Thursday, 5 July 2012

Military focus puts soldiers in touch with local businesses

More than 40 years after he served in the Air Force, Ed Brook is giving back to military families and businesses in Washington who support them through his new business, UnitedMilitaryDiscounts.com.

Brook, of Gig Harbor, aims to introduce military families to businesses that provide discounts so those families can save money, bring military families into businesses to increase their customer count and hire military-connected people himself to enhance their incomes.

It?s a win-win, Brook said.

After three weeks of marketing UnitedMilitaryDiscounts.com to businesses, the website currently features almost 20. Once it reaches 100 businesses, Brook said the main launch will begin with mass marketing on base at Joint Base Lewis-McChord and Naval Base Kitsap.

?For people that own businesses that want to support our troops by providing military discounts, this website is a vehicle to get that information out in front of the troops,? Brook said.

In order to receive a business? advertised discount, the customer must show a military identification card.

Those interested in marketing their business can call Brook at 253-495-7108 or email him at edb@unitedmilitarydiscounts.com. A yearly marketing investment with UnitedMilitaryDiscounts.com costs $240, which comes out to $20 per month.

The fee includes having their business listed on the website, their promotion marketed to military families in multiple ways, such as through social media, and the opportunity to place a laminated sign in the storefront window that advertises the relationship with UnitedMilitaryDiscounts.com.

Brook also is hiring full- and part-time sales and telemarketer positions in Kitsap and Pierce counties.

?It?s important for me to do everything I can to help the people that give us our freedom,? Brook said. ?As you talk to these folks, you begin to realize it?s their job, and they really don?t expect a thank you. It?s very humbling.?

In addition to UnitedMilitaryDiscounts.com, Brook also creates events for troops, the most recent being Patriots Day on June 25. With a $20 donation, regular customers at Harmon Brewing Co.?s The Hub, Tap Room and Brewery & Eatery purchased lunch, Harmon ales and a sunset cruise from Commencement Bay for 60 local soldiers and their spouses right before an overseas deployment. Brook also provided a dozen red roses and a card for each husband to present to their wife before the night was over.

Brook is planning two more events to take place this fall ? one Sept. 11 in Bremerton and another Sept. 25-26, an overnight formal in Gig Harbor.

?I have just always respected what they?ve done,? Brook said. ?If you don?t live in that life, you don?t comprehend all of the sacrifices they make.?

Heather Perry is an intern reporter for The Peninsula Gateway.

Source: http://www.thenewstribune.com/2012/07/04/2203980/military-focus-puts-soldiers-in.html?storylink=rss

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