Outsourced Chief Marketing Expertise Protects Texas Consumers and Mold Industry Professionals by Helping to Build and Market a Nonprofit Organization
Best Case: Helping Form, Launch, and Position an Industry Nonprofit Leader
Best Case: Helping Form, Launch, and Position an Industry Nonprofit Leader
I first met Susie during our initial roadmapping session, and at the time, I had only been with MISTX for a few months. So, I wasn’t sure of the other partners’ full vision and was just absorbing what Susie was presenting. But, now that I am an active member in creating those goals, Susie’s roadmapping is a part of everything I do. It helps me refocus and stay on track when it comes to our growth and our goals. And that’s part of the beauty of our partnership and collaboration. Susie gets us where we need to be to always succeed.
A great example was in 2019 when our industry was facing deregulation, and I was asked to testify in front of the Texas Legislature House & Senate. I didn’t know where to begin with preparation. So, I called Susie on a Friday afternoon, and she jumped into action, working all weekend to coach me on my statement and my delivery, and come Monday, I was ready to go. And it only gets better from there.
Not only is she a fantastic business coach and mentor, but she has helped us fix our brand at Mold Inspection Sciences Texas and then launch a completely new organization, TMARA a mold industry first nonprofit. She helps us at every touchpoint, social media marketing, email marketing, web development, videos, etc. The Q2Mark team has helped develop messages and content for me through every channel and audience – clients, staff, government officials, memberships, preferred partners, and of course, the media. Susie and her team have helped us really shine in the media. I’ve had the opportunity to be a part of several news interviews on NBC and Fox. I’ve been featured in WIRED, and our team has been on Dr. Phil not once but twice, among other appearances.
So, yes, I recommend Susie and Q2Mark 100 times over. They are fun to work with, and she always provides a comprehensive plan, no matter the project. The Q2Mark team always delivers for us, and they will deliver for you too.”
Mike Marshall
President
TMARA
Located in Austin, the Texas Mold Assessors and Remediators Association is the leading trade association in Texas with member companies making up the largest portion of the mold inspection and remediation marketplace in the state. TMARA was formed during the 86th Texas Legislation period when bills were proposed in both the Texas state Senate and House of Representatives to deregulate the mold industry. Our voices were heard, and those hearings were delayed, but our work is far from over. Members who gathered during that period saw not only a threat to industry-standard but a need to fight irreversible change that would endanger public health and the livelihood of hundreds of licensed professionals. With a mission to continue to cultivate responsible mold inspections and remediations, TMARA offers an unparalleled commitment to a professional culture of credibility by maintaining regulation and high ethical practices.
Working closely with our client, Mold Inspection Sciences Texas, during the fight to stop deregulation of the mold industry in Texas, Q2Mark helped formulate the first-of-its-kind industry organization known as the Texas Mold Assessors and Remediators Association (TMARA). The state of Texas has had strong regulations in place for the mold industry since 2004, and when the news of potential deregulation broke, Mold Inspection Sciences Texas immediately got involved. If the state were to deregulate, not only would consumers be impacted, which the data showed, but the business and livelihood of hundreds and thousands of professionals across the state would be in question. Within a day, we were helping them fight this. I jumped into action by providing recommendations on the next steps and helped train the MISTX team on preparing for House and Senate hearings that were set to take place in a couple of days. A lobbyist told MISTX the four bills being presented couldn’t be stopped; however, this wasn’t true. Our tactics proved to put enough data and information in front of the committees to halt the administration.
With their newfound voice, Mold Inspection Sciences Texas continued to make connections and cultivate relationships with government officials and regulatory organizations who didn’t quite understand the industry’s nuances – how it would impact consumers. During this time, MISTX realized that an organization was needed to support professionals and this cause, and I agreed. For months I worked to coach the executive team on how to structure this nonprofit, their role in continuing to ensure government officials were educated, building relationships, and how to harness value for members of the association while working to build memberships.
Through the development of this organization, critical mold expertise has been able to work directly with Texas state representatives and officials to help maintain the industry’s commitment to consumer protection through legislation.
