SEMA News—December 2013

BEST PRACTICES
By Steve Campbell

Product Packaging

It’s All Wrapped Up in Protection, Branding, Economics and the Environment

“Our products can be expensive,” said Joe Dussol, marketing director for Powerteq, which is the parent company of Superchips and Edge Products. “Depending on the product, some people might spend $600–$1,000, and we want the customer to feel like he’s holding something worth that kind of money when he picks up our package. That’s why our packaging might be a little bit more costly than doing a cardboard box with some print on it, but we really want it to stand out.”

Dussol said that digital photography and digital printing technologies have allowed his company to use a variety of new inks, patterns and materials, ranging from plastics to cardboard, and print processes using everything from laser-jet to water-jet printers and sophisticated dyes.

“The new equipment and techniques also allow us to cut costs,” he said. “For instance, we used to have to wait for certain types of printing to dry, so you might order a four-color print job and have to wait several days for it to dry. With digital processes, there’s virtually no drying time.”

Rodney Bertram, creative director for Airaid Filter Co., said that digital systems and computer designing have also made packaging tasks more efficient.

“If you’re doing a specific package that needs product photos, digital is the way to go,” he said. “We used to have to deal with film, get the photo scanned and worry about quality. Everything is much quicker now, and we can look at recyclable materials, how much a package is going to affect the environment, whether we can save on ink or processing, how sturdy the box needs to be. We can send a die line [a flat diagram that shows all the cut lines and folds of a package] to a specific printer to make sure it’s correct and then build the artwork around that.”

“Internal engine components are not ‘pretty parts’ when compared to other aftermarket components and/or accessories and are not typically displayed on retail shelves,” said Ernie Silvers, Egge’s CEO and president. “Our products often pass through a jobber or a warehouse distributor before getting to the end user, so the packaging must be durable and be able to successfully navigate the global UPS logistics system. Protecting the product is always the priority.”

For many companies, however, presentation is as critical as protection, both outside and within the package.

“When you open our box, it’s not full of white popcorn that you need to dig through,” Bertram said. “We use pillow packs—airbags—to cushion our products, because that makes it easier for the customer to make sure he’s gotten all his parts. Also, each of our filters is inserted into a box in itself, which further protects it. That lets the customer know that we really care, and the pillow packs are also more environmentally friendly because we can make just what we need to use.”

Dussol said that his company designs its packaging to appeal to the customer but also to provide retailers with inherent sales functions. For instance, the package for the Superchips TrailDash tuner—which won the 2012 SEMA Show award for best new packaging display—features a USB port on the side of the box to allow the unit to be powered up in a demonstration mode and a front panel that opens to reveal the tuner.

“The dealer can put the package on his counter and display the live product running, Dussol said. “And he can also sell that product because it’s not being taken out of the box and used.”

Bertram said that Airaid views its packaging as a branding tool, and logo placement is very important. That’s why the company logo is designed with contrasting colors—black and a yellow-orange gradient—and the logo is prominent on the top of each package. If the product is stacked on a shelf, the boxes will form a wall of Airaid logos.

The ability to stack products not only helps shippers and retailers but can also save money. For instance, plastic clamshell packages can create stacking problems unless they are encased in an additional cardboard box. And, Dussol pointed out, customers don’t like them because they are difficult to open.

“In addition, all of our products have barcodes and serial numbers positioned so that they can be easily scanned when they’re on pallets,” he said. “Warehouses are all about part numbers and barcodes, not brands, so you want to position those items so that can be quickly scanned or seen by a distributor and pulled off the shelf and moved.”

Ultimately, though, it is protection—that primary packaging purpose—where everything starts. Silvers said Egge consults with box manufacturers, industry peers and shipping companies to determine the proper paper weight and density to match up with the company’s products.

“We place the order in a box and suspend that box within a minimum of 2 in. of packing material inside another shipping container—floating the box within a box, if you will,” he said. “We quickly discover what works, adapt and stay with it.”

Dussol said that the rigors of shipping play prominently in how Powerteq’s products are packaged, and quality control includes
the simulation of shipping mishaps to determine that a package will hold up. The company also tries to ensure that its packages are recyclable, so it stays with paper and cardboard, nontoxic inks and recyclable foam inserts.

“We also look at the assembly line process to be sure that it doesn’t take too long for the line to put a package together,” he said. “Our production workers have meetings to confirm that the line is working at its most efficient. We want the boxes to be clean and look great, but we also want the people who have to assemble them to be able to do it quickly and easily.”

“When our engineers set out to design a new package, they begin with a focus on the product, how it’s intended to travel in the box and what they need to do to protect it,” said Matt Lerwill, vice president of PackageOne Inc. “They consider what the product is, the weight, the shape, the number per container, how it will travel through its supply chain (palletized, going on a shelf or parceled out via FedEx or similar carriers) as well as the time it will spend in transit, storage and warehousing. These requirements help them decide the strength requirements of the packaging and which materials will best hold up to the task.”

Daniel Ferguson, vice president of sales for Cougar Packaging Solutions Inc., said his company’s main focus is ensuring that the product gets to the end user safely.

“Even one damaged product not only costs the manufacturer dollars on that unit but also a cost to its reputation,” he said. “Our materials are chosen based on volume, product sensitivity, ship cycle, ship method, product value and customer demands on package testing. Any and all of these can be factors for choosing the proper materials.”

Commercial packagers use a number of sophisticated methods and tests to create containers that are designed for specific loads and products.

“The container has to hold up and cannot compromise the product,” Lerwill said. “It also cannot compromise the safety of the various handlers who convey it through the supply chain, and it has to be consumer friendly. The consumer must be able to easily understand how to open it. We often go to retail and club stores to see how products are being displayed and take note of the materials and designs that look good and those that do a poor job of communicating what the product is. We also take note of containers that have failed and do ‘post mortems’ on them to understand why.”

“If our product is returned, we want the customer to feel confident that it will come back in one piece so that proper credit can be given,” Betram said. “We use tuck-top boxes so they can be reused.”

And Powerteq uses a unique system with its serial numbers and barcodes to ensure that returns can be tracked and any production problems can be quickly resolved.

“Our barcodes contain a serial number and a Julian date, so we can look at the specific code on the box––which also contains the UPC code––and we can track the product back,” he said. “That way, we know who built the product as well as the day and time it was made. That same number is on the device, so if you get a customer calling for support, you just ask him for the number off his device and determine if there is a known problem. We can take care of customers more quickly because everything traces back to the time of manufacture and the person who worked on the product.”

Lerwill said that his company recently invested in another increasingly important technological concern: the environment and recyclability.

“In April 2012, we took a major step forward for the packaging industry and our nation by collaborating with Clean World Partners and opening the first commercial high-solid organic waste conversion facility at our manufacturing plant in Sacramento, California,” he said. “The system converts scrap materials, food waste, agricultural residue and other organic waste into clean renewable energy, fertilizer and soil enhancements. The byproduct is nitrogen-rich peat moss and compost materials, which provides nutrients to local farmlands.”

