I'll select a local business advertisement each week and comment on How I See it.
This week...
It's not always possible to ignore something
Sometimes you have to act...
I had just returned from my cardiologist, and I was sitting at the kitchen table with my 1st cup of coffee. I opened the Turnpike Buyer (a local advertising "newspaper") to see what was new in the area.
I flipped open the 1st page and came face-to-face with this (click the image to see the entire letter)
My blood pressure spiked, and my heart started to race... It was devastating to see yet another local small business shuttering its doors.
My cardiologist told me, "No excitement for the next three days." But fate had other plans...
Hurme's has been an institution for 75 years...
First and foremost, my heartfelt best wishes go out to Mr. Michael R. Gaudreau
So what went wrong?
Here's my take on the closure of Hurme TV & Appliance based on "How I See It"
- The opening paragraph of Mr. Gaudreau's letter was heartbreaking.
(It was clear that he had poured years of his life into this business) - Seeing the AOL.com email address gave me pause.
Running a business in today's world requires some tech savviness.
Not having an email like HermeTVAppliances.com SCREAMS...
(not trustworthy) - Celebrating 75 years of business makes me wonder
how someone who had built relationships for generations could suddenly close down. *NOT embracing change is my guess... - However, I applaud Mr. Gaudreau's commitment to the community, based on his decision to write and publish this letter.
( I call it COURAGE) - The company's ongoing outreach, gratitude towards employees, and his powerful advert ending deserves MASSIVE RESPECT.
Here's how I went hunting down the reasons...
I searched on my phone
Curious about Hurme's online presence, I visited their website, hurmetvappliance.com, only to find it unreachable.
Surprisingly, I couldn't even find a record of their website in the internet archives.
I resorted to various business directory websites like Yelp and Manta to gather information.
It makes me question whether it ever existed or was unintentionally hidden from Google due to an inexperienced web setup.
This presented a significant obstacle for Hurme's, making it nearly impossible for potential customers to find them.
When searching, I noticed Simon Furniture and Keiths Appliances running Adwords advertisements against Hurme's name. These competitor ads appeared at the top of Google search results for Hurmes TV and appliances.
Advertising on a competitor's name or related search terms is just one of the levers you'll use in Google Adwords.
That means when someone searched for Hurmes TV (and appliances), his competitors appeared in advertisements on the top of Google.
I was surprised to see none of the other local competitors were advertising, but competitors from miles away were.
When I refreshed the page, SKLavery appeared in the ads section too. This was a stretch since their stores are far from my location.
I eventually found Hurme's Google My Business (GMB) page, where Bousquets Appliance was advertising just above them, and Keiths Appliances was right below.
In a future post, I'll compare marketing approaches between Bousquets Appliances and Keiths Appliances, sharing "How I see it" regarding their internet savviness.
My limited research shows that Hurme's needed significant online marketing.
It's a shame that a company with a 75-year history and a genuine concern for its customers couldn't capitalize on its goodwill and extensive customer list.
Running a business is challenging, with competitors always nipping at your heels
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In Closing
In my opinion, and from the limited research...
A company with a 75-year history that cared about its customers seems to have lacked the marketing chops to understand how to compete in the "new world" of the internet.
I'll bet they had a long history of client contact information that they could have leveraged to become the major player in the market.
But it's not their fault. Running a business isn't easy.
Oddly enough, Hume's had an advantage over their competition based on their 75-year history. It's a shame they didn't take advantage of all their goodwill and, ESPECIALLY, their deep customer list.
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Next Up
I'll focus on Mainely Seafood & Deli—their significant threat and their biggest opportunity. Mainely Seafood & Deli.
Be on the lookout for examples I'll share about the rivalry between Keiths Appliance and Bousquets Appliance.
The post will compare "How I see it" regarding their marketing approaches and who, IMO is currently more internet savvy than the other.
The information I dug up on those Bosquets and Keiths will surprise you.
If you want to learn how to become Five Mile Famous in your local area and grow your business, stay tuned.
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