THE BASICS

Rust-Oleum Corporation, a subsidiary of RPM International, Inc. is a worldwide leader in protective paints and coatings for both home and industry. They offer a wide product range including decorative fashion paints and the famous rust-fighting formula that started it all. Rust-Oleum was experiencing substantial growth, through new product development as well as acquisition of firms with complementary product lines, under well-known, established brands including Varathane®, Watco®, Wolman® and Zinsser®, a 150-year old firm.

In the past, product lines had been marketed around the different Rust-Oleum sub-brands [decorative, auto, etc.]. The addition of new lines, created the need to unify the entire product line under the Rust-Oleum brand. The sales literature used to market the many new lines to the retail trade was confusing and and lacked focus on either application, brand or end-use.

HOW WE HELPED

Working with Rust-Oleum’s marketing team, we revised the product line catalogs from a ‘brand-oriented approach’ to a new approach centered around the product’s end-use. We created all new catalogs and sales literature focused on the SURFACE or FINISH NEED [e.g. What do you need to paint or cover?] as opposed to the previous method of selling the brand first. In addition to being categorized by it’s well-known brands, the entire marketing direction now takes a more customer-centric approach which has been well-received by the sales team, retail trade and end-users alike.