“Since its inception in 2005, [our company] has always delivered electronic reports to our customers.  In late 2010 we switched platforms to Tap Inspect from a competitor and have never looked back.  All of our inspectors agree that this has been the single largest improvement to our business and none of them would ever go back to the ‘old’ way of generating our reports…Tap Inspect makes inspection reporting easy.  The system is intuitive and customizable.  Inserting pictures and comments for areas of concern couldn’t be easier.  Our customers and realtors really love the reports generated using Tap Inspect.”

~ Michael P. Zadeh, President of Inspection Tech in Cleveland, Ohio.

In real estate, they say that only three things matter-location, location, location. Gary Smith, owner of SafeHome Inspections in Ridgeland, Mississippi, is proving that the same is true of home inspectors.Smith says that one of the most effective marketing strategies he employs uses location-based mobile apps like Facebook to let future customers know where he works, to get the word out to local real estate agents and contractors and to establish himself as THE home inspection expert in the area. Here’s how he does it.

The Goal: To get his name in front of every potential home buyer and real estate agent that may do business in a specific area.

The Strategy: Check-In Marketing. To target home buyers, home owners and real estate agents in a specific neighborhood, Smith uses Facebook’s location-based apps to get his name out and to show that he has a client base in that locale. When smart phone and mobile device users in the area check into local restaurants, coffee shops or retail establishments through Facebook, Smith’s name and nearby work history also pops up.

The Method: “After I inspect a house, the first thing I do [as far as check-in marketing] is to look on Facebook and see if someone has created a subdivision name of the area I’m inspecting,” says Smith. “If they haven’t, I create that subdivision name and then I post a picture of the real estate sign of the listing agent in that area and any interesting photos of the front of the subdivision. I’m very careful not to list the address of the home or particular information about the home. That’s pretty private, but I do take photos of anything interesting in the subdivision, such as a lake or playground…”

“It only takes me about 20 seconds to take a photo of the subdivision where I’m inspecting a home, but, over time, you wind up with a dynamic that allows you to increase your visibility on Facebook. Now whenever I return to that area, I can check in and every time I do, it allows me to share that information and those pictures on my personal [Facebook] page and on pages of other locations I’ve created.”

“Every time I check in, it posts that I’m there, doing an inspection, being active in that area to anyone who may be looking at that page. I also share photos of other services [real estate service professionals, etc] while I’m in the neighborhood. It’s a co-branding opportunity and spreads the news that other trusted services work that area. Now the next time someone checks in at the Wal-Mart near that subdivision, they will see that there’s a home inspector or other real estate service in the area who’s doing work. It becomes free advertising.”

“Once the page is up and running, anyone involved in real estate in that area can also help it grow by posting their activity on the pages. Pretty soon, we have builders, agents, contractors, anyone who might be involved in property in that area, building the page up and drawing more attention to it.”

The Result: Better web traffic targeted specifically to home buyers in his area without investing much time. “What we’re finding too is that some of the pages are beginning to show up in Google searches for locations/areas [SafeHome Inspections] they weren’t before,” says Smith. “Since Facebook allows all business pages to be seen by search engines outside the Facebook domain, we’re getting free advertising both to people who check in using [location-based apps] and to those just searching on Google…For me, this is local advertising, [a kind] that targets people who live within 20 to 30 miles of my area of focus. If the majority of the neighborhoods in that area have my contact information in the check-ins, I’m certainly ahead of the game.”

Home inspectors who are interested in seeing how Gary’s location-based marketing works can check out the Ridgeland, Mississippi Real Estate page here.

Inspectors who use Tap Inspect on the iPhone 4S can use voice recognition to record their comments. All iPhone 4S’s come with Siri and voice recognition that allows you to dictate memos, e-mails, even home inspections. To use Siri with Tap Inspect, just tap the little microphone icon that shows at the bottom of the keyboard and give your fingers a break.

Need some pointers on how to get the most out of voice dictation. Check out this video:

Skitch
Tap Inspect allows you to import photos from an inspection into your report, but this iPad app provides editing and annotation features that allow you to show clients exactly what they should notice in the photo. Free and simple to use, Skitch is an easy way to add those arrows and circles your clients love that point out the mold lurking in the bottom lefthand corner of your photograph.

