Chown Hardware selects MyPlumbingShowroom.com as a key driver in their new multi-pronged marketing initiative

PLYMOUTH MEETING, PA, August 13, 2018 —Portland, OR-based Chown Hardware (www.Chown.com) is in the final stages of a new branding, marketing, and media initiative, powered by MyPlumbingShowroom.com.  The company partnered with a local creative agency to develop a multi-platform strategy that centers around the new cutting-edge website and social media presence for maximum exposure to their target audiences.

“Going into this, we wanted to be open-minded and explore all available paths,” said manager Jeffrey Valles. “Chown is a small company with a small budget. We had been trying to do all of this ourselves, which was not productive. We looked for business partners that would work well with us and be flexible in addressing our needs. We told them what is important to us, and our creative agency worked closely with the team at Bravo to produce the best possible result.”

Ace Rosenstein, President/CEO of Bravo Business Media, noted, “We’re excited to have Chown Hardware join our growing list of independent plumbing, hardware, and lighting showrooms. They see the wisdom of having an online presence that drives traffic to their showroom. And further, Chown recognizes that while more than 80% of consumers are going to the Internet first when shopping for the type of products they sell, only a small percentage of those consumers are actually buying decorative plumbing and hardware products online. This new strategy enables companies like Chown to first capture consumers’ interest — and then their purchases.”

As Valles described, “Functionality wise, we needed a solution that would push us to the top of search engines. Our new site has the information potential customers need and includes a beautiful online shopping experience that will make them want to stay and take a look around. Ultimately, we believe this new strategy will equate to greater sales opportunities by encouraging online shoppers to come into one of our showrooms in person and meet with our knowledgeable staff.”

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MyPlumbingShowroom.com is a premium provider of customized digital shopping experiences for independent showrooms throughout North America. “The Bravo team made the development and implementation as effortless as possible for us,” said Valles. “We gave them access to our system and they did all the rest. They handled the creation and implementation of the online catalog on our website, and now manage and maintain the content and product data on a timely basis. All of that means a much more efficient use of our sales team’s time.

“Bravo also understands the value of scale, and as a result, they have been very accommodating in meeting special requests. They realize that developing features to serve our needs means additional tools they can then offer to other customers.”

Chown leaders believe these new digital marketing tools will help them gain tremendous visibility and brand recognition — and that the online catalog’s ease of use and high-quality content will enhance their customers’ experiences both prior to and during their showroom appointment.

“Our marketing initiative is designed to constantly be evolving. Websites, social media, catalogs, and showrooms are living, breathing sales tools,” Valles described. “Our website features videos of projects and interviews with luxury builders, designers, contractors, and others about the type of products and services we provided them and how well we worked together. There are also photos and links to products shown in the videos. All of this is tied back into our social media pages to ensure that our efforts are fully aligned. Our local trade partners can also take advantage of cross-marketing opportunities by linking to these videos from their sites. Again, all of these efforts are designed around our ultimate goal of driving more and more traffic into our showrooms.”

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Chown Hardware traces its Northwest roots back to 1879. Starting with selling fishing licenses, general tools, and supplies, the company morphed into a well-known high-end housewares store featuring items from around the globe. Over the last 20 years, the showroom transitioned again, now offering luxury bath, kitchen, lighting and hardware products to trade customers, designers, builders, architects, remodelers, and consumers. Chown’s headquarters is a 32,000-square-foot storefront in downtown Portland; they also have a 3,000-square-foot showroom in Bellevue, Wash., near Seattle.

“Our two showrooms are located in very vibrant, growing areas, and we want to take advantage of all the business opportunities in our market,” Valles remarked. “There are 2 million people now living in Portland — double what the population was 10 years ago. And there are 5 million in Seattle. There is so much construction going on in the Northwest.

“Showrooms will never disappear,” shared Valles. “But we need to be proactive and use tools like these to stay relevant and drive traffic into our stores. Going forward, branding will be key to our success. I am very optimistic that we will see a significant increase in web hits. It will be interesting to follow what happens from there. I believe all of this will lead to a measurable increase in customer traffic. And finally, and most importantly, we will be tracking how many of those visits lead to sales.”

About MyPlumbingShowroom.com:
Headquartered in Plymouth Meeting, Pa., MyPlumbingShowroom.com is a service of Bravo Business Media, a fast-paced, growing company offering independent businesses an easy to use, affordable, turnkey website service that establishes their businesses as multi-channel merchants — quickly. The company’s Internet solutions are the cutting edge of today’s web marketing and online sales technologies and are bursting with opportunities for growth. For more information, call 800.425.5139 or visit www.MyPlumbingShowroom.com.