HPS Office Systems, a 67-year-old Indiana office equipment company, had evolved from a speeds-and-feeds background to a true business and office solutions company. To survive, it had become important for HPS to not only sell equipment, but also to leverage its knowledge and its time. Company management asked MillerWhite to develop and implement a plan to market its emerging position as a solutions provider.

As a part of MW Fusion®, MillerWhite performed a competitive media spending audit in HPS’s three markets – Indianapolis,  Muncie and Bloomington – in an effort to determine where the company could most effectively spend its marketing dollars. It was determined that HPS had a large number of independent office equipment dealers competing in those markets, and that among them there were no easily identifiable weaknesses. The recommended strategy to aggressively pursue HPS’s target audiences was driven less by its competition than by the need to establish a brand and a positioning statement that would differentiate it from the competition.

MillerWhite also conducted a survey of HPS’s current customers to gain a knowledge of how the company was perceived. The results of the eMail survey assisted in developing HPS’s branding message.