Clearview National September 2019 - Issue 214 | Page 81

BUSINESSNEWS
A Royle success for leads company
» » WITH MEMBERS RISING, AN
increase in enquiries and a recent acquisition,
Clearview Magazine spoke to co-founder and
Managing Director of Leads2Trade, Andy Royle,
about how far the online marketing and lead
generation business has come – and why now
is the perfect time for installers of any size to
join.
For Leads2Trade, the rise from fledgeling
company to one of the UK’s leading providers
of double qualified sales leads for companies
operating in the home improvement industry
has been rapid.
And the Stockport-based company is not
resting on its laurels.
Andy formed the company in November
2006 with John Cohen and Alan Gray.
Having spotted a gap in the market that
would provide red-hot double qualified leads
for companies at a competitive price, the
entrepreneurs used their contacts in the
home improvement industry and built a series
of websites that would capture consumer
enquiries and created the now recognised
‘Trusted Local Supplier’ brand.
They then set about creating a national
network of reputable home improvement
companies that could offer consumers a free,
no obligation, quote before building a UK call
centre where staff could immediately react
to the web enquiries and qualify them before
being sent out to their members.
It proved such a success that the company
quickly grew organically and in 2013 acquired
the ‘Compare Companies’ brand.
Now the company has hundreds of installer
members who operate in a range of sectors
including windows, doors and conservatories,
security and heating and plumbing, and a
network of 100 websites, where homeowners
register to find tradesmen to carry out home
improvement work.
As the company has developed, Andy and
the team have introduced a number of support
services for installers to provide added value.
A members’ area dashboard means installers
can access consumer and installer feedback; a
hotkey telephone sales lead service provides an
immediate connection to a potential customer;
and a dedicated appointment booking service
provides the best quality sales leads.
‘it’s the value that we
place on our members
that we feel sets us apart’
“We really have come a long way since we
launched Leads2Trade almost 13 years ago, and
one of the main reasons for that is how we
look after our members,” explained Andy.
“While the number of leads we are
generating is of course a big attraction, it’s the
value that we place on our members that we
feel sets us apart.
“Our ethos has always been that we are
more than just a lead generating company and
a call centre, and we provide our members
with unrivalled customer service and become a
pivotal part of their business.
“The Dashboard allows members to manage
their sales leads, view current and old invoices
and statements, and access customer and
installer feedback.
“But it’s the hot key telephone sales lead
service and the dedicated appointment
booking service that really are the pinnacle of
the premium service we offer that’s unrivalled
by our competitors.”
Today, Leads2Trade is getting between 5,000-
6,000 enquires from consumers per week
and the company has seen several exciting
developments in the last nine months.
In keeping with its drive to provide a
fantastic service to members, the company
teamed up with top commercial finance firm
Pomegranate Commercial Finance to enable
them to assist both existing members and
none-members in applying for business loans.
And earlier this year Leads2Trade
completed the acquisition of glazing industry
sales-lead aggregator CloudGlaze, which
included market leading online brands, ‘Double
Glazing on the Web’ and ‘Conservatory Online
Prices.’
“It’s been a fantastic 13 years for us, and
our members, and we feel we have everything
in place to continue to drive forward for the
future,” added Andy.
“Despite the uncertainty Brexit is causing,
we have grown year on year and will continue
working with our members to drive sales and
create employment and opportunity.”
leads2trade.co.uk
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