So even though the basic design parameters remain unchanged—creating economical, protective containers for a variety of automotive specialty-equipment products—the techniques used to get there are just as evolutionary as in any other facet of the industry. From branding to the environment, it’s all one package.

SEMA News—December 2013

BEST PRACTICES
By Steve Campbell

Product Packaging

It’s All Wrapped Up in Protection, Branding, Economics and the Environment

“Our products can be expensive,” said Joe Dussol, marketing director for Powerteq, which is the parent company of Superchips and Edge Products. “Depending on the product, some people might spend $600–$1,000, and we want the customer to feel like he’s holding something worth that kind of money when he picks up our package. That’s why our packaging might be a little bit more costly than doing a cardboard box with some print on it, but we really want it to stand out.”

Dussol said that digital photography and digital printing technologies have allowed his company to use a variety of new inks, patterns and materials, ranging from plastics to cardboard, and print processes using everything from laser-jet to water-jet printers and sophisticated dyes.

“The new equipment and techniques also allow us to cut costs,” he said. “For instance, we used to have to wait for certain types of printing to dry, so you might order a four-color print job and have to wait several days for it to dry. With digital processes, there’s virtually no drying time.”

Rodney Bertram, creative director for Airaid Filter Co., said that digital systems and computer designing have also made packaging tasks more efficient.

“If you’re doing a specific package that needs product photos, digital is the way to go,” he said. “We used to have to deal with film, get the photo scanned and worry about quality. Everything is much quicker now, and we can look at recyclable materials, how much a package is going to affect the environment, whether we can save on ink or processing, how sturdy the box needs to be. We can send a die line [a flat diagram that shows all the cut lines and folds of a package] to a specific printer to make sure it’s correct and then build the artwork around that.”

“Internal engine components are not ‘pretty parts’ when compared to other aftermarket components and/or accessories and are not typically displayed on retail shelves,” said Ernie Silvers, Egge’s CEO and president. “Our products often pass through a jobber or a warehouse distributor before getting to the end user, so the packaging must be durable and be able to successfully navigate the global UPS logistics system. Protecting the product is always the priority.”

For many companies, however, presentation is as critical as protection, both outside and within the package.

“When you open our box, it’s not full of white popcorn that you need to dig through,” Bertram said. “We use pillow packs—airbags—to cushion our products, because that makes it easier for the customer to make sure he’s gotten all his parts. Also, each of our filters is inserted into a box in itself, which further protects it. That lets the customer know that we really care, and the pillow packs are also more environmentally friendly because we can make just what we need to use.”

Dussol said that his company designs its packaging to appeal to the customer but also to provide retailers with inherent sales functions. For instance, the package for the Superchips TrailDash tuner—which won the 2012 SEMA Show award for best new packaging display—features a USB port on the side of the box to allow the unit to be powered up in a demonstration mode and a front panel that opens to reveal the tuner.

“The dealer can put the package on his counter and display the live product running, Dussol said. “And he can also sell that product because it’s not being taken out of the box and used.”

Bertram said that Airaid views its packaging as a branding tool, and logo placement is very important. That’s why the company logo is designed with contrasting colors—black and a yellow-orange gradient—and the logo is prominent on the top of each package. If the product is stacked on a shelf, the boxes will form a wall of Airaid logos.

The ability to stack products not only helps shippers and retailers but can also save money. For instance, plastic clamshell packages can create stacking problems unless they are encased in an additional cardboard box. And, Dussol pointed out, customers don’t like them because they are difficult to open.

“In addition, all of our products have barcodes and serial numbers positioned so that they can be easily scanned when they’re on pallets,” he said. “Warehouses are all about part numbers and barcodes, not brands, so you want to position those items so that can be quickly scanned or seen by a distributor and pulled off the shelf and moved.”

Ultimately, though, it is protection—that primary packaging purpose—where everything starts. Silvers said Egge consults with box manufacturers, industry peers and shipping companies to determine the proper paper weight and density to match up with the company’s products.

“We place the order in a box and suspend that box within a minimum of 2 in. of packing material inside another shipping container—floating the box within a box, if you will,” he said. “We quickly discover what works, adapt and stay with it.”

Dussol said that the rigors of shipping play prominently in how Powerteq’s products are packaged, and quality control includes
the simulation of shipping mishaps to determine that a package will hold up. The company also tries to ensure that its packages are recyclable, so it stays with paper and cardboard, nontoxic inks and recyclable foam inserts.

“We also look at the assembly line process to be sure that it doesn’t take too long for the line to put a package together,” he said. “Our production workers have meetings to confirm that the line is working at its most efficient. We want the boxes to be clean and look great, but we also want the people who have to assemble them to be able to do it quickly and easily.”

“When our engineers set out to design a new package, they begin with a focus on the product, how it’s intended to travel in the box and what they need to do to protect it,” said Matt Lerwill, vice president of PackageOne Inc. “They consider what the product is, the weight, the shape, the number per container, how it will travel through its supply chain (palletized, going on a shelf or parceled out via FedEx or similar carriers) as well as the time it will spend in transit, storage and warehousing. These requirements help them decide the strength requirements of the packaging and which materials will best hold up to the task.”

Daniel Ferguson, vice president of sales for Cougar Packaging Solutions Inc., said his company’s main focus is ensuring that the product gets to the end user safely.

“Even one damaged product not only costs the manufacturer dollars on that unit but also a cost to its reputation,” he said. “Our materials are chosen based on volume, product sensitivity, ship cycle, ship method, product value and customer demands on package testing. Any and all of these can be factors for choosing the proper materials.”

Commercial packagers use a number of sophisticated methods and tests to create containers that are designed for specific loads and products.

“The container has to hold up and cannot compromise the product,” Lerwill said. “It also cannot compromise the safety of the various handlers who convey it through the supply chain, and it has to be consumer friendly. The consumer must be able to easily understand how to open it. We often go to retail and club stores to see how products are being displayed and take note of the materials and designs that look good and those that do a poor job of communicating what the product is. We also take note of containers that have failed and do ‘post mortems’ on them to understand why.”

“If our product is returned, we want the customer to feel confident that it will come back in one piece so that proper credit can be given,” Betram said. “We use tuck-top boxes so they can be reused.”

And Powerteq uses a unique system with its serial numbers and barcodes to ensure that returns can be tracked and any production problems can be quickly resolved.

“Our barcodes contain a serial number and a Julian date, so we can look at the specific code on the box––which also contains the UPC code––and we can track the product back,” he said. “That way, we know who built the product as well as the day and time it was made. That same number is on the device, so if you get a customer calling for support, you just ask him for the number off his device and determine if there is a known problem. We can take care of customers more quickly because everything traces back to the time of manufacture and the person who worked on the product.”

Lerwill said that his company recently invested in another increasingly important technological concern: the environment and recyclability.

“In April 2012, we took a major step forward for the packaging industry and our nation by collaborating with Clean World Partners and opening the first commercial high-solid organic waste conversion facility at our manufacturing plant in Sacramento, California,” he said. “The system converts scrap materials, food waste, agricultural residue and other organic waste into clean renewable energy, fertilizer and soil enhancements. The byproduct is nitrogen-rich peat moss and compost materials, which provides nutrients to local farmlands.”

