ITW Heartland General Manager Brian Baustian believes that social media has a place in industrial manufacturing – and he’s taking steps to ensure that Heartland’s presence is current and robust as the social mediums advance. “We’ve only been engaging in Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn for the past 6 months,” says Baustian, “and we’ve already seen results. By supporting and engaging the natural conversations and relationships that exist among customers, vendors, partners, and community members, there is no doubt we are at the same time strengthening our business position.”

Baustian goes on to cite the numerous times in recent months that completely new and interesting companies have floated onto Heartland’s radar thanks to the “friend” of a “friend” relationships that are becoming so commonplace as a result of social media. A few of those companies have even turned into legitimate leads. Baustian also hopes that social media can fulfill its promise as yet another tool to strengthen ITW Heartland’s position as a thought-leader within its market segments.

Although revenue and profitability will always be the end game for most business decisions, Baustian believes social media is more subtle and personal than the black and white data it ultimately supports. “I’ve learned to see social media as a convenient and efficient way to develop meaningful relationships within micro-communities of like-purposed folks. At the end of the day, if meeting new people and learning new things is the least we get out of this endeavor, it’s still been a good use of our time. I’m sure somewhere down the line revenue and profitability will be favorably impacted.”

To date, Heartland’s short 6-month social media effort has already netted 265 “Likes” on Facebook, 362 followers on Twitter, and over 1,514 combined “views” of its first five videos on the ITW Heartland YouTube Channel. …A modest start, but a start nonetheless!

To visit Heartland’s social media sites and engage in the conversations, feel free to navigate using the links below or the icons located in the upper right hand corner of our web site!
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/ITWHeartland
Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/ITWHeartland
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/itwheartland
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/company/itw-heartland

About ITW Heartland

ITW Heartland is a certified leader in precision engineered machines, parts, gears, and electro-mechanical products. Located in Alexandria, Minnesota, ITW Heartland has four distinct divisions: Spiroid Gearing (design and manufacturing of custom right angle drives, gear boxes and loose gearing); Manufactured Products (low to mid quantity precision machining with a specific expertise in horizontal CNC technology); Strategic Assembly Solutions (complete machine design and assembly services); and ITW Gear Machines (designer and manufacturer of full line of high speed gear inspection and gear burnishing die equipment). As an Illinios Tool Works Company, ITW Heartland operates from a position of financial stability, engineering excellence, and refined manufacturing process.
For more information, visit www.itwheartland.com.