A friendly interaction at an industry trade show eventually led to a cameo in a Southwest Airlines promotional video, for Dramm & Echter.
How would you like your business to show up in a series of highly produced, very complimentary videos for a major U.S. company — at no cost to your operation?
For Dramm & Echter in Encinitas, California, that PR dream scenario is a reality. The company was recently the focus of videos created by Southwest Airlines to promote that company’s cargo shipping capabilities. The videos — which have the look and feel of mini documentaries — highlight companies and industries that use the airline’s freight service, and thanks to some top-notch networking skills by Dramm & Echter manager Mike Mooney, flowers made the short list of subjects.
“It would never have happened without networking,” laughed Mooney, who, along with owner Bob Echter, is featured in the videos, discussing not only Dramm & Echter flowers but also the overall industry and even the company’s own customers. (For his part, Echter, who admitted he is usually reluctant to get in front of the camera said he “had a blast” making the video.)
Mooney, who is also president of The California Association of Flower Growers & Shippers (CalFlowers), first connected with Southwest several years ago at that group’s Fun ‘N Sun conference.
“We ship a lot with Southwest, and I like to talk to people, so we struck up a conversation,” Mooney explained.
The exchange proved more fruitful than Mooney could have imagined. Soon after that meeting, Southwest successfully pitched a story to USA Today on how the airline fits into the Valentine’s Day supply chain. Dramm & Echter was featured prominently in that story, and the company made such a strong impression on the airline’s marketing team that Southwest reached out to Mooney again for the videos.