Cost: Free!

Invoice2Go
You can complete a report on the job site. You should be able to get paid there too. This app for the iPhone and iPad allows you to create customized company invoices (complete with your logo and everything) that can be shown to your customers or e-mailed to them directly. Customers who want to pay on the spot can do that too since Invoice2Go can connect with any PayPal account. A double bonus is that the program will also automatically sync to your desktop computer, creating a backup of your invoices just in case anything happens to your cell or iPad.

Cost: $10.49 for the basic app.

Square
The inspection’s done; now it’s time to get paid. With Square, home inspectors can process Visa, Mastercard, American Express or Discover credit cards by phone without leaving the job site. Funds will be deposited into your business account within 24 hours. To get going, inspectors need to sign up for a free cell-ready credit card reader here, then head to the app store to download the app for their iPhone or iPad.

Cost: The apps are free, but the processing isn’t. Square charges 2.75 percent per transaction every time you accept a credit card payment by swiping. Transactions that are manually entered into the phone will cost a 3.5 percent plus a 15 cent fee.

Chase Quick Deposit
There are lots of arguments to be made about why small business owners should avoid big banks like the plague, but Chase offers one super sexy incentive for business owners on the go (ahem: inspectors). With Chase Quick Deposit, inspectors with iPhones and iPads can make deposits into their bank accounts by simply taking two photos of a check with their cell phone. No more rushing to the bank. No more crossing your fingers that your lockbox/glove compartment/home safe doesn’t get broken into. In addition to Quick Deposit, the company also offers online billpay by phone and the ability to check bank balances and transfer funds with your cell.

Cost: Quick Deposit is free for Chase users with a personal checking account. For small business owners who need to make several deposits of multiple checks per month, the company provides an at-home check scanner for a minimal fee.

This article originally ran in our Tap Inspect newsletter. To sign up for our mailing list, click the “Join Our Mailing List” button to the right.

What’s the most effective marketing decision you’ve ever made?

“By far joining a BNI group.”
~ John Keener, owner of Mountaineer Inspection Services in Bridgeport, West Virginia.

“Make sure the BNI group has a strong power team of real estate professionals that can refer you business. Examples would be real estate agents, loan officers, insurance agents, skilled tradesmen, etc.”
~ Lee Harless, owner of Safe and Sound Inspection Service in Huntington, West Virginia.

“Getting someone ELSE to answer my phone so I don’t interrupt an inspection with a sales call and get both parties upset.”
~ Bob Sisson, owner of Inspections By Bob in Boyds, Maryland.

“…Indoor air quality and mold testing and writing scopes of work account for 40 percent of my business. I also do commercial inspections and expert witness work. So I would say diversification is a strong marketing tool.”
~ Jim Dietrich, owner of AAA Home Inspections in Flushing, Michigan.

Honorable Mention: This entry isn’t funny so much as it simply puts life into perspective. No matter how bad a job is, inspectors, at least the real estate company won’t intentionally release scorpions on you. Additionally, a sad trombone extends to the writer who chose the headline “Sting Operation” to accompany that story. On to brighter subjects:

#5: It’s hard to pick precisely which of the electrical catastrophes featured in this video posted by Seansy59 is the most terrifying, so we’ll just show them all:

#4: Creaky attics, dank basements, scary crawl spaces…they’ve got nothing on this car. Even though you won’t have to look under the hood during a home inspection, this video is a freaky reminder that you never really know what’s lurking in those dark spots:

#3: What’s going on in that bathroom? IHI Home Inspections in Atlanta discovers one of the most…[cough]…creative ways to heat a bathroom:

#2: Atlanta home inspector Anthony Martin spots a frightening hiding spot for a TV antennae:

#1: Leave it to Australia to turn housing calamities into a competition. Every year Reece, an Aussie bathroom and plumbing supply company, hosts a contest to spot the biggest DIY plumbing disasters in the country. While the still shots of last year’s winners are impressive, this video of 2010 flubs takes the cake:

“The most important thing you can do for your business is to determine who your audience is and write a profile of them as if you had to describe a person that somebody else could recognize,” says Marley Majcher, a small business coach and author of “But Are you Making Any Money?“

Majcher suggests that inspectors describe their audience down to the type of car they drive, the neighborhoods they live in and whether they have children. After inspectors have a clear idea of who their ideal client is, they can target their marketing efforts accordingly.