So even though the basic design parameters remain unchanged—creating economical, protective containers for a variety of automotive specialty-equipment products—the techniques used to get there are just as evolutionary as in any other facet of the industry. From branding to the environment, it’s all one package.

SEMA News—December 2013

BEST PRACTICES
By Steve Campbell

Product Packaging

It’s All Wrapped Up in Protection, Branding, Economics and the Environment

“Our products can be expensive,” said Joe Dussol, marketing director for Powerteq, which is the parent company of Superchips and Edge Products. “Depending on the product, some people might spend $600–$1,000, and we want the customer to feel like he’s holding something worth that kind of money when he picks up our package. That’s why our packaging might be a little bit more costly than doing a cardboard box with some print on it, but we really want it to stand out.”

Dussol said that digital photography and digital printing technologies have allowed his company to use a variety of new inks, patterns and materials, ranging from plastics to cardboard, and print processes using everything from laser-jet to water-jet printers and sophisticated dyes.

“The new equipment and techniques also allow us to cut costs,” he said. “For instance, we used to have to wait for certain types of printing to dry, so you might order a four-color print job and have to wait several days for it to dry. With digital processes, there’s virtually no drying time.”

Rodney Bertram, creative director for Airaid Filter Co., said that digital systems and computer designing have also made packaging tasks more efficient.

“If you’re doing a specific package that needs product photos, digital is the way to go,” he said. “We used to have to deal with film, get the photo scanned and worry about quality. Everything is much quicker now, and we can look at recyclable materials, how much a package is going to affect the environment, whether we can save on ink or processing, how sturdy the box needs to be. We can send a die line [a flat diagram that shows all the cut lines and folds of a package] to a specific printer to make sure it’s correct and then build the artwork around that.”

“Internal engine components are not ‘pretty parts’ when compared to other aftermarket components and/or accessories and are not typically displayed on retail shelves,” said Ernie Silvers, Egge’s CEO and president. “Our products often pass through a jobber or a warehouse distributor before getting to the end user, so the packaging must be durable and be able to successfully navigate the global UPS logistics system. Protecting the product is always the priority.”

For many companies, however, presentation is as critical as protection, both outside and within the package.

“When you open our box, it’s not full of white popcorn that you need to dig through,” Bertram said. “We use pillow packs—airbags—to cushion our products, because that makes it easier for the customer to make sure he’s gotten all his parts. Also, each of our filters is inserted into a box in itself, which further protects it. That lets the customer know that we really care, and the pillow packs are also more environmentally friendly because we can make just what we need to use.”

Dussol said that his company designs its packaging to appeal to the customer but also to provide retailers with inherent sales functions. For instance, the package for the Superchips TrailDash tuner—which won the 2012 SEMA Show award for best new packaging display—features a USB port on the side of the box to allow the unit to be powered up in a demonstration mode and a front panel that opens to reveal the tuner.

“The dealer can put the package on his counter and display the live product running, Dussol said. “And he can also sell that product because it’s not being taken out of the box and used.”

Bertram said that Airaid views its packaging as a branding tool, and logo placement is very important. That’s why the company logo is designed with contrasting colors—black and a yellow-orange gradient—and the logo is prominent on the top of each package. If the product is stacked on a shelf, the boxes will form a wall of Airaid logos.

The ability to stack products not only helps shippers and retailers but can also save money. For instance, plastic clamshell packages can create stacking problems unless they are encased in an additional cardboard box. And, Dussol pointed out, customers don’t like them because they are difficult to open.

“In addition, all of our products have barcodes and serial numbers positioned so that they can be easily scanned when they’re on pallets,” he said. “Warehouses are all about part numbers and barcodes, not brands, so you want to position those items so that can be quickly scanned or seen by a distributor and pulled off the shelf and moved.”

Ultimately, though, it is protection—that primary packaging purpose—where everything starts. Silvers said Egge consults with box manufacturers, industry peers and shipping companies to determine the proper paper weight and density to match up with the company’s products.

“We place the order in a box and suspend that box within a minimum of 2 in. of packing material inside another shipping container—floating the box within a box, if you will,” he said. “We quickly discover what works, adapt and stay with it.”

Dussol said that the rigors of shipping play prominently in how Powerteq’s products are packaged, and quality control includes
the simulation of shipping mishaps to determine that a package will hold up. The company also tries to ensure that its packages are recyclable, so it stays with paper and cardboard, nontoxic inks and recyclable foam inserts.

“We also look at the assembly line process to be sure that it doesn’t take too long for the line to put a package together,” he said. “Our production workers have meetings to confirm that the line is working at its most efficient. We want the boxes to be clean and look great, but we also want the people who have to assemble them to be able to do it quickly and easily.”

“When our engineers set out to design a new package, they begin with a focus on the product, how it’s intended to travel in the box and what they need to do to protect it,” said Matt Lerwill, vice president of PackageOne Inc. “They consider what the product is, the weight, the shape, the number per container, how it will travel through its supply chain (palletized, going on a shelf or parceled out via FedEx or similar carriers) as well as the time it will spend in transit, storage and warehousing. These requirements help them decide the strength requirements of the packaging and which materials will best hold up to the task.”

Daniel Ferguson, vice president of sales for Cougar Packaging Solutions Inc., said his company’s main focus is ensuring that the product gets to the end user safely.

“Even one damaged product not only costs the manufacturer dollars on that unit but also a cost to its reputation,” he said. “Our materials are chosen based on volume, product sensitivity, ship cycle, ship method, product value and customer demands on package testing. Any and all of these can be factors for choosing the proper materials.”

Commercial packagers use a number of sophisticated methods and tests to create containers that are designed for specific loads and products.

“The container has to hold up and cannot compromise the product,” Lerwill said. “It also cannot compromise the safety of the various handlers who convey it through the supply chain, and it has to be consumer friendly. The consumer must be able to easily understand how to open it. We often go to retail and club stores to see how products are being displayed and take note of the materials and designs that look good and those that do a poor job of communicating what the product is. We also take note of containers that have failed and do ‘post mortems’ on them to understand why.”

“If our product is returned, we want the customer to feel confident that it will come back in one piece so that proper credit can be given,” Betram said. “We use tuck-top boxes so they can be reused.”

And Powerteq uses a unique system with its serial numbers and barcodes to ensure that returns can be tracked and any production problems can be quickly resolved.

“Our barcodes contain a serial number and a Julian date, so we can look at the specific code on the box––which also contains the UPC code––and we can track the product back,” he said. “That way, we know who built the product as well as the day and time it was made. That same number is on the device, so if you get a customer calling for support, you just ask him for the number off his device and determine if there is a known problem. We can take care of customers more quickly because everything traces back to the time of manufacture and the person who worked on the product.”

Lerwill said that his company recently invested in another increasingly important technological concern: the environment and recyclability.

“In April 2012, we took a major step forward for the packaging industry and our nation by collaborating with Clean World Partners and opening the first commercial high-solid organic waste conversion facility at our manufacturing plant in Sacramento, California,” he said. “The system converts scrap materials, food waste, agricultural residue and other organic waste into clean renewable energy, fertilizer and soil enhancements. The byproduct is nitrogen-rich peat moss and compost materials, which provides nutrients to local farmlands.”

