THE QUESTION
How do you get your business noticed in your local area? When you enter a new area, what do you do to get your name out there when it may not be a household name already?
President, Gary Halter
Indiana Oxygen Company
There’s no one-size-fits-all approach. We do a lot of things. Some of the things that we have done in the past include:
- Utilizing billboards
- Social Media
- Sending letters to existing customers, as well as to key targets within the area, usually within a 30-mile radius
- Taking out advertising in local magazines and newspapers announcing our arrival
- Utilizing radio spots on multiple stations in the area, usually a talk radio station and a classic rock station
- Conducting open houses and lunch and learn events with food in both cases
President-Elect, Eric Wood
O.E. Meyer Company
Understanding what methods are the most successful in reaching the target demographic can be difficult. Other than good ‘ole pounding the pavement, we utilize a combination of online and off-line strategies.
Our online efforts include local SEO, social media, and online advertising. Off-line efforts include involvement and participation in local vocational and educational institutions, community engagement, and other public relations efforts.
Recently, our largest efforts have been spent promoting all our services and product offerings to those that know our company well and to those who have never heard of us and aren’t familiar with all our capabilities and business units.
We’ve learned that even in markets where we have been for more than 100 years, that the public does not know everything we do.
First Vice President, Allison Earlbeck
Earlbeck Gases & Technologies
There was a point in our history that our entire marketing budget was for ads in the local yellow pages. Times have changed! We understand that, often, the start of the buyer’s journey now starts with a simple Google search, so we place focus on making sure we have optimized our website for local SEO. We also participate in local community events so that we get a chance to connect with local decision makers and build brand awareness.
First Past President Robert Anders
Holston Gases, Inc.
There are more efficient ways to “spread the news” today than there were in the past – posting on social media platforms, SEO focused applications and traditional media press releases, to name a few. But nothing has been as effective as boots on the ground, cold calling one prospect at a time.
Vice President, Rafael Arvelo
Equigas, Inc.
Take EQUIGAS, for example. When we launched EQUIGAS in the North American market just seven years ago, everything was a new immense territory. People might assume we’ve been part of GAWDA for decades, but that isn’t the case. So, I made joining GAWDA a priority. Since then, we’ve participated in every regional and national event they’ve held. At each regional event, we commit the entire week to visiting as many customers as possible. It’s a lot of travel, but if you want to get noticed, you need to be present and give your customers 100% attention. My best advice? Get involved in relevant industry associations, volunteer your time, and support their goals. That’s how you get noticed!
Vice President Brad Dunn
CK Supply
At CK Supply, we use several methods to introduce our brand to prospective buyers. Our company runs on EOS Traction, so we review all of our marketing material through the lens of our agreed-upon and published marketing strategy. This includes ensuring that we are consistently speaking to our ideal customer profile, within our target geography, while highlighting at least one of our core differentiators that we know will set us apart from alternatives. Our preferred formats are web, social, and various print, which are budget friendly and low risk. In recent years, we have been very selective about in-person open house style events, due to the amount of work, stress and uncertainty regarding attendance, weather, food, etc. In my opinion, when it comes to ROI, it is much more effective and easier to launch a targeted online campaign towards a small group of key prospects, than cooking burgers on our asphalt parking lot in August for everyone that drives by and sees our banner.
Vice President John Hill
Willard C. Starcher
We advertise consistently on our local radio station and periodically advertise in our local weekly newspaper. I believe that the real value to our company is name recognition, rather than sales generated from advertising. I am always amazed at the number of people who come in the door and tell us that they had no idea we were here. Our company moved to this location around 1952 and it’s a very small town.
Outside of our immediate territory, it can be a little more difficult. We only have one location, so our best way to attract attention is with the signage on our trucks and vans. When out of the local area, we are probably calling on an existing customer who has moved to a new location. A referral from an existing customer is very important.
Vice President Nicole Kissler
Norco
Larry Kissler was a huge proponent of Serving our Communities. We do that through our great people, providing great solutions, and then working to give back. In moving into two new markets last year, we made sure we had the right people in place to support the work being done and executing with solid processes and the right systems in place. It takes time to evaluate how things are going, but we are in it for the long haul, so we take the time to work to establish strong relationships.
Vice President Scott Rummans
Linde, Inc.
Linde uses a variety of tools to create excitement around its presence in existing and new geographies. Historically, Linde has leveraged its teams’ relationships in local markets, radio ads, print flyers and other types of marketing and promotional materials to create brand awareness. More recently, Linde has started to incorporate a digital addition to that strategy in the form of social media posts and paid internet ads to drive traffic to an increasingly tech savvy set of customers. The most important action to take in any geography we operate is to build a strong reputation of great people, products and service, and your customers will help you grow by recommending you to other businesses in the community.
