You’ve spent years building your HVAC company into a local household name.
Now you’re considering retirement, but have never built an exit strategy into your five-year plans. It’s always been something that would be far down the road.
If you plan to leave your business to a family member, you’ve hopefully got that person on board and in training.
But if you are planning to sell your company, you need to make some decisions that maximize its value before you put it on the market.
One of those decisions should be to invest in an effective home service public relations strategy. A PR plan can build up your company’s brand awareness and reputation.
Reputation is Everything
You may be a business owner, but you are also a consumer.
When you make the decision that you need to invest in an expensive product or service, you probably do some research first. After all, you wouldn’t buy a car without checking to see if it’s safe and reliable.
The same is true of your company’s potential buyers.
When looking for companies to buy, entrepreneurs prefer those with strong positive reputations for three reasons:
- Their customers are more loyal.
- They attract more talented employees.
- The market believes these companies will deliver sustained earnings and will continue to grow.
And it’s public relations that can help build up that positive reputation by getting your name in the news.
For example, if the weather calls for freezing temperatures, an effective PR strategy can make your plumbing company the expert news outlets go to for advice on preventing pipes from freezing.
PR can also help you turn your community fundraiser into a publicized event. With a well-written press release and some media relations messaging, you can interest your local news outlet in covering your event to help you raise more money.
Both of these means getting your name out in the news in a positive light.
The Private Equity is Coming
Another way to leave your company is to allow a private equity (PE) firm to buy your company.
And HVAC companies are a hot commodity for PE firms these days. PE firms are now buying smaller home service companies and integrating them into a larger company to scale more quickly.
But in order to get the attention of a reputable PE company, you have to stand out in the market.
Home service PR helps you do that.
Most of your competitors are all using the same kinds of marketing, namely email campaigns, truck wraps and door hangers. With PR, you’ll stand out because you are on the news for your expert opinion or because of your community outreach.
The professionals at Ripley PR are the experts in home service public relations. Our team can help you build your reputation and shine in your market. Call us at (865) 977-1973 or contact us online to see how we can help you prepare your company to sell so you can plan the grand exit strategy you want.
