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For many smaller companies, the thought of hiring a public relations agency to help in publicizing their businesses or events is stymied by their impression that PR is for large corporations. In the home service space, many contractors also believe they don’t need a PR partner unless they have an emergency and need a crisis response team.
However, both assumptions are far from the truth.
In fact, hiring a PR team will help your small- to mid-sized plumbing company stand out in ways marketing alone can’t do. This is essential if you’re trying to scale your company for resale, retirement or growth.
PR is not marketing
Marketing and advertising are necessities for all businesses to get their name and services out to the buying public. In many cases, you pay for these services directly, whether you’re purchasing ads on your local radio station or paying for creative services.
However, let’s be honest. If you’re spending your marketing budget on redesigning truck wraps, developing door hangers and mailers, or upgrading your search engine optimization platform, are you really doing anything different than your competition?
The art of advertising on vehicles and through the mail isn’t new. In February 1901, Milton Hershey of Hershey’s Cocoa fame was the first person to paint his brand name on his Riker electric car (https://bit.ly/4igki4L). Vinyl isn’t even new — it was discovered in 1926. However, it wasn’t until the 1980s that vehicle wrapping became a widespread practice. Still, it makes this marketing tactic nearly 40 years old.
And, of course, we know the U.S. Postal Service has been in existence since the 1700s, and the first advertising campaign was mailed in the early 1800s.
That isn’t to say these aren’t effective means of getting your plumbing company’s name out to potential customers, but it certainly isn’t new or innovative, and it isn’t something that makes you stand out from your competition.
Think back to a time when you saw one of your biggest competitors interviewed on the local news during a cold snap, and he was offering tips about how to prevent frozen pipe. Chances are that your competition wasn’t the lucky plumber drawn from a hat in the newsroom to be the one interviewed. More than likely he hired a PR agency to advocate on his behalf.
You probably also know you can’t buy that kind of coverage. The Harvard Business Review notes that appearing on the news, which is known as earned media, is far more effective than advertising because the public trusts that the media knows the best contractor to interview on this subject (https://bit.ly/3ZBdt6n).
PR builds reputations
Once you and your plumbing experts are regularly tapped by your local media to offer advice, you begin to be known as your service area’s most trusted plumbing advisor. And trust builds positive reputations.
An effective PR strategy raises awareness about your company as it simultaneously asserts that you have one of the best reputations in your service area.
Whether your company is seen volunteering at the local animal shelter for charity, answering questions about new local ordinances affecting plumbing pipe or developing ongoing content via press releases or blogs, a good PR partner is persistent. They will advocate on your behalf to get you featured as a thought leader in trade publications and as the go-to expert on plumbing in your community.
While marketing gets phones ringing when your ad runs on the local radio station, public relations reaches new audiences over time to help you establish your company as the most reliable and competent plumbing company in your service area.
Positive reputations protect against criticism
If your company plans to stick around for many years, chances are great that you will suffer through a business crisis at least once in your career. This is an uncomfortable fact.
However, once you’ve built a positive reputation, it also makes it easier for your company to weather any storm should a crisis occur. You can simply look around you to see this is the case.
You probably know a lot of family, friends and business associates who drive Fords and Toyotas, for example. The Ford F-150 and the Toyota Camry are perennially some of the top-selling automobiles on the road, yet both companies suffered through business crises that would have ruined less-reputable companies.
Ford’s Pinto reliability crisis in the early 1980s (MotorTrend, https://bit.ly/3Zn8O6G) and Toyota’s unintended acceleration apocalypse in the 2000s (ABC News, https://bit.ly/3VkZ6Rf) were dangerous problems resulting in the serious injury and death of drivers, yet both automakers are doing well today.
I hope the worst problem your plumbing company might ever face will be a bad review or a disgruntled customer complaining to the press about a misunderstanding over service price. If you have a great reputation beforehand, it’s easier for your community to forgive any transgressions.
PR builds relationships
As a home service company, you know how important your customer relationships are. Your staff often has to come into their homes and work in their personal settings to repair or install new equipment. That’s why it’s important that you are seen as trustworthy in your community.
In addition to helping you build your reputation and protect you against a business crisis, PR is also known as the art of building relationships.
This is important if you plan to scale your business for a future change.
If you are planning to sell your business or retire within the next five to 10 years, you will need brand awareness, established trust and credibility, and an emotional connection with your community to make your business attractive to sell.
So, if you’re stuck in a rut and aren’t growing the way you’d like, or you want to build better relationships within your community, hiring a PR partner should be your next step.
You don’t have to worry about the size of your company or wait for a crisis to happen to hire a public relations team. In fact, it’s better if you start establishing your credibility today.