Sonnhalter wins a silver award in “Trade Media Relations” category on behalf of NIBCO.
CLEVELAND – November 2024 – Sonnhalter, a communications firm marketing to the professional tradesman in the construction, industrial and MRO markets, received a silver award in the “Trade Media Relations” category at the 22nd Annual Public Relations Society of America’s (PRSA) Cleveland Rocks Awards competition recognizing excellent communications programs and tactics.
Sonnhalter received the silver award in “Trade Media Relations” for NIBCO’s proactive media program that maximized its effort to increase knowledge of its products among end users, distributors and media.
Sonnhalter worked to develop a proactive, strategic media relations program to leverage the knowledge and expertise within NIBCO and take advantage of key opportunities to spread awareness about the company, its products and technologies, and its experts.
The Sonnhalter program included an editorial audit that identified and outlined potential editorial opportunities, a consistent press release program, ongoing media pitches to place bylined feature articles, technical articles, and case histories, pitching NIBCO experts as sources for trade editors’ round-up articles covering industry trends, issues and products and arranging one-on-one media meetings at key trade shows.
“We’re honored to receive this recognition from other public relations professionals and proud of the work we’ve done with NIBCO,” said Matt Sonnhalter, Vision Architect at Sonnhalter. “This award shows how a well-executed media relations strategy and how our collaboration with NIBCO is driving industry awareness and engagement.”
Annually, the PRSA-Cleveland Rocks Awards acknowledge Northeast Ohio’s outstanding communications programs, which incorporate research, planning, execution and evaluation. PRSA Cleveland Rocks Award winners demonstrate leadership in public relations and contribute to advancing the profession locally.
About NIBCO INC.
NIBCO INC. manufactures and distributes a full line of flow-control products and systems for applications in the residential, commercial, industrial, marine, irrigation and waterworks markets. NIBCO, a fifth-generation business with its headquarters in Elkhart, Ind., operates 15 manufacturing plants across the United States and around the world. Visit NIBCO.com for information on the complete line of NIBCO products.
About Sonnhalter
Established in 1976, Sonnhalter is the leading B2T marketing communications firm to companies that target professional tradesmen in construction, industrial and MRO markets. Sonnhalter is located in the historic Brownell Building in the heart of downtown Cleveland. Sonnhalter’s brand identity highlights its expertise in marketing to the professional tradesmen. Its tagline, “Not Afraid To Get Our Hands Dirty,” promotes the employees’ willingness to roll up their sleeves and dig deep into clients’ businesses, also, it refers to the market it targets: the tradesmen who work with – and dirty – their hands every day. Sonnhalter developed the acronym “B2T,” which stands for “business-to-tradesmen” to capture the essence of its specialty. For more information, visit the company website at Sonnhalter.com.
About PRSA
The Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) is the world’s largest organization for public relations professionals with nearly 32,000 professional and student members, and more than 100 Chapters nationwide. Serving nearly 300 members, the PRSA Greater Cleveland Chapter brings together public relations, communications and marketing practitioners throughout Northeast Ohio. Among the Chapter’s most important activities and duties is coordinating networking events and activities, developing and hosting professional development activities for members, serving as a resource for public relations students and providing recognition of excellence and best practices in all facets of the field of public relations. www.prsacleveland.org
The week of November 17 of this year is National Apprenticeship Week. We celebrate all that comes with internships and apprenticeships for the trades. Being that this year will be the 10th anniversary of this holiday, makes National Apprenticeship Week even more special. Whether you are in the electrical, plumbing, welding or carpentry trade apprenticeships and internships are where you start out and gain the skills you need to continue your career.
Here are five facts about apprenticeships to help celebrate this nationally recognized week:
An apprenticeship is a paid job with training.
Apprenticeships are for people of all ages – not just school leavers or young people, although they are a crucial route into work for this group.
Apprenticeships can upskill existing employees as well as train new recruits.
There are over 500 apprenticeships approved for delivery, covering a diverse range of roles in many different sectors.
