Diving into Pool Company Marketing

The season for pool noodles, swimsuits, and long days in the sun is upon us! It’s time for pool owners to get their backyard oasis in tip-top shape. And those who don’t yet have pools wonder if it’s too late to get one before the summer heat arrives. Pool companies are potentially in their busiest season. 

The swimming pool construction industry is growing and is expected to continue doing so at a rate of nearly 4% a year for the next decade. So, how can you take advantage of this growth as a pool company?

Pool company marketing is the answer. Pool businesses can benefit greatly from creating and sharing marketing content with their audiences all year round. 

When planning and maintaining a pool, homeowners spend hours gathering information. After all, it’s not a small investment or responsibility. You want them to find your business when they’re searching for answers to their questions and solutions for their problems. Swimming pool marketing can help them find your business and make you stand out among the competition, giving you a piece of that $28 million pie.

But marketing for your pool company doesn’t have to feel like you’re drowning! But don’t just take our word for it… jump in! The water’s fine.

Understanding the Target Audience

The first critical step in creating and launching a marketing plan for any business looking to grow effectively is understanding your target audience. Who is most likely to put in a pool or pay someone to upkeep the one they already have?

When identifying your target market, consider:

• Demographics, such as age, family, and occupation
• Behaviors, like lifestyles, hobbies, and spending habits
• Earning power to know if they can afford a pool
• Geographic location – You may sell pool supplies to someone not located nearby your business, but you’re unlikely to install pools in other states.
• Wants and needs
• Roadblocks or problems they may experience when considering getting or having a pool

Remember that you can’t know too much about your target audience. Once you determine who they are and what they need from your pool business, you’ll focus all of your marketing efforts on communicating about how your services fulfill those needs.

Setting Marketing Goals and Objectives

You can’t do everything with a single marketing effort, so it’s essential to think about what you really want from this year’s marketing campaign. Do you want to increase the number of service customers you have? If so, by what percentage? Would you rather focus on installing a certain number of new pools this year? If so, how many? Maybe you’re trying to drive more traffic to your physical and online stores to purchase pool-related products. If that’s the case, what does success look like?

Whatever your goal is, define it. Then, set a measurable marketing objective so you’ll know if you have accomplished it this year.

An example might be: To increase online and in-store sales of pool supplies by 15% in the next calendar year.

Building Your Pool Company Marketing Plan

You’ll then craft a marketing plan based on your marketing goals and objectives. When doing this, you’ll think about what kind of communication you want with your target audience to get them to act toward your goal.

Some marketing tactics you may use include:

• Using Search Engine Optimization (SEO) best practices to improve your website’s visibility on search engines
• Publishing website content, including product and service pages, how-to blog posts, and lots of photos of completed projects
• Distributing an email newsletter to keep current and new customers in the loop about what they should be doing for maintenance and upkeep
• Using social media marketing to promote your products or services on various social media platforms
• Employing Email Marketing to directly communicate with potential customers and retain existing ones
• Running affiliate marketing programs to leverage the influence of affiliate partners in promoting your products or services
• Developing Customer Loyalty Programs to encourage repeat business and foster customer loyalty
• Displaying customer testimonials to show potential customers what your existing customers think about your services
• Launching a Google Business Profile to provide a place for reviews and assist with local search traffic

Many of these tactics are content marketing or use those distribution methods. Content marketing is sharing relevant and valuable content that helps you engage with and educate your audience. It’s about sharing information that serves your audience’s needs, enabling you to connect with them in a way that feels less invasive than traditional advertising. They’re looking for information, and you just happen to be there serving it up to them. 

You can use content marketing to:

• Attract Potential Customers. People head straight to Google when they’re looking for a pool company. When your content is floating around on the internet and popping up in search engines for the right audience, you will get new customers. Give them information that answers their questions and makes installing and upkeeping a pool less stressful. Your content should answer people’s questions, establish your authority, and make people want to work with you.
• Connect with Customers. Customers have questions and want answers. Make it easy for potential customers to connect with you online, gather information, and ask further questions. There are many unknowns when it comes to owning a pool. Take away the guesswork for your clients and provide them with a communicative, open experience.
• Showcase Your Expertise. Make it clear that you know what you’re talking about. Be open about your years in the industry and what makes your company different. Any old pool company can dig a bean-shaped hole in the ground and fill it with water. So, what makes your pool company, materials, and technicians different or better than others? Don’t be shy!
• Hone in on Location. Your potential customers may not be at your store or in your neighborhood, but they are online. Targeting one single town in your area is not enough. Market your services to all surrounding areas to become the local or regional “go-to” place for all pool needs. 
• Build Search Ranking. Improving your SEO is crucial to your business’s visibility online. SEO allows search engines to push your content first when someone is searching for pool products or services. You want to be at the top of those searches to get leads that you can turn into clients. People can’t even consider your business if they don’t know it’s out there.

Crafting a Compelling Marketing Message

Once you know who your audience is, what they need from your business, and how you can best give them that information to reach your goals and objectives, you must think about how you want to say it. What can you communicate with your target audience to make them choose your products or services instead of your competitors’?

When crafting a compelling marketing message, consider:

• Your Target Audience. Recognize their needs, preferences, and pain points. This will help you tailor your message to resonate with them.
• Your Unique Selling Proposition. Highlight what sets your product or service apart from the competition. This will make your message more persuasive.
• Using Clear and Concise Language. Avoid jargon and complex language. Your message should be easy to understand and remember.
• Incorporating a Call to Action. What action do you want your audience to take next? Don’t leave it to chance. Guide them specifically to their next step.
• Ensuring Consistency. Your marketing message should be consistent across all platforms and channels to reinforce your brand identity and message.
• Using Emotional Appeal. Connect with your audience emotionally to help build trust and loyalty.
• Providing Value. Ensure your message provides value to your audience, like useful information or solutions to problems.

Compelling content is likely to include a branded message unique to your business, photos of your products and services, and testimonials from happy customers. You want potential customers to see what they’re missing out on if they don’t do business with you.

Using Various Marketing Tactics

You can’t reach everyone with one communication method. The best marketing campaigns use a mix of tactics to reach audiences where they are when they’re seeking information. 

Do you want people to explore photos of your projects and learn more about your pool installation process and systems? Your website is the place. 

Want to reach people looking for fun pool floats and toys? Social media can help you direct them to your site, where they can make purchases. 

Looking to educate current customers on how to best care for and maintain their pools? Send them a monthly newsletter that links to informative blog content on your website.

Your goals and objectives will determine the marketing tactics that make the most sense for you to use. But you must have a keen understanding of who your customers are and what they need from you before you can decide what to say and how to say it to them.

Evaluating Your Efforts

Unlike in television advertising, where you spend a ton of money on a spot and airtime and then look back at the end to see if it worked, marketing campaigns are relatively flexible. 

With digital marketing, you evaluate the campaign’s effectiveness as you go. Something isn’t getting the response you wanted? Change it up! Getting a ton more traction than expected off of another effort? Do more of that. 

Monitor analytics and adjust your approach until you determine what really makes a splash.

Before Diving In

We get it. You’re running a business, and you’d probably like to spend a little time in your own pool this summer. That’s why we’re here to take all your marketing off your to-do list. Content Journey can provide you with the content marketing services you need to accomplish your business goals while you manage the growth and enjoy the sunshine. Contact us today to discuss partnering.