Oregon Petroleum Association
About the Client
The Oregon Petroleum Association (OPA) is a statewide association of motor and heating fuel marketers. In 2005, the heating fuels committee launched www.OregonOilheat.com, an informational website for consumers, businesses and real estate agents looking for accurate information about oil heat.
Strategy
Two years after the OPA launched www.OregonOilheat.com, consumers were still unaware of the website and many lacked the necessary information to make informed decisions about heating oil versus natural gas. The OPA hired Galvin Communications to build word of mouth for the website and to educate and inform Oregon’s consumers about heating oil options—including new technologies such as bioheat.
Results
To address consumers’ misperceptions about oil heat, Galvin Communications developed a series of press releases and articles that explained how oil heat technologies have changed to the extent that the EPA states that modern heating oil burners are one of the cleanest combustion sources available. We also focused on bioheat, a renewable energy source that is reinvigorating the heating oil industry. As a result, the OPA and www.OregonOilheat.com were covered in the Oregonian, Commerce Magazine, Northwest Renovation, Realtor and the Portland Business Journal. Moreover, the Portland Tribune did a comparison of bioheat versus natural gas and came out in favor of bioheat as the ecological choice for heating your home or business.
Galvin Communications also managed a direct mail campaign to the state’s real estate professionals and custom home builders to introduce them to the resources available at www.OregonOilheat.com. We included copies of the aforementioned press articles and, as a result, calls to the Oil Heat Help Desk increased as did requests for personalized presentations on the topic of home heating oil.
Finally, we worked to optimize www.OregonOilheat.com for search engines and developed an online press room that has resulted in increased traffic and hits.