Businesses select a training provider to work with to deliver their apprenticeships; these include colleges and independent training providers.
When crafting your next social media post, it’s essential to consider factors that will resonate with your audience. Different industries and audiences have varying preferences for content length. Generally, audiences lean towards either short-form or long-form content. Long-form content typically exceeds 900 words or three minutes in video length, while short-form content is under 900 words or three minutes long. Let’s discuss the benefits of utilizing both forms of content.
Long Form Content:
Building a Rapport
Building rapport with your audience is crucial for any business. It boosts your credibility and deepens your audience’s connection with your brand. This, in turn, allows you to better understand their preferences and deliver content that truly resonates with them.
Allotting Time to Weave Together a Great Story
Long-form content allows creators to craft a compelling story in detail. By investing time in a well-developed narrative, you can capture your audience’s interest. For example, longer videos enable your company to share its story, values and client relationships, helping to reach diverse audiences and provide a deeper insight into your business.
Allows More Keywords to be Used for SEO
Long-form content is usually very detailed and includes more thorough information and examples, providing more opportunities in searches for keywords to come up in searches. Typically, long-form content also cites other third-party resources and studies that allow visitors to deep dive into a specific subtopic. From that, it ranks for more keywords for SEO, therefore your content would be more discoverable.
Short Form Content:
Shorter Attention Spans
In recent years, attention spans have increasingly diminished. The national average attention span is 8.25 seconds, which explains why sometimes short form content is more desirable. Do you ever find yourself skipping over longer videos after a day of work because you don’t want to sit through a five-minute video? Exactly. We’ve all done it, and we will continue to do so, if our attention spans continue the trend of declining as they have been for the past several years.
Easier to Consume
Long videos can be divided into shorter segments to make them more digestible for audiences. For the trades, using brief product videos and testimonials can maintain or increase engagement. Also, creating suspense—such as teasing a product launch and following up with more details later—can keep your audience eagerly anticipating more. Highlighting key features and benefits of products in short videos or articles is another effective way to generate buzz and engage your audience.
Statistically Speaking…
According to Wired, it was found that “On platforms like TikTok and Instagram Reels use videos that are often less than 30 seconds in length,” and “50 percent of TikTok users say videos longer than 60 seconds are ‘stressful’.” This statistic is incredible insightful to deciding whether or not short form content is appropriate for the type of content that you put out for your audience. It’s also important to judge your audience in order to see what kind of content they would prefer.
Overall, there are great benefits to using both long form and short form content. It’s important to weigh which type of content would benefit you and engage your audience more. This, in turn, allows your audience to see the content that is important and interesting to them. For most companies, it would most likely be in favor of them to generate a mix of long form and short form content, in order to maximize the marketing efforts that are put out. When utilizing either type of content, as long as you understand what your audience would want, from there your content will be able to thrive.
Influencer marketing has evolved from a niche strategy to a mainstream approach for brands looking to amplify their reach, engage with target audiences and drive results. Here’s how you can utilize building an effective influencer program.
Define Your Objectives
Before you dive into an influencer program, it’s crucial to establish clear objectives for your program. Are you aiming to boost brand awareness, drive sales or enhance engagement? By setting specific, measurable goals, you can tailor your influencer program to meet these objectives.
Identify Your Ideal Influencers
Finding the right influencers is key to the success of your program. Look beyond follower counts and focus on finding influencers who align with your brand values and resonate with your target audience. Consider factors such as engagement rates, types of content they post and how often they post. Micro-influencers, with their highly engaged audiences, can often provide more significant impact than those with massive followings.
Build Authentic Relationships
Influencer marketing succeeds on authenticity. Aim to build genuine relationships with influencers. Engage with them on social media, collaborate on projects and provide value beyond just monetary compensation. An authentic partnership can lead to more compelling and more credible social media posts.
