To send Al your own questions, which if selected will run anonymously, send  us an e-mail with the subject title "Ask The Experts" to portal manager Katie Rotella at: rotellak@bnpmedia.com or fax at 248/502-2110.

My customers write me great letters telling me how pleased they are with my service and installation work. I know my techs really care about our customers and they take great pride in what they do. We answer the phones live and a whole lot more.

Frankly, I know my competition is no match. But my phone doesn't ring nearly enough and we battle to stay busy. What can I do?

Al Says ...

You have a great story to tell! The problem is you lack the marketing dedication or skill to get your message out to potential customers.

Most of us who grew up as a tech first rather than a businessperson are used to the calls automatically rolling in. But it doesn't work that way in business. You've got to let prospective customers know all the great stuff you do. And this requires that you get proactive about marketing. Here's a quick list of things to do:

1. Get permission to use those great letters from customers in your marketing efforts. They are testimonials to your excellent service and installation work.

2. Go to at least four other homes near the customer you serviced and leave a doorknob hanger letting them know you're serving their neighbor.

3. Create a marketing budget that is minimally 4 percent of your annual sales all the way up to 15 percent of sales if you want to be really aggressive.

4. Create a marketing allocation that allows you to get the calls you need when you slow down. This means you need to do marketing beyond the standard Yellow Pages. Here are just a few ideas:

a. Direct mail postcards
b. Radio ads
c. Cable ads
d. Home shows

5. Create a marketing calendar that has a trigger for stepping up your marketing when you're heading into your known slow times.