So even though the basic design parameters remain unchanged—creating economical, protective containers for a variety of automotive specialty-equipment products—the techniques used to get there are just as evolutionary as in any other facet of the industry. From branding to the environment, it’s all one package.

SEMA News—December 2013

BEST PRACTICES
By Steve Campbell

Product Packaging

It’s All Wrapped Up in Protection, Branding, Economics and the Environment

“Our products can be expensive,” said Joe Dussol, marketing director for Powerteq, which is the parent company of Superchips and Edge Products. “Depending on the product, some people might spend $600–$1,000, and we want the customer to feel like he’s holding something worth that kind of money when he picks up our package. That’s why our packaging might be a little bit more costly than doing a cardboard box with some print on it, but we really want it to stand out.”

Dussol said that digital photography and digital printing technologies have allowed his company to use a variety of new inks, patterns and materials, ranging from plastics to cardboard, and print processes using everything from laser-jet to water-jet printers and sophisticated dyes.

“The new equipment and techniques also allow us to cut costs,” he said. “For instance, we used to have to wait for certain types of printing to dry, so you might order a four-color print job and have to wait several days for it to dry. With digital processes, there’s virtually no drying time.”

Rodney Bertram, creative director for Airaid Filter Co., said that digital systems and computer designing have also made packaging tasks more efficient.

“If you’re doing a specific package that needs product photos, digital is the way to go,” he said. “We used to have to deal with film, get the photo scanned and worry about quality. Everything is much quicker now, and we can look at recyclable materials, how much a package is going to affect the environment, whether we can save on ink or processing, how sturdy the box needs to be. We can send a die line [a flat diagram that shows all the cut lines and folds of a package] to a specific printer to make sure it’s correct and then build the artwork around that.”

“Internal engine components are not ‘pretty parts’ when compared to other aftermarket components and/or accessories and are not typically displayed on retail shelves,” said Ernie Silvers, Egge’s CEO and president. “Our products often pass through a jobber or a warehouse distributor before getting to the end user, so the packaging must be durable and be able to successfully navigate the global UPS logistics system. Protecting the product is always the priority.”

For many companies, however, presentation is as critical as protection, both outside and within the package.

“When you open our box, it’s not full of white popcorn that you need to dig through,” Bertram said. “We use pillow packs—airbags—to cushion our products, because that makes it easier for the customer to make sure he’s gotten all his parts. Also, each of our filters is inserted into a box in itself, which further protects it. That lets the customer know that we really care, and the pillow packs are also more environmentally friendly because we can make just what we need to use.”

Dussol said that his company designs its packaging to appeal to the customer but also to provide retailers with inherent sales functions. For instance, the package for the Superchips TrailDash tuner—which won the 2012 SEMA Show award for best new packaging display—features a USB port on the side of the box to allow the unit to be powered up in a demonstration mode and a front panel that opens to reveal the tuner.

“The dealer can put the package on his counter and display the live product running, Dussol said. “And he can also sell that product because it’s not being taken out of the box and used.”

Bertram said that Airaid views its packaging as a branding tool, and logo placement is very important. That’s why the company logo is designed with contrasting colors—black and a yellow-orange gradient—and the logo is prominent on the top of each package. If the product is stacked on a shelf, the boxes will form a wall of Airaid logos.

The ability to stack products not only helps shippers and retailers but can also save money. For instance, plastic clamshell packages can create stacking problems unless they are encased in an additional cardboard box. And, Dussol pointed out, customers don’t like them because they are difficult to open.

“In addition, all of our products have barcodes and serial numbers positioned so that they can be easily scanned when they’re on pallets,” he said. “Warehouses are all about part numbers and barcodes, not brands, so you want to position those items so that can be quickly scanned or seen by a distributor and pulled off the shelf and moved.”

Ultimately, though, it is protection—that primary packaging purpose—where everything starts. Silvers said Egge consults with box manufacturers, industry peers and shipping companies to determine the proper paper weight and density to match up with the company’s products.

“We place the order in a box and suspend that box within a minimum of 2 in. of packing material inside another shipping container—floating the box within a box, if you will,” he said. “We quickly discover what works, adapt and stay with it.”

Dussol said that the rigors of shipping play prominently in how Powerteq’s products are packaged, and quality control includes
the simulation of shipping mishaps to determine that a package will hold up. The company also tries to ensure that its packages are recyclable, so it stays with paper and cardboard, nontoxic inks and recyclable foam inserts.

“We also look at the assembly line process to be sure that it doesn’t take too long for the line to put a package together,” he said. “Our production workers have meetings to confirm that the line is working at its most efficient. We want the boxes to be clean and look great, but we also want the people who have to assemble them to be able to do it quickly and easily.”

“When our engineers set out to design a new package, they begin with a focus on the product, how it’s intended to travel in the box and what they need to do to protect it,” said Matt Lerwill, vice president of PackageOne Inc. “They consider what the product is, the weight, the shape, the number per container, how it will travel through its supply chain (palletized, going on a shelf or parceled out via FedEx or similar carriers) as well as the time it will spend in transit, storage and warehousing. These requirements help them decide the strength requirements of the packaging and which materials will best hold up to the task.”

Daniel Ferguson, vice president of sales for Cougar Packaging Solutions Inc., said his company’s main focus is ensuring that the product gets to the end user safely.

“Even one damaged product not only costs the manufacturer dollars on that unit but also a cost to its reputation,” he said. “Our materials are chosen based on volume, product sensitivity, ship cycle, ship method, product value and customer demands on package testing. Any and all of these can be factors for choosing the proper materials.”

Commercial packagers use a number of sophisticated methods and tests to create containers that are designed for specific loads and products.

“The container has to hold up and cannot compromise the product,” Lerwill said. “It also cannot compromise the safety of the various handlers who convey it through the supply chain, and it has to be consumer friendly. The consumer must be able to easily understand how to open it. We often go to retail and club stores to see how products are being displayed and take note of the materials and designs that look good and those that do a poor job of communicating what the product is. We also take note of containers that have failed and do ‘post mortems’ on them to understand why.”

“If our product is returned, we want the customer to feel confident that it will come back in one piece so that proper credit can be given,” Betram said. “We use tuck-top boxes so they can be reused.”

And Powerteq uses a unique system with its serial numbers and barcodes to ensure that returns can be tracked and any production problems can be quickly resolved.

“Our barcodes contain a serial number and a Julian date, so we can look at the specific code on the box––which also contains the UPC code––and we can track the product back,” he said. “That way, we know who built the product as well as the day and time it was made. That same number is on the device, so if you get a customer calling for support, you just ask him for the number off his device and determine if there is a known problem. We can take care of customers more quickly because everything traces back to the time of manufacture and the person who worked on the product.”

Lerwill said that his company recently invested in another increasingly important technological concern: the environment and recyclability.