Collaboration Guidelines
To ensure a smooth collaboration, establish clear guidelines for influencers. Outline your brand’s expectations, campaign goals, key messaging and content requirements. Provide influencers with the creative freedom to craft their content in a way that feels natural to their audience while aligning with your brand’s voice.
Track Results
Tracking and analyzing the performance of your influencer program is essential for continuous improvement. Use metrics such as engagement rates to gauge the effectiveness of each influencer partnership. Leverage these insights to refine your strategy and optimize campaigns.
By defining clear objectives, choosing the right influencers, fostering authentic relationships and continuously optimizing your approach, you can unlock the full potential of influencer marketing.
As the landscape of influencer marketing continues to evolve, staying adaptable and responsive to insights will ensure your program drives meaningful results.
This year, we celebrate Sonnhalter turning 48! In 1976, John Sonnhalter founded Sonnhalter with a focus on industrial manufacturing accounts. Over time, our focus evolved, and we coined the term B2T, encompassing markets such as plumbers, electricians, machinists and others working in the trades.
At Sonnhalter, our focus as a manufacturing marketing agency is to serve companies that target professional tradesmen in the construction, industrial and MRO markets. To this day we stand by our motto, “Not Afraid to Get Our Hands Dirty.”
From Berea to Downtown Cleveland
One of the biggest changes since our founding was our move from Berea to Downtown Cleveland in February 2015. This relocation to a larger, more central location downtown brought us closer to a vibrant and thriving hub of activity.
A New Presidency
In its 48 years of service, Sonnhalter has undergone significant changes, including the retirement of founder John Sonnhalter and the appointment of his son, Matt Sonnhalter, as president. This father-son duo has made a notable impact in the B2T world. Upon John’s retirement, Matt stepped into his father’s role and continued the legacy of leadership. Matt has successfully guided the company, leveraging his extensive industry experience to drive Sonnhalter’s success.
Award Winning Work
At Sonnhalter, we take pride in our work and the clients we are fortunate to partner with. Our expertise has earned us numerous accolades, including awards for our work with Franklin Electric, General Pipe Cleaners, Kapro Tools and Weldcote. We’ve received ten gold and silver awards from the Davey Awards, and six gold and bronze awards from the PRSA Cleveland Rocks Awards competition. We were also recognized as one of BtoB magazine’s top business-to-business agencies in the U.S. for five consecutive years. These honors reflect our dedication, and we look forward to achieving even more in the future.
101 Days of Summer Photo Contest
Since 2004, Sonnhalter has held its annual summer photo contest, where every employee has the opportunity to submit photos that creatively reflect their summertime activities. Through this competition, each employee has the chance to win a cash prize and more importantly, bragging rights for the year.
Sonnhalter’s Annual Tool Drive
For 15 years, Sonnhalter has figured out a way to give back to the community, tradesman style. In 2010, we started our Annual Tool Drive and it has been a huge success. Overall, we’ve raised more than $517,000 to benefit Greater Cleveland’s Habitat for Humanity, in the hopes of eliminating substandard housing in our community. For the Tool Drive, we ask members of the community to donate old or unused tools and building materials that they might find in warehouses, garages and sheds.
We are extremely proud of our journey and where we stand today as a company. From the days of keylining and desktop publishing to sending snail mail press releases and embracing social media and influencers, our industry has evolved significantly. With the dedication of our Sonnhalter team and the support of our clients, we’ve navigated these changes and continue to thrive. Looking ahead, we’re excited about the future and ready to embrace new opportunities and challenges.
Recently, Sonnhalter’s president, Matt Sonnhalter, was featured on the Appetite for Construction podcast, where he reflected on the 2024 PHCC CONNECT held in Birmingham, Alabama. Matt emphasized the importance of collaboration and knowledge sharing within the industry, particularly in engaging with younger professionals in the trades.
Matt discussed the engaging sessions and networking opportunities that contributed to a productive atmosphere, allowing attendees to address the evolving challenges they face. Listen to the episode here to hear more about Matt’s thoughts on the event and its lasting impact on the industry.
