Gerard Roofing Technologies
The Challenge
Gerard Roofing Technologies is the pioneer and largest manufacturer of stone-coated steel roofing in the U.S. Backed by Metals USA, Inc., a $2 billion company, Gerard has the size, resources and capability to provide the only lifetime warranty as part of a complete stone-coated steel roofing system. However, consumers had minimal knowledge of Gerard and, more significantly, stone-coated steel roofing. For Gerard to further its role as a leader in the industry and increase sales, it needed to refocus its marketing efforts from contractors directly to consumers.
The Approach
The first step was to revise Gerard’s Warranty Registration form to capture more relevant consumer information and create awareness for other Metals USA building products. Next, Wilkin Guge surveyed Gerard’s existing customers and found that 94% of Gerard roof homeowners would refer family, friends and neighbors. Non-Gerard homeowners were then surveyed to discover what qualities they looked for when selecting a roof. With this knowledge, Wilkin Guge developed an integrated marketing campaign incorporating television, Web site redesign, search engine optimization, consumer publication advertising, radio, public relations and word-of-mouth. Our approach was to tell Gerard’s story through the testimonials of existing customers. A family of five in Dallas, a retired couple in Laguna, Calif. and a business woman in Wellington, Fla. agreed to serve as the voice of the company, telling personal stories of how their Gerard roofs survived extreme weather.
The Results
Wilkin Guge worked with Metals USA to implement a CRM system that could successfully track the number and source of leads. Within the first quarter of a twelve-month campaign, Gerard Roofing Technologies received almost 400 leads from the top six markets. In addition, Metals USA, Inc. received over 300 leads for other building products from the revised Gerard Warranty Registration form. Public relations initiatives secured dozens of story placements nationwide, as well as radio and newspaper interviews, and generated significant awareness with consumers.
“America’s Strongest Roof”