“In April 2012, we took a major step forward for the packaging industry and our nation by collaborating with Clean World Partners and opening the first commercial high-solid organic waste conversion facility at our manufacturing plant in Sacramento, California,” he said. “The system converts scrap materials, food waste, agricultural residue and other organic waste into clean renewable energy, fertilizer and soil enhancements. The byproduct is nitrogen-rich peat moss and compost materials, which provides nutrients to local farmlands.”

So even though the basic design parameters remain unchanged—creating economical, protective containers for a variety of automotive specialty-equipment products—the techniques used to get there are just as evolutionary as in any other facet of the industry. From branding to the environment, it’s all one package.

SEMA News—December 2013

BEST PRACTICES
By Steve Campbell

Product Packaging

It’s All Wrapped Up in Protection, Branding, Economics and the Environment

“Our products can be expensive,” said Joe Dussol, marketing director for Powerteq, which is the parent company of Superchips and Edge Products. “Depending on the product, some people might spend $600–$1,000, and we want the customer to feel like he’s holding something worth that kind of money when he picks up our package. That’s why our packaging might be a little bit more costly than doing a cardboard box with some print on it, but we really want it to stand out.”

Dussol said that digital photography and digital printing technologies have allowed his company to use a variety of new inks, patterns and materials, ranging from plastics to cardboard, and print processes using everything from laser-jet to water-jet printers and sophisticated dyes.

“The new equipment and techniques also allow us to cut costs,” he said. “For instance, we used to have to wait for certain types of printing to dry, so you might order a four-color print job and have to wait several days for it to dry. With digital processes, there’s virtually no drying time.”

Rodney Bertram, creative director for Airaid Filter Co., said that digital systems and computer designing have also made packaging tasks more efficient.

“If you’re doing a specific package that needs product photos, digital is the way to go,” he said. “We used to have to deal with film, get the photo scanned and worry about quality. Everything is much quicker now, and we can look at recyclable materials, how much a package is going to affect the environment, whether we can save on ink or processing, how sturdy the box needs to be. We can send a die line [a flat diagram that shows all the cut lines and folds of a package] to a specific printer to make sure it’s correct and then build the artwork around that.”

“Internal engine components are not ‘pretty parts’ when compared to other aftermarket components and/or accessories and are not typically displayed on retail shelves,” said Ernie Silvers, Egge’s CEO and president. “Our products often pass through a jobber or a warehouse distributor before getting to the end user, so the packaging must be durable and be able to successfully navigate the global UPS logistics system. Protecting the product is always the priority.”

For many companies, however, presentation is as critical as protection, both outside and within the package.

“When you open our box, it’s not full of white popcorn that you need to dig through,” Bertram said. “We use pillow packs—airbags—to cushion our products, because that makes it easier for the customer to make sure he’s gotten all his parts. Also, each of our filters is inserted into a box in itself, which further protects it. That lets the customer know that we really care, and the pillow packs are also more environmentally friendly because we can make just what we need to use.”

Dussol said that his company designs its packaging to appeal to the customer but also to provide retailers with inherent sales functions. For instance, the package for the Superchips TrailDash tuner—which won the 2012 SEMA Show award for best new packaging display—features a USB port on the side of the box to allow the unit to be powered up in a demonstration mode and a front panel that opens to reveal the tuner.

“The dealer can put the package on his counter and display the live product running, Dussol said. “And he can also sell that product because it’s not being taken out of the box and used.”

Bertram said that Airaid views its packaging as a branding tool, and logo placement is very important. That’s why the company logo is designed with contrasting colors—black and a yellow-orange gradient—and the logo is prominent on the top of each package. If the product is stacked on a shelf, the boxes will form a wall of Airaid logos.

The ability to stack products not only helps shippers and retailers but can also save money. For instance, plastic clamshell packages can create stacking problems unless they are encased in an additional cardboard box. And, Dussol pointed out, customers don’t like them because they are difficult to open.

“In addition, all of our products have barcodes and serial numbers positioned so that they can be easily scanned when they’re on pallets,” he said. “Warehouses are all about part numbers and barcodes, not brands, so you want to position those items so that can be quickly scanned or seen by a distributor and pulled off the shelf and moved.”

Ultimately, though, it is protection—that primary packaging purpose—where everything starts. Silvers said Egge consults with box manufacturers, industry peers and shipping companies to determine the proper paper weight and density to match up with the company’s products.

“We place the order in a box and suspend that box within a minimum of 2 in. of packing material inside another shipping container—floating the box within a box, if you will,” he said. “We quickly discover what works, adapt and stay with it.”

Dussol said that the rigors of shipping play prominently in how Powerteq’s products are packaged, and quality control includes
the simulation of shipping mishaps to determine that a package will hold up. The company also tries to ensure that its packages are recyclable, so it stays with paper and cardboard, nontoxic inks and recyclable foam inserts.

“We also look at the assembly line process to be sure that it doesn’t take too long for the line to put a package together,” he said. “Our production workers have meetings to confirm that the line is working at its most efficient. We want the boxes to be clean and look great, but we also want the people who have to assemble them to be able to do it quickly and easily.”

“When our engineers set out to design a new package, they begin with a focus on the product, how it’s intended to travel in the box and what they need to do to protect it,” said Matt Lerwill, vice president of PackageOne Inc. “They consider what the product is, the weight, the shape, the number per container, how it will travel through its supply chain (palletized, going on a shelf or parceled out via FedEx or similar carriers) as well as the time it will spend in transit, storage and warehousing. These requirements help them decide the strength requirements of the packaging and which materials will best hold up to the task.”

Daniel Ferguson, vice president of sales for Cougar Packaging Solutions Inc., said his company’s main focus is ensuring that the product gets to the end user safely.

“Even one damaged product not only costs the manufacturer dollars on that unit but also a cost to its reputation,” he said. “Our materials are chosen based on volume, product sensitivity, ship cycle, ship method, product value and customer demands on package testing. Any and all of these can be factors for choosing the proper materials.”

Commercial packagers use a number of sophisticated methods and tests to create containers that are designed for specific loads and products.

“The container has to hold up and cannot compromise the product,” Lerwill said. “It also cannot compromise the safety of the various handlers who convey it through the supply chain, and it has to be consumer friendly. The consumer must be able to easily understand how to open it. We often go to retail and club stores to see how products are being displayed and take note of the materials and designs that look good and those that do a poor job of communicating what the product is. We also take note of containers that have failed and do ‘post mortems’ on them to understand why.”

“If our product is returned, we want the customer to feel confident that it will come back in one piece so that proper credit can be given,” Betram said. “We use tuck-top boxes so they can be reused.”

And Powerteq uses a unique system with its serial numbers and barcodes to ensure that returns can be tracked and any production problems can be quickly resolved.

“Our barcodes contain a serial number and a Julian date, so we can look at the specific code on the box––which also contains the UPC code––and we can track the product back,” he said. “That way, we know who built the product as well as the day and time it was made. That same number is on the device, so if you get a customer calling for support, you just ask him for the number off his device and determine if there is a known problem. We can take care of customers more quickly because everything traces back to the time of manufacture and the person who worked on the product.”

Lerwill said that his company recently invested in another increasingly important technological concern: the environment and recyclability.

