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StoryConnect features interviews with marketers, communicators, CEOs and other leaders at cooperative and independent broadband companies, electric cooperatives and municipal power providers. The goal of the podcast is to help listeners discover ideas to shape their stories and connect with their customers. It is produced by Pioneer Utility Resources.
Intro:
A production of Pioneer Utility Resources.
StoryConnect, helping communicators discover ideas to shape their
stories and connect with their customers.
Megan McKoy-Noe:
What should you know when launching fiber in a competitive area?
That's what we'll be talking about on this episode of The
StoryConnect Podcast.
Hi, I'm your host, Megan McKoy-Noe, one of the storytellers at
Pioneer Utility Resources, and I am joined by Lindsay Brinker,
design supervisor for Rural Telephone and NexTech in Kansas.
And y'all have, what, 24,000 customers for both telephone,
broadband and streaming?
So you've got your hands full.
Lindsay Brinker:
Yes we do. Yeah, we're very busy.
Megan McKoy-Noe:
I should say, we are recording live at the Calix ConneXions
Conference in beautiful Las Vegas with, oh, just a few thousand
other broadband storytellers that are here.
So we're going to call any noise you hear in the background
ambiance, so it sets the mood, I think, for story
sharing and ideas.
So Lindsay, thank you so much for joining me today.
Lindsay Brinker:
Thank you so much for having me.
Megan McKoy-Noe:
Now we were talking earlier, we were in the line together for
registration.
It was a bonding experience.
It was lovely. And you were talking about competition and how it
changes the game for so many people.
And I mean, I have a background with electric cooperatives, and
then your background is with your telephone cooperative.
When you start talking about competition, what have you found
that people need to think about when working on their
communication, their storytelling strategies?
Because it's very different than just saying, "Hey, here, come
sign up for service," and that's it.
Lindsay Brinker:
Yeah, it definitely is.
And it's just becoming a more and more competitive landscape
with all of the funding that's coming available now.
So it's definitely top of mind for a lot of people.
And there's a lot of things that need to be thought of before
going into a new competitive area or expanding services that
somebody offers.
And so I think the first one of those is competitive research.
If you're going to look at going into a new area, you really
need to figure out who you're going up against and what kind of
services they're currently offering, and then figure out how
you're different from them.
Megan McKoy-Noe:
Now, so when you're doing your research and you're figuring out.
So you're entering an area and you're saying there's already
someone providing fiber to that area?
Lindsay Brinker:
It may not be fiber.
It may be wireless, or it may be DSL.
So you need to figure out what kind of service they're offering.
Megan McKoy-Noe:
Okay.
Lindsay Brinker:
What speeds and prices they're offering, and what marketing
tactics they're also using and how that compares to what you can
offer.
Megan McKoy-Noe:
Okay. So a little bit of voyeurism is involved to kind of see
what are they doing, which is always smart to do, to see what
messages folks are already receiving in the area and how
successful those messages are.
Okay. So step number one, know the competition.
Lindsay Brinker:
Know your competition. I think a great way to do research on them
is just start following their social media.
You can learn a lot about what their customers are experiencing
as their customers, just by
listening and following along.
Megan McKoy-Noe:
That's smart. Yeah.
Listening. Following along.
I find that if I'm ever at community events or conferences, and
we have folks that are providing some of the same services, I
take pictures. I just say, yeah, this is what they're doing
right now.
And it's good. It's just it's part of their story, and it can
help you strengthen your story at the same time.
Lindsay Brinker:
Right. Yeah. And so I think when you're learning about your
competition, you also need to figure out what your message is and
what sets you apart from them and what's different.
So make sure that you have a very strong story to tell and that
you know what message you're going to go into that new community
with.
Megan McKoy-Noe:
I like that, okay. So that's step one.
What is step two?
Lindsay Brinker:
Step two, and this is something that you guys talk about all the
time on your podcast is community involvement.
Megan McKoy-Noe:
Oh yes. We're fans.
Lindsay Brinker:
Yes. It's so important.
And making sure that your new customers see you in the community
and see you supporting them in different areas.
Getting involved with schools is a great way to show your
support.
And I think just having a visual presence and making sure that
your employees know how important it is to be part of the
community and give a local feel.
Megan McKoy-Noe:
So how have you seen people do that?
