You own an HVAC company, and if you’re like most, you have to work hard to compete for the attention of your customers. Heating and cooling is big business in most areas, especially if you cater to both commercial and residential customers.
Competing for the spotlight is easier when you have a marketing plan that includes a solid brand positioning strategy.
But what makes an effective branding strategy? We’re going to review some of the ways you can develop a plan that positions your HVAC company for branding success.
Understanding Brand Positioning
You’re the owner of an HVAC company — not a marketer. While you have a good idea of how to advertise your business and its services, you may not have a clue about different terms, such as brand positioning.
Simply put, brand positioning is all about establishing an image of your brand that sets you apart from competitors. It allows customers to differentiate what makes your HVAC company better than the next.
For instance, they may know you offer unique services, faster services or cheaper services than others. The key is to identify what your position is in the industry and then implement it into your brand positioning strategy.
Why is it Important to Have a Brand Positioning Strategy?
Anyone who’s been in the HVAC business for any number of years knows how tough it can be competing with others in your industry. Simply sending out direct mailers, putting up fliers and buying online ads isn’t going to cut it.
At least, not if you don’t have a strategy in place. Your brand positioning determines everything to do with your marketing. For instance, it helps to determine the messages you use, the prices you offer and the products you promote.
Let’s look at how brand positioning can help your HVAC business:
- It hones in on a particular target market
- It differentiates you from your competition
- It demonstrates how to win over prospects
- It helps creative decisions
- It helps drive decisions regarding pricing and service development
The Steps to Developing a Brand Positioning Strategy
Now, there are five different ways you can create brand positioning for your HVAC company. It’s better to choose one area to focus on, so your marketing is more effective.
Let’s review.
A Cost-Driven Approach
You’ll find many businesses focusing on the cost-driven positioning for their brand. We know how important prices are to consumers, so many strive to be the most affordable.
Or you can show how your heat pump water heater product can save customers money on their electric bill. You can learn more about that here.
This can work for your HVAC company if your research shows your competitors are over-priced. Or your target audience has less money to spend.
You don’t want to go this route if you have to slash your rates too much. If you can’t make ends meet, you’ll only run your business into the ground.
Specializing in a Niche
If the cost-driven approach won’t work for your brand, then maybe specializing in a niche will. For instance, you can offer your services to businesses only or only residential customers.
Maybe, you can find a service that’s not widely available and then offer it at a fair rate. For example, you may find most HVAC companies don’t offer vent cleaning services. You can add this to your service line and promote the heck out of that.
Experience in the Industry
Say you’ve been in the industry for decades. And because of this, you have deeper knowledge than the new guys popping up in your community.
Consumers like to hire service companies that have been around for a long time. This shows legitimacy, expertise, and reliability.
One way to use this is to identify your experience in a service that’s niche-specific, yet popular. For instance, you can market being a vent cleaner for the past 30 years.
Role-Focused Specialization
Another option is to hone in on particular groups of people. For instance, if your HVAC business caters to businesses, you can have a tagline that says something like, “We help keep businesses cool.”
This demonstrates your experience with providing HVAC services for commercial buildings.
Quality of Service
Sometimes, it’s about the quality of your service – not the price. A lot of consumers are more interested in hiring a company that delivers on their promise. And this is true even if it requires paying a higher price.
The Process of Building Your Brand Positioning
There are five steps to crafting your brand positioning strategy:
- Identify what it is you want to accomplish as a brand
- Research your target customers (and your competition)
- Determine what sets you apart from competitors
- Create your brand positioning statement
- Implement your new positioning into your marketing
After you do all the research, you’ll have a good idea of how you can position your HVAC company to compete in your area.
Knowing what group of customers you want to target and how to set your business apart from competitors will make it easier to find your position. For instance, if you find a lot of HVAC companies in your area boast about being the cheapest residential service provider, you can focus on showcasing your quality.
It also wouldn’t hurt to do a bit of split testing to see what works the best. Try different messaging to see what attracts and converts the most prospects. It’s better to test your positioning before setting it in stone.
Where to Go if You Need Help with Your Brand Positioning Strategy
Again, you’re an HVAC professional, not a marketing guru. However, you want the best for your brand. One way to ensure you get the most out of your marketing strategy is to hire a professional.
One way to go about this is to visit Find a Business That to look for a marketing expert. You can also use this site to find other types of businesses to collaborate with or cross-promote. Plus, there’s a business resource section where you can find all sorts of tips and advice.
You can even request to have your business added to the directory. Browse our site today!