• by Aaron Baar , January 2, 2018

Remodeling a kitchen or bathroom can't be that difficult. After all, countless people are doing them in 30 minutes on TV. 

In advance of the national Kitchen and Bath Industry Show coming up next week in Orlando, and as a way to get more consumers to understand and appreciate the complexities of kitchen and bath remodeling, the National Kitchen & Bath Association (NKBA) is launching a new effort to highlight the importance of using certified professionals for the big projects. 

“Sometimes, the best-laid plans don’t go so well, and it’s important to find a trusted professional to do the work,” Bill Darcy, NKBA CEO, tells Marketing Daily. “A lot of people are inspired by watching TV and YouTube videos about how to make their living spaces better. But it’s much more complicated than people assume.” 

Rather than focus on major kitchens and bathroom failures, two 15-second spots show the minor annoyances that can come from sub-par remodels. In one spot, a woman tries to enjoy a cup of coffee in her new kitchen only to be distracted by a cupboard that won’t stay closed. Along a similar line, the second segment shows a woman who can’t enjoy relaxing in a new bathtub because a faucet keeps dripping. 

“If you have a ‘Pinterest fail’ on a kitchen or bathroom, it can be really expensive,” says Denise Blasevick, CEO, The S3 Agency, which created the campaign. “There are all these little details that can detract from the project around you.”

The commercials will air heavily in Orlando during the trade show next week, and will continue on home improvement networks such as DIY and HGTV into the spring. They’re designed to push both consumers and contractors to a newly designed NKBA website, Darcy says. 

“We’ve tried to take the core benefit of why we exist and our value and bring that online,” he says. 

In addition, the 15-second spots will be paired with the association’s one-minute “DIY Download” segments, which offer quick tips for small home improvement projects. Combined, the two segments will create a 90-second branding opportunity for the association. 

“We don’t want to take away from [DIYers]. We want to work together,” Blasevick says. “You don’t have to have a certified professional for every single thing, but for the big projects, you want to have a trusted professional.”