Smart companies stay busy

In a down economy, companies often cut their sales and marketing teams first with an aim to improving the bottom line. They’d be better off using the slow time to retool and rebuild those teams, said Don Rigby, president of Integrated Marcom, an Atlanta-based business consulting firm.

“Companies identify themselves as being in the printing, the real estate or the insurance business,” Rigby said. “They are all in the customer business, so why would you cut the hand that connects you to customers?

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Photos by Leita Cowart / AJC Special

Nicole Bennett, with the Walker Company, discusses software implementation with Donald Rigby of Integrated Marcom at the Walker Company, a Location Analysis & Implementation Expert firm.

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Vicki Wadsworth and Guy LaMarca of Atlanta Design Build are helping use downtime now to make sure everyone understands the business better, a move the company hopes will make it more competitive.

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“The first instinct is to make cuts,” he said, “but companies that retool and innovate will be stronger when the market comes back.”

Atlanta Design Build, an Atlanta residential remodeling firm, began feeling the pinch of the recession last February. “Instead of giving in to the doom and gloom reports, our president, Dale Contant, decided it was time to rethink who we are and to find new ways to reach out to customers,” Guy LaMarca, general manager, said. The company turned to Suzie Price of Priceless Professional Development for team building, and to Rigby to help understand and communicate their uniqueness in the market. Such outside consultants can offer new ideas and training to give leaders a different perspective, Rigby said.

Believing in its ability to remodel homes and enrich lives, Atlanta Design Build put systems in place to touch existing and prospective customers. Everyone, including sales staff and construction crew, began to meet regularly to stay on track with projects. “If the team is strong and working together, if everyone is singing from the same song sheet, the customer benefits,” said Vicki Wadsworth, director of administration.

“We also embarked on a weekly sales-training regime that opened our eyes to better understanding our clients and their needs,” LaMarca said. “Rigby has helped us understand what we do better than anyone else. We offer a team approach and a discovery process that helps customers work through their needs. Communication is 75 percent of what we do and it makes a difference.”

The company also launched a marketing campaign, sending letters to potential and past customers to let them know about current bargains in material costs in the market. It started a customer-referral program and increased its warranty to two years.

“Our investment in training and team building gave us the reassurance that no matter what happens, we’ll face it as a team. That definitely helped with morale,” LaMarca said. “We intend to be lean and mean when the market picks up.”

Wadsworth likens the company to a race car.

“We’re definitely in the ‘pit’ now, but when all systems are go and the race starts, we’ll be ready to lap the competition,” she said. “You have to look long range.”

Insurance is a highly competitive business in the best of times, but rather than put their heads in the sand, leaders at Insurance Counseling & Management decided to take an aggressive approach.

“We realized that we weren’t very good at telling our story and we wanted a way to redefine and explain to people what we have always done,” said Tracy Holzer, chief operating officer. “We help protect people’s lifestyles. We bring to the table all the resources and products that are needed to overcome the financial consequences of a catastrophic event.”

The new approach didn’t change the economy or the bottom line, but “what the branding process did was implant in our minds what we are as a company. Clarifying our reason for being boosted everyone’s attitude,” he said.

The company also embarked on a sales training program. “We have no plans to downsize or let people go. We intend to muddle through this and when the market does turn, we’ll have a group of seasoned professionals ready to meet it,” Holzer said.

Specializing in helping large manufacturers select sites and build new distribution and manufacturing facilities, the Walker Companies has seen many projects put on hold recently. The company president cut costs in some areas but not in business development and marketing strategies, according to Nicole Bennett, executive level business development manager. “Marketing is the most important area of the business to invest in, now,” she said.

The company created a new logo and Web site, and invested in six videos to showcase its core competencies. “They’re a great marketing tool. Executives are busy these days, and this tells them in two minutes who we are and what we do,” Bennett said.

The company has started an e-mail marketing campaign, purchased a program to help manage the customer database and maintained a steady presence in professional organizations and industry conventions. “We’re working hard to stay in front of our customers,” Bennett said. “The company mantra is to keep plugging. Our president tells us that persistence wins deals,” Bennett said. “That attitude is contagious and actually makes this an exciting time. We know our leader is realistic, but positive about the future.

“He understands that we need to be in the forefront of the market. Our customers need to know that we aren’t hiding or going away. So when projects are no longer on hold, we’ll be ready to go.”