Everyone starts their business with the objective of making a profit, if not immediately, then eventually. Of course, that objective is often easier to imagine than achieve. After all, profitability often hinges on things beyond your control, such as the state of the economy. The good news is that there are many things in your control that can help boost profitability. So, if you’ve been wondering how to make a pallet business more profitable, keep reading for some key tips and strategies.
Your online presence may look far removed from the everyday tasks your business undertakes, but it’s essential to making your pallet business more profitable. Getting your online house in order starts with your pallet business website. First things first, you need a website.
You can make your own website using a site builder tool, a content management system, or outsourcing the design and building of the website to a third-party company. While a website builder or CMS is often the cheaper option, it might not be the best option from a Search Engine Optimization (SEO) point of view. Site builders often provide limited customization options. A CMS might offer expansive options, but mastering the software can often be more challenging than most expect.
Outsourcing the site design and building often gets you the best results regarding overall functionality and appearance. For example, professional website designers can easily integrate your brand colors into the website design. They can also integrate features like online quote requests and other custom features.
The better your website functions and easier it is for users to get quotes and interact with your business, the more effective it will be at increasing sales and profits.
If you’re wondering how to make a pallet business more profitable, online marketing is the most effective option, but there are a few key areas that every pallet business owner should know about. Right at the top of the list is search engine optimization (SEO). Think of SEO as the rulebook for how you get your website or content on your website to show up high in search engine results. Google offers extensive guidance on how SEO can help boost visibility and traffic to your website. It’s also something you can largely outsource.
Next up in the online marketing list is social media. While social media isn’t as critical for B2B sales, it’s still not something you should overlook. Minimally, you should have a business profile established on a major social media platform like LinkedIn. LinkedIn is a business-to-business networking (B2B) site that has a business page option with fairly expansive options, so it’s a popular choice for pallet manufacturers. Other platforms depend more on generating a lot of content, so they’re often less helpful for a pallet business.
Most businesses engage in some level of content marketing. On the easier end of things is maintaining a blog. You can generate blog posts in-house, outsource blog writing, or combine the two. Other content marketing types include videos you host on your site or through a streaming video platform like YouTube.
There are also paid marketing strategies, such as pay-per-click (PPC) ads, that typically appear at the top of search engine results pages and within social media site feeds. Paid strategies typically work best for generating short-term boosts in traffic, quote requests, and other sales inquiries.
A combination of online marketing strategies typically draws in organic and paid traffic. Assuming you craft good paid ads and generate solid content for your site, you should get a steady stream of traffic that consists of good prospects for your business. That traffic should increase your overall profitability by boosting your total customer base.
It’s pretty easy for businesses to fall into tunnel vision. For pallet businesses, that often means focusing exclusively on building and selling new pallets to other businesses. While that may well be the bread and butter for your business, it’s not your only option. There are other pallet-related services that you can explore.
For example, you can collect broken pallets with a drop-trailer service, and then turn the scrap into used pallets. While they won’t necessarily generate the same kind of profit, they also don’t need to generate the same kind of profit.
Other options include recycled pallets and pallet rentals. You can even move into the pallet furniture business. For example, you can make pallet coffee tables or pallet benches out of used pallets. Be aware that making pallet furniture is a real business with its own needs, equipment, and required expertise. However, an existing pallet business should have an edge in launching a pallet furniture sideline.
Expanding your services or offerings can bring in new revenue streams, ultimately making your business more profitable.
For those in the business, how to make a pallet business more profitable is likely a constant and pressing question. Fortunately, there are a variety of ways to boost the profitability of your pallet business. To do that, you’ll want to get your online game in order, which starts with either building or improving your website. Once your website is in order, you’ll want to explore online marketing, such as search engine optimization (SEO), content marketing, pay-per-click, and social media. You should also consider related services you can offer, such as pallet rentals, pallet recycling, and even pallet furniture. If you feel website design and online marketing are not in your wheelhouse, get in touch us as we are experts in helping pallet manufacturers increase their sales and profits.