner 12 etc. As an experiment I got someone to ask about my type of business. There was only one response! (a past customer) - fortunately they did recommend me but that's an extreme difference in the number of recommendations. I guess that means that there's not much awareness in the general community.
In the past I've always dismissed brand type advertising as only being for large companies with a mass market product e.g. Coke or McDonalds. I've tended to lean more towards direct response ideas instead. Perhaps in a small town where you could afford to get your brand out to everyone, maybe branding ads would make sense. I could probably show ads to everyone on Facebook for under $500.
I might address this more in another post but there are 2 other factors that might come into play:
3. Personal network &
4. Playing bigger.
#3 Networking. I've noticed something with a lot of successful local businesses. They have a lot of followers on Facebook i.e in the hundreds or thousands whilst I only have 32! I know people are happy with my service & I have way more Google reviews but I'm a bit of an introvert.
#4 Playing Bigger.
I currently operate from my garage at home. About 30% of customers visit me in person. I wonder if not having proper premises is preventing me from getting the bigger clients. I'm loathed to get a warehouse though & I have capacity to 3x my business still working from home.
Anyway I'd love to hear people's ideas on all this.
Thanks.
Dislike ads? Become a Fastlane member:
Subscribe today and surround yourself with winners and millionaire mentors, not those broke friends who only want to drink beer and play video games. :-)
Last edited:
Membership Required: Upgrade to Expose Nearly 1,000,000 Posts
Ready to Unleash the Millionaire Entrepreneur in You?
Become a member of the Fastlane Forum, the private community founded by best-selling author and multi-millionaire entrepreneur MJ DeMarco. Since 2007, MJ DeMarco has poured his heart and soul into the Fastlane Forum, helping entrepreneurs reclaim their time, win their financial freedom, and live their best life.
With more than 39,000 posts packed with insights, strategies, and advice, you’re not just a member—you’re stepping into MJ’s inner-circle, a place where you’ll never be left alone.
Become a member and gain immediate access to...
- Active Community: Ever join a community only to find it DEAD? Not at Fastlane! As you can see from our home page, life-changing content is posted dozens of times daily.
- Exclusive Insights: Direct access to MJ DeMarco’s daily contributions and wisdom.
- Powerful Networking Opportunities: Connect with a diverse group of successful entrepreneurs who can offer mentorship, collaboration, and opportunities.
- Proven Strategies: Learn from the best in the business, with actionable advice and strategies that can accelerate your success.
"You are the average of the five people you surround yourself with the most..."
Who are you surrounding yourself with? Surround yourself with millionaire success. Join Fastlane today!
Join Today
