The inspiration for this print advertisement came from Rick Hjelm’s investment in a cabinet shop. The remodeler had not done much advertising for his company, Phase II General Contractor, in Lakewood, Wash., but to promote the cabinet shop’s custom work, he decided to create a print ad. When he and his staff, an ad agency, and the editor of local lifestyle magazine South Sound started discussing the ad, they decided to use the opportunity to promote Phase II’s other specialties: outdoor living, design consultation, and remodels/additions.
The team worked together to create a two-page ad for South Sound. Hjelm was familiar with the magazine because it prints guides for a local tour of remodeled homes and promotions for home shows. The ad campaign cost $6,000 to run in the magazine’s March/April home-themed issue. “This is the first time I’ve done more than just branding,” Hjelm says, having focused previous advertising on boosting company name recognition rather than specifics of the types of work it does.
The ad is designed to be simple, with minimal text, relying on the images to convey the message. One of the photos shows an outdoor living area — Hjelm is a distributor for an outdoor polymer cabinetry line from In & Out Cabinetry. Another of the images promotes the company’s interior design services for homeowners and other contractors, showing swatches and samples.
Hjelm doesn’t expect to be inundated with leads from the ad, but he does anticipate that the new ad will contribute to building the company’s brand — beyond just knowing the company’s name — offering homeowners more detailed knowledge of what Phase II General Contractor does.
—Nina Patel, senior editor, REMODELING.
