This week on The Kula Ring, Tara Vincar, Marketing Director at Alpha Controls, shares her journey of transforming the company’s marketing approach from the ground up. She discusses how she navigated the steep learning curve of the instrumentation industry, built a small but mighty marketing team, and gained executive buy-in for long-term strategy. Tara also reveals the early wins that fuelled momentum, the challenge of maintaining growth after the “newbie gains” phase, and how she strengthened collaboration between marketing and sales.

This week, Paul Drabble joins the show to dive into the transformative impact of electrification in material handling and construction. Paul shares insights into the brand’s approach to market entry, focusing on raising awareness and educating potential customers before introducing product pitches. He emphasizes leveraging in-person events and webinars, supported by a robust network of subject matter experts, to build credibility across sectors. We also discuss Paul’s excitement about advancements in marketing tools, including AI-driven localization and automation, which rounds out this insightful conversation on navigating a rapidly evolving technological landscape.

The Kula Ring this week is digging into digital journey optimization with Jon MacDonald, founder of The Good. Jon shares insights from his extensive experience helping brands like Nike and Xerox improve user experiences and conversions. Discover how understanding consumer psychology and optimizing digital touchpoints can transform your approach to marketing and sales in the manufacturing sector.

You can find his new book, Behind the Click, here: thegood.com/behind-the-click/

Wayne Thompson of Pineberry Manufacturing joins the show this week to discuss the increased engagement they have garnered through closer collaboration and partnerships with their suppliers and adjacent businesses. We break down how to get started with an initiative like this and some of the pitfalls to avoid.

This week The Kula Ring is looking into something that a lot of manufacturing marketers think is a bad word: commoditization. Matthew Seymour of Hyperion Materials & Technologies is joining us this week to breakdown how he has tackled this issue. We get into a few tactics that have proven fruitful for Hyperion in dealing with a post-commodity world. We look at capitalizing on your value added products while still addressing buyers who are increasingly used to a commodity buying experience.

Jonathan Quinn from Accredo Packaging is on the show this week talking with us about packaging, sustainable packaging. We peel back the layers, as Carman says, on some of the challenges around being sustainable in an industry that is so front and center in the conversation around sustainable practices. Jonathan is a super knowledgeable guy who has been around packaging for, quite literally, his whole life. He has talked to lawmakers and focussed on what consumers truly hold dear. This episode is jam packed with information.