Ripley PR

Are You Taking Advantage of Home Service PR?

With traditional marketing efforts, you may see steady business. Ad campaigns, email marketing, commercials—all important. But are you standing out from your local competition?

Integrating home service public relations into your marketing plan allows you to boost your advertising efforts in an authentic way, and taking advantage of it can set you a step ahead of your competitors.

Build trust

Through PR, you add credibility to your brand by showing your target audience that you are the expert in your field. Things like offering helpful tips on a local TV station for homeowners to keep their pipes from freezing or listing warning signs of a failing HVAC unit in a local newspaper build trust with your target audience by showcasing your knowledge and the service you provide through the media they trust.

Become top-of-mind

The value of earned media placement is unmatched, and those footprints stick. Your audience is likely to remember you after seeing you on the morning news or reading an article mentioning you in a local magazine. And guess who will come to mind the next time they need a service that you provide?

Generate leads

Media exposure generates leads by garnering trust with your target audience and keeping your brand top-of-mind. As you continue garnering media placement, you keep that momentum going and your business growing.

Ready to take advantage of home service public relations? Give Ripley PR a call at (865) 977-1973 or visit us online today.

This post was written by Audrey Love on March 17, 2023

PR Improves Your Visibility in East Tennessee

build relationships with public relations When many people think of East Tennessee, they often conjure up images of a small, downhome place nestled in the foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

But, the truth is that East Tennessee is a populated and vibrant region with a good combination of locally owned and nationally run businesses. Competition for customers in many industries is stiff.

This means that in order to draw in the customers you want, you should consider an East Tennessee public relations strategy that will build a buzz around your business. This can include a number of visibility-boosting plans.

Position Yourself as a Thought Leader

If you’ve worked in your industry for several years, you probably have lots of expert advice you can share with the general public. Let reporters know you are available for quotes or soundbites on topics that relate to your industry.

Another way to get noticed by the media is to issue press releases and pen blogs on your website offering tips that relate to your market. You should use your social media channels as avenues to provide practical advice, as well.

But be consistent. Keep your blog posts current and relevant. If your blog posts are offering advice on winter topics in the middle of a summer heatwave, your content will suffer because of the stale information.

Build Local Relationships

In addition to building an ongoing dialogue with your local media, you should also be active in your local area.

You can also start a companywide philanthropic program to help strengthen your community. You should regularly share how your efforts have helped the organizations you’ve chosen to assist. Remember to make it about them and not you. People want to do business with companies who give back to the community but they can also detect a phony who is only in it for the clout.

Hiring a PR Agency

Keeping up your visibility while you are trying to run your business can sometimes be difficult. It’s hard to create intriguing content when budgets are due. And, it can be time consuming to tackle weekly blog and daily social media posts when the product has to be made.

That’s when you should hire a team that knows East Tennessee PR and can respond to the local community.

At Ripley PR, we know East Tennessee. Our experienced team of local writers and media experts can help you create the content you need and get it out to the right area influencers. If it’s time for your company to break away from your industry crowd, call Ripley at (865) 977-1973 or contact us online today!

This post was written by Heather Ripley, Founder/CEO on March 15, 2023

Highlight your franchisees’ success with PR

tell your franchisees' stories You’ve developed a winning business model for your company and decided to franchise your idea.

But, in order to really succeed in franchising, you’ll need to invest in some franchise public relations to make your business grow.

One way to do this is to highlight your franchisees’ successes. Not only does this show your existing franchisees that you care about their accomplishments, it also shows other investors that you value your team.

PR builds relationships

Public relations is the art of developing and keeping relationships. For your franchise partners, this includes building relationships with their local media, potential customers in their area and with you.

A good PR strategy also includes building a positive reputation for your franchise brand. Helping your franchisees maintain a positive view in their local area brings more customers to their store or office while it builds goodwill for the name you’ve built throughout the years.

What PR can do for you

Franchise public relations also helps your franchisee garner more earned media. Earned media – articles written by third parties – is more valuable than any of the advertising you can buy because it is seen as more trustworthy. Studies have shown that 92% of consumers trust earned media while only 4% trust paid advertising.

