THE PERSON BEHIND THE BUSINESS
Beyond Pipe Dreams The fundamentals of building a successful brand
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hen I set up Pimlico Plumbers I quickly realised what branding really means. Having a recognisable name is one thing, but your brand has to have a strong and positive reputation, which comes from everything you do in a business. Plumbing has been blighted by rip off merchants, so we made a conscious effort to change poor public perception. The two best advocates for a business and it’s brand are it’s staff and it’s customers. Treating a customer well, who then recommends the business to their friends, is better than spending ten grand on advertising. That’s why the fundamentals of a business have to be right - and that includes making sure every stage of a job is delivered correctly. Our aim from the very start was to overcome the stereotype of the unreliable, unprofessional plumber. A handbook was created that not only set out working practices of the business, but defined what customers expect and should get from us. You’ll never see an unkempt Pimlico engineer or a dirty
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Pimlico van, period. If you start by getting the workforce to believe in customer service first then they will believe in the brand and deliver. It sounds like common sense, but trust me, it ain’t always that common! If the fundamentals are right, a business owner can be confident with their brand standing out for the right reasons. Don’t get me wrong, there are plenty of eye-catching brands out there, but too many are style over substance with the business and the brand suffering as a consequence. At Pimlico, we have built our brand on the expertise of our people and their ability to deliver on our promises. We have then embraced a wide range of ideas to market our offering to potential customers, which included some of the following. Firstly, decide on a unique selling point. Work out what the organisation stands for and stick to that core ethos in business transactions. Business owners need to make it the aim of their marketing effort to get that message across to their customers – and that means anybody they can reach. The guy who never buys a bean from you might inadvertently refer your biggest ever booking over lunch after liking something read about the business. In the past decade the use of social media has changed the way companies put their names into the public consciousness.
Post on industry and consumer sites and understand that Facebook, Instagram and Twitter are not just for kids. Perhaps hack out a niche for yourself by writing a blog and link it up to other social media channels to obtain the maximum reach. PR activities must be engaging, so business owners shouldn’t be afraid to have strong opinions. Sure, they need to be careful what they say when the tape recorder is running, but sitting on the fence won’t get them in the papers or on TV and radio. People like interesting characters who are unafraid to say what they think, within reason! Even if they don’t necessarily agree with them.
...People like interesting characters who are unafraid to say what they think... Even when they don’t necessarily agree with them... 24/7 media culture requires input from experts on all manner of subjects, but many people are afraid to take the plunge. There are extremely good businesses opportunities available by embracing social media, but it’s best not to become obsessed with it as not every customer is engaged in the digital world. Memorable signage at your business premises, well-liveried vehicles, and unique traditional advertising are all high profile assets. Incidentally, our latest vehicle branding presents a new colourway to celebrate our first electric vehicles, a step forward into the green era and our efforts to reduce our carbon footprint. You may also notice that our name has developed from ‘Pimlico Plumbers’ to simply ‘Pimlico’. A decision not taken lightly but as a multi-trade company we felt it necessary to change the perception that we were only a plumbing company, although people still refer to us as ‘Pimlico Plumbers! Change takes time, careful planning and perseverance!
Tel: 020 7928 8888 Web: www.pimlicoplumbers.com
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