SMART MARKETING: Image Is Everything

Excuse me for a moment while I climb onto my soapbox. Every now and then I find a "flyer" taped to my front door, in a rubber band in my driveway or staring up at me from my welcome mat.

It might be from a kid who wants to mow my lawn, a pool service (I do live in Florida) or from someone who wants to provide me with pest control. Being a marketer, I read them all and I keep many.

Sometimes these things look like they were prepared by a professional (or at least a talented amateur). Other times, they look like something designed by a sloppy six-year-old and if I don’t discard them immediately, I put them in a file marked "Shabby Competitive Materials." I keep another file for "Quality Competitive Materials" as well.

The point here is that there are businesses (meaning there are people) in our industry, indeed, in every walk of life, that simply don’t give a hoot about their image. While that may be fine for them, it reflects on our industry and on each and every one of us individually. I’m here to tell you that a pretty broad range of consumers make sweeping judgments and buying decisions based oftentimes on fleeting, superficial, first-impression type images. It’s sad, but it’s true.

TELLING EXPERIENCES. Can you relate to this? Sometimes, when someone has had a bad experience at, say, a seafood restaurant, even if the customer has been a frequent patron, he or she makes the decision not to eat at that restaurant again. Sometimes, the decision becomes to never again eat that particular dish or, worse, to give up seafood entirely! Arbitrary? Capricious? Illogical? Maybe. But in a world filled with choices, this happens…a lot!

Humans often make blanket judgments based on a single (real or perceived) experience. I know people who have made a voting decision or have even switched entire political parties because they instinctively and even irrationally disliked one person associated with one party. When we encounter something displeasing, some aspect of human nature or psychology kicks in that links that displeasing or distasteful idea or experience with a whole range of loosely or tightly connected ideas. These are not "thinking" decisions. They are "feeling" decisions. They are not logical — they are purely emotional and they’re pretty darn powerful!

Personally, when I see shabby work being done or, more to the point, when I see advertising or marketing of an unprofessional or seedy nature, I form an opinion of the people (and the company) behind those activities. Now I grant you, sometimes marketing of this nature is temporarily effective. It gets people talking about you (aware of you, if you will) and that’s the general idea behind advertising. But what are they saying about you? What are they thinking about you? In a highly competitive environment, when attempting to reach a generally intelligent and educated consumer, doesn’t it make strategic, long-term good sense to put your best foot forward and try to make not just an impression, but a good impression?

IMPORTANCE OF IMAGE. Pest control is not a glamorous business. People don’t generally wake up in the morning with a burning desire to run out and purchase our services. People seek us out because they have real or perceived problems and they look to us for answers and solutions. Where I live, there are literally hundreds of listings for "Pest Control" businesses in our Yellow Pages directories. As you scan the ads, some are professionally, tastefully prepared. Others are, in my opinion, tacky, uninformative and on occasion even insulting to the intelligence of the customer seeking our help. Which are more effective? Frankly, that’s not the point. Or is it?

From the flyer on the door step, to the ad in the phone book, to the commercial on television or radio, to the point of sale materials…from the "smile in the voice" of the person who answers the phone, to the appearance and attitude of the person who sells your services, to the energy and professionalism of the service technician, to the overall reputation of your company…the image and presentation involved in all of these elements contribute mightily to the elusive concept of what constitutes a successful operation. It’s not just whether what you do works — it’s how the customer receives all of the messages you send.

Step back and review these things as they relate to your business. Consider what you say, how you say it and how consumers receive it. Reflect on the messages you’re sending in every medium you employ to grow your business.

Strategically and for the long-term benefit of your business and of our industry, image is very, very important!

The author is vice president of marketing/public relations for Massey Services Inc., Maitland, Fla. He can be reached via e-mail at bbrewer@pctonline.com or at 407/645-2500.