Moving home is not one single step - it is a journey. From the moment you decide that you want to move all the way up until you finally kick off your shoes in your brand new hallway, it is a process, not a day.
Sometimes it's scrambled into weeks, other times it stretches out over months. While the length of time may vary, the stages of moving always remain the same. Here at MoverAlerts we call the process the ‘Homemover Wave’ defined by these steps:
The decision is made, the house is put on the market and the search begins for the perfect property to move to.
A new home has been found, offers have been accepted and the timeline for exchange is taking shape. Plans for moving are set in motion.
All the checks, surveys and reports have been carried out, the exchange date is fast approaching and the moving process is in full swing.
The first few days after the event, when everything is shiny, exciting and still a little bit fraught.
After the initial panic dies down and thoughts turn to making a new house into a home.
Of course, not all moving services are relevant to homemovers at every stage. On the morning you decide to put your house on the market, you are less-likely to give much thought into removal vans. Yet, the day after you’ve moved, you’ll have no interest in removal companies but you may quickly realise you need to access some self-storage for those stacks of books that won’t fit on your new shelves.
If you own a business that markets to home movers, identifying the points during the home mover timeline that your services are relevant is vital. Time spent trying to entice people who no longer have a need for your service is wasted - it defeats the point of sourcing qualified home mover leads at all. Instead, focus on reaching out to your target customers when they are specifically in the market for your own services.
Removals companies will generally be needed at a couple of different points in the house moving process.
Your first touchpoint with homemovers could come as early as the ‘Want To Move’ stage.
For many homemovers, the cost of the move itself may have important financial impacts. This makes it important for them to know how much a removals service could cost as soon as their house is listed. This way estimated moving costs can be factored into deposit funds, which can, in turn, dictate their property price range.
As a removals company, this is a great time to be visible for those forward planners. Offer no-obligation quotes or heavy discounts to encourage them to pick you as the first point of contact.
Specific, targeted outreach may also be reserved to the moving soon stage, which houses are SSTC. This is the time when people will have more detail on distance and even dates, to help them make more informed bookings.
Of course hile their minds will be on the physical process of moving, exact details might not be final. The wait between offer acceptance and contract exchange can stretch out, so you even if you don’t get hard and fast dates, it is an important time to make a connection. Offer deals or discounts for bookings made far in advance and you can incentivise even last-minute planners to commit as early as possible.
Your last chance to grab new, qualified leads, is during the ‘Moving Now’ period. Once exchange dates are set, even the most unprepared of home movers will be starting to look for removals companies.
This is also the stage at which you will deliver your services, and will probably be the last point of contact you have at all.
When it comes to storage companies, the focus for people needing your services is probably more towards the middle and end of the process.
The ‘Moving Soon’ stage is a great time to start reaching out to home movers. They will know if they are downsizing and need to shed some belongings, and will likely be more receptive to the prospect of lowering their stress levels by spreading the home moving process over a longer period.
Towards the very end of this stage, the packing process could also alert them to just how much ‘stuff’ they have so they could even begin to look for storage companies very close to their moving date. If you’ve already reached out, your company will be fresh in their mind.
This might seem a little late to be engaging self-storage companies but the unpacking process could easily highlight the need for additional storage.
Homemovers may have overestimated how much space their new home has, and may need some additional space to store any belongings that don’t fit. Renovation work may take rooms out of use, while first-time buyers may realise they need somewhere to keep their belongings while they stock up on key furniture items like wardrobes, drawers and bookcases to store them in.
With house cleaning services, there are opportunities to engage customers throughout the duration of the house moving timeline and establish repeat custom.
Before the house is even listed, homemovers may consider employing a cleaning service to get their home looking its best for the valuation or listing pictures. A fresh, clean home makes for a far more attractive listing, which in turn could speed up the sale process - this can be used as a basis for any marketing aimed at people in the ‘Want to Move’ stage. You could also highlight how much easier it is to prepare for viewings when you’ve recently had a deep clean of the whole house
At this point, conscientious homemovers could also want a cleaning company to ensure that their home is scrubbed and spotless, ready for its new owners. They could be open to an even more intensive cleaning service, including carpet or oven cleaning. This is a service that will save them time and stress during the intense moving process.
Having left their last home spotless, homemovers may want their new home to sparkle too. During the just moved stage, they could want a professional deep clean before they unpack or start to make this new property their home.
If you want to make sure you’re targeting the right people at the right time in their house moving journey, MoverAlerts can supply you with the information you need. We have comprehensive homemover data covering the whole UK, to help you target properties that are on the market and people who want your services.