The Makeover Journeys: Navigating New Niches

Editor's Note

As we began putting together this edition of Springfield Business Journal, the editorial team explored what it might mean to have a business makeover. And it's not by chance that this In Focus falls within the first issue of 2010, which follows a year that presented myriad challenges to businesses across the board. Our thinking was that business leaders might want some fresh perspectives to guide them in the new year, particularly if they face challenges beyond those presented by the economy.

What our contributing writers have discovered is that there's more than one way to define a business makeover.

Local companies are on pathways of change that range from rising out of a disaster to relocating, and as their stories are brought to light, it may be that they will inspire change in other companies that want to begin makeover journeys of their own.

The economic downturn has been a game changer for many businesses, but a local advertising agency and one of its clients, both in hard-hit industries, are repositioning and reinventing themselves to win.

The recession has been a major blow to the advertising industry, where clients' spending has declined significantly.

"I have clients ... that we still do things for on a regular basis, but some of them are spending half or less what they were spending," said Dianne Davis, president of Nixa-based DL Media.

As a result, her firm has had to generate new business just to keep its revenues flat.

"I was thrilled that our business was flat from '07 to '08," Davis said, though she declined to disclose revenues. "I've been joking that flat is the new up."

DL Media is adding a dedicated audio and video production studio and a new promotional products showroom to its operations at 720 W. Center Circle.

On one level, this is simply a continuation of the firm's evolution, but on another, it is a reaction to, and an investment in, a changing advertising market.

"First, there are so many companies that have laid off marketing people," she said. "Those companies still need to stay in front of their customers; they still need to market; they still need to try to maintain market share; and the services that they were doing in-house, they're going to have to find a place to outsource them."

At the same time, businesses that have reduced advertising are looking for ways to get return on investment for the ad dollars they do spend. As a result, DL Media is positioning itself to be an "outsource resource," Davis said.

Evolution

Started in March 1997, DL Media began with two employees - Davis and a part-time secretary - and focused on media placement. The firm now employs seven.

In the last six years its services expanded from media buying and out-of-market media research and placement to include creative services, Web design and hosting, promotional products, and, as of 2005, still photography and audio production.

Now the firm is upping the ante, adding a promotional products showroom, upgrading from a temporary audio booth to a permanent studio, and establishing state-of-the-art video production facilities.

DL Media invested $15,000 in its 1,200-square-foot expansion - two-thirds of it studio space - at the Nixa Office Center, taking advantage of low construction costs. The firm spent another $25,000 in equipment, also benefiting from lower prices at local and Internet vendors.

"You can't let a good recession pass you by," Davis quipped.

The video studio includes high-definition camera equipment, a seamless cyclorama wall with an 8-foot curve to create the look of infinite white space, a chroma-key wall for green screen recordings and backdrop curtains for photo and video production. DL also has ordered Final Cut Pro editing software.

The company, and especially Creative Director Dana Harding, has fulfilled the writer-producer role for its clients for some time; now it will no longer have to fit its projects into an outside studio's production schedule, Davis said. Turnaround time will be shorter, and production will be much more flexible because DL's new video equipment is portable - including a camera, camera crane, dolly and 30 feet of track. DL will be able to shoot in-house or on-site and manage projects from concept to final edit.

Wider audience reach

Metro Builders Supply, a 36-year-old company with 10 locations in Missouri, Oklahoma, Arkansas and Kansas, is a DL Media client in the midst of its own makeover, which also was influenced by economy-influenced market changes. As of Jan. 1, Metro rebranded itself as Metro Appliances & More.

Metro built its reputation on sales and service to professionals in the home building and remodeling industries, but with home construction coming to a virtual standstill in the last year, company leaders realized it was time to expand Metro's marketing focus to reach a broader audience.

"We have expanded our scope to include more of the public who are just looking to replace one product at a time," said Judy Bilyeu, corporate marketing director.

The company's new name broadcasts what Metro has to offer, namely 40 different brands of household appliances, and sends the message that it is not exclusive to the building industry.

Rebranding is not a simple process. It began with research, including surveys of builders, remodelers and designers, as well as the general public.

The change affects everything from business cards and stationery to employee logo wear, Metro's Web site, www.metrobuilderssupply.com, and the Web sites of all its vendors. The name change is being incorporated into everything from store signage to individual employee voicemail messages.

Another rebranding challenge, however, is that Metro's product offerings - and marketing messages - vary from market to market.

Bilyeu estimated the total cost of the rebranding at $1.5 million, approximately $1 million of which is staying in the local economy.

DL Media has helped with virtually every step, from brainstorming to production, creating print ads and redesigning Metro's Web site. Bilyeu records Metro's radio spots at DL Media and also has worked with the company to shoot TV spots.