Growing From 750 Dealers to More Than 21,000 in 8 Years

PORTER, TX, August 26, 2010 (Press-News.org) Little more than eight years ago, Royal Purple was a growing company whose focus was making high performance synthetic lubricants for the industrial market. Today, Royal Purple is more likely to be known for its consumer automotive products.

"We dipped our toe into the consumer market over the years. When we brought someone in to make a concerted effort (at the consumer market), I think we were a little surprised at the growth." says Royal Purple CEO Lee Culbertson. That concerted effort has made Royal Purple the fastest growing line of synthetic lubricants in the US.

In the span of eight years, Royal Purple grew from approximately 500 dealers nationwide to more than 21,000 today.

VP of Sales and Marketing, Mark McFann, attributes much of the success to following 'Marketing 101' marketing principles and philosophies. "Everything starts with focusing on product quality and performance. Take care of that first and foremost, then everything else will fall into place," said McFann. In a recent interview, he shared what he believes are other key principles to achieve market success.

DIFFERENTIATE, DIFFERENTIATE

From the name Royal Purple, to trademarking the purple color of its packaging, to formulating its proprietary Synerlec technology, Royal Purple runs outside the herd of most aftermarket companies. "If everyone's marketing one way, it's a pretty good indicator to us that we want to go a different way," says McFann, 'For instance, take racing. Many well-meaning people suggest that we spend millions on racing sponsorships. We don't think it makes a lot of sense to go into a venue crowded with competitors to try and gain mindshare.  Certainly we maintain a presence (in racing) for R&D purposes and to maintain our street cred, but we find we get a much better ROI with other activities."

BE SELECTIVE WITH DISTRIBUTION

McFann believes that it's better to let distribution lag slightly behind demand. "We've respectfully turned down numerous distributors," states McFann. "That way we don't flood the market and tacitly encourage distributors to sell based on price as opposed to value.  Additionally, a brand maintains more cache if it's harder to come by. It's much better for the brand to forgo short term sales gains for longer term value and brand strength."     

STAY FOCUSED AND EVOLVE

'We realize that what brought success yesterday won't necessarily bring success tomorrow," says McFann. "As long as we realize change is a constant and stay true to ourselves and our principles, we believe we can continue to grow for years to come."

About Royal Purple
Royal Purple manufactures synthetic products for numerous industrial and consumer needs. For more information about Royal Purple or its products, contact Royal Purple Inc., One Royal Purple Lane, Porter, TX 77365, 281-354-8600, www.royalpurple.com.

About Mark McFann
Mark McFann has a B.A. in Public Relations and an M.B.A. with a marketing focus from Colorado State University. Prior to working for Royal Purple, he worked for Gannett in numerous marketing capacities include stints at it flagship company USA Today. He also taught advertising as an adjunct professor at Colorado State University.