A LOOK INTO MARKETING WITH SONYA MOLLER

The ever changing world of social media and marketing makes the job of a marketing director crazy. Sonya Moller, Director of Marketing for Summit Contracting, sat down with me and discussed the ins and outs of being a Marketing Director. Working for one of the regions fastest growing construction companies give Sonya many challenges but also many rewards. In the following pages you’ll learn all about Sonya’s duties, her favorite parts of her job, and how she got to where she is today.

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Where it Began

Sonya Moller got started working for the Chamber of Commerce in Brookings, South Dakota. After moving to Mitchell, Sonya began working for the Chamber of Commerce, where she held a dual position, the first person to do so in over 20 years. Sonya’s duties at the Mitchell Chamber of Commerce focused on getting people to visit Mitchell. During her roles there, she realized she had a knack for marketing and spreading the word about causes and events.

It was November of 2021 when Sonya began working for Summit Contracting as their Marketing Director. However, Sonya wasn’t searching for a new job when the opportunity presented itself. Her husband was speaking with Summit’s President, Jerad Hutchens, about a project he wanted Summit to do when Jerad mentioned they were looking to hire a Marketing Director. The rest is history.

Sonya’s Duties at Summit Contracting

Sonya’s duties at Summit Contracting include: running all of the social media accounts, creating social media content, ordering and distributing Summit merchandise, relations with the communities Summit has branches in, and developing a Marketing plan. When developing a marketing plan, Sonya sometimes collaborates with Paulsen Ag Agency in Sioux Falls about what role they can play in assisting her with Marketing.

Currently, Paulsen’s places paid ads for Summit on their social media platforms, while Sonya handles the other posting that needs to be completed. Summit Contracting has branches around South Dakota, Nebraska, and Iowa. Additionally, Sonya tries to make Summit a well-known name and an active member of these communities.

The Workplace

When asked about working for Summit, Sonya said, “I love it, they care about their employees, and it is a very familyoriented company.” One of her favorite parts of her job is her workplace because of the people. She says, “Everybody is so friendly and helpful, if you ask for the help everyone is giving it to you. We recognize that by helping one another we help each other, which helps our company succeed.”

Summit’s headquarters is in Platte, however, Sonya works from home a few days during the week and commutes to Platte the other days. Creating a work/life balance is difficult for everyone. “I could work until 10 o’clock if I didn’t have a family, but I have to set those boundaries.”

Summit encourages their employees to go to family events and activities, but you still need to complete your work.

Challenging yet Rewarding

Running Summit’s Social Media is challenging but also rewarding. Coming up with content that is unique and eyecatching to a possible customer is one of the most challenging parts of her job. Her goal is to create content that makes Summit stand out amongst the different construction companies in the region. Sonya tries to post at least four times a week. A lot of the content she posts are timeline photos or videos of a project. Doing this shows the progression of the project from start to finish. Currently, Sonya does not use a content calendar, but that is one thing Summit wants to develop shortly.

One of the most rewarding parts of Sonya’s job at Summit is finding out a customer found Summit on a social media platform or a marketing medium that she created. For instance, currently, there is a project Summit is designing that will be a $750,000 project. That customer found Summit Contracting on a TikTok video that Sonya Created. “That’s a pretty amazing feeling, knowing you get a completed project through one of our marketing platforms.”

New Projects

Right now, one of Sonya’s biggest projects is revamping Summit’s recruitment ads and campaigns. She says, “Everyone is hiring, and most people have jobs. Right now, we are working on a campaign that is speaking to people with jobs and saying you want to work here, and here is why.”

Their target audience for this is someone who is already employed. They elaborate and preach Summit’s core values and that they are a great company to work for. They also point out that a job with them isn’t just a construction job; they are building a career with them.

The Impact

Since she began working at Summit, Sonya has increased their social media following, set Summit up to be a Chamber of Commerce member in all of the communities they have branches in, helped Summit join many Ag Associations, and helped Summit become an active member of the communities where they have branches. Another thing Sonya has contributed to Summit Contracting is helping them establish brand standards.

Sonya doesn’t just want Summit to be another business in the town, she wants them to be known for its service to the community. One of Sonya’s biggest goals is to make Summit a brand everyone knows about and is familiar with.

Throughout her time at Summit she has helped them become more of a kitchen table brand, but she is only getting started.

About The Author

Tess Ringling is a graphic designer who enjoys helping clients make their vision into a reality. Her positive mindset and get it done attitude makes her easy to communicate with. She is always willing to do whatever it takes to get the job done and make the design perfect for her client!