I don’t get a chance to watch too much TV, but recently I have taken some time to relax in front of the tube. The most annoying thing about watching TV is commercials, especially bad ones.

Besides insulting my intelligence and offending my personal standards, I am convinced that the makers of commercials think I am deaf. I have to crank up the volume to hear programming and then fumble for the mute button as I try to simultaneously plug my ears when the commercials begin.

The worst commercials on TV, however, are the local business spots. I am talking about Bob Salesman who went out to the car lot with a man dressed in a gorilla costume and an immense amount of triangle shaped flags, and then spent 30 seconds hollering about how glad he would be to get me into a new car. The commercial is obnoxious, annoying, and unbelievable.

As HVAC contractors, your customer audience experiences many of the same things when they are watching TV. I know you have a great product, are professional, and have the customers’ best interests at heart, but if you’re running TV spots, have you considered what your commercial is saying about you?

Television commercials can be a great marketing tool, but the next time you find yourself annoyed at some ridiculous piece of marketing, take a second to watch and consider what impression your different marketing tools are leaving with your customers.

In the meantime, I am considering investing in a DVR.