SMPS is pleased to announce that Kleinschmidt Associates has been honored with the 2024 Marketing Innovation Firm of the Year Award. Team members GinaRenee Autrey, Russ Sanford, FSMPS, CPSM, Taylor Giogaia, Jillian Cromer, and Deborah Rosenberg from Kleinschmidt accepted the award during Amplify A|E|C, the Society’s annual conference, on July 25, 2024, in Salt Lake City, UT.
Kleinschmidt Associates (KA) becomes the first-ever SMPS Marketing Innovation Firm of the Year. This SMPS award recognizes an SMPS member’s firm for its outstanding innovation in their marketing.
As a mid-sized firm in the North American hydropower market, Kleinschmidt competes against large, multi-discipline, international firms. Their strategy for growth has focused on building brand dominance through themed content marketing, bold creative initiatives, and industry-enhancing programs. KA’s Strategic Growth Group (SG2), which includes their marketing, business development, and proposal teams, conceptualized and implemented two major programs in partnership with their industry’s primary non-profit, the Hydropower Foundation (HF).
WC2 Program: Building a Waterpower Workforce Pipeline
The WC2 Program connects university students with the waterpower community by establishing student-led waterpower clubs across North America. Kleinschmidt provided extensive pro-bono services, including planning, brand development, graphics, social media, website design, and communications. KA continues to provide guidance and assistance for the program.
Currently, the Department of Energy is considering a $1M grant to the HF for workforce development, and the WC2 Partnership is the cornerstone program. This underscores the program’s significance and our capability in leveraging such initiatives for broader industry and governmental engagement.
Ear to the River (ETR): Transforming Industry Insights
In collaboration with HF and the National Hydropower Association (NHA), the ETR program offers hydroelectric stakeholders a platform to voice their challenges and opportunities through qualitative research. The KA team managed stakeholder coordination, media outreach, surveys, social media toolkits, and advertisements utilizing tools such as GenAI and Foleon. ETR has become a key document for lobbying efforts, including those supporting the Bipartisan Infrastructure Act.
The success for KA in building brand dominance is measured through inbound leads and New Work Won (NWW). Kleinschmidt has reduced the number of competitive proposals from 100 to 65; increased sole-source work from 70% to 84%; and reduced Cost of Winning Work (CWW) from 9.8% in 2019 to 5.6% in 2023. Additionally, the number and quality of applicants has increased over the same time frame, showcasing our brand in the industry. These KPI’s all indicate a strong brand as clients seek our services, and employees want to join our firm. Success is also measured in the success of the programs for the HF and NHA, which have both helped to elevate the industry and create a pipeline of the next generation of hydro professionals.
“Kleinschmidt’s innovative approach to marketing is leading the way in the water power industry. The marketing professionals at the company are quite thoughtful in understanding the needs of the industry and then finding ways to effectively communicate/educate the messages in impactful ways. They also thoughtfully measure results and continue to refine their messaging. It’s delightful and inspiring to work with them.” – Marla Barnes, Vice President of Member and Industry Engagement, National Hydropower Association (NHA)
Congratulations, again, to Kleinschmidt Associates!
