Door Hanger Update

donb1959

I told you guys a few months back I had ordered 2500 door hangers and was going to start a campaign this month. The campaign has started. Yesterday I went to a small affluant town near here. Had to get a "peddlers license" to hang-$25.00, good till June.

I knew going in the first development I wanted to target. Homes starting at $225K. I hung 135 hangers, all the homes in the development. Seems like every street, road, circle, driveway, walkway was uphill. I estimate I walked 25-30. Took 6 hours.

I get to the last st. in the development parked at the bottom and look up the st. and it was a huge uphill st. Probably 30 homes. At this point my ankles, legs, and back felt as if they would fall apart at any moment. I hesitated, gathered my resolve, and up the st. went I. First one side, then once to the end of the st. turn around work the other side back to the van.

I get to the 6th home from the end, start to put the hanger up, when a lady opens the door. I introduce myself and my business. She says your'e just in time I was about to call a contractor to come give me a quote. Ok, great says I with beads of sweat dripping off my nose, let me work my way down to the van and I will come back and give you a quote.

I hang the final six hangers, arrive at the van and drive back to the house. We talk, I look around and run some figures. She says I'm interested more in quality than anything.Very nice lady. I give her a "informal" qoute on a proposal sheet tell her I will come back with the "formal" contract/qoute. And live her with a color chart to look over. She says that sounds great.

She wants the entire exterior, over 4000 sq of stucco, not incld. the trim. I come home work for 2 hours preparing the contract/estimate. Call her back today, she can hardly wait for me to bring in to her tomorrow am. She's a serious buyer. I think chances are very good I'll get the job. Six homes from the last house and I will probably land a 3K+ job. Not a bad RRate for 130 hangers.

While I was hanging, I talked to two more potentials. I also ran across a fellow in cut off jeans, and a Bud tee hanging small slips of photo copys with "Bills pressure washing-gutters,siding,we clean it all-407-***x" he was tramping across all the manicured lawns to cut walking time. I never cut across one yard, though it was tempting. I was hanging these full-color hangers dressed in full whites with my logoed tees, and hat.

What I learned during my first day of a huge Dhanging campaign. 130 Hangers is a bunch. Takes apprx. 6 hrs to hang them. How far can you push yourself to walk is directly related to how hungry you are. The old adage about stopping the drilling and shutting down the operation, the whole time being 3 ft. from the oil held true in this case.

35% of homes in the 225K-400K range are in bad need of painting, and/or pressure washing.From first impressions what my idea of a perfect customer would be. There are those in the same line of work I'm in that are less than professional. Dogs in the home are a "no hang" zone as babies may be awaken. I only went to one, bypassed all others. If you hang 2500 hangers and get 1/2% Rrate of the sort I got today, youve not done too bad. Although with the reception I got from those I spoke with I expect more.

Did I say 130 hangers is a bunch?

To be continued.

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Humble Abode

My partner and I are just about to do the same thing I've always liked the idea of door hangers.

I hope we have as much success as you are having. good luck :Thumbs:

__________________
Just because some of us can read and write and do a little math, that doesn't mean we deserve to conquer the Universe. Kurt Vonnegut, (1922 - 2007) from the Novel 'Hocus Pocus'
The NAPP
Milwaukee Painting Contractor

Grumpy

I'd do it myself if I had the time but I am highly considering hiring some people to do this. THere are companies out there.

Isn't this a topic for the marketing forum?

Mike Finley

Great topic and information. It's great to hear the first hand experience. This really brings up another issue to the door hangers topic, instead of the potential, it is interesting to understand the difference between doing it yourself and hiring a company to hang, you took care and were courteous to people, where a company hired to do this most likely will take every short cut you can imagine. You also were in your company "uniform" and were a representative of your company whereas a hired door hanger company will have a bunch of crack heads and kids out doing the hanging.

Big differences, I just wonder how those difference can effect the success rates?

