Modern Marketing

Modern Marketing

In a guest post for WCP Online, Amanda Crangle, a marketing expert and former water dealership owner, published a guide on modern marketing using an old car ad. In it, Amanda uses David Ogilvy's famous 1958 Rolls-Royce advertisement to show water treatment dealers how to improve their messaging. The legendary headline "At 60 miles an hour the loudest noise in this new Rolls-Royce comes from the electric clock" worked because it painted a picture of quality rather than listing technical specifications. Crangle, who worked as a sales rep and general manager in the water industry before starting her marketing agency, argues that most water treatment marketing reads like equipment specs instead of compelling reasons to buy. She provides examples: instead of "High-Efficiency Reverse Osmosis System with 5-Stage Filtration," try "The water is so pure, the only taste comes from your coffee beans." The approach focuses on emotional and sensory connections rather than technical features, since customers don't buy water softeners because they understand ion exchange (they buy them for softer skin, cleaner dishes, and longer-lasting appliances).

Willing to Pay for PFAS Cleanup

Florida Politics reported on polling showing that 63% of informed Floridians would accept higher water bills to help remove PFAS from drinking water supplies. The survey by Drugwatch found low initial awareness, with only 8% saying they were "very familiar" with PFAS and 42% having never heard of them before taking the poll. After learning about the health risks, 55% called PFAS a "major problem" and 54% said Florida doesn't have sufficient safeguards to manage contamination. The polling comes as PFAS contamination spreads across the state, with a 2024 University of Florida study finding forever chemicals in 63% of spring samples across 67 counties that supply 90% of the state's drinking water. Florida allocated $1 billion in federal infrastructure funds for PFAS and other drinking water contaminant removal in 2022, but the state hasn't adopted enforceable PFAS limits yet. Public water systems must complete PFAS monitoring by 2027 and meet EPA thresholds by April 2029.

Well Rehabilitation Expert

WCP Online profiled Donald Teeters, whose journey from oil to water shows how industry crossover can create opportunities. After founding an oil company in 1981, fluctuating oil prices forced him to pivot, joking that it "had become a very expensive hobby." His 1991 switch to water wells started with local irrigation services but expanded nationwide when he realized chemicals used for removing iron sulfide from oil wells also worked for water well contamination. This led to his Redi Clean product line of NSF-certified chemicals for iron bacteria, scaling, and disinfection. Teeters' partnership approach is intentional: he carefully vets distributors and says "the only way they'll lose me is if the money becomes more important to them than the well." He won't work with companies that just want another product to sell without understanding it.

Culligan’s Water Testing Guide

The official Culligan blog published a water testing guide that shows how they structure their services. Culligan offers a two-tier system with free in-home testing for common issues like hardness, chlorine, and pH that delivers results in under 30 minutes, plus certified lab testing through their IL EPA-certified facility that offers over 45 different tests and processes hundreds daily. The guide targets both city and well water users differently, noting that municipal water customers should focus on hardness, chlorine, TDS, and specific contaminants of concern, while well owners need bacteria, nitrates, hardness, iron, arsenic, and PFAS testing. The company positions DIY test kits as useful for quick checks but emphasizes they're "less reliable for detecting trace chemical contaminants" and should be "viewed as a starting point rather than a comprehensive solution." Throughout the guide, they promote their free in-home consultations and frame professional testing as essential for interpreting results correctly.

What else is happening:

• WQA Podcast drops a new episode on water treatment for agriculture with guest from Water-Right/A. O. Smith Corporation

• WCP Online writes part 2 to their guide on POU/POE filter options for PFAS

• Canada’s Island Well Service posts their favorite TDS meters for well water testing

• Connecticut Water Treatment Company agrees that there are many benefits to water testing before selling a home