Surviving a Down Economy

Four business tactics for enduring industry ebbs in the wake of the coronavirus

by Scott Robins, national account manager for Shurtape Technologies

Like most trades, the painting industry feels a significant impact from fluctuations in national and regional economies. Most painting operations across the country are facing the economic ramifications of the COVID-19 pandemic, and along with them an uncertain future.

You obviously can’t control the factors that influence the economic ups and downs of the country or your region. But you can implement some best practices to help your business survive and remain positioned for success when the economy stabilizes.

Here are four tactics for preserving your business.

Protect your business – and your employees

For most painting companies today, a scarcity of work from seasonal dips or a slumping economy is familiar territory, but a global public health crisis with government guidelines that prevent you and your employees from reporting to job sites and interacting face-to-face with customers is an entirely uncharted landscape.

If you’re in an area where you’re restricted from sending teams out on jobs – or if you’ve made the decision on your own – your number one priority right now is protecting your company in the best way you can. This will mean something different to every business in every region of the country, but it ultimately boils down to two components: having enough available funds on hand to carry your business through and reducing overhead wherever you can.

In terms of funds, Canadian governments have offered a few different kinds of relief. Direct relief is available for companies with payrolls of $20,000 to $1.5 million through the Canada Emergency Business Account. CEBA provides interest-free, partially forgivable loans of up to $40,000. The federal government has also tried to encourage Canadian businesses to keep staff on payroll with the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy that covers 75 percent of each employee’s pay if the company has seen a revenue drop after March of 30 percent or more compared to 2019. The Canada Emergency Commercial Rent Assistance program is designed to encourage landlords to give tenants a break on rents and leases by giving them a forgivable loan to cover their costs when they reduce a tenant’s rent by at least 75 percent. Other programs are available from provincial governments and through regional economic development organizations.

As for reducing expenses, perhaps you’ve temporarily reduced your staff. Maybe you’ve even found yourself in the gruelling position of having to furlough the majority of your workforce. But your business still exists. So, it’s important to remember that your people are the most critical components to its operation. And the best way to protect your business and your people is to ensure they have a place of employment to return to when the economic engine begins to turn again.

If you’re hiring, hire strategically

Painting operations in some areas of the country aren’t on lockdown – some are even doubling down on jobs with an abundance of vacated businesses and offices to work in. If you’re one of those lucky few, you may even be hiring new employees to help with an uptick in work.

What you look for in new hires is a key component to position you for future success. That’s trickier than it may seem. Hiring and retaining quality employees is one of the industry’s most pressing perennial challenges. But hiring well is also a critical component to your success because your employees are on the front lines, directly impacting your company’s brand, quality of work, customer service and reputation.

To offset the short supply of experienced, reliable employees – especially if you’re located in a smaller labour market – some contractors have turned to screening potential employees based on character, attitude and behaviour, rather than searching exclusively for candidates with painting experience.

Take word-of-mouth online

If social distancing guidelines are preventing you from being out in the community, painting or drumming up new business, it’s critical for your business to network digitally and meet leads where they’re spending more of their time: online. Any painter not already marketing their services online is leaving leads on the table. A good reputation may be one of the best ways to create repeat clients, but your company also needs exposure to earn business.

Today’s consumer climate is such that many potential customers first engage with products and services online. So, it’s important to dedicate some of your resources, even if it’s just a small amount to online and social media marketing.

“Google AdWords campaigns and other online tactics have been very successful for us,” says Smith of Smith and Company Painting. On average, the company gets roughly 40 to 50 leads per month through various online outlets. “We have a high conversion rate, with roughly 35 to 40 out of 100 inquiries turning into jobs,” he adds.

You can (and should) also use social media – Facebook and Instagram, in particular ­– to get your business and its services in front of more potential customers. Both Facebook and Instagram allow you to pay to boost specific posts. You can choose your budget, geographic area and audience interests, and for even just $20, you can increase the likelihood of your post getting in front of someone who most likely needs your services.

Let technology help efficiency

You already know one of the most direct ways to control your bottom line is by becoming more efficient. But you also can’t cut corners and sacrifice the quality of work or valuable customer service you’ve built your reputation on.

There’s no automated substitute for the personal care you put into sharp lines on trim or smoothly finished cabinetry. But there are technologies that can help streamline your processes beyond the painting.

Software programs designed specifically to help painting contractors are a great way to get organized, reduce time-consuming paperwork and track customer interactions.

Most of these programs automate everything from tracking leads, scheduling and creating job documents to estimating and invoicing. They’re also handy tools for helping estimators and project leads in the field to communicate with the home office and customers.

And with the coronavirus limiting person-to-person interaction, the technology can even help give virtual quotes to customers.

With these kinds of technological efficiencies, painting companies have been able to remove a significant number of overhead processes and cut back on administrative staff, allowing them to focus more heavily on customer service and training, rather than operations.

It also removes significant expenses, positioning these companies to better endure unexpected hits to potential business in a down economy.

Finding Success

No matter the challenges of the economy, placing an increased focus on smart financial decisions, hiring, new ways of networking and openness to technological change, are business practices contributing to painters’ success.

No two cities or markets are the same, especially amid all the unknowns presented by COVID-19. But surviving these challenging times will ultimately depend on your ability to adapt.