Hey everyone.

This topic has been covered a couple of times in the past but it's been a while so it may be relevant to many of us.

Here's my situation.

I am confident in my skills as a technician on the shopbot as well as the rest of the woodshop but I am low on work. I have made signs. I have done some one-offs. I have done a few prototypes. I have even carved a 4ft tiki head for a local bar. The problem is that I haven't found enough regular work to support my wife (and more importantly my daughter due in April). I know that there is work around but I haven't found it yet.

So far my marketing has been limited to some social media posts like Facebook and Twitter and a few happy customers that pass my contact info to friends.

I'm looking for a few strategies to drum up business.

One option I'm considering is cold calling some of the local manufacturing companies with a script something like this...

Hi,
My name is greg flanagan. I found your company while searching for local manufacturing businesses. Could I speak with someone about what you do there? I am curious about the industries in our neighborhood.

I run a small job shop in Northeast Minneapolis and I’d like to see if there is a way we can help each other out. If it’s OK I’d like to stop in sometime for a chat about your work.

What do you think? What other strategies have worked for you when looking for new work?