But getting earned media isn’t always easy.

That’s where a franchise PR professional can help.

PR experts have contacts in the media and know how to get your franchisees noticed. The more often a local reporter or trade journalist talks with your franchisee, the better the chances they’ll become known as the thought-leader in their area.

And this makes your franchise more valuable.

Why your PR team matters

You need a team of public relations professionals who understand how important it is to build up your franchisees as it builds your brand. And, the team at Ripley PR knows about franchising.

We’ve developed relationships with key members of local media throughout the country and in the trades. And, our content creation team knows the stories that news outlets want to tell.

If you want to highlight your franchisees’ success, give Ripley PR a call at (865) 977-1973 or contact us online. We’d love to talk to you about spotlighting your team.

This post was written by Lara Bergman on March 9, 2023

Impress investors with B2B tech public relations

You’re launching a new product, you want to get it started off with a bang for your investors, B2B tech public relations can help. You’re wanting to be an authority in the industry, B2B tech public relations can help.

A team like Ripley PR, can help you show off and impress the backers who have put their money and trust into your company.

Through earned media coverage, clients and investors will be reading about your company wherever they get their news.

Earn the Impression

Whether it’s a guest article in Construction Business Owner, or an interview in Tech Crunch, being seen and presenting your message is the biggest part of the battle. An experienced public relations team can help earn your company free coverage and be a part of the story.

But first, we must figure out how your target is consuming content.

Newsletters

According to Content Marketing Institute, 31% of B2B marketers say nurturing leads through email newsletters is the most effective strategy.

According to Statisa, nearly 50% of customers are happy to receive newsletters from their favorite brands or interests.

In industries like construction tech, there are many effective newsletters like that of Construction Executive that you could find yourself in. Opening that Monday morning newsletter to find the company I’m invested in featured in a story would certainly make me feel better about where my money went. For those, a little more prone to listening to their content on a Monday morning, we can help with that too.

Podcasts

Surprise, attention spans dwindle, audio content keeps rising. It’s the new late night, it’s the new way to read books, it’s the new way to find out about things or people that interest you. B2B tech public relations can help grab your spokesperson a spot on the podcast your investors are listening to.

This is just scratching the surface of what public relations can do. An experienced team can still get you in Forbes and can still get you on television, but it’s important to understand and be up to tune with other forms of media investors are consuming.

If you’d like to get started, contact Ripley PR online or at 865-977-1973.

This post was written by Seth Norris on March 7, 2023

Get in the News with Home Service Public Relations

Have you ever opened a newspaper and seen a column from your HVAC competitors? Or maybe you were watching the local news and saw a rival plumber talking about preventing frozen pipes? Why were they the chosen ones? Why couldn’t it have been you?

The truth is many in the home service industry are asking the same questions. The media often doesn’t just select an expert at random for spots on TV or in an article. It’s usually a company they’ve built a relationship with one way or another. Or, more than likely, they’ve turned to a public relations specialist who has helped them secure those opportunities.

Utilizing a home service public relations strategy can be an effective approach for contractors looking to grow their brand in their local communities. By partnering with a PR firm, like Ripley PR, you are gaining a set of tools that can help you build the important media contacts you need to land in the publications you want.

Through proactive media outreach, our experts will use your expertise to pitch ideas to trusted journalists in your area to secure opportunities. Whether it’s tips on how to save energy in the summer or how to prevent drain clogs, we will use these pitches to help build you as a thought leader in your community.

In addition to proactive media outreach, our experts can develop error-free press releases that can be used to garner the media’s attention. With newsrooms limited, these releases are ready-to-print, which makes them more attractive to journalists. Because of this, they are more likely to share your important news.

So, if you are ready to partner with an experienced PR agency that has experience in the home service industry, give our experts a call at (865) 977-1973 or contact us online.

This post was written by Anthony Cloud on March 1, 2023

Highlight your charitable contributions with home service PR

My grandfather was a humble man. He was one of the best men I’ve ever known. Growing up in a small town, he knew just about everybody. A carpenter and farmer, he believed in doing good works and helping others whenever you could.

