Stain suppliers step up promotions

Home Channel News, July 20, 1998 by Sarah Demaster

Olympic, Thompson's and Flood aim to reach broader market

This summer, three leading stain manufacturers -- Olympic Stain, Thompson's and Flood -- launched national advertising campaigns to promote extensions of their product lines and to educate a more discerning customer about the uses of stains.

Some dealers question whether advertising, no matter how extensive actually helps the sale of this product category. Suppliers, though, appear to be convinced that brand promotion, which in most cases is focus group driven, is the best wax' to get their message across.

"Olympic has gone through a metamorphosis." explained Mike Provenzano, director of marketing for PPG Industries. Olympic's parent, about the justification for that company's ad campaign. "Less than a decade ago, it was only a siding stain. Now there's a complete line of wood-care products for the home."

Provenzano added that the ads emphasize the stains' absorption-control formula, which is designed to minimize blotching and streaking common with interior stains.

For the first time, PPG decided to make a large investment in consumer print, running ads about its stains in woodworking magazines. The company noted that woodworkers make up a large part of their customer base and visit stores more frequently than the average DlYer, according to Provenzano.

In the stores, PPG is supporting Olympics efforts with requisite point-of-sale literature and signage, as well as a new deck care center display that includes deck preparation products, stains and protection coatings, as well as its new deck and fence protector product. PPG conducts surveys, focus groups and one-on-one interviews with consumers before and after each campaign to help determine its success, said Provenzano.

Thompson's, based in Memphis, Tenn., has designed its national network and cable advertising campaign to educate consumers about products the company offers in addition to its well-known waterproofing products.

"Over time, consumers have become more sophisticated in their wants " said Danielle Robinson, Thompson's senior brand manager.

"They want more than a waterproofer. They want products that will enhance the appearance of their deck, maintain the color a lot longer, and protect against unsightly, blotchy mildew."

The company's "It's Worryproof' campaign is aimed at convincing consumers they will get all the protection they need by using Thompson's deck stain and care products, according to Robinson. Thompson's decided to focus the campaign on its deck stain product line because Thompson's premium deck stain is its flagship product and deck stains -- which Thompson's added to its assortment in 1996 -- are a growing category.

To help determine the success of such a campaign. Thompson's showed rough versions of its commercials to an independent focus group, Robinson said. In a test last February, before the campaign began, Thompson's found that 41 percent of focus group participants remembered the "It's Worryproof commercials after viewing them, and 42 percent said they would buy the Thompson's products, she said.

In light of the activities by these high-profile manufacturers, The Flood Co. is trying to build awareness for its full line of products with a national television and magazine advertising campaign in an effort to position the company as the "wood care experts." The humorous ads show Flood's employees attending "Wood School," a school at the company's headquarters that all employees are required to attend.

Flood, based in Hudson, Ohio, has redesigned its Web site to provide information about its products in an entertaining wax', according to Matt Rechin, Flood's national marketing manager. The supplier promises Web surfers a free Flood hat for answering questions about its products, as well as a free T-shirt for answering a trivia question about which product protects fiberglass on a boat.

While he wouldn't give exact figures, Rechin said sales are so far running ahead of forecasts. Rechin claimed that, based on surveys with more than 100,000 households, Flood's brand awareness has risen 800 percent as a result of this campaign.

Adam janovic, chief operating officer of 15-unit paint dealer Janovic/Plaza in Long Island City, N.Y., said he has seen a noticeable increase in the amount of customer requests for Flood products since the campaign started. The retailer carries Flood products in its seven Long Island stores, because consumers shopping these stores do more exterior work, Janovic said.

Dealers ask if ads work

Other dealers acknowledge the growing impact of these brands on their customers, but expressed some doubts about the extent to which any ads are really driving stain sales.

Take Kenosha Ace Hardware. This 11,000-square-foot dealer in Kenosha, Wis., stocks Ace Hardware's branded stain products and Thompson's Minwax products.

"Minwax is a standard name in stains. They've definitely come a long way in name recognition." said Rick Stockdale, assistant store manager. "It sells good all the time, but I can't tell whether it's from advertising."