Building a Digital Marketing Plan for Appliance Repair Specialists

If you're an appliance repair specialist, you know that a big part of your business is getting in front of potential customers. But how do you reach them? With so many marketing channels and options available, it can be hard to know where to start.

But, if you don't have a marketing plan, you're missing out on a large volume of new customers. With over 50% of new small businesses not making it past the 5-year mark, you need every advantage possible to see your appliance repair company succeed.

Plus, in a survey we conducted, we found that 61% of the small businesses that implement content marketing strategies have a documented plan in place. This means that you need a marketing plan to stay ahead of the competition.

That's where we come in.

This blog post will walk you through the basics of building a digital marketing plan for your appliance repair business. We'll cover everything from branding and positioning to budgeting and tools, all crucial elements to the marketing plan that is going to drive new leads directly to your company.

By the end of this blog post, you'll be ready to get started with digital marketing and see results!

Step 1: Define Your Appliance Repair Business

Every business is different, so it's important that your marketing strategy is tailored to your specific goals and audience. The first step in developing an expert marketing plan, then, is to take the time to define your appliance repair business and what it stands for.

This definition should capture the essence of your company and help you to articulate why you do what you do, both internally to your team and externally to your customers. 

In today's day and age, consumers care about what your company stands for and what you might be doing to help the community. We found that 50% of consumers were more likely to patronize a small business that contributed to charitable causes, for example.

Put simply, what you do and who you do it for matters to people—so highlight it wherever you can!

Mission Statement & Brand

Having a clear mission statement and brand is an essential step in developing any marketing plan, but this is especially true for appliance repair businesses. After all, your goal is to not only attract new customers but also to build loyalty and trust among those who use your services.

If your target market doesn't instantly know what your business does or what makes you different from the competition, it will be very difficult to create a successful marketing campaign.

By contrast, a strong mission statement and brand will give you a clear vision to work towards, making it much easier to develop an effective marketing strategy. Before developing your mission statement, you'll want to ensure you fully understand the concept of what differentiates it from other elements of your business.

In short, without a solid foundation in place, it will be very difficult to build a successful marketing plan for your appliance repair business.

Step 2: Determine Where You Fit Into the Market

In business, it's important to understand your position in the market. This helps you create a successful appliance repair marketing plan and allows you to stand out from the competition.

There are a few key factors to consider when determining your market positioning:

• First, you need to understand your target audience. Who are you trying to reach with your product or service?
• Once you know your target audience, you can begin to craft a message that resonates with them.
• You also need to understand your competition. What are they doing well? What could they improve upon?

By understanding your position in the market, you can create a marketing plan that helps you achieve your appliance repair business goals. Take a look at these additional questions to ask yourself about your market positioning:

Step 3: Set up Achievable and Trackable Goals

Any marketing plan worth its salt will include some set goals, and it is worthwhile for appliance repair companies to make those goals as achievable and trackable as possible.

There's no use setting a goal of acquiring 100 new customers, for example, if you don't have a plan or budget in place to make that happen. Likewise, any goal worth achieving should be able to be measured in some way; if acquiring new customers can't be quantified, then it becomes difficult to determine whether or not the goal has been met.

By taking the time to create achievable and trackable goals, businesses can ensure that their marketing efforts are focused and effective, leading to greater success.

Consider Using OKR Goal Planning

The Objective and Key Results (OKR) goal planning methodology is a great option for appliance repair businesses looking to set realistic goals within their marketing plan. OKRs provide a clear framework for setting goals and measuring progress, and they can be adapted to any business size or structure.

Furthermore, OKRs are flexible enough to accommodate changes in the market or business environment, making them an ideal goal-setting tool for small businesses. At Service Direct, we have been using OKRs for years and can't recommend them enough.

When setting OKRs, it is important to keep the following in mind:

• Objectives should be specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound.
• Key results should be quantifiable.
• Both objectives and key results should be aligned with the company's overall strategy.

By following these guidelines, small businesses can build a marketing plan that is destined for success.

Step 4: Research Marketing Channels

There are a lot of marketing channels available to small businesses. The reality is that you probably can't use all of them. Researching which marketing channels work best for your goals will help narrow down what direction you want to go in.

There are many factors to consider when researching marketing channels. Your business goals, target audience, and budget are just a few of the things that will affect your decision.

Once you've done your research, you'll be able to choose the channels that will work best for your business.

Marketing Channels to Consider:

• Organic Search Engine Optimization
• Social Media (Facebook, NextDoor, Instagram, etc.)
• Paid Marketing (PPC, PPL, PPCall)
• Email Marketing
• Content Marketing (blogging, backlink acquisition, etc.)
• Lead Generation Partnership

Keep in mind that you don't have to use all of the channels available to you. Using a few well-chosen channels is often more effective than spreading yourself too thin.

Step 5: Establish a Realistic Budget

The next step in developing your appliance repair marketing plan is figuring out how much money you have to spend—your budget. 

You've heard the saying "you have to spend money to make money." When it comes to marketing, this is true, but you don't want to overspend and put your business in a financial bind. That's why creating a realistic budget is crucial to developing a marketing plan.

There are a number of factors you need to take into account when creating your budget, including the cost of advertising, the cost of promoting your website, the cost of market research, and more.

Once you have a handle on how much money you can realistically allocate to your marketing efforts, you can start researching which marketing channels are going to work best with your budget and goals.

By taking the time to create a realistic budget, you'll be in a much better position to develop an effective marketing plan for your appliance repair business.

Step 6: Get Ahead With Digital Tools

Many businesses don't realize how important it is to use all of their resources when they are trying to be successful with digital marketing. In fact, we found that only half of the small businesses we surveyed reported using a 3rd party tool to execute their content marketing strategy.