It wasn’t so he could show off or brag about what he was doing. It wasn’t meant to earn him more business or boost his reputation in the community. He didn’t need that. Everyone who met him respected and liked him anyway. No, he just wanted to do his part.

We work with clients that are doing their part, too. One of our home service clients just gave $75,000 to charity. And we have a couple that run branded charity campaigns with regular donations and volunteer work all year long. They don’t do it for kudo or media coverage, but we’re happy to give them both.

I know it can seem an odd notion, but you should be celebrating your charitable contributions to your community. As part of our home service public relations strategy, we urge clients to share their good deeds, whether through a media release or through the pitching efforts of our media relations team. Here’s why:

It builds a stronger connection to your community. Your customers don’t want a faceless, corporate contactor. They want someone who will treat them like family. By caring about your community, you’re showing you care about the people in it.
It makes you a more interesting employer. As your techs retire or move on to other jobs, you need to be thinking about how you’ll replace them. Younger workers are looking for employers that are working to make a difference, whether that means environmentally, philanthropically or just within the work place. Again, it shows you care more about than just your bottom line.
You’re giving the charity you support a boost. Your name isn’t the only one mentioned in that press release or news story. You’re shining a spotlight and increasing awareness for the charitable organization you support. This could help them bring in donations, volunteers and support. It’s a win-win.

Our team knows how to get your contributions the coverage you need, whether in news stories, features or on social media. We love sharing our clients’ stories, and we really want the chance to share yours. Contact Ripley PR today and let us get started.

This post was written by Amanda Greever on February 28, 2023

How construction public relations can amplify your case study

Facts and insight are getting harder to find in these modern days of information overload. Construction public relations can help you provide those for your target audience with a case study.

A team like Ripley PR has experience utilizing case studies and can help create or share that information to make the most of it. So, let’s get to it. What is a case study?

Case studies provide insight into practices and tactics for a specific client or situation. Let’s take a product for example. This product helped this client solve this problem by doing X, Y and Z. When it comes to the construction industry, a case study can be used to accommodate your marketing plan and give plenty of content for your public relations team to earn placement in your needed media targets.

Trade Media

Trade media is a great place to send your case study. A case study in an industry outlet like Construction Executive or others will provide a direct line to those you’re trying to reach. A potential client can see how your construction product works and solves a problem. They can see how you’re helping the industry increase efficiency; they can envision how it can help their organization save money. Additionally, there’s more than just getting placement of your case study.

With an experienced team, the studies can compliment your marketing and garner additional in-depth coverage.

More Coverage

First, a case study can provide your marketing department with additional information to add to their materials, social posts and more. By providing facts with your advertising, it makes your efforts easier.

The information from your study can also land additional earned coverage for your brand in the media. A team like Ripley PR could help land your spokesperson on a podcast like the ConTech Crew or perhaps an interview to discuss the construction industry on MSNBC.

By using the information from the case study, you can identify story angles and help get your construction company gain more in-depth coverage.

If you’d like to get started on a case study, or have one you’d like to promote, give Ripley PR a call at 865-977-1973 or contact us online.

This post was written by Seth Norris on February 27, 2023

3 Ways to Drive Conversions for Your Home Service Franchise with PR

Converting to a franchise system reaps a multitude of benefits: a proven operating system, well-rounded marketing, training and better support overall. You know these things, but do the other home service businesses you’re targeting understand these benefits?

When looking to drive conversions, franchise public relations acts as your hype man. As part of your franchise marketing system, PR takes a third person point-of-view to show your target market why they should convert to your franchise through the following ways.

Increased Visibility

If the businesses you’re targeting don’t know who you are, they’re certainly not going to consider you as a franchising option. Your increased brand visibility is two-fold. First, you gain visibility for your brand and become top-of-mind. Two, you show the businesses you want to attract that if they convert to your franchise, they, too, will gain more visibility.

Thought Leadership

Through PR, you add credibility to your brand by showing your target audience that you are the expert in your field. Contributing articles to a franchising magazine, interviewing on podcasts that your target market would tune into, creating a company blog, etc. are all ways PR can position your brand to build trust with your target market in a non-advertorial way.

