PAGE A12, KEIZERTIMES, JANUARY 14, 2022
Make-A-Wish comes through with new deck for local family
Feel -Good
STORY
Saluting the people that make
us proud of our community
presented by
By BEE FLINT
Of the Keizertimes
A project that should’ve only taken
one month, ended up taking six.
However, the wait ended up being
worth it for the Newstone family who
were able to get a new deck for their
daughter with help from Rick's Custom
Fencing & Decking and Make-A-Wish.
Meghan and Bart Newstone origi-
nally planned to take their daughter to
Disneyland for her Make-A-Wish, but
due to her medical conditions, travel-
ing was out of the question.
The family then came up with the
idea to get a new deck built for their
daughter, who loves being out in the
sun.
“She loves to be outside and we
had a deck that wasn't super small,
but it wasn't very big either. She loved
to be out there, but it was completely
exposed. There's no shade trees.
There's nothing, it's just either sun or
pouring down rain,” Meghan said.
The Newstones were told that
Make-A-Wish was unable to build the
deck due to permit issues. Make-A-
Wish noted that they could help with
The Newstone family was given a brand new deck thanks to the Make-A-Wish Foundation.
supplies, but can't work on permitted
projects.
The family reached out to a contrac-
tor in hopes to pay for the deck along-
side with their GoFundMe, but were
told that it would cost them $60,000.
Make-A-Wish suggested that the
Newstones reach out to Rick's Custom
Fencing & Decking for a better price.
The company had previously
worked with Make-A-Wish in the past
and were open to the opportunity to do
it again. Taylor Pawley, the director of
marketing for Rick's Custom Fencing &
Decking, was in charge of that project
and numerous other projects in their
community.
“It was such a positive experience
for our employees, for the family and
for Make-A-Wish. Everybody got so
much out of doing that and it had been
such a positive thing, that we kind of
just opened up to looking for future
projects,” Pawley said.
Submitted photo
LIFE
The Newstones reached out to
Rick's Custom Fencing & Decking to
speak to an estimator for a bid on the
project. The estimator put them into
contact with Pawley, who informed the
Newstone family that they would work
with Make-A-Wish to build the deck
free of charge.
The family was shocked to know
that their daughter’s wish was fi nally
going to happen after numerous barri-
ers in the process.
“I was really overwhelmed. I think
we were both in tears by that point
because we didn't think it was gonna
happen,” Meghan said.
The process of getting a permit for
the deck ended up taking six months.
Once they were able to get the permit,
the deck only took fi ve days to build.
Despite the long wait, the Newstone
family loved how the deck turned out
and enjoyed seeing the smile on their
daughter’s face.
“It is her favorite (area) in the house.
It really is. It couldn't have been a bet-
ter wish,” Meghan said.
Marketing choices: what's essential
BY JENNIFER MORROW
Over the years, I’ve worked with many
business owners through my advising
duties at Chemeketa’s Small Business
Development Center. My clients often
ask, “What marketing will work best?”
They usually start with a website, (yes, it’s
essential), but what’s next?
Marketing is not about what you’re
selling, or how long you’ve been in busi-
ness, or how you make what you sell. All
those things might matter, and can be
important to how you express value and
promote, but only if they refl ect what your
audiences want and care about.
Before you choose what to say and
where to say it, know your audiences.
When you know and understand the
people you must reach to be successful,
what their concerns and problems are,
their reasons to search out what you off er,
you’ll market eff ectively.
It’s that simple. But it’s still not easy.
That’s why what you’re marketing is less
important. Answer the question, “What’s
in it for me?” for the right audiences, and
you’re nearly there.
Your message isn’t “We do XYZ,” but
rather, it’s the answer to the questions,
“What’s in it for me?” and “Why should I
care?” from the viewpoints of your target
audiences. That critical message must
be in your tagline and on your website’s
home page and support it with detailed
proof points. Avoid generic language
such as “great quality” or “outstanding
service.” Instead, be specifi c about how
you fulfi ll that answer.
Knowing your audiences better will
guide where you ultimately place your
marketing message. But your website is
the foundation. Your marketing goal is to
generate interest and send people to your
website (or retail store).
In addition to having a website, there
are many other creative ways to market
your business. If you’re a local business
with trucks or vans, vehicle graphics
(with the right message) are basically free
moving billboard signs. If you sell to other
businesses, build a professional LinkedIn
presence and ensure your website pro-
vides valuable information to download
so you can capture warm leads. And if
your audience is younger and your prod-
ucts and services are visual, utilize social
media to attract attention to you and your
website.
No business appeals to everyone. You
want to market to your people—your best
customers, those who love what you do
and who recommend you. Begin with
focusing on those people specifi cally:
Who they are, how they fi nd out about
your business, what they expect from
your business, what they know or don’t
know about what you do, what experi-
ence they’ve had with your competitors,
and so on. Using their words (including
testimonials and reviews) will add power
to your marketing—on your website, in
social media or in advertising.
No matter who you’re marketing to,
how you sell or what you sell, the fi rst
principle of marketing is to reach the
right audiences with the right message in
the right way.
Jennifer Morrow is a Business Adviser
at the Chemeketa Small Business
Development Center. The Chemeketa
SBDC off ers no-cost one-on-one busi-
ness advising with Marion, Polk, and
Yamhill counties. To contact the SBDC,
email SBDC@chemeketa.edu or call (503)
399-5088.
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