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Patrick Almand

Spring 2018

Public Relations

Social Media Marketing Campaign

ProWash of the GrandStrand

Jim Floyd
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Background:

For my senior project, I have chosen to work with ProWash of the GrandStrand to

propose a social media marketing campaign. ProWash of the GrandStrand is a family owned

Pressure Washing company that cleans Residential/Condominiums, Commercial properties, and

RV's in the Grand Strand area. ProWash of the GrandStrand has been around since 1988 and has

a mission to use safe chemicals and light pressure to clean off mold, mildew, dirt, and bugs that

harm buildings. They currently state on their website that they have had over 4000 happy

customers. The main goal of Pro Wash is to be the number one power washing service in the

Myrtle Beach area. Currently to meet these goals they have been working with new and returning

customers to give great service.

Anticipated Product:

The communication problem within this organization is that they don’t have any social

media presence at all. I will propose a social media marketing campaign to ProWash of the

GrandStrand to show them how to get started marketing with social media. The social media

marketing plan ProWash of the GrandStrand and I create will include what to post, when to post,

and where to post to reach their target market, and bring in more awareness. The main target

audience of this social media marketing campaign proposal is Jim Floyd owner of ProWash of

the GrandStrand. As well as his target market of property owners in Myrtle Beach, and vacation

home owners of Ocean Lakes Campground located in Myrtle Beach. The contents of this

proposal will include what times to post, which platforms to post on, and what content to post to

get the greatest desired response from their target market.

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Goals:

The main goal of this social media marketing campaign proposal is to show the importance

of a social media presence for small businesses. In addition, it will demonstrate how, if executed

correctly, a social media marketing presence can create free and effective PR and advertising.

Project Goals:

· Create and propose social media content used by Pro Wash

· Give guidance on when, where, and what to post on social media

· Prove using social media can be easy, and effective for ProWash

· Show ways to drive traffic to ProWash of the GrandStrand website

· Boost brand engagement

Personal Goals:

· Enhance written communication skills

· Enhance previous knowledge of social media

· Gain higher understanding of business goals

· Gain higher understanding of social media marketing

· Gain knowledge of how to effectively propose a social media campaign

Field Application:

Questions have been raised within the company about whether it is necessary for

ProWash to implement social media marketing techniques. These questions were raised because

ProWash of the GrandStrand is such a small company, with very few employees. It can be very

important that small businesses realize the importance of public relations if they want to remain

competitive in the present marketplace. Small businesses with fewer than 50 employees often are

not fully aware of the need for public relations (Ihator, 1998). Effective public relations
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techniques for small businesses include target marketing, word of mouth marketing, video

marketing, and incentive programs.

The first step in quality public relations is identifying the target market. Identifying a

target market seems so simple that many small companies don't do it and end up marketing to the

wrong demographic if targeting a market at all.

Questionnaires were mailed out to 50 directors of Small Business Institutes at 50 U.S.

colleges, and universities in 40 states. Each institution was selected randomly from the U.S.

Small Business Administration. Respondents that said they employed target marketing reported a

return on invested capital of 17.9 percent. Those who indicated they did not pursue this strategy

reported a capital return of only 9.3 percent. The findings between the two percentages shows the

significance of target marketing (Peterson, 1991).

One of the most driven ways of marketing especially in a small town like Myrtle Beach is

word- of- mouth marketing. According to Rollins (2014), Word-of-mouth marketing can be

understood in a chain reaction that starts when two or more people exchange product

recommendations. These recommendations then generate buzz about a product or service, which

leads to a boost in sales revenues, and an increase in market share. Through implemented social

media marketing techniques, that catch viewers’ attention, we will be able to achieve a powerful

word-of-mouth marketing presence for ProWash of the GrandStrand.

Another effective social media technique is online video marketing. According to Costa-

Sanchez (1991), Videos are the number one thing in social media it is not just pictures anymore.

Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter are all flooded with five to eight second video. The rise in the

viewing of video content has been extremely useful for any brand since videos have the ability to

create communities, generate affection, inform, and explain, their products or services, while
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also capturing the viewer’s opinion in the comments section. Ultimately, Video advertisements

are a lot more than just a short entertaining video. Video advertisements are on a greater scale

then traditional flyer advertisement because they create a greater emotional appeal for the

consumer towards a brand

When using social media as a marketing tool companies want to make sure they are not

just putting content out there, but also actually encouraging their target market to respond. To

create content that your audience will respond to, marketers need to develop social media-based

engagement opportunities. These opportunities keep customers connected to a brand story

throughout the day (Ashley, 2015). One way to accomplish this is through an incentive program

that will get the target audience to respond. For example, the company could offer a ten percent

discount if the viewer follows the page, and then repost the content. This technique works really

well in spreading the word about a business quickly and getting it across your ideal target

markets feed. This technique might also lead to boosting word-of-mouth marketing.

Methods:

The first step in this process was contact Jim Floyd, the owner of ProWash of the

GrandStrand to get his agreement on this proposal. Upon approval, I asked any questions I had

about the company, and found out any background information that I could not get from their

website. After talking to Jim, I researched scholarly articles I could use to help Jim understand

the importance of public relations, and social media marketing for small businesses. Next, I did

research on the target market for ProWash of the GrandStrand to find out what would be the best

social mediums to use to reach that target market. After that, I conducted more research to find

out which social media marketing best practices would be most useful for ProWash of the
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GrandStrand to use to reach their target market and get a positive response. To continue this

product, I will need to keep in conduct with Jim Floyd and keep him updated on what I have so

far, as well as ask any more questions I might need to gain more information.

Anticipated Problems/Limitations

The first problem I might run into while working on this proposal is to maintain continual

contact with the owner of ProWash. I know as the season is warming up and we are coming into

spring business will start to pick up significantly for ProWash so communication with Jim will

become more difficult. I will reduce this problem by getting other employees contact information

to ask them any questions that Jim might not be available to answer at the time.

The second problem I am going to run into for this project is finding specific information

about marketing for power washing companies. I realize this is a very small market and there is

not much information on targeting this market after doing previous research. I will reduce these

limitations by consistently looking for information every day, so I do not have to cram at the last

minute. I will also apply broader small business marketing techniques to this small business the

best I can.

The third problem I am going to run into for this project is going to be is actually creating

post that I think will best suit ProWash of the GrandStrand. I will reduce this limitation by

getting in contact with Jim to find out which post style he likes most and is most interested in as

representing his company. Lastly, I plan to review multiple previous social media campaigns

from other companies. I will review their campaigns performance to compare, and contrast with

what I want to do with ProWash of the GrandStrand.

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Target Marketing:

ProWash has a target market of owners of local Residential/Condominiums in the Grand

Strand area. As well as RV, and home owners in Ocean Lakes Family campground. The best

way to target these people on social media is to add followers from similar interest pages. For

example, I would go to Ocean Lakes Family campground Facebook, and Instagram page to

search through their “Followers” and “Following.” I would go through each follower trying to

find any current customers. I would also follow a couple of new customers in hopes they find

interest in ProWash and choose to go through ProWash if in need of any pressure cleaning

service. You can relate this type of client search to a more modernized type of cold calling.

To reach a target market on social media you need to understand your client’s interest

besides the need for pressure washing. Once you can find a social media user relevant to your

business, start to search what other interest they might be involved in and post about that interest

to draw more customers in. For example, instead of just posting before and after pictures of

recent clients you could post information on gardening tips if you find the majority of your

clients are into gardening as a hobby. This also helps your customers achieve a relationship with

your business on a personal level.

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Social Media Marketing “Personal” Post Sample (gardening tip):

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Facebook:

ProWash of the GrandStrand does not currently have an active Facebook acount. A well

developed Facebook account is needed for a small business because it helps humanize a

company, and is a basic social media component. When a client searches for the business online

and views a generalized profile picture, and no real content its easy to determine the company

isnt of high standard, or might not even be in business anymore. With a weak Facebook presence

a client will be more inclined to pass on your business rather then a competitor company who has

a more humanized profile with reviews. Its not only about bringing personality to your business,

Facebook is also a good place to build brand engagment. Brand engagment can be built through

previous clients posting reviews, and new clients asking questions. Facebook can also be a great

place to post promotional deals for new and existing clients.

