Branding strategies for garage makeovers

Greg Moon knows a few things about the American garage.

He knows that garages have increasingly become the storage site when a home's closets fill up. Because of this, many garages are such a mess that some families cannot park cars in them.

"They have a $50,000 car sitting in the driveway because people are using the garage for storage," said Moon, the Miami-Dade County franchisee for GarageTec. The company makes cabinets to organize and store items in a garage.

And finally, Moon knows that messy or not, garages are extensions of the home and women are leading the charge in overseeing garage makeovers intended to tidy up the space.

"Women are disgusted with how the garage looks, and they're making decorating decisions for the family."

As a result, GarageTec and competitor HouseWall Garage Systems each have launched new marketing initiatives reaching out to consumers. GarageTec has redone its advertisements to appeal more to women, replacing a construction site-themed ad with one featuring simple white borders and clean product photography. Company ads are running in area newspapers and magazines, and on HGTV via Miami-Dade County cable operators.

Meanwhile, HouseWall uses a variety of tools to tell its tale. The company is marketed through grass roots and networking meetings, like chamber of commerce gatherings, and special events, HouseWall founder and President Michael Dagen said. One of its programs donates 10 percent of purchases to participating schools and religious organizations that a family selects.

HouseWall is using customers in its promotions. Mark and Robin Levinson, owners of Levinson Jewelers in Plantation, are featured in testimonial ads, which run in local magazines and newspapers and direct-mail fliers. The headline reads, "Make your garage the gem of your house."

The company does its advertising in-house. Zucker Public Relations in Aventura handles PR.

HouseWall also has turned to partnerships with area companies to increase customer awareness and sales. In recent months, HouseWall has signed distribution and marketing deals with BrandsMart USA and WCI Communities to showcase its products.

The company has displays at all five area BrandsMart USA retail stores. The retailer sells the cabinets and accessories, and HouseWall delivers and installs the system. WCI Communities is showcasing the garage organizational products in model homes and centers in 12 Florida Gulf Coast communities planned or under development from Naples to Tampa. The goal is to have the product in 7,000 WCI homes within three years, Dagen said.

Also, anyone who takes a test drive of a Rick Case automobile receives a coupon for $250 off the purchase of a HouseWall system.

"It costs Rick Case nothing, but allows us to get in front of their customers," he said. The program debuted in August, and so far, 10,000 coupons have been given out to car buyers.

"A lot of people don't really tap their partners," he said. "The key to that relationship is they're branding our name." So when people think of garage organization, they think of HouseWall systems, Dagen said. "It's very difficult in this day and age to get your brand out there, like a Nike swoosh."

Jeffery D. Zbar is a freelance writer. He can be reached at jeff@jeffzbar.com.