Lindsay Brinker:
As ourselves, as NexTech, we sponsor a lot of different community
events:
parades, school events.
We'll sponsor popcorn bags at the local high school games or, you
know, scoreboards and things like that.
We just find ways to be visual and involved in the community.
Megan McKoy-Noe:
I like that. We just had James from WAVE Rural Connect speak with
us earlier on the podcast, and he was talking about
branding Igloo coolers with the school's mascot on it, which I
just thought was really clever.
And then it just has provided by WAVE Rural Connect.
Lindsay Brinker:
That's great.
Megan McKoy-Noe:
Yeah, school involvement is huge, I agree.
And then getting involved with the community in other ways.
I've seen some folks that have gaming trailers that they get out
into the community to let people experience different speeds that
they might not have known, because you don't know what you don't
know.
Lindsay Brinker:
Right.
Megan McKoy-Noe:
Right. So having those kinds of experiences out there are good.
Lindsay Brinker:
Yeah. Something that we've done for years and years is our
football donation campaign.
We partner with about 30 different schools in our service area
in Kansas, and we provide about 100 t-shirts per
school that the cheerleaders can throw out during games.
And then we donate $10 per touchdown that that school scores for
the whole year.
So it's a great way –.
Megan McKoy-Noe:
For a whole year?
Lindsay Brinker:
Yeah. So it's a great way for us to get involved and stay
involved with the schools.
And they count on it every year, and they use the money for
their sports programs.
Megan McKoy-Noe:
Oh, I like that. I didn't think of it for sports programs, but it
makes complete sense for it to do that.
So nice.
And did the shirts that you give to them, do they have a special
message on them or?
Lindsay Brinker:
They all are pertinent to whatever school it is.
So we customize them per high school with their logo or mascot.
Megan McKoy-Noe:
I like it.
I see a future of many folks that are friends of the pod who get
very excited about this idea, both what James has said and what
you're saying with really getting involved with your schools.
Lindsay Brinker:
Yeah.
Megan McKoy-Noe:
And using their story, their logos, their message, and then
having your story as kind of a supporter there.
I like it. Okay. So that's step two, community involvement.
What's step three?
Lindsay Brinker:
Step three, I think it's important to partner with an agency that
has experience launching broadband.
For somebody that's maybe never gone into a competitive market
before, it can be really crucial to find a mentor or somebody
that can act as a consultant when you're moving into a
competitive area, because there's a lot of moving parts.
It's very multifaceted to make sure that you go in and do it
right the first time.
Megan McKoy-Noe:
Yeah, I should say one of the things I love about the Calix
ConneXions event is they have the circles of success, which I
haven't heard that phrase before, but I've heard of round table
sessions.
You know, a lot of events I've been to, they have those.
But I love the idea of everyone cheering each other on and
building on that success together.
It's one of the reasons that we have at Pioneer, we have an
e-book on "What to Expect When You're Connecting."
Lindsay Brinker:
Oh, wow. Okay, perfect.
Megan McKoy-Noe:
I know.
Lindsay Brinker:
That's exactly what we're talking about.
Megan McKoy-Noe:
But it's just examples from your peers and ideas that have worked
for other people and to help support each other.
It's one of the things that cooperatives do best.
Lindsay Brinker:
Yeah, yeah.
Megan McKoy-Noe:
So I love that.
So find a mentor, a mentee, someone that has been through this
and can do it.
And I think conferences are great way to start.
And there's tons of folks in the co-op network that are here to
help you shine and connect your community.
Lindsay Brinker:
Yeah. And Calix is a great resource for finding those mentors and
those partners to work with.
Megan McKoy-Noe:
Excellent. All right. So I think you said there were four steps.
This is very exciting. We're coming down to the final step.
Lindsay Brinker:
So the fourth step I have is clear communication with customers.
When you're moving into a new area, don't confuse people right
off the bat.
I think it's very important to have clear communication.
Let them know why you chose to come to their area as a new
provider.
Why you picked them, why you're investing money to build a
network there.
They're going to be interested, and they're going to want to know
why.
And so I think, don't hide it, be honest and let them know what
your goals are.
And something that I've experienced too, a lot of times when
you're moving in and you have big projects, you have construction
costs and timelines and things can maybe not go as planned from
the beginning.
Megan McKoy-Noe:
What are you talking about? No.
