has announced the hiring of Guy Currier to the position of director of marketing. Currier brings eight years of experience in media, e-commerce, and market development to the company.
He is to supervise the creation of an entirely new class of customer and dealer services for Altman, planned to bring the company into closer communication with lighting professionals. These services will include new sales programs; deeper, more informative web-based services for designers, consultants, and resellers; and customer relationship systems that are highly responsive to the needs of the buyer and market.
"We have big plans and a lot of expectations for the coming year," says Bob Altman, president of the company. "We've always had a reputation for innovative engineering and top-notch manufacturing, but this year we're going to focus more on what kind of job we do connecting with those who benefit from this excellence: our customers. That's the reason for the new programs, and it's why we hired Guy, who really understands how buyers' and dealers' needs have changed in recent years."
As an example, one of the more interesting new services planned is a Lighting Consultant Program, which will take a designer's lighting concepts and work backwards to help determine equipment needs. This will be an all-around program allowing customers to work directly with Altman expert staff as well as draw on computer-based resources and link to the company's recently released CD-ROM catalog.
But Currier's first task will be the introduction of a completely new and up-to-date web site. Don't expect a lot of flashy pages, videos, or slick layouts that are hard to follow, just a straightforward web-based interface to Altman's catalog, order processing, and resource library.
"I'm definitely excited about bringing my knowledge of e-commerce and today's market environment to Altman," says Currier, who before joining the company spent two years consulting with national retailers, dealers, and Internet publishers in both the business and consumer markets. "But really I'm a marketing traditionalist.
"I started out in print media," he continues, "working with technology manufacturers and business providers who only cared about the bottom line: giving potential customers what they need to make good buying decisions. So my role over the past few years, when everybody talks big about web sites and e-mails and technology-based relationship management, has been to point out that our customers still want the same things they always did: great products that are priced fairly and that help them do their jobs well. "Well, that's already the focus Altman has, and our team will be developing all of these new services with that bottom line in mind."
Currier will report directly to Bruce McFarlane, Altman's director of sales, who looks forward to increased visibility and tighter links to both customers and dealers. "Guy has a lot of energy, and great experience with new media, marketing technology, and resellers. But he doesn't get lost in all of these cool toys and forget what marketing is all about. That's the kind of marriage of the best of the old and the new we were looking for. Even as we get ready to celebrate Altman's 50th anniversary in the industry, we have to prepare for the next 50 years, and be prepared for the challenges to come."
For additional information, contact your local professional lighting dealer or call 1-800-4-ALTMAN (1-800-425-8626) or check out the Altman web site at www.altmanltg.com