Owner Harvey Boehlig started Rosehill Woodcrafters in 1993 in an old church based in MacGregor, MB. Instead of paying for the church, Harvey’s company made all the pews for the new church. Fast forward to today, and this family-run business now has an 8,500 sq ft manufacturing facility that employs 20 and produces two to three kitchens per day, including residential custom, multi-unit, and millwork. The old church now serves as the 2,400 sq ft showroom and office space, plus they’ve opened another showroom in Winnipeg.
Like many of us, Harvey has learned a lot over the past year about the power of the internet. Harvey’s company adapted and these efforts have paid off with online leads up 300% in one year!
Focus on Local
Take a look at what Rosehill posts on social media. You’ll see messages that echo the company values and posts about local company products that you can purchase in the showroom at Rosehill. Rosehill also gives these items away as gifts to their clients. We asked Harvey why he took on this marketing approach and its impact on business.
CKCA: We’ve seen you promoting local artisans and selling their work in your showroom; why are you doing this, and what is the response like? Does this make a difference in sales leads?
H. Boehlig: We wanted to show some local products that would help stage our displays but at the same time help out small businesses. After we finish their project, we give customers a gift certificate they can use in our showroom for any purchase. With the restrictions in Manitoba over the last many months, we could not sell any non-essential items, so these times, for the most part, couldn’t be sold. This wasn’t expected to significantly increase our sales as we don’t have tons of traffic like a regular retail store would have, but customers seemed to like the products we carried.
CKCA: What do you think you do well that draws customers to shop with you?
H. Boehlig: Our mission statement states the following: We build high-quality cabinets, stand by our product, and seek our customers’ complete approval and satisfaction. Some customers want to buy products made in Manitoba. We run our business with integrity and honesty towards our customers, suppliers, and employees.
Should you TikTok it?
CKCA: Have you increased your social media presence?
H. Boehlig: Yes, we had been slowly doing more than just having a website and maybe paying for Google ad words. When the first lockdown hit shortly after, we had just displayed at The Winnipeg Renovation Show, which was our biggest single source for new leads; we started putting way more effort into online presence and content. For example, my online marketing person made a short TikTok video in 5 minutes one day before leaving for the weekend. It blew up to have almost a half million views and 51,000 likes, and then we looked at our website hits, and it blew up as well!
CKCA: What types of resources does it take to manage your social media channels?
H. Boehlig: In the past, we have hired companies/individuals to set up our website or social media content, and for the most part, that wasn’t working. Unless you have a large budget to throw at a marketing company, you won’t get the traction you are looking for, in my experience. When the lockdown first started just over a year ago, I changed the role of my one employee handling sales and online marketing to be online marketing only. She rebuilt our website, scheduled posts, got relevant content from our employees to post, and lots of other things that would help us get out there. She is currently assisting with sales part-time as we are swamped since our online leads are up 300% since last year!
What’s the priority?
CKCA: How would you prioritize your website compared to your content on social media? For example, are they equally as important, or is one more important than the other?
H. Boehlig: It may be better to ask my online marketing person to answer that, but I think its important to keep it all fresh and current – otherwise, it will get stale, and you won’t get the benefit of all the other work you are doing – it’s all tied together in some ways online.
So we asked the online marketing person!
Taylor Boehlig, Marketing and Sales for Rosehill and Harvey’s daughter, was happy to give us her perspective.
T. Boehlig: Our website and social media are of high value to our customers and us; however, I value constantly keeping our social media updated. I try to update a few things on our website at least once a month, and I always make sure to post updated photos as we take them. Many of our potential customers reach out to us through the contact page on our website, and we consistently have high website traffic, so it is crucial to keep it fresh.
With social media, if we haven’t posted in a month, customers won’t care to follow us since we regularly provide quality content. I schedule all of our social media posts up to three months in advance, which allows me to ensure we have an appropriate number of days between posts! I always aim for two to four posts per week with varying content to keep our followers engaged but not overwhelmed with how often we post.
Social media allows us to reach many people who otherwise may not have heard of us, and I think our Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok are great gateways to get people directed to our website.
Increased Literacy
CKCA: In our industry, what percentage of people have better online social media literacy than before COVID?
T. Boehlig: As far as social media presence in the cabinet industry, I think that many companies have started to use social media to combat or take advantage of the effects COVID has had on sales, whether that is a negative or positive effect. Pre-COVID, I don’t remember seeing much on social media for cabinetry companies that stood out. I have seen companies stepping their game up since COVID. We have always been active on social media, but we have taken a much more targeted approach to social media in the last year.
Trade shows are usually our big boost for sales. Still, without that exposure, we have pivoted to find other ways to provide our potential customers with the valuable information they go to trade shows for. Social media is a useful tool, and with the uncertainties of COVID and when things will return to “normal,” I think that many companies will be starting to take advantage of it!
Travel through Rosehill’s website, it’s fresh, navigable and the connections to social media are clear. We were delighted to see Rosehill display their certification credential earned through CKCA, further demonstrating their commitment to quality assurance. We wish Rosehill Woodcrafters continued success.
CKCA Members strive for quality, professionalism, and innovation. For more profiles like these and many other benefits, consider becoming a CKCA member!
Sandra Wood is the Secretary and Executive Director for the CKCA. She enjoys “connecting the dots” and facilitating strong networking opportunities to engage members. She believes associations are about fostering strong business relationships fueled by an empathic and sound business approach.