Aggregates Manager Digital Magazine
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/140126
COMMUNITY RELATIONS 101 • 17 COMMUNITY RELATIONS 101 • 17 COMMUNITY RELATIONS 101 • 17 Graniterock sponsors a Rock and Run in the Quarry to benefit a local school. Trophies for the kids are made from a test asphalt pill which has been cut in half and topped with a traditional trophy for a unique and industry-specific keepsake. Five Tips for GOOD STRATEGIES W hen it comes to implementing a successful community relations strategy, there are several factors that should be considered. According to Keith Severson, marketing director of Watsonville, Calif.-based Graniterock, the company gets daily requests for donation and money and, while it would like to support each organization that asks, must target its efforts in a way that benefits both the company and the communities in which it operates. "You have to set your priorities," he advises. "It's not a rifle shot approach." In fact, his guidance can be summed up by the following five strategies. 1.Take the long-term perspective. "Graniterock has always been particularly interested in the communities we are in," he says, "but from an aggregate management standpoint, Graniterock_AGRM0613.indd 17 we obviously have to be acutely aware of our upcoming permit activities and where we're going to do our primary activities. To build robust community relations activities in those areas is really important." There is a big difference, he cautions, between flying the corporate flag for a single day or buying a sponsorship, and engaging in the types of activities that build a supportive relationship with the community. "Jim West (who handles permitting and public affairs for Graniterock) always says he's woven the company into the fabric of the community," Severson says. West accomplished that not by beating the Graniterock drum, but simply attending and participating in an assortment of community events. "It's a long-term proposition," Severson adds. "You have to do things very much in a grassroots approach." When done properly, community relations can weave your operation into the fabric of the community. by Therese Dunphy, Editor-in-Chief tdunphy@randallreilly.com 5/19/13 12:30 PM