Manta Mop Duster
The success of Manta Mop in North America and its future
09/04/08
M.D. Manufacturing has just announced new marketing promotions for its Manta Mop-Duster central vacuum accessory. This sleek new brush launched as a #1 best-selling hard-floor accessory for 2007 and now comes in a new Point-Of-Sale Box. “The Manta is real easy to market,” saidAndrew Bransby of MD, “Aside from it looking great, it’s functional and fun to use. Customers go nuts over this thing.”
Dealers and distributors love the Manta because it sells, however, Manta was missing an essential piece of the puzzle if it wanted to become an international mover; packaging. Packaging hadn’t been an issue prior to 2008 because Manta was mainly sold through dealers/installers. They would take the Manta out of the shipping box and place it into an attachment kit for their customers. Stores outside the US were on stand-by at the beginning of 2008. They liked the product, but couldn’t market it without a box! “It would be as if a bakery threw their bread out onto racks at the supermarket without bagging them,” saidGrant Olewiler of MD, “We had to come up with a package that looked good and showed off the functionality of a product everyone has already liked.”
The marketing team at MD, led by Bransby, took on the job of designing a box for the Manta. “The initial design would be in English, but it had to be flexible so that French, Spanish, and other languages could fit as needed,” said Bransby. The box was completed and a prototype was made just in time for the 2008 VDTA Convention in Las Vegas, Nevada. There, the box would be critiqued by the toughest mindsin the industry. Dozens of dealers, distributors, and competitors handled the package and concluded that it was a great design. Manta finally had a package that was marketable and everyone enjoyed.
With the rising demand for the new Manta packaging, MD produced thousands and they became available in English this past 2008 summer. The much anticipated French version will be available for Canada sometime in late 2008. “Making our products more marketable is part of the game,” said Bransby, “We know we have a great product and now we’ve made it easier for dealers and distributors to sell it. If I can do something to make the distribution chain more efficient, I know I’ve done something good for the industry.”