How does a service business get commercial clients instead of only homeowners?
Treat business buyers as a different customer. A property manager, office manager or facilities buyer usually wants proof before price: a license and insurance certificate on request, a written bid, clear response times and invoices they can file. Reach them through referrals, local business groups and a website page written for them. Government work is a separate track: the SBA says you must register in the System for Award Management (SAM) before you can compete for government contracts.
How a business buyer differs from a homeowner
A homeowner usually hires once, for one job, and decides quickly. A business buyer often looks after several buildings, keeps a list of approved vendors, and may need a certificate of insurance and a tax form before the first job. They tend to compare written bids, pay on invoice terms rather than on the day, and care most about whether you show up when you said you would. One good account can bring repeat work, so the first job is often an audition.
Where they look
- Referrals from trades that already work in their buildings, such as an electrician who knows the property manager; the related answer on getting referrals from other businesses covers how to ask.
- Local business groups, property management associations and chambers of commerce, where the people who hire vendors meet.
- Vendor sign-up pages run by larger property and facilities companies.
- Search, when a manager needs someone fast and the usual vendor is booked.
What your website should show them
As general advice, give commercial work its own page: the kinds of buildings you work in, the area you cover, your license number where your trade shows one, that insurance certificates are available on request, how fast you respond to urgent calls, and a clear way to request a bid or a site visit. Name past commercial work only where you have the customer's permission, and never claim accounts you do not have.
Government work is a separate track
The SBA's guide to getting started with contracting says a business must register in SAM, which it describes as "a database that government agencies search to find contractors", and that you get a Unique Entity Identifier (UEI), a 12-character code, when you register. It also says to match your services to a NAICS industry code and to meet the SBA's size standards for contracts reserved for small businesses.
The same guide warns that it can take a long time to win a first government contract, that it could take up to two years to start making a return, and that a diverse list of private-sector clients can help offset early losses.
Track commercial leads on their own
Mark each commercial inquiry as commercial in your lead records, with its channel, and follow it to won, lost or still open. Bids take longer to close than a homeowner's call, so a lead that is still open after a month is normal here and worth a polite follow-up.
Sources
Related answers
- How do you get referrals from other businesses?
- What should a service business homepage say?
- How do you write a good first reply to a new inquiry?
Lead generation and lead tracking
A lead that waits a day goes cold, and a lead with no source teaches you nothing. Ascent Vision fixes both.