Stephanie Vanderbilt, owner of Coastal Windows & Exteriors (Beverly, Massachusetts), is always on the lookout for opportunities to serve her local community.  When she learned that the popular reality show "Flipping Boston" was in need of local experts to help a deserving homeowner, she jumped at the chance. We asked Stephanie to tell us about the experience, and how this worked for her business.
I was introduced to Pete and Dave by a friend. After meeting them, I reached out and explained who I was and described the energy-efficient products Coastal sells, all with a lifetime guarantee. I think they were impressed that we have a woman-owned business with a passion for service and an emphasis on customer education.

Stephanie, Pete and a   freshly-installed ProVia door

What kind of investment did you make in this project?

To be on this show, everything has to be donated, including materials and labor. This particular project was special because the homeowner is a Boston Marathon bombing survivor. So this was not just a business decision, but an emotional one as well. With help from ProVia we donated two new ADA-compliant doors that address the need for proper thresholds, door width and criteria for wheelchair accessibility. ProVia's ability to customize these doors made all the difference.
Coastal focuses on high-quality products and services and we insist on providing lasting value. But lots of people don't even know who we are! So we wanted to demonstrate our core values and "wow" service. We treat others as we'd like to be treated ourselves, and that goes for our customer relationships too.

First I should explain, Coastal has come a long way in our approach to lead generation. We understand that today's consumer doesn't respond as well to outbound sales calls. So we don't do that anymore. We focus on generating awareness, and that drives people to our website, where we convert visitors into leads. This sales approach has been growing very nicely for us. Flipping Boston was extremely helpful for awareness-building, and we continue to leverage this as a credibility-booster on our website.

Coastal Windows & Exteriors hosted a Flipping Boston VIP Party to generate even more local awareness

Our awareness is getting another huge boost already! We've been nominated for three local Chamber awards - "Small Business of the Year", "Community Service", and "Businessperson of the Year." In 2015 we'll continue our emphasis on Community Relations with lots of events and attention to our referral program. Angie's List is working well for us too. For us, it's all about helping the community, whether its installing a free roof for someone in need, or writing an educational blog post. We're always working to EARN our good reputation through value and trust.