Humble Abode

I like the personal touch of doing it yourself, but Grumpy is right, hoofing doorhangers is a big pain in the butt. Everytime we have hung them we have had a simalar personel experience, to Don's, with a home owner.

I am going to get my neice and nephew to help us next time. I think cute little kids in the 10 year old range would be pretty effective. Espessially because I know them and they are good kids.

Recruit neihborhood kids and keep an eye on them while working the street yourself, then take them all out for burgers and ice cream. Although you may need a child labor permit

__________________
Just because some of us can read and write and do a little math, that doesn't mean we deserve to conquer the Universe. Kurt Vonnegut, (1922 - 2007) from the Novel 'Hocus Pocus'
The NAPP
Milwaukee Painting Contractor

ProWallGuy

I have had decent success in door hangers/flyers when passing them out only in 'hoods I'm working in. If I'm in a nice area, and want more business there, I grab a chucklehead (apprentice) and send them out after lunch to hit the street we are on and surrounding streets. The kid usually doesn't mind because we aren't riding him onsite, and he has a stake in it. I'll get maybe 1-2 calls out of about 50-60 here and there. If I land the job is another story, but the return on calls/flyers ain't too shabby. Have something printed up that says you are working in the neighborhood, at _______(address)________, come by and see our work firsthand yada yada.

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Wallpaper Hanger St. Louis
Digital Murals Installation

donb1959

Walkers AKA "distribution companys" that are reliable and come with a guarenteed hang rate are very expensive.

Mike,
Yes, after walking for 5 1/2 hours I can bet you that 98.9% of "walkers" would consider their day finished after the first 3 hours. I saw at least 10 folks working on their well manicured lawns while I was walking up their driveway. I just waved at them and placed the hanger, I wouldn't even venture across their yard to hand them the sign. Some may not have minded, some may have.

Image is everything, and I can be sure I was projecting the correct image. I feel sure the way I handled the doorhanging will net much better results than hiring out. Painting is inherantly a obtrusive/intrusive business. You are in their space, disrupting their routine, invading their home. If your presense while placing the hangers is non-intrusive, non-invasive, it gives the impression that you will as non-intrusive as possible once inside the home. Psychology plays a large role in our chosen field me thinks.

It's extremly hard work, no doubt. It's also extremly direct, and targeted. As well as very inexpensive, other than sweat equity. Rained out today. I have selected my next neighborhood, tomorrow in the mid 60s, clear. I'll post again, if that is I can crawl my way back to the van. :Thumbs:

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Mike Finley

Don, you keep it up and you will have to hire somebody to do the painting while you keep hanging door hangers!!!

How expensive are your hanger companies out there, I looked into this and around here and found 5 companies, the price ranging from 10-15 cents per door.

Teetorbilt

Humble, I like the idea of cute kids. Most people won't chew them out and they have a ton of unspent energy. They will also work for meals.
Have to watch out for the child labor laws though. LOL

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Grumpy

Don I agree with everything you said. People say I over think things buty I think our minds work much alike.

donb1959

I paid 189.00(incld shipping) for 2500 door hangers. Full color front and back. I sent a prototype they did the design. They did an outstanding job.

Great minds think alike...no?

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I fish therefore I am
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donb1959

Oh.....and I DO over think things ad nauseam

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I fish therefore I am
http://www.shimmerz.biz

Teetorbilt

Back to the shotgun approach.
Best to aquire target, lock in crosshairs and squeeze trigger.

__________________
You can't solve you're problems with the same level of thinking that created the problems.

Albert Einstein

pauls painting

:Thumbs: i passed 250 fliers in my town within 1/2 milefrom my house and already have 9365 in work from them . this week i am having 5000 fliers printed and will have high school kids pass them out.i give them 3% of the labor from any job i get from thier passing..

Humble Abode

Thats a good idea, giving kids incentive to actually hang the flyers. It can be dangerous to have kids you don't know hang the flyers. Giving a local kid 300 flyers and telling him you'll give him $10 to hang them can result in him just throwing them away and coming to collect. Making him a commisioned salesperson will increase your chances of them actually hanging them on doors.

