SCS BT Squared

John Tweddale featured in Wisconsin Builder

 

Up in the air

John Tweddale let opportunity guide him when choosing a field of science to study in school.

The 45-year-old said he majored in geology because the college he attended offered a scholarship to anyone who completed a year of coursework toward that degree.

“I needed the money,” Tweddale said.

About 27 years later, Tweddale still lets the potential for financial gain guide his course of study.

The principal of BT Squared, Madison, recently beefed up his acumen on the science behind global warming. Tweddale said many clients of BT Squared, an environmental and civil engineering firm, will be affected by changes in federal carbon emissions standards, particularly those in manufacturing.

“Just like paying for roads and bridges, the Obama administration has made reducing (carbon dioxide) emissions a high priority,” Tweddale said. “Businesses need to be ready for that.”

But in contrast to his geology studies, Tweddale needed to learn much more than just the science behind greenhouse gases to be successful in achieving his economic goal.

He said global warming can be a controversial issue. His task was to develop a balanced message and deliver it in a format that engages his target audience.

“This area is going to be regulated as much as any other,” Tweddale said of carbon emissions. “We wanted to convey this information without getting political.”

Tweddale, the manager of BT Squared’s industry and commerce unit, said he knows clients who believe the science behind global warming is fallible. Others, he said, believe nothing can be done to prevent global warming.

To reach out to clients in both camps, Tweddale said, BT Squared tries to stick with unquestionable facts in its marketing campaign.

Fact No. 1: Government at some point will force industry to reduce its carbon imprint, so the business world may as well start making changes now.

Fact No. 2: The best way to reduce carbon emissions is to decrease energy consumption, and saving energy means spending less money.

Tweddale said Fortune 500 companies already accepted facts No. 1 and No. 2. His job, he said, is to convince small- and mid-sized companies to do the same.

“We need to bring this issue onto their radar screen,” Tweddale said.
Aside from networking and keeping in touch with clients, BT Squared decided to use an unconventional medium, an online newsletter, to get its message across.

Rather than sending out printed marketing material, Tweddale said, the firm shot out about 400 e-mails with a link to a page on its Web site with information on greenhouse gas emission and policy debates.

Tweddale said the firm’s managers went with a Web-based, rather than print, campaign because they believed the targeted group of people prefers to get information from the Internet.

“This is how people do things now,” he said. “It’s a great opportunity to stay in touch with people.”

Tweddale said early response to the marketing program has been positive. The firm had yet to gain business from the gas emissions push about three weeks after starting the program, he said.

But Tweddale said he is confident the work will come.

“The rule is still being proposed, so the hammer isn’t there,” Tweddale said of raised carbon emission standards. “But our message is: It’s better to do something before it is there.”