Marketing campaign helps clinch Queen’s Award

A campaign devised by Lancashire marketing consultancy Freshfield has helped coatings manufacturer Sherwin-Williams clinch a prestigious Queen’s Award for Enterprise for a new breakthrough product launch.

The Dura-Plate 301W coating made by Sherwin-Williams Protective and Marine Coatings, which employs more than 200 people at its headquarters in Bolton, Greater Manchester, was a winner in the innovation category in the highly acclaimed awards.

Working closely with the client team, Freshfield devised a strategy to showcase the product’s unique features in the international media, both online and offline, through the voice of their experts in features, case studies and the use of dynamic video.

Features were placed in key international media serving the client’s core markets in oil & gas in the first instance, highlighting the issues and how Dura-Plate 301W overcame them with its surface and humidity tolerance and low temperature curing.

Further activity included White Papers providing in-depth details of the development of the product in key industry journals online and offline, and placement of photography and video at key trade events in the UK and Europe.

Nick Ball, marketing director for Sherwin-Williams Protective & Marine Coatings Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA), said: “Thanks go to the Freshfield team for their support on this throughout and how they have helped us to communicate with our customers in this tough market.

“The thought leadership campaign has supported us during the product launch and beyond, and we are continuing to see great results from their work.” Paul Tustin, client director at Freshfield, added: “Our campaign was designed to work directly in support of Sherwin-Williams’ business goals, and it’s satisfying to see this work helping them to achieve such recognition.”