Our latest featured debate straight from the Facebook Partner Forum!
Scott Ayres Question – Other than churches and schools what other types of commercial business do you guys go after and had success getting rentals?
Anyone do any sort of yearly contracts with businesses?
Beth Lowe Lewis I have a couple of banks that use us for their customer appreciation day. I’m hoping to get more on board this year. We also have one of our local Lowe’s stores that is using us for employee appreciation days. Again hoping to get more liking the idea and using us this year.
Rick Parker I had a couple beef plants that used us for employee picnics last year. One we had 5 units setup in a park.
Kyle Lampp We have had a bank and a landscape company use us for employee appreciation days last year.
Sarah Bazacos Tucker A local custom builder has a Family Day.. It is a huge day for us. First Advantage Credit Union – customer appreciation day. The YMCA end of summer fun day, PepsiCo, summer daycare camp.
Reece Bertholf We had a nice arrangement with a restaurant for most of football season every Sunday. They liked it and have used us a few times since and I expect them to be on board for many rentals this summer. Interestingly, full price full delivery plus attendant and they did it without even blinking.
Dave Mason We have several day cares and resorts in addition to the churches and schools. We also have some corporate events that will use us for employee appreciation events.
David Sells If you have a local college our largest client is our local college. We just signed a 9 year contract with them. Our contract is with the athletic department. We provide inflatables, tents, tables , chairs and much more. 80% is for football but we also do basketball and baseball events. Great money in the fall it really helps us survive the winter months.
Big schools have big budgets. But just always make sure you are ready to handle the business you go after. We all want big business but big business means big investment to make it all work.
Anthony Vincent We have a few community associations, a few softball teams, A Chick-fil-A, A Car care center.
Dana Valentino I have an exclusive with the county parks for all their summer camps and other events for the year. And the zoo for their summer camps. They are both advertising for me too. I just landed a gymnastic studio for all their events and they do dance and cheer too. Hopefully a good account with tons of potential leads.I try to find corporate jobs that are stacked with potential customers.
Beth Lowe Lewis For those of you that live near a NASCAR track: I do a huge event with the Bristol Dragway every summer for their week of the Jr Drags. I did the spring and fall NASCAR races until last year when I lost it to a company with a Ferris wheel. I still do events with the Speedway Children’s Charities at BMS and hope to one day get something to compete with mechanicals.
Dana Valentino David Sells is right. It’s all looking good but handling it is another thing. I book big jobs but have too sub out 90% because I don’t have the inventory. Then have to juggle the account and the vendors. But I need to land them so when I’m equipped in the future I can fatten my bank account.
Dave Mason Beth and Dana, if you need iron rides for your events give Tony in Orlando a call if the price is right he will bring the items to you and he has some pretty cool stuff.
Dana Valentino I get all the big from Tony. I just need my own. It breaks my heart too land a big job and sub out 2400$ for two big pieces. Someday I’ll have my own. Until then I build the brand and my reputation.
Tony Liberti Big rides require big expenses and dealing with The state fair bureau. All I can say, is be careful what you wish for when it comes to owning. I am sure you already know Dave. As for commercial clients, that’s about 60 – 70% of our business. Resorts and Local parks and rec’s will keep us busy year around.
Dave Mason One bit of advice for the majority of partners is to let the residential rentals pay the bills and think of the commercial as the gravy. It is much easier to replace or add residential but much harder to replace the big commercial accounts when they go in a different direction or change management.
Kori Stokes Definitely get in with the local college or university if you have one. We do at least one, if not two, multi-unit rental per week for Oklahoma State. It’s not only the college; the fraternity’s, sororities, campus housing, and off-campus student-only housing/apartments. Everyone likes to party.
Jason Rodgers Kori we have a local college. I’m not even sure where to start. Who would I talk with at the school?
Kori Stokes Oklahoma State’s student union is who does the majority of the renting. They rent for every home football game, they also do an event every Thursday in the Summer.
There is also a Student Union Activities Board (SUAB) they are the student group that organize most of the activities for the college students.
I also have my guys pass out price sheets to all the sorority and Fraternity Presidents every year. (They are in college so they know most of them).
I think the main thing is to get your foot the the door. For us, once we started setting up on campus the calls started coming in.