Branding Information |
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Pressure Washing Companies and Co-Branding
Pressure washing companies often miss what we call 'super niche' markets, those industries which very much need pressure washing services and are willing to pay top dollar for them. One such industry is the signage business. For a pressure washing company with no relatives or friends in that industry it is hard to break in and get work there, however if you con-brand with an existing company you may find yourself with more work than you can handle and able to bill at very high rates Having been in the pressure washing industry some 25 plus years, we had always found that hooking up with a local sign company gave us instant credibility in the region and an expanded customer base of new clientele. Must of the new clientele once there cleaning signs had much more to wash also. For instance one time we went to clean a large sign for a sign company at a Lumber Company. Once there the owner was pleased and read the side of the work truck which we had also traded out in services for washing the sign company's service trucks. The Lumber Company owner had us busy for two-days washing and waxing all his delivery trucks, forklifts, concrete and common area. Below please find a letter that you can use and modify to fit your own business. Use this technique to alert local sign companies of your ability and willingness to work with them. Think about this and as always; Wash On ! - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Dear Signage Contractor, We know you have a tough job maintaining signs for clients. Our pressure washing company's industrial division specializes in cleaning signs. We would like to help you and make some money. We're looking for a win/win situation. We work in two ways: You give us a list of clients (contact names) of your customers who might be interested in monthly sign washing. In return we will wash your work trucks for free every other week. (Yes, tire dressing too!) You set up accounts for maintenance of signs, do all the billing and we do the actual sign cleaning while you work on mechanical and emergency calls. We bill you monthly for our washing. No matter which way you choose, if we work with you, we will only work exclusively with you in your area. No other signage companies. We will also contact many store owners directly to clean their signs. If these stores need new signs or mechanical repairs of old signs, we will refer this work to you. Sounds good? We thought you would like it. There is a bonus. We already have accounts to clean wheel chairs at hospitals, real estate agents cars, truck fleets, shopping carts at COSTCO, concrete for local property managers, etc. In other words, we know everyone. By giving you leads for new possible clients we can help you. Information sharing, networking, strategic partnerships, whatever you want to call it, it works! We are in it to win it! If you want to join (company name here) "110% Team" call us. If not the dust is free and we'll even give you a paper plate. (No plastic fork. You can make a taco.) If you don't do this, one of your competitors will. That I can personally guarantee. Thank you in advance, Name "Lance Winslow" - If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance; www.WorldThinkTank.net/wttbbs
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As Peter Drucker said, "The best way to predict the future is to create it" Branded Email: Email Branding is the Next Generation of Email All You Need is Branded Email Or Always Branded Email There to Remind Me Your Identity Speaks Loudly...What Are You Saying? Your corporate identity is a graphic expression of who you are as an organization. It plays a major role in what sells your company and its products. Everything that identifies your business, including your logo, color scheme, and tagline, work together to create an image that your customers remember. Building a corporate identity that bolsters your business objectives is a subtle, yet important part of achieving business success. The Brand Called You The best brands always try to do the right thing, so that their reputations will remain unsullied. But beyond that they grow, evolve and get better with time, while maintaining their special qualities from the past.We all have a personal brand with social, cultural, intellectual, and personal needs that may not necessarily be addressed in our daily work. Address these needs and you begin to improve your brand. Here is my agenda for building your brand. Join and participate in community and professional organizations Generate media coverage about your brand Stay in touch, or renew old ties with friends, family and business associates Let's examine how each one improves your brand.Join and participate in professional and community organizationsThe best brands grow, evolve and get better with time, while maintaining their special qualities from the past.Professional and community organizations provide ample opportunity to learn and grow.They provide professional development opportunities. They allow you to network with peers as well as with people you would not necessarily ever meet in the normal course of your workday.For instance, I am a member and served on the board of our local International Association of Business Communicators chapter. This allowed me to broaden my contacts in the corporate communications world, as well as form a number of friendships I probably never would have developed. I'm also a member of the North Carolina Citizens For Business and Industry. Here I meet people from all walks of life and all work disciplines. Finally, I am involved with Charlotte Reads, a local non-profit that focuses on literacy issues. This allows me to use my communication experience in support of an issue I feel very strongly about.But it's not enough to just join groups: you must participate to benefit fully. As a participant you have the opportunity to stretch, to gain confidence in yourself. Learn to lead by involvement on the board or in a special project.If you are a communicator by trade, try being treasurer for the group to exercise the other side of your brain, or take on a special project about which you feel strongly.Generate media coverage about your brandAll that professional and community involvement will certainly lead to opportunities to leverage that involvement into news about the brand called you. And, of course, there will be promotions, new assignments, and awards at work, too. More opportunities to make headlines.Your achievements are of interest to local print, broadcast, and online media, particularly the business pages. In Charlotte, the Observer has a weekly feature called On The Move spotlighting someone in a new position. The Charlotte Business Journal has a similar feature called Moving Up. If it is a big enough move and your company won't do it, pay the estimated $150 to place it on BusinessWire or PR Newswire. Consider it an investment in your future. Don't forget trade publications serving your industry and alumni publications.Seek out speaking engagements and write guest articles, too. This is yet another way to publicize your brand. And don't forget to do news releases when you make a speech or write an article. It's all about merchandising.To stay top of mind, you might even want to develop your own monthly e-newsletter like Think, the Hoover ink publication. Keep it mostly informational and limit the commercial material.Stay in touch, or renew old ties with friends, family and business associatesEveryone you know can be a brand ambassador for you, so stay in touch or reach out to those you haven't talked with for a while.Yet another reason for having a monthly newsletter that shares your expertise.The network of contacts you have built over your lifetime will be instrumental if you decide to start your own business, or change jobs.So, heed this word of advice: always deal fairly with people. One bad experience with your brand can negate 10 positive ones.Now, get out there and start branding. Brand Value Plan - Brand Identity Guru Developing brand value is critical to every organization and when professionally executed, delivers a clear and measurable competitive advantage to your firm. It does so by helping you establish a positive connection and value-relationship with your customer, which, over time, will build brand equity and increase brand value. The Big Uneasy: Clearing the Clouds of Guess People often come to me to assist them with developing their brand because they are unable to accomplish the business success they desire. They're experiencing what we call the Big Uneasy--the state of being when things are hard. They are stuck in an idea, unable to make it happen, and dreams are unfulfilled. Life is heavy, there's a lack of flow... the Big Uneasy has taken over. Internet Branding Having been in the franchising business all my life and understanding how hard it is to build a brand, I have probably read every other popular book on the subject. Some are good and most are excellent, as each one helps give you ideas on setting the stage for your brand marketing objectives. Branding on the Internet is somewhat new as before 1995 there was little if any Internet to speak of. One book I can recommend is: Brand to Sell Well Branding is an application of appropriate marketing techniques in the right proportion to a product. Brand management is to manage the forces in a market suitably to win favors for the product. Shattering the Branding Myths If you've been online long, you're sure to have seen many "gurus" give their ideas about branding. However, much of what you read simply isn't true. Over the years, many myths about branding have taken hold in the online world and spread like wildfire. The fact is: They are doing you more harm than good. |
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