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Jeff Bezos once told us that, "Your brand is what other people say about you when you're not in the room."

In the world of service contractors — where time, labor and oftentimes materials — are in limited supply, establishing a brand and marketing strategy aren’t always top of mind. For Texas-based plumbing contractor, Plumbing Outfitters, undergoing a rebrand was about much more than portraying an image.

Plumbing Outfitters’ original brand was clean, professional, and focused on a strong commitment to quality work. "There was nothing wrong with it, but I feel it lacked a relatable identity that resonated with our customer base," says Visionary & Marketing Manager Ashley Stroud. "We weren’t telling the full story; our rebrand was underneath the surface the whole time, we just had to uncover it."

A company with more than 5 decades of combined plumbing experience, founded in 2017 by Master Plumber Warren Stroud and his wife Ashley, Plumbing Outfitters has 28 team members and nine service vans. In late 2023, the Strouds set out to give their business a facelift.

After working with Lemon Seed Marketing, the company was ready to launch its official rebrand on July 1, 2024. One of the initial focuses was van wraps to ensure this new brand gained the visibility it deserved. In July, the company has new uniforms, two-thirds of its fleet freshly wrapped and a new website. They celebrated all summer long with giveaways and community engagement.

"We spent about three months riding the high of announcing the rebrand," Ashley Stroud says. "We wanted our team to relish in it and take ownership of the new brand; it was truly invigorating and a really fun summer."

A guide for customers: Wayfinder Wolf

Plumbing Outfitters’ rebrand went much deeper than a facelift — leadership had five clear goals in mind:

1. Build customer trust and recognition
2. Strengthen community connections
3. Ensure consistent customer experience
4. Boost employee pride and buy-in
5. Create foundation for future scalability

One fun aspect of reaching these goals was establishing a mascot for the business: Wayfinder Wolf. The creating of Wayfinder Wolf stems from two main aspects of the business and Stroud family. First, the Strouds love the outdoors. In any free time, you can find Warren or Ashley camping at state parks or hiking trails. Second, Plumbing Outfitters strives to be a leader in the plumbing space — a guide to its customers. When thinking up what animal the mascot would be, a wolf — the leader of the outdoor world — made perfect sense.

Ashley Stroud admits that Wayfinder Wolf wasn’t immediately embraced by the team, or Warren. "IT wasn’t like I presented Wayfinder Wolf and everyone loved him immediately," she says. "It took time and creativity to work Wayfinder into the team culture."

Being a "trail guide" is incorporated into all of Plumbing Outfitters’ brand messaging. Their email marketing is send out as a trail guide, the radio advertising they do uses outdoorsy lingo, and Wayfinder Wolf hosts a "Pack Program," or rewards program for loyal customers that ensures they are receiving preventative maintenance and priority service. A goal for this year is to incorporate Wayfinder Wolf into local community events.

ROI of the rebrand

Investing in a rebrand is no small feat. According to Ashley Stroud, it’s been well worth the time and financial investment. The business has seen a 27% year-over-year revenue increase, an increase in 5-star reviews, improved customer recognition and enhanced recruiting capabilities.

"The rebrand has helped us have a memorable brand," Ashley Stroud says. "And we are already known for exemplar customer service. So as long as we keep those commitments, recruiting and new customer acquisition through word-of-mouth almost take care of themselves."

Stroud adds that being recognized as a trusted brand leads to great employee retention and referrals. "When your employees rave about you to their friends and customers, the notoriety trickles down through the community."

There are a handful of ways to market yourself as a local service business: Google My Business (GMB), SEO marketing, social media and paid advertising like pay per click (PPC) are just a few examples.

According to Stroud, playing the PPC game is expensive. "When all you're doing is paying for leads and not building a long term brand strategy, you're going to find that you're up against people with much larger pay per click budgets than you," she says.

Plumbing Outfitters’ goal is to develop a customer base that feels "at home," with them by nurturing the relationships. "Once they trust you, they don’t feel the need to look anywhere else."

Stroud’s advice for other service companies in need of a rebrand is to start with your core values. "Your brand has to be reflective of what your stand for in order to be authentic," she says.

Strouds adds that deciding to keep branding and marketing strictly business is an option, and can work for some businesses, but Plumbing Outfitters has enjoyed being emotionally connected with its brand. "A catchy tagline and nice logo can do the job, but the outcome we’ve had from taking ownership of our rebrand and being deeply engaged with it has been amazing."

Other pieces of advice Stroud has:

• Listen to customer needs and shape messaging accordingly;
• Ensure brand uniqueness and memorability;
• Foster team buy-in and consistent implementation; and
• Think long-term about scalability and growth.

"You have to spend enough time intentionally helping your team buy in so they can help customers buy in as well," she explains.

Consistency is key to a brand, too, according to Stroud. "Your brand should be consistent in everything you do: Your website, uniform, trucks, customer interactions and community involvement. This builds trust. When you present an off-brand message or an off-brand image, you're going to erode that trust."

One way Plumbing Outfitters shouts its consistent messaging is through its social media channels, which are handled in house. Stroud explains that although working with an external agency for the rebrand was invaluable, keeping social media posts in house ensures the messaging is authentic. For Plumbing Outfitters, social media is more about recruiting, connecting and engaging than it is about selling.

Your brand should be consistent in everything you do: Your website, uniform, trucks, customer interactions and community involvement. This builds trust. When you present an off-brand message or an off-brand image, you're going to erode that trust.

"We look at social media as a way to pull back the curtain on our business," she says. "It gives people a real view of what we are about and what it’s like to be on our team."

The Central Texas community certainly hasn’t seen the last of Wayfinder Wolf — Plumbing Outfitters has strategic plans to continue to be more involved with the community and invest even deeper into their brand of being a trustworthy plumbing guide to its customers. According to Stroud, it is all about to long game.

"Whatever you chose for your brand needs to have longevity. Don’t just hop on the latest trend. It needs to set up your company for future growth and scalability."