“The only way you can have a shot at not wasting a ton of money is to clearly define your target audience and to ask yourself how closely every single one of your marketing efforts comes to reaching that audience,” she adds.

Look Like a Pro

Marketing starts the moment you show up to a job, the minute your company vehicle hits the road, the instant when you mention to strangers that you are an inspector. According to a study by Princeton psychologists Janine Willis and Alexander Todorov reveals that new acquaintances form their first impression of you within ten seconds of meeting. Ray Sandbek, vice president of Service USA Home Inspections in Louisville, Kentucky, advises inspectors to make those minutes count.

“We’ve always insisted that jeans are out. No shorts in the summertime. The signage on our vehicles is professional,” says Sandbek. “The image is important. We try to tie everything together.”

Understand that One Size Doesn’t Fit All

Homes are different across the US and so are the people who buy them. What marketing strategy works in one segment of country won’t necessarily work in a different place says Marty M. Fahncke, a former real estate agent, current small business consultant and host of the marketing webinar series, “Midweek Momentum.”

“There are geographic specifics to marketing,” he says. “In some communities, online marketing just isn’t that effective. People just don’t use the internet that much. They aren’t that active in social media, so it’s really important to have a physical presence. In other markets, that’s not the case.”

On top of trying a few marketing strategies to see what flies, Fahncke also recommends simply asking your customers where they prefer to get their news about your business and how they would like to communicate with you.

Offer More

In many markets, inspectors can add to their income by adding to the services they offer. In areas where environmental hazards are present, adding testing services can be a beneficial business move. Dan Howard, owner of Home Inspections By Dan Howard in Freeport, Pennsylvania, says that approximately half of his business revenue comes from inspections alone. The other half comes from auxiliary services which include mold and radon testing and air quality testing as well as environmental hazard assessments that detail what home owners need to do to get their homes up to speed.

“My company noticed that, as a result of how homes are built, people were getting sick in their homes,” he says. “There is a need for somebody who does more than testing. We are there to tell them how to have a healthy home again.”

Howard, in fact, launched a second web site, dedicated exclusively to outlining what environmental hazards are present in his area and what auxiliary services he can provide to buyers.

A little research on what types of environmental hazards are present in your area and who services those needs can give you a clear idea of how your company can expand and where to focus your marketing efforts.

Track, Track, Track

Most small businesses have a marketing strategy. Few have effective ones. The difference, says Marley Majcher, comes down to whether your business can track what’s working (and what’s not).

“For example, if you do a direct mailing and you spend $500 on it, the key thing is to use a unique URL or phone number or promo code so you can track it back,” she says. “This is something that 99 percent of marketers don’t do.”

Google Voice offers unique phone numbers for free, but creating unique urls can cost a little extra up front. The added costs, Majcher adds, are well worth it when you’re not blowing extra cash on marketing efforts that don’t work.

Follow Through

“It’s better for you to stick to one or two fundamental tactics that you know you can accomplish rather than try eight or ten or twelve things that you’re not going to follow through on,” says Fahncke. “A marketing initiative that’s begun and abandoned can make you look worse than no marketing initiative at all.”

Fahncke adds that the advice especially applies to company blogs and social media efforts which are frequently abandoned by new business owners within six months of getting started. Instead of simply diving in, Fahncke recommends that inspectors test the waters first by doing a bit of research on what kinds of blogs exist in their locale and to develop a clear idea of what they want their blog or social media to say.

Set a Budget

It’s easy to break the bank on ads that don’t get traction and incentive programs that don’t reach customers. To ensure that your marketing efforts don’t put you in the red, Marley Majcher suggests setting a budget early in the year and sticking to it.

“If you’re a new business, dedicate somewhere between 5 and 10 percent of your anticipated sales [to marketing],” she says.

