Walter Orellana: Savvy Marketer and Relationship Builder

Marketing maven Walter Orellana has gone back to basics; in today's changing landscape, he believes face-to-face sales and personal relationships are the real keys to success.

That's proven true at Excel Dental Studios where he was hired last year to help rebrand the laboratory, broaden its target market and grow the business. And grow it he did: the laboratory has gone from 12 to 35 employees in the last year alone.

Orellana's easy-going personality and knack for networking make him right at home exhibiting at trade shows, visiting dental offices and socializing with dentists in a variety of settings. "Social media has its place but, especially in this economy, people want to shake your hand, look you in the eye and have you tell them everything's going to be ok," he says. "You need the personal attachment you can't get through a computer screen."

A key to building these important relationships, says Orellana, is avoiding the number-one mistake marketers...