Since 1968, the Houston, Texas-based Association of Diving Contractors International\u00a0(ADCI) has been a global leader in establishing industry-wide safe standards\u00a0for commercial diving. ADCI boasts more than 600 member companies, furnishing\u00a0services and support for the conduct of safe underwater operations in 41\u00a0countries. Members include contractors, manufacturers, engineers, consultants,\u00a0suppliers and distributors. While the organization\u2019s safety and advocacy\u00a0efforts are well known, many may not know that below the surface, ADCI is the\u00a0brains behind the widely recognized Underwater\u00a0media brand.<\/p>\n
ADCI boasts a diversified portfolio of member communication\u00a0vehicles, including the 15,000 circulation flagship bi-monthly magazine Underwater Magazine, the only trade\u00a0publication to cover all inland and offshore contracting industry segments. The\u00a0magazine has a robust companion website with\u00a0additional content, safety standards and other resources. The magazine is also\u00a0a widely distributed fixture at most industry trade shows including Underwater Intervention (UI), which also\u00a0sends the UI Show Program digitally to more than 3,000 attendees.<\/p>\n
That\u2019s not\u00a0all. ADCI\u2019s monthly Underwater Today e-newsletter keeps members up to\u00a0date on issues, trends and regulatory news that affect underwater diving\u00a0operations in the U.S. and abroad.\u00a0Finally, ADCI\u2019s Blue Pages member directory\u00a0makes it easy for members to connect with each other locally, nationally and\u00a0internationally, and ADCI\u2019s UnderWater\u00a0Buyers’ Guide enables users to search for products or services by name,\u00a0location, product category or keyword.<\/p>\n
Since partnering with Naylor in 2008, ADCI has enhanced the\u00a0quality of each of its communication vehicles, grown advertising and\u00a0circulation in each and made it a much more seamless process for sponsors to\u00a0reach ADCI members across all communication channels.<\/p>\n
When more than one-third of members are outside of the U.S.,\u00a0the cost-savings, combined with quality improvement on the digital has\u00a0particularly resonated with the organization, according to ADCI executive\u00a0director, Phil Newsum. Members have reacted favorably as well.<\/p>\n
For many years, ADCI members have been “screaming for digital editions of our\u00a0publications,” related Newsum, because in print, by the time they finally got\u00a0their editions, the next one had already published. “Things change too fast in\u00a0our industry,” he added. “As the world shrinks, we\u2019re going to be relying more\u00a0and more on electronic communication. It\u2019s been especially effective for\u00a0getting the word out about matters that are urgent to our members and constituents.”<\/p>\n
At the end of the day, “it\u2019s all about education of our end\u00a0user and clients,” said Newsum, a former public education administrator and\u00a0commercial diver before taking over the helm of ADCI in 2005. Clients need to\u00a0do a better job of vetting who\u2019s doing the diving work for them. Just because\u00a0they have a truck and some scuba gear, doesn\u2019t mean they\u2019re qualified to handle\u00a0a difficult and dangerous underwater project.<\/p>\n
“There\u2019s a lot of misinformation floating out there, especially in this digital\u00a0age,” said Newsum. “We need companies and municipalities to realize the\u00a0importance of having an ADCI-certified diver doing the work for you.” In\u00a0addition to its media vehicles, ADCI takes great pride in our International\u00a0Consensus Standards for Commercial Diving & Underwater Operations. “It\u2019s by\u00a0far the most profitable and comprehensive document we\u2019ve ever put out. Both\u00a0members and non-members can obtain a copy of the standards, but only members\u00a0are required to adhere strictly to those standards,” Newsum added.<\/p>\n
“Misinformation is the most frustrating thing we have to deal with at ADCI,”\u00a0said Newsum. “Electronic media has been a great tool for us considering how\u00a0mobile and how global our membership is. But it\u2019s a double-edged sword. E-media\u00a0is also very dangerous as it makes it very quick and easy for pretenders to get\u00a0misinformation out to the marketplace about standards and regulations.”<\/p>\n
The world has become a more litigious society, noted Newsum.\u00a0“We\u2019re going to continue to make sure members know what their liability\u00a0exposure is and make sure clients are hiring ADCI accredited people.”<\/p>\n
Before partnering with Naylor, ADCI was exclusively focused on diving, noted Newsum.\u00a0“Were very na\u00efve about marketing and branding, how it affects readership,\u00a0revenue and membership growth. Naylor really helped us understand the need for
\na more professional and cohesive branding communications strategy for both\u00a0members and the advertiser community.”<\/p>\n
So how does a relatively\u00a0modest-sized organization keep its broad communication portfolio, widely cited\u00a0standards, multiple brands and a global membership all bubbling along? “I like\u00a0to offer lots of options to our people, but still keep it simple,” related\u00a0Newsum. “No matter how many initiatives you have, you\u2019ve got to stick to simple\u00a0branding, simple messaging and a simple point of contact.”<\/p>\n
That kind of clarity keeps ADCI humming along above and below the surface.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"