Seasoned inspectors who have been in the game a while can adjust their budgets according to what’s worked and what hasn’t.

Outsource

You have to be a great home inspector to make it in the inspection world. You don’t have to be a great accountant, lawyer, secretary, marketing strategist, graphic designer and small business consultant too.

Lee Harless, owner of Safe and Sound Inspection Services in Huntington, West Virginia, says that outsourcing his web site design and construction is one of the smartest business decisions he’s ever made. “[Outsourcing] was just more economical,” he says, “but I have the ability to go in and change anything any time I want.”

Hiring help to ensure that back end tasks get done in a timely manner ensures that you have more time and energy to devote to doing inspections, developing your business strategy and getting the word out about who you are and what you do.

Become an Expert

There’s more than one way establish yourself as the head home inspection honcho in your area. One method that’s worked for Dan Howard is writing. In the past three decades, Howard has written more than 250 articles on home inspection, maintenance and safety for local newspapers.

“There’s a natural suspicion to people that the realtor is just trying to pawn off somebody that will get things through,” he says. “If your name is out there separate and distinct from a referral then that suspicion goes away. Being highly visible is crucial.”

Inspectors can also establish themselves as an expert by volunteering their services with local charities, getting involved with inspection associations like ASHI and NAHI, joining a local chamber of commerce and continuing to bone up on education.

Stay Personal

Regardless whether you’re predominantly marketing to real estate agents or home buyers, home inspection is a business driven by relationships. Letting clients know that you are personally invested in making sure their experience is exceptional can lead to referral after referral.

“I think next year for us, we’ll revive personal notes,” says Ray Sandbek. “It tells people that you have taken the time to care.”

On top of personalized notes, Sandbek also sends agents small pick-me-ups like candy hearts on Valentine’s Day and carwash gift certificates. “Anything to stay in front of them,” he says.

Look for Group Rates

Conference heads want to draw you into the conference and keep you there. To ease the travel burden a little, many organizers (ASHI’s included) negotiate a discounted group rate that can save you some serious dough. Info on the Inspection World discount is available here. For all other conferences and events you attend throughout the year, call the conference head in advance to ask about discounted lodging.

Check Your Apps

There’s an app for doing home inspection reports (shameless plug) and there are several for helping you track down housing on the cheap. Our personal faves include Hotel Tonight, an app for the iPhone or Android designed to find last-minute rooms. Not only does the free app find rooms for up to 70 percent off, it also comes with a $25 credit when you use the promo code NEW25. Of course there’s a risk to waiting until the last minute to book a room. Inspectors who want to book farther in advance can price compare rooms with Hotels Near Me.

Rent a Home

Bypass hotels (and their pricey rates) entirely by renting someone’s home. Through Airbnb.com, travelers can rent anything from a spare couch to an island in Fiji, suite inside an actual airplane or Frank Sinatra’s estate. While, obviously, room in Sinatra’s former pad or living large on the Fijian coast will cost you, renting a room or condo near the conference can be hundreds less than opting for a hotel room.

Use Rewards

Hotel points, credit card rewards incentives, airline miles—all of these can be traded for free accommodation at your next conference. For inspectors using business credit cards for their expenses, reward points and miles can be redeemed for free hotel rooms as well as car rentals, flights and discounts on tourist hotspots at major destinations. Most major airlines and nearly all major hotel chains have partner deals that allow rewards holders to trade airline miles for hotel points or vice versa. Points.com also allows reward card holders to facilitate their own rewards trades.

Before I got into this business I wish someone had told me…

“… if there’s damp soil under the home it might be from a leaky waste pipe and you probably shouldn’t crawl through it. Let’s just say that I found out the hard way that it can be highly infectious!” ~ Bud Hayes, LaRocca Inspection Associates, headquartered in Sunland, CA.

“… how important quality control is. It’s important to be proactive, I always call back clients and real estate agents in order to see if there are any concerns about the report.” ~ Dave Short, LaRocca Inspection Associates, headquartered in Sunland, CA.

