Hi everyone and welcome to the client spotlight on my podcast at MacRAE’S. I’m your host, Katherine Seymour. And we have a very special guest, Tom Hall, president of Canada Metal, a trusted Canadian manufacturer with over 100 years of expertise in producing high quality marine, industrial and cathodic protection products. Canada Metal is well known for delivering innovative solutions for marine and industrial applications worldwide, ranging from anodes to advanced marine
hardware, always with a commitment for high quality and service. We’ll talk about the company’s evolution and how they maintain their leadership in such a competitive market and how partnering with McCree’s has helped them expand their digital footprint. Let’s get started! Tom, can you go ahead and introduce yourself and share a little bit about Canada Metal?
Yeah, thank you so much for having me. It’s a real pleasure to be here, Katherine. Sure. So I’m relatively newly joined to Canada Metal. It’s a family business. ⁓ Like you said, a long history. My family has been involved for about the past 20 years. Canada Metal’s history, again, over 140 years, all these different iterations, all these ups and downs. ⁓ And in the early 2000s, my father got involved.
with Canada Metal and saw a real opportunity there. At that point he had had about 40 years experience in metals manufacturing and ⁓ Canada Metal wasn’t doing great to be honest and he really ⁓ turned it around and it’s been interesting watching his journey from 60 to 80 I should add working at Canada Metal so I’ve just got involved recently but ⁓ like you said we’re ⁓
Yeah.
You know, we provide a bunch of products for a bunch of different industries. have over a thousand SKUs. ⁓ Many of our products fall into a few buckets. Like you said, there’s marine, radiation shielding, adults for electroplating, plumbing, hardware, ⁓ aerospace, pole line hardware for power transmission, roofing, soundproofing. ⁓ One thing I’ve learned very quickly is what lead is good at. It is very, very good at and difficult to replace.
Yeah.
⁓ And one of those areas in particular is really interesting, I think, in radiation shielding. It’s a market that’s always growing. And when I started and I realized that we were producing ⁓ these products that keep doctors and patients and researchers safe, I was just really blown away. then realizing that our lead is in hospitals and nuclear reactors across Canada and frankly, the world is also really special. ⁓
I think also worth noting that, you know, we do all our manufacturing here at our factory in Montreal. So it’s a hundred percent Canadian made radiation shielding and that line, which is really special. And I think, which is pertinent today, given everything that’s going on. We are a union shop and really proud of that. think my dad, one thing that he really emphasized when he got involved was just how important it is.
that this is a place that produces excellent products, you know, that we serve our customers, but that it’s also a place that treats people fairly and that we have, it’s a good place to work where people want to stick around. And the benefit of that is on our shop floor. Now we’ve got incredible experience in terms of working with lead, which can be a really finicky metal. it’s, it’s a, it’s, it’s a really, a really fun time to be getting involved and helping Canada metal.
Mmm.
I guess take its next steps.
awesome. For those who might not be familiar, what products and solutions does KanaMetal provide? I know you touched points on some of those, but can you share some other examples as well?
Mm-hmm.
Yeah,
mean, again, so ⁓ I would say the biggest current market for us is radiation shielding. If we had one big market. so that every time you walk into a dentist’s office, you know, and there’s an x-ray room in that room, those walls are lined with lead. Typically it would be sheet lead. So it’s rolled sheets of lead that are four by eight feet. So they, you know, match your standard wall panel. ⁓
sometimes they need thicker lead. So we make bricks of various shapes and sizes. ⁓ And so they’re not enormously complicated pieces, but again, what lead’s good at, it’s very good at it. So we will ship that everywhere. So that’s a key product is just sheet lead and bricks. And again, we’re proud that those are a hundred percent manufactured here in Canada. ⁓ And then…
Bye.
From there though, you can get really complicated. can cut and slice both of those products in a million different ways. I was shocked at how many different options there are. And it’s because different radioactive materials and different machines require different levels of protection. One thing about lead is it’s really heavy. So when you start working with it, we’ve quoted hospital jobs where we’re talking, you
Yeah
tens of thousands of bricks. And we had to remind the person that the poor installers are going to be moving these bricks that each weigh 60 pounds if we go with the dimensions they’re asking for. So it’s really interesting in terms of ⁓ the different products out there. But then again, in aerospace, it’ll be ⁓ different weights or very specific alloys. We work with a ton of alloys.