News

When you’re sharing your news through press releases and social media, you’re showcasing to others that you have big things going on. Other business owners want to be a part of something that’s growing, and presenting news is a way to show that your franchise is growing, and worth growing with.

If you’re looking to drive conversions for your home service franchise, give Ripley PR a call at (865) 977-1973 or visit us online today.

This post was written by Audrey Love on February 27, 2023

3 Reasons Fintech Companies Shouldn’t Delay PR

When fintech companies are growing and moving through funding rounds, everything moves at a blinding clip. As you work to advance your product, you and the other members of your leadership team are often still pulling double duty, implementing your vision from a hands-on position while working to also drive as much interest as possible from potential customers, partners and investors. At this stage, it’s critical to demonstrate efficiency with your resources to secure funding; however, you have to still be effective at marketing, too. Partnering with a team of experts that can help you develop and execute a sound fintech public relations strategy can give you an edge in a hyper-competitive market vying for investors.

If you want to maximize the impact of your early-stage marketing and advertising efforts and establish a momentum you can maintain, don’t make the mistake of waiting to add PR to the mix. Start early and stick with it. Forming an early partnership with an agency that truly understands how to establish credibility with a fintech public relations campaign can pay dividends whether you’re seeking your series A, B, C or D.

What to expect:

PR builds necessary credibility: Credibility is key for investors, customers, employees and potential business partnerships. A seasoned media relations team with direct experience in fintech public relations efforts can not only distribute your news to industry outlets, they can pitch engaging stories to journalists that, through interviews, podcast appearances and more, position you as a trusted source in front of your target audiences.
Proactive PR generates content: Every company needs content for visibility. Blogs are an important component of a successful and highly trafficked website, but PR can generate much more than that. Press releases, briefs, product placements, bylined articles, case studies and more can all stem from an effective fintech public relations strategy, and each earned media placement yields another link to share across your social media channels.
Momentum is critical: We all want that big win, that front page, as soon as our idea is born. To get those big wins and attract tier 1 media, though, it’s important to build momentum in as many relevant outlets as possible. It’s still important to speak to the right audience, but it’s crucial to not ignore outlets with a readership smaller than your dream placement. A good PR team will help you garner and sustain earned media that still speaks to your target audiences while building a base of credibility that can be more easily seen by national business, tech and mainstream writers.

If you’re interested in attracting more investors to your fintech solution and partnering with an experienced team to make it happen, don’t delay. Reach out to the Ripley PR team here or by calling 865-977-1973.

This post was written by Grayson Shockley on February 24, 2023

Demonstrate your industry expertise with East Tennessee PR

One of the great things about East Tennessee is the diversity of the business landscape here. Thousands of businesses of all sizes, and across multiple industries, thrive in our region, from independently owned mom and pop businesses to major institutions like the University of Tennessee.

What’s great about our business community can also be a challenge for companies looking to grow. Many of our successful regional businesses have decades of homegrown goodwill, brand awareness and loyalty behind them, which can make it hard for newer companies or companies expanding into new markets.

A great agency with deep roots in the area, however, can help new and growing companies reach the audiences they need so they can build the trust and credibility that drive successful expansion. An experienced East Tennessee public relations team can serve as an excellent way to communicate your message and demonstrate your industry expertise.

What can an East Tennessee PR agency help your team achieve? Here are some of the benefits of public relations:

Brand awareness: Strategic media outreach and content marketing, among other services, can help you build awareness of your company with potential customers, and establish relationships with them based on trust and authenticity.
Credibility: Coordinating coverage of you and your business with local, regional, national and trade media positions you as an expert and validates your thought leadership. When third-party publications recognize you as a source for information and expertise, their readers will, too.
Business opportunities: Awareness and credibility are two main drivers of business growth. Many companies experience significant increases in leads and investment as a result of successful PR efforts.

At Ripley PR, we have a proven track record of helping East Tennessee businesses build and strengthen their brands, both regionally and nationally. Call us at (865) 977-1973 or contact us online to find out how we can help you.

This post was written by Matthew Everett on February 21, 2023