__________________
Just because some of us can read and write and do a little math, that doesn't mean we deserve to conquer the Universe. Kurt Vonnegut, (1922 - 2007) from the Novel 'Hocus Pocus'
The NAPP
Milwaukee Painting Contractor

Grumpy

LOL reminds me of when I was 14 and my buddy's mom asked him to get one of his friends and hang some door hangers. LOL it was HIS idea to dump 'em down the sewer.

Mike Finley

I was actually talking about the hanging charges not the production. The prices I found for hanging companies was 10-15 cents per door hanger they hang for you. The swing in price was sometimes related to how many they could handle at a time, being able to pick and choose specific neighborhoods and sub neighborhoods and picking the exact day of delivery, also having your hanger be the only one they were hanging that day. I have heard that some of these outfits will bag multiple clients hangers in the same bag and hang them all at once.

Humble Abode

That's no good...

__________________
Just because some of us can read and write and do a little math, that doesn't mean we deserve to conquer the Universe. Kurt Vonnegut, (1922 - 2007) from the Novel 'Hocus Pocus'
The NAPP
Milwaukee Painting Contractor

donb1959

Day 2:
Another upscale neighborhood four miles from the first. I get 70 hung. A lady drives up and ask if I can give a quote on an exterior. I finish my round on the street, and go to the lady home, another really big home. All dentil molding, 40' gable ends etc. Home is in good condition, but with butt ugly colors. She says shes not sure of the color she wants but shes sure shes going lighter, the paint now is a dark gray, ok, well now I know its a 2 coat job.

So I take my usual time assessing the job, give her the informal quote tell her I shall return in the morning. Great says she. Oh...by the way, can you take a look inside for for a moment, sure says I. Says she will want the entire interior painted in the fall. Every wall in the home is wallpaper. The owners have started to attempt to remove said paper. I tell her ok, once I have started on your ext. I will come in and as a courtesy show you the most effective way to remove it. About 3500 sq. of wall space.

If you guys can get the paper off the wall, it will save you bunches of money...and it will, cause I charge T&M on removal at @ 50 per hr. Excellant she says. So on this job I have A. Almost assuredly got the ext. B. Have a foot in the door on the int. because I am offering a percieved value at no cost to the owner.

She says Im just glad to get you here for a quote, other guys seem either too busy or too disinterested. Not a problem says I, I will see you tomorrow for you approval on my final quote. Final quote= 6250.00 exterior. With the possibility of a good size int. in the fall.

Ok, Im not really all that tired as my legs, ankles seem to be adjusting to the walking, on my 10th home after this, I walk up the drive, and see ladders, buckets,spackle etc.. laying around, but no truck van or anything, I figure either the homeowners are doing the work or the truck aint there. Anywho Im not into stepping on toes, so I walk away. Then I hear someone say "Hey, where were ya when I need ya?!". I turn around and ask if their the home owner, yes says he. He and I introduce ourselves and I recognize the face and name but cant put the two together.

He tells me hes a RE investor and is looking for a painter that actually shows up, and isnt drunk/stoned, and can return calls. Im your man says I. He ask for several hangers and a stack of business cards says he always looking for a decent painter. Ok well take care we'll talk. You bet, says he.

I walk across the st. to the next house, then I remember the name and face. For years he was a local sportscaster for an NBC affliate local station here. I go back and confirm this he says yup but Ive quit and am expanding my horizons. Wonder if this guys got a circle of influence?

My legs ache. My back hurts. If both jobs come in I have over 10K of work in 2 days. Will I be hanging tomorrow...yes, in the same developement.

Did I mention my legs ache?

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I fish therefore I am
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Trey

I'm glad door hangers are working for somebody. I've had mixed results with them. I've been yelled out by psychopaths, bit by dogs, had wind blow them around a nieghborhood, lots of bad luck, but an occasional pay off. I'm just starting postcards now, atleast I won't get a dog bite.