Wednesday, May 31, 2006    Text size: 

While the company is not changing its services, it saw an opportunity to fine tune its online presence and tweak its image to reflect a re-energized corporate philosophy, the company said.

“Our focus has always been on the customer,” Marina Pacific Distributor’s Director of Marketing Mark Hovanec told XBIZ. “We pride ourselves by knowing them on a first-name basis so it was time to add 21st century technology to assist them.”

As part of the company’s rebranding effort, its website MarinaPacific.com has been updated and features all of the lines MPD distributes. The company acts as a distribution house to hundreds of lines, mostly gay, 40 of which can be purchased only through MPD.

The website’s success lies in its ability for MPD vendors to access and customize each of their product listings, Hovanec said. The vendor can remotely access the backend of the site where it can add titles along with stars, director, SKU, running time, release date, descriptions, themes, galleries and sleeve art. An additional feature allows the vendor to post the URL to a trailer of the movie, which is remotely linked.

Marina Pacific’s previous web presence did not allow for the current level of customization, and vendors could not access backend features. The site was designed by an outside firm in coordination with MPD’s marketing department and is maintained and managed exclusively by the North Hollywood company.

“As a distributor you get besieged by product,” Hovanec said. “Our website gives [vendors] real access and control in how our they want their products featured. With so many titles we distribute, the more comprehensive our database the better. It’s easier to sell product when you have all the information that’s laid out in an intelligent manner.”

Only registered users can access the website, which includes hardcore images and galleries.

In keeping with Marina Pacific’s new focus on its public presence, the company also has released a new logo that is more in keeping with its forward-thinking philosophy, Hovanec told XBIZ.

“Companies tend to copy each other in every industry,” Hovanec said. “We’re always looking for cutting-edge ideas to build our business, and we pride ourselves on setting our own course. While our one-on-one customer interaction will remain our calling card, now our technology and logo have caught up to our forward thinking philosophy.”