Tollgrade Communications, Cranberry PA, USA
Company: Tollgrade Communications, Cranberry PA, USA
Company Description: With more than 200 million lines under test, millions of utility outage minutes avoided annually and 25 years of experience successfully locating faults at the world’s largest electric utility companies and telecommunication service providers, Tollgrade is redefining the global standard for reliability.
Nomination Category: Individual Awards Categories
Nomination Sub Category: Maverick of the Year
Nomination Title: Kim Getgen, Vice President Corporate Marketing
Describe for the judges the activities and accomplishments of the nominated woman since the beginning of July last year (up to 525 words): TEXT REDACTED FOR PUBLICATION
Stepping into the VP of Corporate Marketing role, Kim’s first challenge was to increase visibility of Tollgrade’s Smart Grid business. Today’s newspapers are filled with stories of failed VC-backed Smart Grid start-ups that were unable to gain a foothold in an industry that is very difficult to crack as a new entrant. Even legendary Silicon Valley Venture Capital firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers have fallen from the coveted “Forbes Midas List” in recent years because many of their green-tech start-ups were unable to deliver. Being a new company and selling to utilities is a tricky business.
Being a student of effectively using content marketing throughout the “buyers’ journey” to influence sales and promote industry awareness, Kim focused the company on a content marketing strategy that could make Tollgrade more of a household name within utilities and accelerate trust. According to a “Customer Purchase Research Survey” published by the Corporate Executive Board, by the time the buyer’s decision is 57% complete they will have read at least 10 pieces of information in today’s typical B2B high-tech purchasing process.
Kim created a content marketing strategy tied into Hubspot’s marketing automation platform that comprised an arsenal of case studies, awards, articles and press releases, application guides, whitepapers and a new blog to drive awareness and website traffic. She also spearheaded Tollgrade’s RFP response program to ensure that all positioning used in content marketing programs was utilized to win new large proposals and big deals.
The results have been astounding. Earlier this June, Kim spearheaded an effort that got her company recognized on stage by President Bill Clinton during the 2014 Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) Americas meeting for a Commitment to build a “Predictive Grid in Detroit” with customer DTE Energy. Tollgrade has appeared in WSJ, Forbes, NPR, Bloomberg Business Week, Washington Business Journal, Detroit Free Press and averages 10 press clipping per month. Additionally, Tollgrade has won 10 awards and established itself as the market share leader of “Smart Grid Sensors” in North America, according to IHS Research.
The number of deployments, traffic to the Tollgrade website and revenue has doubled. The sales pipeline of prospects is healthier and instead of outbound cold calling, sales now receives inbound requests from qualified utility prospects. The number of RFPs for Tollgrade’s specific type of technology has increased four-fold. RFP wins are up.
We believe Kim is worthy of “Maverick” recognition because she accomplished this in 15 months, with one staff member, a summer intern and a marketing programs budget that ran below $200,000 a year.
Upload a collection of supporting files and web addresses to our server to provide more background information to the judges. You may upload any number of attachments and URLs through the "Add Attachments, Videos, or Links to This Entry" link above. (Do NOT list your URLs below.)
Provide a brief biography of the nominated woman (up to 125 words):
Kim Getgen brings over 15 years of high-tech marketing experience to the role of Vice President of Corporate Marketing at Tollgrade where she will be responsible for Tollgrade’s communications, messaging, and branding strategies. Before joining Tollgrade, Kim was Director of Product Marketing at smart metering company, Echelon Corporation, where she developed a product and partner readiness process that helped to significantly increase revenue and market share during her tenure. Prior to Echelon, Kim worked in the cybersecurity industry where she served as Vice President of Marketing for a number of companies including Reconnex, a venture-backed start-up she co-founded, which was later acquired by McAfee.
Kim received her Bachelor of Arts from Wake Forest University and M.Phil in International Development Studies from Oxford.