About the Customer

Kinney Bros. & Keele True Value Hardware is a family-owned and operated hardware store with a track record dating back nearly a century. Founded in 1926 in Ontario, Oregon, the business now offers traditional items such as plumbing, electrical, and paint while also providing rental services for products such as outdoor equipment and party supplies. The store has a square footage of 22,500, enabling them to offer various products. Their customers say, ‘If you can’t find it at Kinney & Keele, you just can’t find it.’

Business Challenges

The sheer volume of business generated by the retail and rental operations required ownership and management’s complete care and attention. Consequently, staying on top of the business’s social media and web presence was often pushed aside. As a result, critically important customer service practices such as responding to customers’ online queries or updating their Facebook page could sometimes go unresolved.

“I realize the huge role that social media plays in our business, but as hard as I tried to maintain it, I just didn’t have the time,” said co-owner Mara Kirby-Garcia. “We own a large store with a variety of products. It was hard to manage employees, help our customers, and then wonder if I remembered to update our social media platforms or check how we ranked in Google for important search terms.”

Beyond the social media challenges, the business found maintaining the online catalog of their in-store products difficult. It was too demanding to gather the images, write the descriptions, and everything else that goes into building and maintaining an online catalog.

Kinney Bros. & Keele True Value Hardware also required a web presence that fits their rental arm of the business. These specific requirements are different from a pure retail website, so ensuring this was functional and would rank highly on Google searches was a priority.

Solution

After consulting with New Media Retailer (NMR), Kinney Bros. & Keele True Value Hardware decided to have NMR maintain their social media presence and build and maintain their rental website. Representatives from NMR sat down with Mara and her team and set up a plan that would help Kinney Bros. & Keele meet their objectives.

“I was hoping to keep our social media updated with fresh content,” Mara said. “And I didn’t have a clue how to run and build a rental catalog. I just needed to find a way to take these items off my daily plate and make my life a lot easier.”

The comprehensive solution saw NMR manage their website (retail and rental), digital ads campaigns, and social media. They ensure that a consistent posting strategy is maintained and that reviews, messages, and comments are monitored.

Outcome

After NMR implemented the multi-faceted solution, it quickly became apparent that the social media and local SEO services had the most significant impact on Kinney Bros.& Keele’s business. The new monthly content schedule keeps their followers engaged through industry-related news and tips, fun interactive posts, and keeping them informed about special offers and events at the store. Meanwhile, the online rental catalog helps the store rank high in Google for key search terms and drive sales leads to the business.

“Our campaigns have not only brought more business, but they’ve let me showcase more items to different people in different genres,” Mara said.

The business also saw a considerable jump in its search engine rankings, particularly with Google. Top rankings in Google increased sales, foot traffic, and calls to the store. For Mara, the benefits go beyond sales metrics.

“It’s really helped my stress level,” she said. “These last few years have been very stressful with product shortages and fewer employees. It’s nice to know I don’t have to worry about making sure my social media campaigns are running.”

Mara cites this peace of mind as the most significant benefit of their NMR collaboration.

“Honestly, NMR has made my life a lot easier. I know my company is taken care of each and every day.”

Conclusion

Kinney Bros. & Keele True Value Hardware was looking for a way to stay on top of their social media presence. The demands of running the retail and rental segments of the business left little time to update social media accounts and respond to customers’ online queries. Kinney Bros. & Keele partnered with NMR to develop a strategy to maintain social media accounts, build and update their rental catalog and increase their local Google search rankings. NMR removed the burden of maintaining the social media accounts and, by doing so, drove business to the store through a heightened online presence.