Kevin Hunt Video

Business podcasting: Hardware store

This post is the second in a series aimed at providing some ideas for various businesses looking to get into video podcasting – either daily, weekly, monthly or just whenever.

The neighborhood hardware store is a staple of American life. In fact, they’ve embraced that image in their advertising in recent years, to combat the rise of the mega home improvement chains that have popped up across the United States. Most of the local or neighborhood stores are still around, so that should tell us something – their ads are working.

Personally, I shop in a local hardware store whenever I can for one reason: Someone meets me within 20 feet of the front door every time and asks me what I need. With their help, I find it, get my questions answered and leave within a few minutes and head for home,

You can’t beat that for customer service.

On the flip side, I once walked around Home Depot for 15 minutes looking to find someone to help me. I left in disgust.

If you own or work in a neighborhood hardware store I want to challenge you to think about your store’s next phase of effective advertising.

I’m talking about a video podcast.

Whether it lives on your Website or on iTunes or YouTube, a short regularly produced podcast for a hardware store can remind us all that you have our home improvement answers, not the big chains.

Here are five ideas for a business podcast for a hardware store:

1. A knowledgeable employee shows “how-to” fix common problems or projects to do around the house (the toilet, putting in a ceiling fan, painting, installing outdoor lighting, etc…)
2. Customer success story (Testimonials from your repeat customers, showing off their home improvement projects)
3. Show-and-tell with tools (New kinds of tools, or how to use common tools)
4. Try and test new products (Test out that super glue, etc…)
5. Events/themes (Holiday decorations, items for entertaining at home, tailgating to show off a new grill, etc…)

Does your hardware store have a know-it-all on staff? They’d be a great host for your podcast. Or maybe you have several people who can handle that role.

Also, as I always point out… it’s not a commercial. Think of a video podcast as your very own “TV show.”

Whether it’s 30 seconds or three minutes long, a hardware store podcast can establish or solidify your image as the place to shop at when customers have a project they need help with.