Recognizing Marketing’s Finest
Here, we present all of this year’s winning submissions, highlighting a different category each week.
PRODUCT LAUNCH /
Electrical Wholesalers—CT & HZ Electric
Prefab Solutions
When USESI expanded its offerings by establishing a prefab facility in Stoughton, Mass., the strategic move introduced a range of new prefab services that could benefit customers.
“To effectively introduce these innovative services, we aimed to inform our customers about the offerings, establish our expertise in the prefab arena, and gain valuable insights into customer expectations regarding quality and pricing” was written on the entry form.
The campaign was designed to emphasize the labor-saving benefits of using the prefab facility and included branch displays, web pages, video, and posters. Central to the approach was highlighting transparent pricing, making it easy for customers to calculate their ROI. With a focus on simplicity and efficiency, the prefab offerings were designed to be easy to understand and simple to order, further setting the distributor apart from the competition.
“Comprehensive media execution, strong benefits, and great collateral,” said the judges. “Very effective overall.”
OneSource Distributors
Total Renewable Solutions
While OneSource previously offered separate solutions for solar, EV charging, battery storage, and other renewable energy, the
solar and energy teams were separate.
In 2023, to help serve customers better, the company developed Total Renewable Solutions (TRS), which encompasses all of its products and services related to solar and renewable energy.
“Our objective was to brand TRS as a comprehensive but easy-tounderstand set of services and solutions that encompass everything our customers need to install and use renewable energy” was written on the entry form.
The marketing team created a TRS section on the OneSource website, developed and printed literature, posted banners to drive customers to the new web pages, introduced customers to it at a TRS-branded booth at the Intersolar trade show in San Diego, created a video, emailed customers, and posted on social media.
The judges praised the “great use of visuals and clear language” and noted the “remarkably comprehensive media placement strategy.”
Intermatic
ETW Series + PE700 Series Wireless Control Launch
In late 2023, Intermatic launched two new series of WiFi timer controls to add to its growing portfolio of smart solutions. Designed as sister solutions, the ETW Series and PE700 Series offered the same general functionality and form factor but served two very distinct yet overlapping audiences: electrical contractors and poolspa professionals.
With this in mind, the Intermatic marketing team began planning a unique dual-product launch that included a mix of shared assets and audience-specific content to help drive product sales.
“Although the two controls serve different applications, the key value proposition for both solutions was simplicity” was written on the entry form. “We used this to our advantage to create a range of assets, some of which paired both solutions together and others that let the solutions shine on their own.” Those assets included dynamic, humor-driven video content
with a robust set of distributor tools and product information (e.g., tool kits, media releases, sell sheets).
“It’s a really strong campaign with consistent branding and visuals across the elements,” said the judges, who added that the “animation of [the] pool controller is a great demonstration of functions—and it’s humorous too!”
Legrand
Commercial/Residential EV Chargers
With more EVs hitting the road each year, Legrand leaned on its expertise in electrical safety and quality to make a new market entry into the EV charger space.
To separate itself from its competitors and develop its own EV charging story, a series of high-profile product launches debuting innovative EV charger solutions for both residential and commercial spaces was created.
“From technical white papers to visually engaging videos to a comprehensive brochure, the EV charger launches reinforced Legrand’s commitment to industry-leading innovative, quality, and sustainable solutions —all with customer-centric product designs and experiences” was written on the entry form.
“So complete, all the way down to conversation starters for each target market,” said the judges. “It’s literally everything you need to know about EV chargers—and I love the ‘Know Your Audience’ profiles.”
Hubbell Wiring Device—Kellems
EdgeConnect; It’s About Time
To develop a narrative that outlined the value by audience of its EdgeConnect technology and create a plan that would drive awareness with customers unfamiliar with the Hubbell brand, the marketing team set out to saturate the electrical contractor
audience with educational information and, ultimately, free samples to demonstrate the difference with its product.
“Since this product was new to the industry, we knew that the selling process would need to drive awareness and interest with the end-users, encouraging them to request and purchase through their distributor” was written on the entry form. “The challenge was finding and targeting this audience through marketing and sales. The plan ultimately led us to focus on sales events, industry shows, and online targeting.”
The company hosted a dozen sales blitzes nationwide, featured the product lines at the 2022 Rockwell and LDI shows and the 2023 NECA Convention, did three rounds of search and social advertising to determine the phrases and topics that attracted the audience the most, and partnered with 12 online content creators with captive audiences in the demographic to use the product on their channels.
“Strong benefit-oriented, problem-solving headlines backed by proof of labor and time savings, and videos of real professionals using the product,” praised the judges. “The product won awards for being outstanding—and the marketing materials they produced are outstanding too.”
Tagged with awards, Best of the Best, marketing