Workitrichmond.com profiles Will Winston

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Workitrichmond.com profile on Will Winston
September 15, 2011 by Jacob Geiger - via Workitrichmond.com

Tell us the basics: Who are you, what’s your company’s name, and how long has the company been in business?

I am Will Winston, and I have been Director of Sales of Techno Marketing for two years. I graduated from Longwood University in 2004, worked for UPS for five years and then joined our family business in 2009. My experience with a large corporation like UPS built a solid foundation for me prior to coming to Techno-Marketing.

Our company was founded by Joe Winston in March 1997. We specialize in marketing through the use of imprinted promotional products. Our clients rely on us to provide them with unique and cost-effective ideas to help them grow their business. We have done this successfully for over 14 years.

What led your father to start the company?

Joe founded our company after an 18-year career with Owens Corning as a regional sales manager. During his tenure with a Fortune 200 company, he developed an interest in marketing and branding. Upon leaving Owens Corning, he followed his true passion of helping organizations grow their business through the use of promotional products. His big company experience is what drove me to work for a large company after college. He told me I wouldn’t appreciate being in business for myself until I gained experience somewhere else. I couldn’t agree more!

You sell “guaranteed response vehicles.” What does that mean?

We didn’t go into business to be in the giveaway business and neither did you! We are promotional marketing consultants who truly understand your needs before prescribing a promotional product for your next marketing initiative. By doing so, you cannot call our items “giveaways”. Through proper consultation we will prescribe promotional items to get you the results you are trying to achieve.

When implemented properly, promotional products will do three important things. They will reach your target market, generate a positive response and give your target market the ability to recall your brand. “Guaranteed response vehicles” are what we prescribe to our clients! We won’t prescribe a promotional product you can call a “giveaway.”

What’s a lesson you’ve learned during the recessionary environment of the past few years?

Be cautious with your capital, but if you believe you have an idea that will work, go for it! Spend the money you need on your idea, and put all your time and energy behind it to make it successful. The harder you work, the luckier you get!

Is there a secret to your personal success? Perhaps a piece of advice you’ve always remembered?

It’s not who you know, it’s who wants to know you! I believe in this and make an effort to be visible in the business community and active in many organizations. Henrico Business Leaders has been the perfect professional organization to help me achieve my goals.

What’s coming up in the next year for you and your company? What about in the next five years?

In the next year we will continue to enhance our web presence. E-commerce has gradually been a growing part of our business, and we continue to work to make the online search and purchasing process seamless for our customers. Not only do we work with clients in Virginia and up and down the East Coast, we opened an office in central Wisconsin. We chose Wisconsin because there is a tremendous need for our services and lots of room for growth. We will continue to work on building a national presence and grow at a pace in which we can properly service our clients.

What, at your business, is the most effective way to connect with clients?

We stay involved in many professional organizations throughout Richmond. This is how you meet clients and build a network. I have also found social media is an effective avenue to maintain contact with clients.

Go where your customers are. If they are online, create an online presence. If they are on Facebook, Twitter, or LinkedIn, be there too! Wherever you go to connect with customers, you need to develop a strategy, be consistent and give your clients what they need. Don’t just focus on just giving your clients information about your product or service. There is way too much information clutter out there. Focus on creating a call to action!