Occidental Chemical Corporation (OxyChem), based in Ludington, Mich., revised its calcium chloride website to provide educational information to its visitors through separating facts from misleading information.

“The people responsible for keeping sidewalks and highways open and safe in winter, improving the safety and durability of roads, or improving products or processes need factual information to make informed decisions,” said Greg MacDonnell, OxyChem business manager. “We believe the facts make a compelling case for choosing calcium chloride over alternative materials. With that in mind, we decided to ‘write the virtual book’ on the subject, presenting all the facts on our website, so users can make informed decisions for themselves.”

Ongoing discussions with distributors, participation in industry groups as well as information requests from end use customers prompted company managers to sponsor the in-depth educational content, MacDonnell said. “It was clear to us misleading or conflicting information in the marketplace was making it difficult for users to confidently select and apply materials to achieve the best results,” he added.

In addition to shared field experience from OxyChem distributors, the website content draws on the findings of independent research and published best practices sponsored by government agencies, major universities and industry organizations.

OxyCalciumChloride.com also includes three micro-sites:

• IceFreeSidewalks.com, which is devoted to best practices for effective sidewalk ice melting;
• StableRoads.com, which details the benefits of dust control, road base stabilization and full depth reclamation; and
• IceFreeRoads.com, which explains how prewetting rock salt and abrasive materials can improve highway winter maintenance operations.

To serve audience preferences, the micro-sites deliver information in differing formats, such as via case studies, white papers, interactive calculator tools, tutorial videos, guides and Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs).

“From a commercial standpoint, our distributors can use the content in our website to respond to the information needs of their customers more productively, supporting their sales and service efforts,” MacDonnell said. “Perhaps the greatest impact of all will occur downstream. Buyers, specifiers, influencers and other stakeholders will all take advantage of the education and balanced guidance provided by our new website. Armed with the facts, they’ll be able to make more informed decisions themselves and encourage others to do so.”