Amanda Bronowski, Sales Executive at Heeter
In addition to her degree from Rochester Institute of Technology in Print Management, Amanda Bronowski has over 20 years’ operational experience in the printing industry. That’s why it was a bit of a surprise for her to end up in print sales. As she puts it, “the last thing that I sold was Girl Scout cookies.”
But at the recommendation of Heeter’s VP of Sales, she started a new career trajectory. She watched other industry salespeople - mostly older men - taking clients on golf outings and schmoozing at lunches. “That just wasn’t my style,” she says, adding “I didn’t really see a lot of reps utilizing social media.” As a mother of 5 boys, she’s had plenty of experience keeping an eye on social media trends. And as a former model, she had some level of comfort in front of a camera. So she started posting pictures, and that evolved into videos.
Heeter Printing offers a variety of printing services, from conventional “offset” printing to digital printing, inkjet/web, software, procurement, and more. I talked to Amanda about her role and how she’s helping Heeter reach new customers through somewhat unconventional methods.
It looks like your videos are getting a lot of traction on LinkedIn and YouTube. How did you start?
Last fall, I was posting pictures on social media - mostly LinkedIn - about my company and the services we offer. They were getting a little bit of attention, but I finally got the confidence to put out my first video in December, which was a “Happy Holidays” kind of thing. That got way more engagement. That’s when I thought, “Can people sell this way?”
I decided to try it, and focus on the educational aspect - teaching people how to effectively use print and incorporate direct mail into their overall marketing campaigns. My first video, done with the help of our internal marketing team, was me in front of a camera, pitching. It was fine, but it wasn’t me. I decided to take a more personal approach and shoot and edit the videos myself.
From modeling, I was comfortable in front of a camera but it was actually intimidating putting myself out there as a professional. I mean, there are always going to be people quick to criticize your looks or whatever. But I didn’t want people questioning me as a professional. At first, if people had negative comments, I’d get upset. But you get passed it. And once I saw the positive reactions - and once I started getting clients - it got much easier.
So how do you make them? Do you have any special equipment, lighting, or things like that?
[Laughs]. Not exactly. I shoot them with my phone. Sometimes I hold it. Other times I attach it to a lamp, using a pop socket and [laughs again] putting it on a knobby-turny thingy on the lamp. Very professional. I do have a small, inexpensive tripod so I can get different angles. Lighting is very important, though. I have like 15 different lights in the room I use and I’m always adjusting them to get rid of shadows. I also film a lot outside, to bring in more warm light.
And how do you edit?
I started using the InShot app, then invested a few dollars for InShot Pro. I only shoot maybe 25 seconds at a time, and generally do 5 to 15 different takes for a single 1-minute video. I also show the videos to my youngest boys (7 & 8) to make sure the videos aren’t boring - if I see the boys drift off for even a few seconds, I know I need to make it more entertaining!
Once they make it passed your advisory board, where do you post them?
Mainly on LinkedIn because that’s where my customers are. I also post on my YouTube channel. Ocassionally I’ll add them to my personal Facebook page and Heeter’s Facebook page, if I think people might enjoy them.
Nothing is ever “just” print. It’s always print-plus-something. The industry has evolved.
So I guess the big question is, have they made an impact on sales?
Yes. The number of viewers has been steadily increasing. In the beginning I’d get maybe 500 views, now it’s more like 9,000. With those viewer numbers increasing, I’ve had many more people reaching out to me for printing quotes and questions about specific printing projects. I’ve also been asked to appear on panels and online sessions, which has helped as well. When COVID hit, more people went online, so that gave me a bump in views. But my customers and prospects also realized it was an opportunity to use omnichannel marketing.
You’ve talked about that in your videos. I suppose to some people it may seem ironic that someone selling print uses video to sell. Can you address that and elaborate on “omnichannel marketing” and what that means to your customers?
Absolutely! Nothing is ever “just” print. It’s always print-plus-something. The industry has evolved. Omnichannel marketing creates cohesive marketing campaigns. Heeter does this well. For instance, we’ll tie a video into a direct mail piece that points to a web page - and there’s consistent imagery and copy across each channel. We practice what we preach - we do it for ourselves and we do it for clients.
Last question - your husband has made a cameo or two - how does he feel about you making him Internet famous?
That was actually his idea! He’s a professional MMA fighter and he loves the spotlight! But he’s a great help. He’s also a personal trainer and markets himself, so we work together. Although, I do get a tad bossy as a Director [laughs again}.
Connect with Amanda:
YouTube: https://lnkd.in/datjyex
Heeter Printing: https://www.heeter.com/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amanda-bronowski-37385016/