 Ann Hofmans |
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The past year has been one of growth and consolidation for Forkliftaction.com and 2008 promises even more developments for the industry’s only online global resource portal.
As 2008 begins, Forkliftaction.com’s membership base is approaching 35,000 after passing the 30,000 mark last year.
According to general manager Ann Hofmans, not only is the portal attracting more members, but they are becoming increasingly active, with a 15% growth in web traffic over 2006. "The site currently enjoys more than 5,000 visits each day, and we’re seeing visitors stay longer and access more and more pages," she adds.
She attributes the membership growth to enhanced information offerings on the website. One example she cites is the renewed Business Directory. "Its searches are now easier and more accurate than before. Its content has grown to become very comprehensive in all types of materials handling businesses," she explains.
Hofmans says the end-user members including fleet managers and forklift owners now make up the biggest demographic group in the forkliftaction.com membership base, accounting for 41% of members. Forklift dealers make up 36%, while 20% are manufacturers of forklifts and forklift components.
The site’s Marketplace, a virtual salesroom for used equipment, has also been upgraded, boosting the popularity of the listings.
Hofmans and her team are spreading the word about Forkliftaction.com at trade shows and exhibitions around the world, having participated in IMHX (Birmingham, UK), Logistex (Lodz, Poland), Matex (Melbourne, Australia), The Safety Show (Sydney and Brisbane, Australia), China 3rd International Forklift & Parts Expo (Shanghai, China), MHL (Auckland, New Zealand) and CeMAT India (Bangalore, India).
Besides increased marketing and visibility in the marketplace, Hofmans says her management team has boosted its resources and is revamping its website technology "to enhance the member experience".
"This year, we recruited a highly skilled web developer, Saeid Hosseini, and already he has had a huge impact on the look and feel of parts of the site," she says, adding that Saeid is hard at work on further enhancements which will be rolled out in 2008.
"We are also building a substantial editorial team around the globe," says Hofmans. The expanded team includes the company’s first consulting editor, experienced business journalist and editor Allan Leibowitz. South African-born Karen Haverson was employed in 2007 as the newsletter’s Australasian journalist while former AFP Thailand correspondent Paris Lord joined the team to cover the Chinese market from his Beijing base.
Hofmans also attributes much of the newsletter’s market credibility to the work of staff reporter Christine Liew, who recently marked her third anniversary with Forkliftaction.com.
According to Hofmans, 2008 will see the launch of the newsletter’s second "regional" edition. In the first quarter, a US edition will be added, and veteran industry writer Roger Renstrom will expand his collaboration with enhanced coverage of the North American market.
The new regional edition will be accompanied by a new look and feel to the newsletter, and for the first time, global readers will have access to regional content from the US and from Australasia. And as the year progresses, says Hofmans, planning will continue for further regional editions which will be rolled out progressively over the next 12 to 18 months.
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CURRENT NEWS
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