“In April 2012, we took a major step forward for the packaging industry and our nation by collaborating with Clean World Partners and opening the first commercial high-solid organic waste conversion facility at our manufacturing plant in Sacramento, California,” he said. “The system converts scrap materials, food waste, agricultural residue and other organic waste into clean renewable energy, fertilizer and soil enhancements. The byproduct is nitrogen-rich peat moss and compost materials, which provides nutrients to local farmlands.”

So even though the basic design parameters remain unchanged—creating economical, protective containers for a variety of automotive specialty-equipment products—the techniques used to get there are just as evolutionary as in any other facet of the industry. From branding to the environment, it’s all one package.

	Trevor Potter, new vice president of sales for CRP Automotive, will manage all aspects of the the company's automotive sales program and sales team in the United States and Canada.

Trevor Potter Named CRP Automotive VP of Sales
CRP Automotive has named Trevor Potter vice president of sales, managing all aspects of the CRP Automotive sales program and its sales team in the United States and Canada. He is also responsible for expanding the company’s market share and increasing its distribution footprint.  Potter was most recently with Schrader International, a leading manufacturer of valve and sensing technologies, where he served as vice president of aftermarket sales and marketing. Prior to that, he served as a division manager of the automotive aftermarket for Petoskey Plastics.

Holley EFI Seminar at 2013 PRI Show
Holley Performance Products EFI Technical Representative Rick Anderson will conduct a seminar covering the basic functions and capabilities of the Holley EFI product line during the PRI Show. The hour-long session begins at 9:00 a.m. on Thursday morning, December 12, in Room 233 of the Indiana Convention Center.

Joe Saganowich Chosen to Head Ideal Industries SK Hand Tool Subsidiary
Ideal Industries Inc. has named Joe Saganowich vice president/general manager of its SK Hand Tool subsidiary. Saganowich, a 15-year veteran of the company, most recently led its North American Electrical Division as vice president of sales and marketing. As vice president/general manager of SK Hand Tool, Saganowich will lead the development and implementation of the subsidiary's strategic plans, overseeing its day-to-day operations and driving sales growth. Prior to joining Ideal, Saganowich held sales positions with Black and Decker, Sunoco Auto, and Pennzoil Auto.

Have some company news you would like to share? Let us know and the news may appear in an upcoming issue of SEMA eNews. Send your items for consideration to editors@sema.org.

SEMA News—October 2013

BEST PRACTICES
By Steve Campbell

Selecting a Public Relations Agency

Matching Companies With Marketing

We included an article on best practices for selecting an ad agency in our February 2013 issue (“Finding the Right Advertising Agency,” p. 60), and this month, we’re taking a look at selecting a PR firm.

Traditional advertising agencies design, create and place ads for specific media—print, broadcast, billboards, web and elsewhere—to help sell specific goods or services, employing teams of art directors, writers and management personnel. Public relations, on the other hand, is designed to educate, inform, influence, provide solutions, create good will, enhance reputation, elicit feedback and support both the client company and the community, according to Tracy L. Teuscher, APR, president of The Buzz Maker! LLC.

“Public relations may include consumer, media, community, member and employee relations as well as marketing communications, internal or crisis communications, to name a few,” she said. “True PR involves a good bit of problem solving. PR professionals will be able to advise you about their areas of specialty but if advertising or marketing will be integrated into the communication plan, the team may include other specialized professionals or a good referral. For example, advertising may be very helpful in selling a product, but when it comes to reputation management, PR is the best choice. What do you want people to know? What do you want them to do? Asking these two questions is a good place to start.”

	David Leach, president of Aftermarket Media Website: http://www.aftermarketmedia.com/

Until fairly recently, advertising and PR were two distinctly different functions in the marketing of automotive specialty-equipment products. As with so many other aspects of modern commerce, the Internet has created some blurring of the lines.

“From the largest global conglomerates to the smallest boutique agencies, most firms have adapted a more blended approach to marketing,” said Dan Kahn, president of Kahn Media Inc. “As traditional media outlets shrink and online outlets offer more pay-to-play and advertorial content, agencies on both sides of the aisle have had to alter their business models to do what works best for each individual client. In most cases, this means handling everything from content creation for editorial and advertising to negotiating stories and ad buys.”

Public relations firms come in all shapes and sizes. Some employ cadres of creative folk who can handle anything from writing a compelling press release to shooting a high-concept video. They may cover the gamut of the industry, with clients in every facet, or they may be highly specialized agencies that concentrate on a single segment of a given marketplace. Dave Wolin, president of Dave Wolin Inc., is firmly in the latter camp. As a racer, his passion and expertise are in helping the racing industry, and his clients are almost all small businesses.

“The Internet has changed marketing,” Wolin said. “A small-town speed shop and race car supply store that’s always sold things locally and never needed an ad agency or PR firm can now market nationally with a website. E-commerce is relatively inexpensive and easy to do, so small companies can advertise using products, such as Google Ad Words, which is very highly targeted and focused. Many times these small businesses can’t get much done other than working every day, so not only do I take care of their advertising, e-commerce and so on, but I also sometimes can send somebody out to the racetrack to hand out their flyers. We do anything that’s necessary.”

	Dan Kahn, president of Kahn Media, Inc. Website: www.KahnMedia.com

“Each spoke represents a different communications channel, including print magazines, blogs, radio, podcasts, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and more,” Kahn said. “If all the channels carry coordinated messages and bring traffic back to the hub, you’re in business. So when you’re looking for an agency, make sure it is disciplined in all of those fields. A good agency essentially acts like your in-house marketing department, but with
economies of scale. You get all the benefits of a large marketing arm without the payroll and human-resources issues.”

The search for the right public-relations firm may best begin with a few conversations with other companies in the industry—businesses that you’ve worked with, people you respect, non-competitive organizations that seem to have a good grasp of marketing their products or services. You might also check out the listings in the SEMA Membership Directory. It’s available for download as a PDF or may be viewed in a searchable online form under the Membership tab on www.sema.org.

“Industry organizations, trade editors and industry leaders can be good sources of information,” explained Shari McCullough Arfons, president of McCullough Public Relations.

“Also, be sure to check the websites of agencies that serve the industry, where an initial evaluation can be made.”

	Donald Johnson, CEO of DJFMedia.com Website: http://djfmedia.com/

“Meet with three or four different agencies, because it’s very important who you choose to help put your face on your product and develop your public imagery,” said Larry Weiner, president of Performance West Group. “Decide with them what their deliverables will be, and see what their agenda is and how they’re going to take care of your business. Also talk to some of their existing clients separately. Ask for a couple of referrals so that you can see if they are happy.”

McCullough Arfons said that an agency should be willing to provide several references as well as an extensive portfolio of work it has performed for other clients, but you should also conduct your own background research to determine whether the agency’s goals and culture fit your own.

“Like any commercial enterprise, agencies have individual brands,” she said. “That often can be sensed through the look and feel of the agency’s logo, its website and its overall style of communication.”

David Leach, president of Aftermarket Media, said that the search should begin by listing your wants, goals and expectations, including your budget.

