Door Industry Journal - Spring 2015

Also online at: www.dijonline.co.uk 18 THE door industry journal spring 2015 industry news SWS UK CONTINUE TO INVEST IN ESSENTIAL STAFF TRAINING Following the recruitment of additional staff, SWS UK will continue to focus on product training to ensure the sales and marketing department are fully equipped to provide the highest level of customer service and support. Every Tuesday, between 8.15am and 9.30am the sales and marketing department attend training sessions on all products and procedures to ensure that they can provide customers with a quality service at all times. Need to contact a particular department? Take note of the following key contacts: Customer Services - For any general queries or to request a quotation contact our Customer Services department on 01524 772400. Technical - For any technical queries or for on-site support, contact our technical department on 01524 772426. If you require support outside of normal office hours, please contact the out-of-hours number on 07779 314226. Lead times - If you need a lead time for any of our products please contact our Production Planner, Diane Pritchard on 01524 772400 Chasing or changing your order confirmation? - If you haven’t received your order confirmation or you want to make some changes to an order, contact the processing department on 01524 772400. Accounts - For credit control, invoice queries or changes to your account please contact our Finance department on 01524 772418. Installation queries - For further information regarding our fitting service, please contact our Installations Supervisor Chris Ellison or the Installations Administrator Viktoria Peck on 01524 772409. Marketing - To request copies of our product literature or samples contact the Marketing department on 01524 772413 or email marketing@swsuk.co.uk. THE MLA’S DIGITAL PRESENCE GOES INTO OVERDRIVE The Master Locksmiths Association (MLA) – the leading trade association for the locksmithing profession – has had a successful start to 2015 with the recent appointment of digital marketing and SEO executive Chris Churchill, who has already made a huge difference to the organisation’s consumer-facing website – www.locksmiths.co.uk. Re-launched in 2012, the MLA website offers a consumer-friendly experience, and allows members of the public to search both geographically and by area of specialism for their local MLA approved locksmith. The website also provides a wealth of security advice and information, through blog posts, advice sheets and FAQs, not only on domestic security but also on how to enhance the security of your vehicle or commercial property. Chris’s work has seen unique visitor numbers double in the past twelve months. The MLA members’ pages alone are now clocking up an average of 20,000 visits per month, with visits to the website’s ‘find a locksmith’ page, where members’ contact details are located, increasing by over 200% in the last year. Chris has significantly improved the quality of the website, resulting in a number of MLA pages now ranking in the top three positions on Google. Several new features have been added to the website including regular blog posts, interviews with locksmiths, and a ‘hall of shame’, giving photo evidence as to why the public should always employ an MLA approved locksmith. Users can now also search for locksmiths that provide particular services, such as auto or safes, with the ‘find a locksmith’ function. Chris Churchill, digital marketing and SEO executive at the MLA, said: “I’ve really enjoyed the challenge of updating and increasing the online presence of the MLA for the benefit of our members. The new design of the website is much more user-friendly, and the addition of the ‘find a locksmith’ map and members’ company logos to the search results will no doubt continue to boost local businesses.” Dr Steffan George, development director for the MLA, said: “We are delighted with the work Chris has done on the website so far. Not only have our overall hits increased, but we are also now continually ranking highly on search engine results pages for specific terms such as ‘lost car keys’. Most importantly our approved company members are benefiting from their pages ranking highly on search engines such as Google and seeing their revenues increase from work the MLA site is providing them with. The next step is to develop a mobile-friendly version of the site, making our online facilities even more accessible.” A list of approved MLA companies can be found on the MLA website. For further information please visit www.locksmiths.co.uk.