Truck of the Month: Prestige Plumbing Heating Cooling, North Aurora, Ill.
Rebranding pays off
Tim Miller, co-owner and president of Prestige Plumbing Heating Cooling, has been in the business for 30 years. He started as a service plumber in 1984 and soon moved into new construction. That’s when he decided to start his own business. Miller started Prestige in 1989, at age 30, and once had as many as 75 employees doing plumbing and HVAC work on new homes — more than 1,000 a year for 15 years until the housing market crashed.
Now, it is strictly a maintenance, repair and replacement company. Miller now has three employees, three service trucks and a van.
The van is a 2012 Chevy Cargo Van and the three trucks are GMC cab overs with 14-ft. Hackney boxes (pictured above). Miller says his favorite aspect of the van is the Adrian adjustable shelving. In addition to the adjustable shelving, the trucks feature plastic-part bins and pullout ramps.
In order for the company’s brand to be noticed and remembered, Miller redesigned his old trucks. The van and two of the three trucks are wrapped; the third is in the works.
“I thought our old branding was a bit cold and formal and thought a character would help to warm up our image,” he says. The new branding is used on the company website and in all its advertising venues, which include pay-per-click, Facebook, Google+, Twitter, postcards, valve tags and stickers.
Miller worked with Dan Antonelli and his staff from Graphic D-Signs, Washington, N.J., to develop the wraps. The trucks were and continue to be wrapped by Accurate Repro, Naperville, Ill. “Everyone seems to love the wrap,” Miller continues. “People definitely look at the truck. I’ve had several people ask if the guy on the truck is the Monopoly guy. No — he is one of a kind!”
Working from North Aurora, Ill., Prestige covers the western suburbs of Chicago, and Kane and Dupage counties. Its focus is on residential plumbing, heating and air conditioning. “The Chicago market is extremely competitive,” Miller says. “However, we don’t mind the competition. I feel the more competition in the marketplace, the more we can set ourselves apart.”
Available for service 24/7, Miller believes the other thing that sets the company apart is its customer service, where Prestige strives for excellence every day. He also believes Prestige doesn’t need to develop a company slogan.
“I think a slogan is used to help explain and reinforce a brand,” he says. “Our brand sends a complete message.”
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