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Instagram:

Instagram is a social media platform consisting of mostly short videos, and pictures, and

is a great place to for a small business to network. Instagram has a lot of great features to help

small businesses network which makes it a key marketing component. Instagram has a business

account feature, so when you sign up with a business account it allows you to have an extra

contact button that makes it easy for customers to find out where to reach your business.

Hashtags is another great feature that is also used on the social media platform Twitter

which will be discussed in the next section. Hashtags put your post in a search category for when

users search for keywords. For example, we used the Hashtag #PressureWashing for our sample

post, so when users search “Pressure washing,” this post by ProWash would pop up in their feed,

and is valuable to the customer, as well as the expanding the business cliental.

Instagram’s carousel posting feature allows users to post multiple pictures at once. This

new feature is a perfect format for ProWash before, and after pictures of previous customers. For

customers, an easy slide between photos is great re-assurance for customer’s guaranteed great

service. Instagram use is always a good way to keep your business out in the public eye.
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Instagram Sample:
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Twitter:

Twitter is another great social media platform for ProWash to build brand engagement

and help achieve humanizing the business. Twitter can be used as an easy customer service

platform to connect and build relationships with customers. While using Twitter, customers can

ask questions about pricing, and your business can inform clients hundreds of clients about

promotional deals, and fill bookings in a matter of seconds. The use of hashtags is also very

popular on Twitter and can be a key component on reaching the target market of ProWash.

Hashtags like #localbusiness or #MyrtleBeach will help categorize a post related to users

searched keywords. Which ultimately leads to consumers finding the service they need.
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Twitter Samples:
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Google Reviews:

All though ProWash does have a positive rating of 3.5 stars on Google reviews the main

comment is of negativity. Google reviews is the first review customers will see when searching

for the business online, and only having one negative comments can be detrimental for small

business like ProWash. To improve this, I would get a complete email list from current

customers asking for quick Google reviews that will hopefully boost your online credibility.

Sending out emails pushes the happy customers to post positive comments, because most

customers are only going to take the time to comment if they had a negative experience with

your business.
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Templates for Generating Customer Reviews

a. email copy

Hello,

We appreciate the trust you place in ProWash and we value you as a customer, so we want to
know how you enjoyed your service and if you were completely satisfied.

The greatest compliment you could offer us is a review on our Google+ Local page. Each review
is both read and appreciated by our whole team. If you are willing to do so, it is quite easy. Just
click the Google button below to get started.

(Insert link to google page)

If you have constructive feedback that you’d like to share, we also offer you the opportunity to
share your comments privately. Either way, we appreciate your time and thank you for sharing
your thoughts.

We look forward to seeing you at your next appointment!

Warmest Regards,

b. email copy
Dear (CUSTOMER NAME):

It was our sincere pleasure to provide our service for you recently. We hope that the service we
provided for you met your expectations and that you would consider us again for future needs. If
you are dissatisfied for any reason, please do not hesitate to contact us so that we can discuss any
issues you may have. We value the trust you have placed in us and desire to build a long-term
relationship with you.

We are a local business that depends on positive word-of-mouth for business and would greatly
appreciate it if you would recommend our business to your friends and neighbors. An easy way
to do this is by adding brief comments to our listing on Google.com. Simply go here to our
Google+ Local Page and click ‘Write a Review’ and post your comments for others to read.
Thank you for choosing ProWash of the GrandStrand.

Sincerely,Jim
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References

Ashley, C.& Tuten, T. (2015). Creative strategies in social media marketing: An exploratory

study of branded social content and consumer engagement. Psychology & Marketing,

32(1), 15-27. doi:10.1002/mar.20761

Costa-Sánchez, C. (2017). Online video marketing strategies. Typology by business sector.

Communication & Society, 30(1), 17-38. doi:10.15581/003.30.1.17-38

Ihator, A. S. (1998). Effective public relations techniques for the small business in a competitive

market environment. Public Relations Quarterly, 43(2), 28-32.

Peterson, R. T. (1991). Small business usage of target marketing. Journal of Small Business

Management, 29(4), 79-85.

Rollins, B., Anitsal, I., & Anitsal, M. M. (2014). Viral marketing: Techniques and

implementation. Entrepreneurial Executive, 19, 1-17.

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