“The clearer the client is regarding what they’re trying to achieve, the better,” he said. “Then compare the agencies’ pitches and costs with your needs. One good way to ‘test’ an agency is to start with a small but defined project. All parties can learn a lot about each other from a short, measurable task. Moreover, the client and the agency can get to know each other better before getting into a larger, longer-term project.”

Larry Weiner, president of Performance West Group Website: http://www.performancewestgroup.com/

“A good and ethical consultant will assist a company in outlining needs, goals, objectives, strategies, tactics and channels that will be best based upon the budget the company has outlined,” she said. “That includes understanding the differences between advertising, marketing and public relations and how to use each effectively.”

Kahn also advised looking at the agency’s background and its expertise in the automotive realm. The agency should understand not only the client’s product or service, but also its business model, its challenges and where its growth will come from.

“Most importantly, find out if they’re really car people,” he said. “Just as most of us wouldn’t want to feign interest in needlepoint because we’d be called out, you can’t fake being a car person, and the effectiveness of an agency hinges on its ability to understand and have a passion for the subject matter.”

	Shari McCullough Arfons, president of McCullough Public Relations Website: http://mcculloughpr.com/

“Ask how many years the agency has been in business,” he suggested. “Ask for a list of clients the agency has represented so you can talk to them, and get into specifics about the types of programs you’re interested in. Every client is going to have different sets of needs.”

Even small businesses that don’t have funds for big-budget marketing schemes can benefit from working with a PR firm. The costs don’t have to be astronomical, and many firms will adjust their rates based on the growth potential of a client.

“A smaller company can sometimes work a deal with an agency where they can grow together,” said Donald Johnson, CEO of DJFMedia.com. “If the agency produces results, the client can work up a raise every fiscal quarter based on gross sales.”

The experts were virtually unanimous about the use of PR professionals by smaller companies. When a company is concentrating on day-to-day operations—raw materials, manufacturing, human resources, health-care costs—there simply isn’t time to also run a comprehensive marketing campaign.

“Some clients have used our services and then feel that they could take it from there, save some money,” Johnson said. “But smaller clients usually don’t have many contacts or marketing experience, so they return because they find that they really can’t get along without an agency.”

	Tracy L. Teuscher, APR, president of The Buzz Maker! LLC Website: http://www.thebuzzmaker.com/

“Our most successful campaigns are those where we have a strong in-house marketing lead to work with,” Kahn said. “The client explains what the product or service is, where it fits in the market and who their potential customers are. The agency focuses on how to best connect with those targets and the process of reaching them as quickly and effectively as possible. In real-world terms, we usually write, send and pitch press releases and in many cases also generate blog posts and all the social-media content for our clients. The in-house marketers at most client offices typically focus on creating the product content for websites and interacting with their customers at the warehouse-distributor level.”

Another step in the process is a “request for proposal” or RFP. The request is usually made only after a number of personal meetings where the client and the agency have developed a rapport and have determined that they would work well together. An RFP is simply a request from the client for a list of deliverables that will be provided by the agency. It can be extremely detailed—specific programs that the agency will develop for specific products as well as a budget for the work to be done—or a more generalized description of how the client and agency will work together. But the request should only come when the client is ready to commit to the agency.

“A good RFP can cost an agency about 40 hours of work,” Johnson said, “and you run the risk of the client throwing it away. You need to be pretty sure that you’ve selected the agency you want before you ask for a proposal, and it can become so expensive that you try to hammer out the details over the phone or face to face.”

Dave Wolin, president of Dave Wolin Inc. Website: http://www.davewolin.com/

There should also be agreement about the reporting of results and how to gauge the success of the relationship.

“We supply clients with a monthly electronic press-clipping report as well as a comprehensive DVD at the end of the year,” McCullough Arfons said. “We always document our return on investment to the client.”

A good public relations firm can help companies large or small build their brands, achieve product recognition and influence the ledger sheet.

“A good PR firm should create meaningful strategies and then outline recommended tactics and communication channels that will offer the most effective results and the best return on investment,” Teuscher said. “Public relations seeks to learn about and define the audiences, develop a course of action, implement communication strategies and tactics that will engage audiences and stimulate market response, and then evaluate the results.”

SEMA News—October 2013

BEST PRACTICES
By Steve Campbell

Selecting a Public Relations Agency

Matching Companies With Marketing

We included an article on best practices for selecting an ad agency in our February 2013 issue (“Finding the Right Advertising Agency,” p. 60), and this month, we’re taking a look at selecting a PR firm.

Traditional advertising agencies design, create and place ads for specific media—print, broadcast, billboards, web and elsewhere—to help sell specific goods or services, employing teams of art directors, writers and management personnel. Public relations, on the other hand, is designed to educate, inform, influence, provide solutions, create good will, enhance reputation, elicit feedback and support both the client company and the community, according to Tracy L. Teuscher, APR, president of The Buzz Maker! LLC.

“Public relations may include consumer, media, community, member and employee relations as well as marketing communications, internal or crisis communications, to name a few,” she said. “True PR involves a good bit of problem solving. PR professionals will be able to advise you about their areas of specialty but if advertising or marketing will be integrated into the communication plan, the team may include other specialized professionals or a good referral. For example, advertising may be very helpful in selling a product, but when it comes to reputation management, PR is the best choice. What do you want people to know? What do you want them to do? Asking these two questions is a good place to start.”

	David Leach, president of Aftermarket Media Website: http://www.aftermarketmedia.com/

Until fairly recently, advertising and PR were two distinctly different functions in the marketing of automotive specialty-equipment products. As with so many other aspects of modern commerce, the Internet has created some blurring of the lines.

“From the largest global conglomerates to the smallest boutique agencies, most firms have adapted a more blended approach to marketing,” said Dan Kahn, president of Kahn Media Inc. “As traditional media outlets shrink and online outlets offer more pay-to-play and advertorial content, agencies on both sides of the aisle have had to alter their business models to do what works best for each individual client. In most cases, this means handling everything from content creation for editorial and advertising to negotiating stories and ad buys.”

Public relations firms come in all shapes and sizes. Some employ cadres of creative folk who can handle anything from writing a compelling press release to shooting a high-concept video. They may cover the gamut of the industry, with clients in every facet, or they may be highly specialized agencies that concentrate on a single segment of a given marketplace. Dave Wolin, president of Dave Wolin Inc., is firmly in the latter camp. As a racer, his passion and expertise are in helping the racing industry, and his clients are almost all small businesses.

“The Internet has changed marketing,” Wolin said. “A small-town speed shop and race car supply store that’s always sold things locally and never needed an ad agency or PR firm can now market nationally with a website. E-commerce is relatively inexpensive and easy to do, so small companies can advertise using products, such as Google Ad Words, which is very highly targeted and focused. Many times these small businesses can’t get much done other than working every day, so not only do I take care of their advertising, e-commerce and so on, but I also sometimes can send somebody out to the racetrack to hand out their flyers. We do anything that’s necessary.”

	Dan Kahn, president of Kahn Media, Inc. Website: www.KahnMedia.com

“Each spoke represents a different communications channel, including print magazines, blogs, radio, podcasts, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and more,” Kahn said. “If all the channels carry coordinated messages and bring traffic back to the hub, you’re in business. So when you’re looking for an agency, make sure it is disciplined in all of those fields. A good agency essentially acts like your in-house marketing department, but with
economies of scale. You get all the benefits of a large marketing arm without the payroll and human-resources issues.”

