It’s cold up here in Northern Wisconsin as I write this column for this issue, so I’m naturally thinking of warmer weather. That leads me to the Fourth of July parade our town up here had this past year.
As with any parade a community holds, there were several businesses that were showing off cars, trucks and other equipment. It’s the easiest, and one of the cheapest, way to advertise your company.
One local company did a great job too with its marketing efforts. It’s one of a very few horizontal directional drilling companies in northern Wisconsin. What I remember the most from this past Fourth of July was that it was hot out and the parade is held midday, so a lot of people were sweating and just feeling miserable with the heat. I was one of them.
Then along came this company — Northwoods Directional Drilling — with some relief from the hot weather. They had their directional drill sitting on top of a flat bed truck and every now and then, they would spin the drill head, which sent water spraying from it onto the crowd.
The kids screamed out of joy, the parents and other adults didn’t mind the cool water hitting them either.
Not only was that marketing ploy a welcome relief from the heat, but it was also a great attention getter. A lot of kids were impressed by the drill and I overheard many saying “that is cool,” or “I want to drive that thing.”
That’s the type of reaction you want to get from your marketing efforts. Are you getting that right now with what you are doing with your company?
STANDING OUT
Standing out like how Northern Directional Drilling did in the parade is a great thing for any company to do, but you also want to make sure you are standing out in the jobs you are doing.
Igo Inc., and owner Trevor Igo, take pride in the work they do each day. The Oklahoma-based company isn’t afraid to show the work they are doing in Facebook posts. Igo knows he does good work and wants to let his current and any potential new customers know as well.
Igo took over the company from his dad in 2005 and has taken steps along the way to improve upon it — like adding services. That was his way of standing out and he accomplished his goal of being one of a few contractors in western Oklahoma doing his type of work. The company stays plenty busy as you’ll read about in this issue.
DO WHAT YOU’RE SUPPOSED TO
It doesn’t take much to stand out, but make sure you’re standing out in a good way. It can work just the opposite too if something doesn’t go right — examples include cutting a utility line and causing a major power outage, or hitting a gas line and forcing evacuations. You’re definitely going to stand out by doing those things, but not in the way you want.
Make sure you and your crews know what they are doing on those jobs and those accidents will be few and far between. We have a little refresher in our Shop Talk feature this issue where we talk about the three keys to a successful vacuum excavation job.
HOW DO YOU DO IT?
How do you make your company stand out? Is there some community activity you take part in that drives a lot of attention, or have you taken on a job that’s gotten you noticed? Let me know by emailing me at editor@digdifferent.com or call me at 715-350-8436.
Enjoy this issue!
