Free Publicity

[Atlantic Power Washing 14]

Fredericksburg.com - Houses need a bath, too READY TO GO ON WASH DAY SOME THOUGHTS TO CONSIDER

We were blindsided by our local paper yesterday with this artical. We ended up scheduling 15 jobs yesterday with no questions asked.

Now if I can just figure out how to attach a link from this artical to my website.

Beth Please?

Edited March 28, 2009 by Atlantic Power Washing

[All Surface 24]

WOW Tom, That is way too cool. You sure lucked out with that guy calling you. Great Job!

[Camelot 68]

That's great stuff...you couldn't pay for that kind of advertising! Good job...

- John

[charlie 14]

Very Cool.

Charlie

[FDNY 14]

great.

[Beth n Rod 1,279]

You need to use the <a href="http://www.url here.com"> then type something like click here to read the story then the end tag </a>

ALSO consider printing a copy, scanning it and uploading it as a PDF to your site and linking to it because it won't be around forever. Only thing that will change is the path in the first tag which becomes the path where you store the PDF.

Hope this helps.

Beth

[Henry Bockman 14]

Great article Tom, I love when the media contact us like that. I've had local papers and the occasional TV news contact us for segments on pressure washing. I may have some jobs in Fredericksburg coming up soon from some trade shows I've done recently. If I'm down your way estimating some jobs I'll try to get in touch with you. Or give me a call if you like on my cell at 240-274-0300. I'll be looking at some complexes down there.

[Beth n Rod 1,279]

I took the liberty of copy pasting the article here and quoted it for others to read. Enjoy.

Houses need a bath, too READY TO GO ON WASH DAY SOME THOUGHTS TO CONSIDER

FLS Customer Care Is your house ready for a good power washing?

Date published: 3/27/2009

BY RICHARD AMRHINE

The time had come this year that I really needed to get a bath, just to make sure I stayed on good terms with my family, my neighbors--and my homeowners association. After all, it had been more than 12 years.

I'm talking about our house, of course, a terrific house that's served us well since it was built in 1996. But aside from Mother Nature's showers, it had never been washed.

There are two reasons for my procrastination. First, it's the back side of the house, the part hardly anybody sees, that needed the most attention. That's where areas of mildew had developed over time because it doesn't get a whole lot of sun. The front, as long as I keep up with the wood trim and wash what I can reach, looks just fine.

And second, I had heard a power washing horror story sometime back. The water pressure was so great, the homeowner said, that water got under the siding, soaked the insulation and caused stains and mold to appear on the interior walls.

But in reality, there's a lot of power washing going on out there, and almost all of the time it must turn out OK, or I would have heard more than one horror story.

Like most homeowners who don't have a cousin or a friend in the power washing business, I turned to the phone book. I looked for a professional-looking ad with a local phone number. Local guys won't stay in business long if they do lousy work.

I picked out one for those reasons and one other: There was a Web site with background on the company and--this was really big--estimates based on the size of the house.

Now there are a lot of power washing outfits out there, and most of them probably do a decent job. But I settled on Atlantic Power Washing largely because I could become acquainted with the company and have a ballpark idea about how much it would cost even before I picked up the phone.

I got a call back from owner Tom Bates the same day I'd left a message, and we struck up a conversation that left me confident that he knows what he's doing and would be a good guy to deal with.

Page 2:

Houses need a bath, too READY TO GO ON WASH DAY SOME THOUGHTS TO CONSIDER page 2

FLS Customer Care Is your house ready for a good power washing?

Date published: 3/27/2009

continued

I told him about the horror story I'd heard and he explained that because of the environmentally safe cleaning solution he uses, the water pressure needn't be extreme. A relatively low-pressure wash will do the job, he said.

He said the price of $200 for a four-bedroom Colonial that I saw on the Web site was correct, and that's what I ended up paying.

"There's a lot of competition out there so I've got to keep my prices reasonable," he said.

He hooks up to your outdoor spigot, so you will pick up the tab for the water, too.

He also already had done comparable houses in our neighborhood, and could give me a couple of references from folks on nearby streets who could, and did, vouch for his work.

Now it was a matter of finding a day that wasn't rainy or windy, which hasn't been easy in recent weeks. He insisted he wouldn't do the job in conditions that wouldn't allow him to do his best work. And like any contractor these days, he wants and needs as much work as he can get.

I didn't mention to Bates my connection to the newspaper, or that maybe I would turn this job into a story for the paper, until we were all set up and scheduled. He was dealing with me as he would with any other potential customer.

After that, I insisted that he handle the job like any other and, although I threw in a question here and there, the job was done in the same time frame as any other, about two to 2 hours.

When he was done the house looked great--nearly new. There are some stains on the white aluminum guttering, but getting them off would end up leaving bare metal, he said. They look better than they did before.

Best of all, the back of the house almost looks like new again.

Richard Amrhine: 540/374-5406

Email: ramrhine@freelancestar.com

Here was a quote from a local company in the article:

As Tom Bates says, there is a lot of power-washing competition out there, and many of them will do a perfectly good job on your house. To help you get results you'll be happy with, here are some basic issues to consider and ask about: How much pressure? Power washing doesn't mean just blasting water at a house. Will a diluted bleach cleaning solution be used to loosen dirt and kill mildew so it rinses right off?

Does the guy think it's important to wait for a nice day without wind? Conditions should be dry for the solution to work as intended, and excessive wind can blow the spray away from your house and onto your neighbor's car, for instance, which wouldn't be appreciated.

How much? Bates' Web site, atlanticpowerwashing .com, can provide a good idea of how much washing a given house should cost. Paying a lot doesn't mean a better job, and may mean an unsatisfactory one.

The contractor should be bonded and insured.

Rod!~ Edited March 29, 2009 by Beth n Rod

[ERADicator 14]

Tom, I think your site gave the customer a very good "first impression," and then everything you did after that confirmed that they made the right choice. Well done!

[Atlantic Power Washing 14]

Thanks to all, I really appreciate all your complements and support. So far we’ve scheduled over 20 house washes, just from that article. I fell very fortunate for this as I know many companies are hurting right now in this economy.

Beth, how have you been? I haven’t spoke to you in awhile, I have been sorta living in hole the past 2 years due to the loss of my 16 year old son 6/10/2007. It’s been a slow recovery, but I think I’m back on my feet now.

Thanks a million for the advice on the attachment. Do you mind if I call you? I may be doing some more work on the web site.

[Beth n Rod 1,279]

Tom,

I am so very, very sorry to hear of your loss. As a parent, I can't even begin to imagine the pain... Call me any time, I have always enjoyed chatting with you. Let's catch up then. :)

Beth :groovy2:

[MattsPristinePW 14]

Hard work pays off. Great job!

[troikarestoration 14]

Get that on your web site and show all your future customers, nothing like free marketing!!!