“Three things: 1. That I should take my best estimate for how much start-up and operating expenses will be-and then double the number.  This will get your estimate in the ballpark.  2. That the home inspection business requires a love for learning technical information. If you don’t love reading technical information, don’t get into the business. Education and re-education is a constant for home inspectors and reading fiction will need to be replaced by reading about construction matters.  3. That if you want to grow to be a muli-inspector firm, the road will be long and you must develop marketing mastery.” ~ David Swartz, Advantage Inspection Service, Phoenix, AZ.

Some inspectors work for larger companies, but most of us in the business are on our own to sort out problems and find solutions. In an effort to start opening a best practices dialogue amongst inspectors, we asked two brand new inspectors to admit their greatest business challenges and sought the support of some inspectors who have been around the block. We also want to hear from you. If you’ve got a question you need answered, a problem that needs troubleshooting or just want to get some thoughts from others in your industry, contact us at chris@tapinspect.com and we’ll be delighted to help you get connected to the right people. In the mean time, check out how these pros solve pressing problems for newcomers in the industry.

The Problem: Landing Those First Clients

Like every other inspector getting started in a post-recession market, John Keener of Mountaineer Inspection Services in Bridgeport, West Virginia has questions about breaking in.

“There’s already established home inspectors in my area,” he says. “I went to a few of the real estate agents, put on a little ‘This is who I am. This is what I do.’ I really haven’t seen any return from that…What’s the best strategy to try to form those relationships?”

Solution: Forget the Agents  

“I actually try to market to the public versus realtors,” says Casey Patten, who’s headed Root River Inspections in Minnesota for the past five years. “…I’m professional and polite, I’ll answer questions if they have them, but I’ve never gone out of my way to market myself directly to them.” Instead of tapping into real estate agents, Patten focuses on marketing to home buyers directly as well as to loan officers, mortgage lenders, contractors and anyone else involved in the home construction and buying biz. To do that, Patten makes his online outreach efforts a top priority.

“I hit my web site as much as I can,” he says. “‘…I hit social networking. I’ve got a Facebook page for my business. I’ve got a Google Plus page for my business. I’ve got LinkedIN and Twitter, all so I can try and stay as independent as I can.”

New home inspectors can also beef up their client list by joining networking groups like BNI and LeTip, becoming a housing expert for local publications and getting the word out in their local PTAs, civic groups and volunteer and religious organizations.

The Problem: Assessing the Add-Ons

Sure you can inspect homes, but clients may wonder what else you can do too. Amidst a sea of licenses and certifications, Aaron Frasher, owner of ACF Home Inspections, LLC in Huntington, West Virginia, wonders what additional services are worth offering. After all, training, certification and equipment required to provide ancillary services can cost thousands.

“There are different things that we want to be able to provide for our clients like mold inspections, air quality inspections, that sort of thing,” he says. “…A lot of home inspectors offer home warranty and recall checks and mold inspections. Each one of them costs money out of our pocket. I’m wondering if it’s worth going and getting those certifications. How often are they used and required?”

The Solution: Test the Market

Whether add-on services like mold inspections and radon testing will boost your business or sap your bank account depends wholly on the market in your area says Bill Dare, owner of Spotlight Home Inspection LLC in Harleysville, Pennsylvania.

“About 40 percent of the work I do is with stucco [inspection] because that’s a big thing here,” he says. “I imagine if I were in a place like Florida, mold and termites would be at the top of my list.”

Ancillary services are a crucial part of many home inspectors’ businesses. Dare says that inspectors frequently earn 30 to 35 percent of their revenue through add-ons like wood-destroying insect, mold, thermal imaging and radon tests. To find out which services work best in your area, Sergio Angione, president of SRA Home Inspections,  a franchise of HouseMaster located in Towaco, New Jersey, recommends that new inspectors listen to their clients and check out their competition.

“Call [competing inspectors] up as if you were going to book the home and ask what services they could provide,” he says. “If you see that no one in your area is providing a radon screening, then there may be a reason for that. Maybe there’s no radon in the area…or maybe you could be the only company that provides that service.”

Until new inspectors have a solid grasp of which add-ons will pay off in their neck of the woods, Dare recommends finding contacts so newbies can subcontract work out. The tactic not only makes you look good to clients; it can also provide referrals when your subcontractor has a client who needs an inspection.