Another year ends, and still home improvement contracting scams rank on the top list for consumer complaints. Construction and home improvement fraud came in third on the 2005 list and consistently has ranked as one of the top three consumer complaints since 1984!!!!
If you read it in the newspaper, or see on your local news, it has got to really upset some legitimate contractors who see their industry to continue to be ruined by a few bad apples. So what are you suppose to do?
Regardless if you are a seasoned veteran with an established company or a newcomer just starting off, you must take action, and create a public relations plan for your local media. Simply by doing so you will:
- Establish your expertise among your peers, the press, and your potential clients.
- Build goodwill among your customer, supplier and your community
- Create and reinforce your brand and professional corporate image
- Inform and create good perceptions regarding your company and services
- Assist you in introducing a new service or product to your market
- And most importantly, generate leads, or even sales.
So, the question you will probably ask, is "How Do I do that?"
A very important part of any public relations plan is gaining press coverage. The first step in getting media attention is to establish and build a database of press contacts and editors of in local newspapers. I'm not talking about the New York Times, or Washington Post. Think small. The local weekly newspapers towns put out, home association newsletter editors, local news shows. You can find most of these contacts simply through the internet. Maintaining relationships with these press contacts is very important. Often these press contacts will let you know about upcoming features within their publications and ask you to submit materials such as press releases and articles. This type of working relationship is important because it can often lead to press coverage that money can't buy. For the cost of a piece of letterhead, photo, envelope, and stamp you may be able to get exposure greater than what you could get from thousands of dollars worth of advertising.
If a potential client sees that you have been the recipient of the media's attention, then it adds strength to the theory that you are good at what you do and an "expert" in your field. This will make people desire to have you and only you help them. This is psychologically important, because it lowers sales resistance and price resistance.
