Heather Ripley, a leading expert on marketing within the home services industry and founder and CEO of global agency Ripley PR, shares more than a decade's worth of public relations expertise in her new book "Next Level Now: PR Secrets to Drive Explosive Growth for your Home Service Business."

The book, published by Advantage/Forbes Books, provides inside knowledge to HVAC, plumbing, electrical and other residential service business owners and operators on how to generate positive publicity to build their brand into a credible, household name in their markets. The book is now available for purchase on Amazon and other national retailers.

"Next Level Now is the culmination of many years I've spent working with business owners in the home service industry," Ripley said. "Serving the skilled trades is something I'm especially passionate about. The time I spent at Clockwork Home Services opened my eyes to an industry needing to understand that public relations, when integrated into a well-developed marketing plan, can be a powerful tool for growth. While my agency is honored to create PR campaigns that help contractors achieve success, I'm hoping this book will help hundreds more."

Next Level Now explains why public relations as a strategy is not just for big businesses, and it speaks to various types of owners and operators, from those focused on increasing revenue, to prepping for an acquisition, and to those building a legacy business to hand down to future generations. Throughout the book, Ripley illustrates why PR should be included in every home service company's marketing plan, regardless of their size, and how it can be a driving force behind their growth over time. She explains how, by pursuing earned media placement, businesses can increase top-of-mind awareness for their brand and position themselves as the trusted expert in their fields. Other common challenges, like whether or not to publicize charitable giving, are also covered with real, actionable tips provided for owners and their marketing teams.

"This book is my way of empowering even more home service business owners to create opportunities to flourish and create a name for themselves," Ripley said. "It is designed to be a tool that will guide ambitious contractors toward successfully using public relations to their advantage as they grow. When home service businesses strive to grow from $2 to $5 million, then from $5 to $10 million, and so on, they must learn to evolve their marketing strategies and do things differently. My goal is to help home service businesses truly dominate in their service areas, and this book will provide them a solid first step in the right direction."

Ripley gives business owners and operators information in the book that she uses every day in her agency. She founded Ripley PR in 2013, and the agency provides strategic communications services, including crisis management, media relations and social media strategies to the home service industry and other skilled trades. Ripley PR was named by Forbes as one of America's Best PR Agencies in 2021 and has been recognized by Entrepreneur magazine as a Top Franchise PR Agency three years in a row.