Indiana’s PHCC is constantly looking for ways to provide something new / better / different for our members. So have built a series of “short-attention-span-theatre” videos to cover topics to improve our members’ businesses.
Our first series of these videos are with FUEL VM (fuelvm.com) who has been a trusted business collaborator of mine for years. FUEL VM is a digital marketing agency based out of Fishers IN with extensive digital marketing experience (specifically with plumbing). They were kind enough to share some knowledge to support our members.
Transcript
Chuck:
Hi, I'm Chuck Gillespie with the Indiana Plumbing, Heating, and Cooling Contractors. I am here with Andrew Curtis, from FuelVM. I've actually worked with Andrew for almost 20 years now. He is the founder of Fuel, and, really has been able to help us in a lot of ways, especially working with our new website that you've seen. He's done the Greater Indianapolis website as well. Andrew, you know, when it comes to that marketing and branding piece, you know, we really want to get into this area we call integrated marketing. Tell me what integrated marketing is.
Andrew:
So in, yesteryear, when you would have a, Yellow Pages ad, the whole point of marketing was, hey, I have a visibility and all of a sudden I can, be able to have a consumer just, dial in your phone number. And that was it. The world is just so complicated and so much so, so different now, and layered, even for the regional business. So now it's, hey, I have to have my Google, Google business profile. And oh, by the way, I have to have reviews, and I have to have social media, and I have to have digital ads and again and then, oh, by the way, that's all going to come down to your website, which is your sales funnel, and then you have, a CRM and you have your follow up to it. The thing is, it's ironic because the world has gotten much faster, but it's created more layers of complexity for the regional and small businesses. But it doesn't have to be scary, but you just have to be aware of all of the pieces and the importance of them.
And so when we say integrated marketing, it's more it's thinking about marketing as more of a relay race. As opposed to before, it was a one or a zero. Am I visible? And I get somebody to call me versus now the consumer has to be able to go qualify you and decide whether you're credible or not.
Chuck:
When it comes to, you know, our membership, we have folks that are one-horse operations all the way up to companies with 12 hundred or 15 hundred, you know, multiple, you know, thousands of employees. What would you say are the 1 or 2 things in this integrated marketing piece that we need to just start with, start with?
Andrew:
I would argue every business really needs to just go through a checklist and there's probably 10 or 12 things on that checklist. And frankly, it would probably bore you to death to to go do this. I am going to say you need to have a, a valid social media profile and a valid website which can execute whether somebody can do business with you and become a lead.
Until those two kinds of areas, and unfortunately, I'm kind of cheating because frankly, when you start talking about social outlets, LinkedIn and Instagram, Facebook, you know, X I mean, those are probably the four biggest ones that I would worry about from a regional perspective. But even thinking about how important all of those are because there's certain user types that are just there.
When you start thinking about it, just age demographics, the social media platforms, are dictated by age groups. Their banding is huge, depending upon which platform you're on. So, so it's kind of interesting because I didn't answer your question, but part of it is your audiences are so complicated.
Chuck:
Yeah, and that makes sense. Andrew. Thank you.
Andrew:
Thanks, Chuck.
PS: FUEL VM built the new INPHCC.com site and GHPHCC.org sites in the past year. If you need any assistance with brand, web or digital marketing, I’d be happy to introduce you.