Yeah
that are very precise and again what they are used for it’s really difficult to find a replacement for lead. ⁓ We also do anodes for boats so we don’t only do lead we also work with zinc and so again anodes are there to protect the hull of a boat anyone who has a sailboat or a motorboat has got anodes on their engines somewhere and so we do produce those as well typically for industrial marine applications. ⁓ Roofing and soundproofing so
If you’ve ever been to Paris, look up, the roofs are all gray. Those gray roofs are all lead. It’s not something we use here in Canada, but in Europe, it’s a huge, huge market and lead lasts forever. It’s very easy to work with. ⁓ As long as you take the proper precautions, it’s also, you know, safe again, if you’re, if you’re taking the precautions. ⁓ And so yeah, all over ⁓ any coastal cities in Europe and things like that, lead provides us with excellent roofing material.
Yeah.
Yeah.
And then one that I guess an interesting one that people don’t know about that much is plumbing joints. So it’s not in drinking water anymore, of course, but if often wastewater valves or toilets will often sit on these things called plumbing joints and lead is a really interesting thing. It’s been used forever in plumbing as we know, the Romans used it. But in this particular instance,
One of the benefits is that again, it’s quite malleable, it’s easy to work with, and it’s got some flexibility. So when you’re joining things, it’s a relatively easy product. Again, if you’re taking the proper precautions, it’s okay to work with. ⁓ So those are just a number, but like I said, there’s probably a thousand SKUs at any given point. So there’s a lot that we work on here.
right?
If you could sum up Canada Medal in one sentence, what would it be?
Yeah,
that’s going to be a challenge, but I would say ⁓ world leading expertise in lead manufacturing. Again, like I mentioned, the shop floor experience we’ve got is really something. And lead, unlike other metals, because of the risks inherent in it, it is toxic. have to be careful with it. The industry has shrunk. Behind me on the wall here is an old advertisement. That’s all stuff that basically isn’t made anymore because it would
Bye.
get in contact with people. But over the years, it’s led is really focused in, I would say the market’s really focused in on what it’s good at and the expertise to work with the material in a safe way ⁓ and develop the products that people need is fairly rare out there. So I’m really proud to work with the people I get to work
What led you to start looking for a digital marketing partner?
Yeah, this is so interesting. So ⁓ I would say we’ve been working with MacRAE’S now for a number of years. And I think the original intent, the original goal was simply just to stake our claim in the digital space. I don’t think the strategy was any more complicated than that. Let’s get some territory in terms of SEO ⁓ and yeah, just claim that space. ⁓
and
you know, it’s we’re mostly a B2B. ⁓ And when people need lead, there aren’t that many options. So I think we, we, understood that, yes, we need to show up when people look for products, but I really don’t think it was more advanced than that. ⁓ So that was the original intent. Obviously, now, ⁓ we’re looking beyond that, we’re looking at new markets. And
you know, as we get more refined around A, what SEO matters for us, B, what markets, C, where we compete, you know, how are we competing in those markets? The relationship is certainly evolving, as is the strategy that drives it.
sure. You had options when you were looking for other marketing agencies. What kind of made McCree stand out?
⁓ I think ⁓ the understanding of manufacturing that that MacRAE’S brings, I’m frankly relatively new to this space. And I, though I have a background in marketing and communications and, and general management, ⁓ manufacturing has its nuances, as I’ve learned pretty quickly. And, and so to work with a partner that understands that is, just essential. ⁓ And that’s what the MacRAE’S brings.
Yes!
Can you walk us through the work that MacRAE’S has done for Canada Metal, whether it be SEO, content development, website updates, or other strategies?
Yeah, well, I think you just named a few there. And like I said, SEO has been key. ⁓ The website, again, I think the last iteration was MacRAE’S and we’re working on a new one with MacRAE’S ⁓ and for sure content on there that helps drive SEO and drive customers. ⁓
Certainly we get a lot of outreach through the website as well. It’s probably underutilized by our team and certainly something we’re looking to improve upon. But yeah, those are three main buckets, SEO content, website. ⁓ And then from there, I think we’ve got a really solid foundation. And now I’m very interested in refining that. Like I said, driven by a strategy that goes beyond just claiming space and showing up when people look, but some actual targets. ⁓
Yeah.
exploring some markets that maybe we haven’t really worked in. So that’s also a lot of fun.
How would you describe the communication and collaboration with the McCrae’s team?
Excellent.
would say patient as one because any delays that we’ve had with products are my fault. Any delays we’ve had with any updates on the website or categorizing SEO and things like that has all been driven by me. And so the team that we work with, Crystal and Sakshi, I think in particular, have been very patient with me. Again, when I said understanding,
manufacturing, think, you we’re a medium sized business, having a partner that recognizes that, you know, we don’t have a dedicated marketing team. And, and so I have to wear a lot of hats. And one of those is certainly marketing and it’s crucial, but having a partner that understands that and recognizes that maybe we’ll be slow with some things just because of life and the nature of businesses is really nice. So it’s been an absolute pleasure to work with the team. Yeah.
