<\/p>\n
Three months ago Seprotech made the decision to hire Kevin Bloodworth.<\/p>\n
The Ottawa-based company has developed, built and distributed water treatment and waste water management technology since its founding in 1985 but until Bloodworth, had never had an employee dedicated to developing its marketing strategy.<\/p>\n
It’s led people away from the credibility and capability of Seprotech Systems and it’s certainly distracted people from the moral and ethical foundation of this company.<\/p>\n
On December 10, Bloodworth was hit with an added challenge when Seprotech announced it could not release its annual report on time to meet securites laws. On December 29, the company announced that the delay was caused by overstated revenues in the previous three quarters due to overbilling a large client. According to the Ottawa Business Journal, the Department of National Defence has stepped forward as being this client.<\/p>\n
Seprotech released an update on January 12 saying the client had agreed to be credited for future bills from Seprotech. Bloodworth says he cannot comment on whether this will affect the financial statement balances in the past few quarters but says his job is to make sure it doesn’t effect future ones.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt’s a distraction. It’s led people away from the crediblility and capability of Seprotech Systems and it’s certainly distracted people from the moral and ethical foundation of this company,\u201d he says, addressing that Seprotech found the billing issue through an internal audit and brought it to the client’s attention.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy job is to not be distracted by the speculation and to stay focused on market development and cultivating new relationships that will allow us to absorb these types of distractions,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n
SHARE PRICE HIT<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n Before the error was announced, Seprotech’s share price was trading around $0.06. The share price dropped to $0.02 after the announcement but was up to $0.035 by this Friday’s close. Bloodworth partially attributes this recent gain to the launch of a new website last week \u2013 a component of his new marketing plan.<\/p>\n He says he doesn’t think the financial slip-up will have any long term impact on the company.<\/p>\n \u201cIf anything it’s enhancing my position,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n Bloodworth has been given the title of director of sales and marketing and his position, which has not\u00a0 been officially announced, is expected to be made public any day.<\/p>\n A lot of companies don’t want to make that two to three-year investment in time and resources. Seprotech seems very keen on that which will be a recipe for success.<\/p>\n As a marketing expert, Bloodworth says Seprotech’s solutions have never been properly positioned in the splintered water treatment market, where many companies offer similar services. He says its his goal to raise Seprotech’s brand to be top of mind for its target audience.<\/p>\n \u201cEveryone’s telling the same story. Over time you just have to elevate yourself by offering new technologies and more advanced resources and products,\u201d he says. \u201cWhat drives me every day is that the world doesn’t even know [about us] and we’re right here in Ottawa. Consistency and frequency is the key. If you want to succeed and you want a viable sustainable company, you have to have the systems and models in place to create that.\u201d<\/p>\n Paulina Barnes, a senior trades consultant at the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation has worked to help Seprotech penetrate international markets and says she is impressed at how the company has responded.<\/p>\n \u201cA lot of companies don’t want to make that two to three-year investment in time and resources,\u201d she says. \u201cSeprotech seems very keen on that which will be a recipe for success.\u201d<\/p>\n Marc McArthur of Ottawa’s Centre for Research and Innovation says the addition of Bloodworth to the Seprotech team was a critical investment.<\/p>\n \u201cYou could have a great technology but if no one knows about it or if the opportunity can’t be framed with the correct terms \u2013 and marketing professional and business development professionals tend to be the folks that are able to do that \u2013\u00a0 then the technology goes nowhere,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n CLEANTECH SUCCESS<\/strong><\/p>\n Before hiring a marketing director, Seprotech relied strictly on sales people knocking on doors and building the brand through word of mouth. Bloodworth says when he came into the company the website was ineffective and its existence was virtually unknown.<\/p>\n A lot of organizations have great ideas and great success stories and they have no idea how they got there so there’s no way for them to duplicate their success.<\/p>\n The reduction of the amount chemicals that are needed to treat water and the amount of energy that’s required in that process sets Seprotech apart from its competitors.<\/p>\n Important players in Seprotech’s target market include engineering consultant firms\u00a0 such as Black and MacDonald. Bloodworth says before he approached the firm it wasn\u2019t aware of what Seprotech offered. This company\u2019s Ottawa office is located behind Seprotech’s corporate offices on Holly Lane.<\/p>\n Bloodworth is also making sure to build relationships with key organizations like the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers and OCRI which named Seprotech as Ottawa’s Cleantech company for 2010.<\/p>\n McArthur manages the Cleantech initiative at OCRI and says he nominated Seprotech for the award because of\u00a0 its great work in Ottawa.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have a specific focus on Seprotech partly because its local but also because there is a certain elegance in the solution that they’re providing,\u201d he says. \u201cThe reduction of the amount chemicals that are needed to treat water and the amount of energy that’s required in that process sets Seprotech apart from its competitors.\u201d<\/p>\n Barnes says CMHC is also very interested in clean technology and thinks its a growing market.<\/p>\n \u201cThey will be able to truly expand with a strong strategy, having support and connecting to the right people,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n TELLING THE CORPORATE STORY<\/strong><\/p>\n Aside from these relationships, Seprotech is also fostering brand awareness through flyers, posters, lunch and learn sessions and presentations to keep a conversation going between the company and its potential clients. Bloodworth says this effort is essential for Seprotech to break through to the next level of success.<\/p>\n \u201cYou can’t just wait on the market,\u201d he says. \u201cIt’s not about the market. It’s about you and what it is you’re going to be doing everyday, every week to have the results at the end of the year that you need.\u201d<\/p>\n He says this is where many businesses\u00a0 fall short. \u201cA lot of organizations have great ideas and great success stories and they have no idea how they got there so there’s no way for them to duplicate their success.\u201d<\/p>\n To ensure Seprotech understands the reasons behind its successes, Bloodworth has implemented a detailed goal sheet for all the sales managers and regional managers to help them effectively set goals and analyze achievements.<\/p>\n \u201cMy internal term is seprology \u2013 the science of marketing Seprotech,\u201d he says, \u201cand it is a science, it’s not whimsical. No company that had any success got there by accident.\u201d<\/p>\n Bloodworth says the company\u2019s audience has grown significantly since he joined Seprotech. \u201cThat precedes sales- it has to,\u201d he says. \u201cI’ve often said Seprotech is the best kept secret in Ottawa.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Three months ago Seprotech made the decision to hire Kevin Bloodworth. 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