Stihl officials visit Cape marketing firm

Red Letter Communications helped produce products video

By Jim Obert

Business Today

The national marketing director and the national communications director for Stihl Inc. of Virginia Beach, Va., were in Cape Girardeau on Feb. 27-28 to put the "frosting" on a 30-minute promotional video that has been many months in the making.

Stihl, which exports its outdoor power equipment to more than 70 countries, makes chain saws for professional, commercial, farm and consumer markets. It also makes gasoline and electric grass and weed trimmers, hedge trimmers, edgers, pole pruners, brushcutters, powered blowers, sprayers, cut-off machines and earth augers.

A subsidiary of German-based Stihl Holding AG & Co., Stihl sells its products in the United States through 12 regional distributors to 8,000 independent outdoor power equipment retailers who provide in-store service.

Jim Riley, president of Red Letter Communications in Cape Girardeau, has been working with Ken Waldron, Stihl national marketing director, and Jackson D'Armond, Stihl national communications director, on the second version of an infotainment video called "Stihl TV."

"The Stihl retailers, such as the lawn and garden shops, are competing against the likes of Home Depot and Lowe's," said Waldron. "This video allows the retailers in major metropolitan markets to have a louder voice in the marketplace."

Waldron said work on the project started last August. Segments of the video were shot at Charlane Plantation in Georgia and at locations in North Carolina. The final shoot was a few weeks ago in a studio in St. Louis.

D'Armond said he and Waldron worked together to produce the concept and the scripts. They were in the St. Louis studio to serve as technical advisers on product display.

"It's a totally new approach for our industry," said Waldron. "Nobody else in our category has done anything like it."

Riley said he has been working with Stihl Inc. for about 13 years. His first Stihl account was Crader Distributing of Marble Hill, which distributes Stihl products in a multi-state area.

"My agency works with nine of the 12 distributorships around the country," said Riley. "We do their regional advertising and work with them on marketing ideas. Over the years we've won more and more of the regional accounts."

Riley said local Master Gardener and businessman Joe Sherinski is featured in "Stihl TV." Sherinski is the host of most of the Stihl point-of-sale videos used across the country. He gives product tips and shows equipment in use.

Waldron said the infotainment concept "allows us to deliver a comprehensive message about the Stihl product line," and it shows Stihl's association with well known people such as former football great Larry Csonka, NASCAR drivers and others.

Riley said the 30-minute video, which will be used across the country, took more than 600 hours to produce.

BT/Paul Walker

PIC -- Red Letter Communications won an ADDY Award for an infotainment video it produced for Stihl Inc. last year. From the left are Andy Chronister, video director; Mike Simmons, producer; Susan Elayer, media buyer; Jackson D'Armond, Stihl national communications director; Jim Riley, president of Red Letter Communications; and Ken Waldron, Stihl national marketing director.