What are some measurable results that you’ve seen since working with MacRAE’S? For example, higher search volumes or increased traffic to your website or more qualified leads?
Yeah,
I would say certainly, ⁓ if we talk SEO, we’re number one in a lot of the categories we want to be in, and that’s just fantastic. ⁓ And then leads wise, ⁓ I would say yes, I can’t actually quantify it yet, because we don’t have the, I got the material from from MacRAE’S and the reports from MacRAE’S, and that’s great. But what we haven’t done, and what I would advise anyone doing who’s gonna
join a, you know, have a consultancy or a firm that supports them onto anything is that the proper step is to have that strategy that drives this relationship. And so that’s what, what, what I’m busy trying to put in place, but absolutely again, SEO, we’re number one in a whole bunch of things we get, we get our leads reports and there’s a, there’s, we get a tremendous amount of business just directly through the website. So it’s all good. There’s, there’s no concern there, but I would absolutely love to be able to tell you.
X percent this month, Y percent next month, here’s the goal for next year, and we’re getting there. though MacRAE’S can help and any external agency can help, what we need to do is know what we want to accomplish, right? ⁓ And so I think that’s, again, that’s our original strategy was claiming space. We’ve done that. The next iteration of that now is being really specific about what we want to accomplish.
Yeah.
What has been the single biggest win for Canada Medal resulting in this partnership?
⁓ I would again, I keep on going back to SEO, but when people search for lead, we come up and it’s key and it’s super important. And the number of contacts we get that way has been great. And then I would say the website ⁓ has really served its purpose as our, you know, online. ⁓
It’s got a of online repository of information and products and services as that evolves. And I’m excited to be launching the new one with MacRAE’S soon. ⁓ I think we can see more out of that and leveraging that more. But I would say absolutely just showing up when people are looking for lead-based products has been really important for us.
Very cool. Is there anything that you feel we could have done differently? Any idea of areas of improvement that we could have done in your site?
I don’t think so. mean, we’re going through the process right now and updating it. And I would say, as I alluded to earlier, the, the relationship for something like this really has to be driven by the customer. And I’m the customer in this case, and I have to be able to tell MacRAE’S what I want and how I want it then get advice. Right. If I say I want to get to point A or point B from point A, it’s up to MacRAE’S then to help me navigate that point and make suggestions. And I think again,
We did that phase one and now that we’re in phase two and things are getting a little more specific, I think it’s up to us to ask MacRAE’S for their expertise and input, which we’re in the middle of doing. So I don’t think there’s anything MacRAE’S could have done better in that space.
Okay, what would you say to another manufacturing or industrial business that’s considering partnering with MacRAE’S?
⁓ I mean, I would say I would encourage them to do it. And then, like I said, as a rule, when working with any external body, whether it’s accounting firm or marketing firm or legal firm, you need to know what you want to accomplish with this partnership. You’re going to spend money on it. ⁓ And to ensure that money is well spent, you should know exactly what you want to get out of it. ⁓ And that’s on that’s on this this side of the of the screen. And so ⁓
I would encourage them to have that strategy and it doesn’t need to be perfect. That’s where the agency can help you. MacRAE’S are experts at what they do, but you need to know the goal that you’re trying to accomplish. Have a pretty good idea of what that is and then you can refine it with your external support. So that would be my thing. I believe strongly in getting external support and capacity. Not everything has to be in-house, ⁓ but to make sure that it’s worthwhile. It’s really a question of…
of knowing what you want to get out of it.
Tom, thank you so much for sharing Canada Metal’s story and the impact of working with MacRAE’S. It’s inspiring a century old Canadian business continues to innovate and grow in today’s digital space. And thanks for everyone listening. Stay tuned for another success stories from MacRAE’S.
Thank
you very much.
A conversation with Tom Hall, President of Canada Metal, on innovation, expertise, and digital transformation
For over 140 years, Canada Metal has been a cornerstone of Canadian manufacturing, producing high-quality marine, industrial, and cathodic protection products. In this client spotlight, we sit down with Tom Hall, the company's president, to explore how this family-owned business maintains its competitive edge while expanding its digital presence through a strategic partnership with MacRAE'S.
Canada Metal's journey spans more than a century, weathering countless industry shifts and economic cycles. Twenty years ago, Tom's father saw potential in a struggling company and leveraged his 40 years of metals manufacturing experience to turn it around. Today, the company operates a state-of-the-art facility in Montreal, proudly manufacturing 100% Canadian-made products.
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