Many Water Quality Dealers are using the news to enhance their marketing. For many dealers, the news is almost like a silent salesperson. Since water quality (or lack thereof) is so often in the news, it almost becomes part of the marketing efforts.
So much of the US infrastructure is old and contains lead pipes. In the Water Industry, we all know the negative effects that lead in the water can cause. The situation in Flint, Michigan has been highlighted in the national media for weeks. This crisis has elevated consumer concern regarding water quality. There are many studies underway in communities all over the US focusing on lead.
In New Orleans, the LSU School of Public Health in New Orleans is currently conducting a Lead Exposure Assessment for Drinking Water Study in New Orleans.
According to Assistant professor Adrienne Katner “a lot of the lead service lines were laid down in the early 1800s.” She adds “an estimated 60 to 80 percent of the water services lines in the city are lead.”
She further explains that she is “trying to target people who might have children or women who want to get pregnant or have older relatives with high blood pressure” to participate in her study.
This is their case statement they are using to recruit people to participate in their study:
You may be at risk if you can answer yes to the following questions:
- Do you drink or cook with water straight from the tap?
- Is your home old or does it have old water pipes?
- Are there children or women below the age of 45 in your home
Never Use the News as a Scare Tactic
People are already scared. You don’t need to scare them further. What you do need to do is educate them. The truth is that bad news about water provides incredible incentive for people for buy a water filtration unit. You can use this to enhance your marketing. It’s like having a no-commission salesperson for your Dealership.
For example, on a national level, the Consumer Marketing Study by the WQA gives Water Dealers many tools to frame their targeting and messaging. From a marketing perspective, one of the #1 findings was that 48% of the consumers surveyed reported purchasing a water filtration unit after receiving a boil water on unsafe water alert.
On their site, LSU is providing lots of great consumer information & education and even suggesting that people use pitcher water filters and faucet mounted filters to help remove lead from drinking water, providing a list of actual model numbers that consumers can purchase.
What a marketing opportunity! And this is not happening only in New Orleans, but in communities all across the US.
Dealers need to leverage the publicity & findings of both national and local studies in their markets and use them to enhance their marketing outreach and in-home presentations.