“Being a real company sounds like a simple task in theory, but in reality, it is not a consistently followed practice. So what does ‘be a real company’ mean? It requires doing the small and sometimes neglected items that you would normally complete while trying to build your company in your local market,” Jeff Carrier writes.

While advertising, marketing and public relations are all methods businesses use to communicate with their stakeholders, the benefits of each are not usually discussed individually. Small business owners know they need marketing to target the right customers and advertising to make the phones ring, but they do not realize public relations can help them become the trusted experts in their markets, which leads to greater opportunities. So, what is PR? Heather Ripley explains.

“Whether you are a new restoration business owner or have  20-plus years of experience, a sound marketing foundation is needed to ensure success. This foundation should include a well-defined marketing plan, with customer personas, all target audiences, an ADA-complaint website and promotional plans, with a total of 7 to 8% of sales revenue allocated to marketing,” Nia Sherrema Pearson writes.

“How can we prospect on LinkedIn and make more seincere connections with LinkedIn members whom we would like to become our customers? One approach not to use are automated systems that send out connection messages every day,” Robert Kravitz writes.

One of the most challenging hurdles in the crime, trauma and death scene cleaning industry is helping a client navigate a life-changing, traumatic event. The other challenge is marketing such a sensitive service without being offensive, appearing non-sensitive or overbearing. For almost four decades, Gordy Powell has tried to reinvent how to market this industry in a tasteful, yet practical and successful way. Here, he shares a new approach.

We find thought leaders in every industry — health care, technology, professional cleaning, facility management and, of course, the restoration industry. But have you ever wondered how these people became “thought leaders”? Here, Robert Kravitz shares the importance of thought leadership along with five common steps in the journey to becoming a thought leader.

This practice is very common in many industries. Remember when you booked a plane ticket and were kept in the loop with little to no human interaction about everything from gate changes to check-in reminders to delays? What about the time you scheduled the cable guy to come out for an internet outage, and received automated texts and emails with updates?

Insurance agents get many marketers and salespeople through their doors every day, and they are all saying and doing the same thing. Be different. Be authentic. Be a trusted advisor. 

The problem the vast majority of business owners face is that the mere thought of having to make sales calls is not fun and often we miss the trivial details required for success. Scaling a business involves three fundamental elements: Exceptional lead generation, lead conversion and client fulfillment. Market research requires constant work, but is key to sales success.

In this episode of Ask Annissa, Annissa Coy offers two practical ideas to a restoration business owner struggling to bring money in the door one year after opening. In his heartfelt plea for advice on quickly finding jobs, he asks, “If you were in my shoes, what would you do?”