One of the main goals of any home service public relations strategy is to keep your business top of mind with both reporters and the homeowners you serve.
And, a surefire way to ensure this happens is create enough credibility and buzz around you and your business so that when these reporters need an expert source or when a potential customer needs service, your business is the first one they think of.
Being the go-to local expert will not only lead to guest appearances on local news shows and in newspaper reports, it also builds trust among the public when they need help with their plumbing, HVAC or electrical issues.
One way to create this buzz is to hire a PR agency that understands the specifics of the home service industry. A good agency will find ways to establish you as an authority and get useful information out to the public. You may be the expert in your field and have the experience to prove it, but if no one knows that, it doesn’t do you much good.
So making sure that everyone in your service area knows you are the expert should be one of the first things you should include when building your PR strategy. Here are some ways to get started:
Enhance Your Website
Your website is generally the first thing people see when they perform an online search for service. If your website is outdated or isn’t user friendly, they will click out and move on to a competitor’s website that is modern and easily navigated.
Make sure your website has plenty of visual cues like clear, engaging images and short videos. You need to have numerous calls to action encouraging consumers to call or email you for service. You can also provide potential customers with the ability to schedule service online.
Finally, make sure your website looks professional. If your content is rife with misspellings, the videos are blurry or you haven’t provided enough information about who you are and what your company does, you could lose potential clients. And you certainly won’t be seen as an expert if your website is subpar.
Start a Blog
Along with updating your website, you need to consider starting a blog that offers advice and allows you demonstrate your expertise.
A blog is NOT a place to advertise. Your blog posts can be a bit promotional but should still focus on tips for your readers or company news. Consumers are already inundated with ads and won’t voluntarily head to your website to read more advertising. But, if you provide them with something they can use, they’ll happily read your prose.
Providing tips and expertise on your blog has the added bonus of cementing your position as the expert in your field.
But, a word of caution: once you start a blog, you must maintain it. Providing fresh content on your website not only helps you move up in Google search rankings, it will also be seen by the media who will consider you a potential expert source.
Expand your Network
While it may not be immediately clear why joining civic groups or volunteering at local charities and non-profits will help establish you as the leader in your market, the more you’re seen, the more you become recognized as a business genuinely invested in your community.
You can also lend your expertise to area charities as a gift-in-kind or mentor younger generations who are interested in a career in the trades.
If you are out volunteering at your local pet adoption center or Boys and Girls Club or starting clothing drives or food funds, you will be identified as a helper in the community. That’s a huge benefit when you’re trying to establish yourself as a helpful expert, and the media will take notice.
Send out Press Releases
Even in our technical age, press releases are still the bread and butter of delivering news and interacting with the media. And, if you provide a release that is well-written in Associated Press Style and that offers timely and relevant information, you will get noticed.
So, if you are a plumbing expert and the weather report is calling for prolonged freezing, a release detailing how homeowners can protect their homes, pipes and other creature comforts from the weather makes it more likely you’ll get a call from a reporter. Capitalizing on events that are relevant and newsworthy helps your statements get noticed.
Another way to solidify your role as a subject matter expert is to be quoted in trade publications regarding your home services industry area of expertise. Identify the publications you and your peers read the most and concentrate on nurturing relationships with the editors and reporters who work at those publications.
Once you’ve established yourself as a reliable and accurate expert on matters surrounding your trade, you’re more likely to be called upon for quotes or as a subject matter expert.
Pitch Yourself
Finally, you need to consistently think of ways to get yourself in front of audiences that can strengthen your credibility and thought leadership abilities. This could mean that you submit yourself as a speaker at industry conferences or by following local news events so you can put yourself forward as an industry expert with advice for area homeowners.
When you put yourself out there in such a visible manner, you subject yourself to media scrutiny. That’s why it’s important that you receive some media training as part of your overall public relations strategy. A reputable PR agency should be able to prepare you to handle media interviews so that you feel good about your expertise and comfortable in front of a camera.
But, it does take time and effort to promote your capabilities.
Pitching yourself and providing fresh content aren’t always easy when you have a business to run. Hiring a PR agency that specializes in the home service industry can help you offset some of these responsibilities while still centering your experience.
You don’t want to waste any opportunity to make sure that everyone knows you’re the expert in your field, so getting your name and know-how out to the public is a priority if you want to take your business to the next level of growth.
Heather Ripley is founder and CEO of Ripley PR, an elite, global public relations agency specializing in the skilled trades, B2B tech and franchising. Ripley PR is recognized as the top PR agency for the home service industry. It also has been listed by Entrepreneur Magazine as a Top Franchise PR Agency five years in a row and was named to Forbes’ America’s Best PR Agencies for 2021. Ripley is the author of “NEXT LEVEL NOW: PR Secrets to Drive Explosive Growth for your Home Service Business,” which is now available on all audiobook platforms. For additional information, visit www.ripleypr.com.