Building a strong brand identity doesn’t happen overnight, but with the mission and vision for TMARA in place, I already had ideas in mind for an approach that reflected their goals and would support them as they grew. It started with a logo that worked to pull in the colors and theme of the Texas state flag – a strategy that also harnessed the reverence and esteem behind the great people of Texas. Once we had an approved logo, the Q2Mark team and I moved on to proposing and developing their other brand identity touchpoints, including the brand guidelines, PowerPoint presentation templates, business cards, e-signatures, and official letterhead.
From there, we provided content recommendations for their website and social media. We developed and implemented the social media strategy and optimized each profile with branded graphics and positioning copy. Q2Mark also helped set up the TMARA MailChimp account implementing branding tactics and build out a database system that organized members, non-members, and other vital contacts.
TMARA is an association for those involved in all aspects of the mold industry to be informed of the changing landscape, help influence change, network among other industry professionals, collaborate on best practices, and market within the industry. For this to be effective, TMARA needed a membership program. Q2Mark did market research, developed recommendations, and proposed a multi-level membership program for businesses and individuals. The TMARA team loved our recommendations. Once they approved our program, we helped create the landing page for TMARA.org that spoke to the benefits and defined the different membership levels for individuals and businesses.
As mentioned above, TMARA was founded as a critical movement to deregulate the Texas mold industry. From that initial hearing in 2019, I advised TMARA to hire a lobbyist to support their goals. I also provided marketing communication strategies for board meetings and the lobbyist’s efforts with TMARA’s legislative relationships. When TMARA was requested to testify by Representative Barbara Gervin-Hawkins at a public hearing in favor of House Bill 605, which supported adopting a healthy and safe school water plan in public schools, and then again for a City of Austin council meeting speaking to mold issues with local rental properties, my team and I facilitated speech writing and outreach communications that positioned President Mike Marshall and helped demonstrate leadership of the organization.
In early 2021, a bad winter storm hit the state of Texas. At the time, the Governor announced that emergency licensed contractors could perform mold remediation without an independent mold assessment and mold remediation protocols – a direct violation of state regulations and requirements. When this news broke, TMARA immediately got involved, and we were helping fight this within hours. In addition to an official statement that we helped President Mike Marshall develop and issue as a state-wide press release, I proposed an entire campaign that included social media promos and email blast that was sent to both member and non-member in TMARA’s databases. These emails also had additional social media promos, copy, and graphics, for the contacts to share via their own profiles in support of TMARA’s call to action.
While bad winter weather was an unfortunate theme for the state of Texas, it provided an opportunity to leverage appearances to share TMARA’s leadership and commitment to ensuring consumer safety and the ethics of industry professionals. I proposed repurposing the messaging from our TMARA statement in response to Governor Abbot’s announcement as a media pitch for even greater awareness, and the TMARA team loved it. My team and I developed the pitch and then distributed it to local news stations. When the story was picked up, I also maintained relations to help the news team and TMARA President, Mike Marshall, prepare for the interview. Once the interview aired, my team and I turned the appearance into a campaign that included a blog, social media, and an e-blast for further promotional opportunities.
With all the moving parts in place and launched, we now needed to work on demonstrating more industry leadership, show membership value and loyalty, and drive new memberships. My big idea was to develop and implement monthly campaigns consisting of an e-blast and social media promos. These communications spoke to TMARA’s results, highlighted the work of other members, and provided content to members for their own use to help with the drive.
In working to launch TMARA, Q2Mark brought proven marketing communications and consulting services that helped start a novel mold industry nonprofit and drove performance, making them a leading voice in their field. Since launching in 2019, Q2Mark’s efforts have helped TMARA secure nearly 200 memberships, and cultivate a strategy that continues to build and support the mold industry in Texas through connection, collaboration, legislation, and action.
With the work my team and I did to train President Mike Marshall and TMARA members for government hearings, Texas Legislature Senate Bill 1532, and Texas Legislature House Bill 2667, TMARA had a leading position in the fight against deregulation. In addition, as an organization, they have worked directly with Texas state representatives and officials to help maintain the industry’s commitment to consumer protection through legislation.
Q2Mark’s efforts to train and support TMARA through media engagements drove awareness, visibility, and TMARA’s position as a go-to resource not just for media appearances like the interview with KXAN NBC news in Austin, but also for speaking engagements, local and state government meetings, board meetings, and more.
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