ASSOCIATIONS
9
Why marketing is
important for an SMME
Running your own business is not an easy task these days and
as a small plumbing business owner, you have many different
demands placed on you.
By IOPSA
You may be of the mindset that as a SMME marketing will
not have much of an impact on your business, but this could
not be further from the truth in today’s economy. Marketing
has become extremely important for any small business, and
here we look at why.
Marketing is too expensive, you may think. This is a common
myth among small business owners in general. While
marketing can be expensive, it is an investment in your
business that will pay off in the future.
There are many great tools that small businesses can use to
market themselves without spending more than they need
to. For example, you can build a great basic website with
template sites such as Wix or Yola, and user-friendly design
sites with templates such as Canva – all at zero cost to you!
Make sure that your plumbing business is listed on
Google, where consumers look for a plumber when a
plumbing emergency strikes, and most importantly, join an
organisation such as the Institute of Plumbing SA (IOPSA)
that actively markets the use of their members to the public.
Word of mouth can really only get you so far. You may think
that your business will grow entirely through your customers
and friends spreading the word. While this is a powerful
brand-building tool, it has its limitations. If your potential
customers are not aware of your business, they won’t be
able to make use of your product or service in the first place!
In addition to word of mouth, you also need to add credibility
to your business. You can do this by having a website, a
well-designed business card, a specific uniform for all your
www.plumbingafrica.co.za
The trouble that small business owners face is that you
can end up getting overwhelmed with administrative
tasks and operational issues, which can take valuable
time and energy away from one of your most important
tasks: growing your plumbing business.
A strategy around your marketing can be outsourced to a
professional such as a marketing consultant.
staff and the same branding on all your vehicles,
just to name a few. This will begin to build the brand
of your business.
Maybe you don’t have the time to focus on your marketing
and that’s okay, but then try outsourcing this function. If you
would like to have the advantage of a professional marketing
manager, but you cannot afford a full-time resource, you
may want to consider outsourcing these services.
With a marketing consultant, you can work on a project basis
– which means that you only need to pay for the time that
they are actually working on your brand. Another advantage
is that you get all of the costs upfront, and you can soon
determine the value of your spend. It also allows for less
risk – should you be unhappy with the service that you are
receiving, you can terminate your contract relatively easily.
By spending a little bit of time and effort on marketing, you
will see the benefit of investing in your brand. In today’s
competitive business environment, marketing is a powerful
tool that will help your plumbing business stand out from the
rest and help it grow from strength to strength.
In future issues we will be breaking down how to develop
the right brand to suit your plumbing business and looking at
the fundamentals of marketing in the plumbing industry and
how to make it work for you! PA
July 2019 Volume 25 I Number 5