The search for the right public-relations firm may best begin with a few conversations with other companies in the industry—businesses that you’ve worked with, people you respect, non-competitive organizations that seem to have a good grasp of marketing their products or services. You might also check out the listings in the SEMA Membership Directory. It’s available for download as a PDF or may be viewed in a searchable online form under the Membership tab on www.sema.org.

“Industry organizations, trade editors and industry leaders can be good sources of information,” explained Shari McCullough Arfons, president of McCullough Public Relations.

“Also, be sure to check the websites of agencies that serve the industry, where an initial evaluation can be made.”

	Donald Johnson, CEO of DJFMedia.com Website: http://djfmedia.com/

“Meet with three or four different agencies, because it’s very important who you choose to help put your face on your product and develop your public imagery,” said Larry Weiner, president of Performance West Group. “Decide with them what their deliverables will be, and see what their agenda is and how they’re going to take care of your business. Also talk to some of their existing clients separately. Ask for a couple of referrals so that you can see if they are happy.”

McCullough Arfons said that an agency should be willing to provide several references as well as an extensive portfolio of work it has performed for other clients, but you should also conduct your own background research to determine whether the agency’s goals and culture fit your own.

“Like any commercial enterprise, agencies have individual brands,” she said. “That often can be sensed through the look and feel of the agency’s logo, its website and its overall style of communication.”

David Leach, president of Aftermarket Media, said that the search should begin by listing your wants, goals and expectations, including your budget.

“The clearer the client is regarding what they’re trying to achieve, the better,” he said. “Then compare the agencies’ pitches and costs with your needs. One good way to ‘test’ an agency is to start with a small but defined project. All parties can learn a lot about each other from a short, measurable task. Moreover, the client and the agency can get to know each other better before getting into a larger, longer-term project.”

Larry Weiner, president of Performance West Group Website: http://www.performancewestgroup.com/

“A good and ethical consultant will assist a company in outlining needs, goals, objectives, strategies, tactics and channels that will be best based upon the budget the company has outlined,” she said. “That includes understanding the differences between advertising, marketing and public relations and how to use each effectively.”

Kahn also advised looking at the agency’s background and its expertise in the automotive realm. The agency should understand not only the client’s product or service, but also its business model, its challenges and where its growth will come from.

“Most importantly, find out if they’re really car people,” he said. “Just as most of us wouldn’t want to feign interest in needlepoint because we’d be called out, you can’t fake being a car person, and the effectiveness of an agency hinges on its ability to understand and have a passion for the subject matter.”

	Shari McCullough Arfons, president of McCullough Public Relations Website: http://mcculloughpr.com/

“Ask how many years the agency has been in business,” he suggested. “Ask for a list of clients the agency has represented so you can talk to them, and get into specifics about the types of programs you’re interested in. Every client is going to have different sets of needs.”

Even small businesses that don’t have funds for big-budget marketing schemes can benefit from working with a PR firm. The costs don’t have to be astronomical, and many firms will adjust their rates based on the growth potential of a client.

“A smaller company can sometimes work a deal with an agency where they can grow together,” said Donald Johnson, CEO of DJFMedia.com. “If the agency produces results, the client can work up a raise every fiscal quarter based on gross sales.”

The experts were virtually unanimous about the use of PR professionals by smaller companies. When a company is concentrating on day-to-day operations—raw materials, manufacturing, human resources, health-care costs—there simply isn’t time to also run a comprehensive marketing campaign.

“Some clients have used our services and then feel that they could take it from there, save some money,” Johnson said. “But smaller clients usually don’t have many contacts or marketing experience, so they return because they find that they really can’t get along without an agency.”

	Tracy L. Teuscher, APR, president of The Buzz Maker! LLC Website: http://www.thebuzzmaker.com/

“Our most successful campaigns are those where we have a strong in-house marketing lead to work with,” Kahn said. “The client explains what the product or service is, where it fits in the market and who their potential customers are. The agency focuses on how to best connect with those targets and the process of reaching them as quickly and effectively as possible. In real-world terms, we usually write, send and pitch press releases and in many cases also generate blog posts and all the social-media content for our clients. The in-house marketers at most client offices typically focus on creating the product content for websites and interacting with their customers at the warehouse-distributor level.”

Another step in the process is a “request for proposal” or RFP. The request is usually made only after a number of personal meetings where the client and the agency have developed a rapport and have determined that they would work well together. An RFP is simply a request from the client for a list of deliverables that will be provided by the agency. It can be extremely detailed—specific programs that the agency will develop for specific products as well as a budget for the work to be done—or a more generalized description of how the client and agency will work together. But the request should only come when the client is ready to commit to the agency.

“A good RFP can cost an agency about 40 hours of work,” Johnson said, “and you run the risk of the client throwing it away. You need to be pretty sure that you’ve selected the agency you want before you ask for a proposal, and it can become so expensive that you try to hammer out the details over the phone or face to face.”

Dave Wolin, president of Dave Wolin Inc. Website: http://www.davewolin.com/

There should also be agreement about the reporting of results and how to gauge the success of the relationship.

“We supply clients with a monthly electronic press-clipping report as well as a comprehensive DVD at the end of the year,” McCullough Arfons said. “We always document our return on investment to the client.”

A good public relations firm can help companies large or small build their brands, achieve product recognition and influence the ledger sheet.

“A good PR firm should create meaningful strategies and then outline recommended tactics and communication channels that will offer the most effective results and the best return on investment,” Teuscher said. “Public relations seeks to learn about and define the audiences, develop a course of action, implement communication strategies and tactics that will engage audiences and stimulate market response, and then evaluate the results.”

Product and Catalog Showcase

With 2014 only a few weeks away, it's the perfect time for retailers to freshen up their catalog collections. To that effort, the following catalogs and new product announcements represent some of the hottest specialty-equipment products from SEMA members. 

Interested in placing an ad in the SEMA News Product and Catalog Showcase?

For questions regarding advertising:

Brian Paik
909-978-6677
brianp@sema.org

Monica Terlouw
909-978-6695
monicat@sema.org

For questions regarding ad specs:

Advertising Coordinator
David Block
909-978-6648
davidb@sema.org

For more pricing information or to download a copy of the current SEMA News rate card, visit http://www.semanews.com/

Product and Catalog Showcase

With 2014 only a few weeks away, it's the perfect time for retailers to freshen up their catalog collections. To that effort, the following catalogs and new product announcements represent some of the hottest specialty-equipment products from SEMA members. 

Interested in placing an ad in the SEMA News Product and Catalog Showcase?

For questions regarding advertising:

Brian Paik
909-978-6677
brianp@sema.org

Monica Terlouw
909-978-6695
monicat@sema.org

For questions regarding ad specs:

Advertising Coordinator
David Block
909-978-6648
davidb@sema.org

For more pricing information or to download a copy of the current SEMA News rate card, visit http://www.semanews.com/