Lindsay Brinker:
Timelines can shift a little bit.
So as things change, I also think it's important to keep
customers up to speed on what's happening and just
be up front and honest with them and use all of your resources
to communicate, whether that's sending out email updates or
direct mail or posting updates on the website.
Megan McKoy-Noe:
Sure. Now a question, because we're talking about entering a
competitive environment, and I know some electric co-ops, when
they got into broadband, they got very excited.
And they said, "These are all the areas that we're going to be
building out in in the next, you know, five years," or whatnot.
And then the competition said, "Thank you so much for giving us
your plans.
We shall now lock everyone in contracts so that you will have a
very abysmal take rate when you get launched." So is there a
point where you're like, you know you want to communicate
clearly, but don't communicate everything?
How do you decide?
Lindsay Brinker:
So a way that we've kind of combated that issue is rather than
posting publicly
on our website or putting maps out there to the public, we'll
download mailing lists and send
targeted messages through the mail just to the people affected.
So it helps you kind of keep that under the radar a little more
than just broadcasting it to everybody.
Megan McKoy-Noe:
Targeted storytelling?
You're speaking my language there.
Lindsay Brinker:
Speaking to the right audience.
Yeah.
Megan McKoy-Noe:
Well, but I think it goes to the fact that with competition comes
the need to have very strategic, targeted storytelling tactics,
right?
Lindsay Brinker:
Absolutely.
Megan McKoy-Noe:
Which is a mouthful to say, but it's true.
You can't just, especially with a competitive environment, you
cannot just use the same message for everyone and just blanket it
out in your community anymore.
You've got to put the billboards aside for a minute and really
focus on that specific story to meet the right folks where
they are to help grow your subscriber base.
Lindsay Brinker:
Absolutely. And another thing that can happen is if you do put
that out there that you're building, say, to a whole town, but
you know it's going to happen in phases.
Sometimes those new customers can experience fatigue because it
takes so long to actually get the services turned up.
Megan McKoy-Noe:
I have no idea what you're talking about.
That never happens.
Lindsay Brinker:
Yeah. So if you can craft that message, but then send it at
strategic times to the right audience, that can help.
Megan McKoy-Noe:
Have you seen anyone do something to help with the weight?
Because the weight of the weight is heavy with communications,
especially in a competitive environment.
If they could get it somewhere else or someone else is maybe
rushing to get it to them first, like how do you tell that story?
Lindsay Brinker:
It is. And we were just having this conversation because we have
to send that message out now to a bunch of customers that we
expected to have turned up by the end of this year, and it's
just not going to happen.
Megan McKoy-Noe:
I don't mean to bring up.
Lindsay Brinker:
No, it's fine. It's very relevant.
But we were honestly just thinking about something as simple as
a Christmas card and just sending them a card.
"Hey, I know we don't have service yet, but we're still coming.
Thank you for your patience." And I think, you know, as somebody
who hasn't paid a dime yet to this new company,
that would be really meaningful to me as a potential new
customer to know, like, "They didn't get to me yet, but they
haven't forgotten. And they took the time to send me a little
something just to say, 'Hey, thanks for sticking with us.'" And
maybe we include a little fun trinket or something in there.
Megan McKoy-Noe:
Fun trinkets are always nice.
Yeah, just something too.
Because you're trying to build trust with them and build a
relationship with them.
So I like that idea.
I mean, I'm sorry for the delay, but these things happen.
Lindsay Brinker:
It's the world we live in, so.
Megan McKoy-Noe:
It's fun. It's just another challenge for you to rise above.
Right?
Lindsay Brinker:
Right.
Megan McKoy-Noe:
Yeah.
Lindsay Brinker:
That's what marketing is, right?
Megan McKoy-Noe:
It's a lot of hurdles, but we jump them gracefully.
Lindsay Brinker:
We do. Yeah.
Megan McKoy-Noe:
All right. Well, thank you so much for sharing your story with
utility pioneers.
She is Lindsay Brinker with Rural Telephone and NexTech.
And I'm your host Megan McKoy-Noe with Pioneer Utility
Resources.
And until we talk again, keep telling your story.
Outro:
StoryConnect is produced by Pioneer Utility Resources, a
communications cooperative that is built to share your story.
StoryConnect is engineered by Lucas Smith of Lucky Sound Studio.