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TRANSACT IONS T. BAKER SMITH WELCOMES 2020 WITH A TEXAS- BASED ACQUISITION T. Baker Smith has acquired Naismith Marine Services, Inc., a hydrographic, geophysical surveying, and environmental firm based in Rockport, Texas. NMS specializes in bathymetry, underwater inspection and imaging, oyster and seagrass surveys, and wetland delineations. TBS is a multi-disciplinary firm serving the public works, land development, industrial, pipeline and exploration and production market sectors primarily in Texas and Louisiana. This acquisition is part of TBS’ overall growth strategy, enhancing its Texas capabilities and further building on over 20 years of providing client service in the Houston and San Antonio markets. With additional engineers, surveyors, and technical staff joining TBS from NMS, the strength of combining resources expands TBS’ ability to provide responsive, cutting-
edge solutions to a collective customer base in coastal South Texas. Kenneth Wm. Smith, PE, PLS, FACEC, CEO of TBS stated, “The synergy that comes from TBS’ first acquisition opens a myriad of client service opportunities in our focus markets in Texas. We’re excited about our ability to now provide a broader array of engineering, surveying and environmental solutions delivered by local experts in the Texas Gulf Coast Region.” Jim Naismith, founder of Naismith Marine Services, will continue to lead the Corpus Christi area-based office and is charged with growing and expanding the local office. Naismith stated, “Naismith is well-known for bringing innovative, efficient solutions to our clients. As a part of TBS, our local office now brings exceptional depth of expertise, allowing us to deliver comprehensive, integrated
solutions and service to our South Texas coastal clients.” T. Baker Smith is a market-driven, professional engineering, surveying, and environmental firm servicing the Gulf Coast region since 1913. Utilizing leading edge technology and cultivating our associates’ talents, TBS integrates services to provide customized solutions to clients’ challenges. As trusted advisors, we work on meaningful projects that improve, enhance and protect our communities. A pioneer in groundbreaking hydrographic and geophysical surveying and environmental solutions, Naismith Marine Services has been a thriving business for the past 12 years. NMS has an exceptional reputation serving coastal, ports, industry, university, state and area- county clients through their innovative, efficient approach to problem solving.
MARK ZWEIG, from page 3
Who do we think is best equipped to successfully sell work to and serve a given client. Even retail automobile dealers understand that they have to match prospects with the salespeople who are most likely to be able to strike up a relationship with them, yet A/E firms too often take a “one size fits all approach” and if a client has a need for mechanical engineering services, whomever is in charge of that automatically “gets” that client. It’s crazy. You have to match personalities. It takes some management and ability to generalize (stereotype – sorry) quickly to do this effectively. “Nearly everyone who owns or manages an A/E firm could benefit from a basic ‘Introduction to Marketing’ course at their local business school. It certainly could provide some foundational knowledge about marketing that would impact everything they do.” 5)What are the best ways to reach them? Not everyone receives information the same way. That is why there are so many different social media platforms – each is different and appeals to a different audience. It is also why we have telephones we can make calls on, as well as email, texts, tradeshows, personal meetings, professional or trade association meetings, blogging, print media, YouTube video, and a million other options for getting content out to clients and potential clients. As A/E marketers, we need to employ EVERY one of these methods to reach our targets if we want to maximize our chances of success. One thing I know for sure: The companies that really make an effort to understand and embrace basic marketing knowledge, and that implement these concepts firm- wide will continue to grow and prosper regardless of the markets they serve. MARK ZWEIG is Zweig Group’s chairman and founder. Contact him at mzweig@zweiggroup.com.
Here are some crucial marketing fundamentals many of our readers could benefit from: 1)Marketing is wide-ranging and affects everything the firm does. The “marketing mix” or recipe for any firm is made up of varying amounts of “the four Ps” – product (what we are actually selling – in our case, service), place (where we provide services), promotion (activities to promote our services – what most people think of when they think of marketing), and price (what we charge for what we do). A/E firms typically cut out their marketing experts (if they have them) from all decisions other than promotion. That is a mistake that can quickly drive the firm off-course. Marketing considerations should be a part of nearly all decision making. 2)Who are you trying to sell to? This is so important. Just having great service capabilities does not mean clients will beat a path to your door. Specialization is the rule today. Clients of A/E firms want service providers with experience solving specific types of problems in organizations like their own. The great news about knowing this is it makes it easy for you in most cases to determine who these potential clients are, and to identify who in those organizations can hire you. Build that list. Nothing will happen until you do, other than you reacting to whatever clients happen to come through your door. 3)What are their needs? We all too often assume we know what the client really wants. Then, when they try to tell us, we ignore it and do things the same way we have always done them. That is analogous to the contractors who build from our plans ignoring those plans and instead doing what they “always do” or did on their last job. We don’t like it when that happens. It takes a lot of digging and people who are open to listening and learning to get at a client’s real needs. But you will never figure them out if you don’t make a serious effort to do so! And once you know these needs, act on that knowledge and keep making efforts to find new needs because times do change. Just because you knew your clients’ needs last year doesn’t mean you know them today. You may even figure out they need help with services you don’t currently provide. 4)Who is best to sell it/do it for them? This is so important.
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THE ZWEIG LETTER February 3, 2020, ISSUE 1330
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