Smart Business Magazine, Apr 2012

18 Smart Business Akron Canton April 2012 When Ken Kemerer looks at the 80 percent revenue growth that SilMix Ohio has achieved since 2001 when it was purchased by Wacker Chemical Corp he gives a lot of credit to getting involved in industry associations Not that it was the only factor a rebranding effort three years ago was also part of the mix but being an active member of industry groups was a must Thats where the networking is huge says Kemerer director of SilMix Ohio a manufacturer of custom silicone compounds We have added 50 customers since 2009 and we truly believe this branding and networking has resulted in the new customers To get going with industry group networking you need to research the organizations through universities libraries or the Internet In the rubber industry for instance the American Chemical Society is an umbrella group that has a rubber division and a subset for regional and local groups Kemerer says You want to support financially and technically through manpower and participation in all those groups We support basically all those groups in North America now In terms of support it means more than paying membership fees You can sponsor their websites sponsor their fundraising their golf outings and donate to their scholarship funds he says The regional groups have technical meetings You can give technical presentations at their meetings The technical service is important because other companies may not have an expert on site and you can provide that technical side of the industry The fact that you are at a regional conference giving a presentation and answering questions about your specialty goes far in establishing your brand Its all about the networking in getting the name out so that if people are not familiar with your specialty and they have questions yours will be the first name they think of Kemerer says One thing that obviously helps the initiative is encouragement from company ownership Our owner is a corporate citizen which means we have a responsibility to the industry he says This attitude should underlie your involvement in the industry groups you are not just giving a presentation as a sales pitch for your company The industry groups had been the only place to get knowledge unless you hired somebody who had been trained by somebody else Kemerer says As the Internet has come along and online training they have changed so the industry groups are really providing networking opportunities on a high level Its almost more of an awareness than technical training These opportunities are out there With your interaction in the industry groups you are advancing your knowledge throughout the sector There are not that many technical experts out there if you are in a niche he says Yes its self serving when you present You may get your name known as somebody who has the answers but it is not just about that Its also about corporate citizenship There are many opportunities to present new and innovative things if you can in particular areas such as the medical field Thats on the cutting edge as is helping customers in the industry become aware of new ways to do things or new developments One other fact to keep in mind while attending or presenting at a conference is that your competition may be present and while it is wise to guard what may be trade secrets with care you can still deliver an effective presentation Dont use it as a soapbox to show your differentiation We do see competitors but we see them more on a regional level Kemerer says We all have the same general purpose products Some competitors may also be your customers so you want to keep good relationships a good working knowledge and make sure you dont cross any of them BY DENNIS SEEDS HOW TO REACH SilMix Ohio a division of Wacker Chemical Corp 330 628 5017 or www wacker com silmix SilMix Ohios Ken Kemerer Industry group networking is huge we have added 50 customers since 2009 Formula for rebranding If your company cant decide where your rebranding should start do what Ken Kemerer did at SilMix Ohio Look to your Pillars of Success We identified our Pillars of Success thats what we call them our customer service our technical service and our flexibility and we made them our focus says Kemerer director of the custom silicone compound manufacturer With that simplified mission statement it gives you a basis to build a branding and marketing effort that will represent your company well We built three different advertising lets say modules based on those he says Identify your pillars of success and then customize your advertising both visually and verbally along those lines so you can publish it in different media magazine newsletter and website Have a variety of pictures so they dont get stale Use text that describes each pillar of success Then to help support the industry groups use the same collateral to expand your brand to that outlet as well It worked out really well for us for the past three years and now it is a good time to have a new angle and still build off the same things and more as video opens new opportunities Kemerer says Smart Ideas Leadership INTO THE BLEND How Ken Kemerer uses industry groups to build SilMixs technical respect and brand