By Gary Reichert
Dear Readers, Advertisers, Friends and Competitors,
2021 is finally coming to a close. In many ways, throughout the year we all felt like Charlie Brown and Lucy was holding the football. It was 100% an interesting year, and I doubt any of us are sad to see it disappear in the rear view mirror.
Looking back, it wasn’t all bad. Sure, there were challenges; many (including a general labor shortage and increased material and energy costs) will continue into the foreseeable future. But there were also many bright spots. A huge one was our industry was spared many of the more dire effects from COVID and the associated regulation. I would like to share a few of the good things we have experienced this year here at Shield Wall Media.
We had the second Construction Rollforming Show, and were one of the very first live shows when the pandemic lessened. Cincinnati lifted its mask mandate on June 2nd and our show started June 4th. We also held the inaugural Garage, Shed & Carport Builder Show.
We completely rebuilt all of our websites from scratch and added a corporate website: www.shieldwallmedia.com. Now our sites are searchable, articles are formatted to read comfortably on a phone or device, and they can be translated into different languages, including Spanish.
We added a book division, with a series called “Pro Tips On:” We will offer books in the areas of construction we have written about for decades that are designed to educate consumers and grow the market share for our corner of the construction industry. The first book, Pro Tips On: Your Metal Roof, will be available in January and is 144 pages. Roofers can include their own contact information, pictures and a brief history to use this as personalized sales literature. Subsequent books will be Pro Tips On: Your Carport, Pro Tips On: Your Post Frame Home, Pro Tips On: Your Horse Barn, and Pro Tips On: Your Portable Shed.
We also are officially no longer tiny. We surpassed 100,000 active subscriptions in November. To all of our subscribers: Thank you.
The world remains “interesting,” but we keep moving forward. I am sure you are moving forward, too. If you have had any successes you would like to share, and have us share, please send them to me at [email protected].
Your hard work and creativity deserve recognition and will serve as an inspiration to us here at Shield Wall Media and our family of readers and advertisers. Let’s all go into 2022 together and keep pushing forward.
Merry Christmas, happy anything else you choose to celebrate, and we will make 2022 our year.
Gary Reichert
