Find out how a fourth-generation Texas bakery that felt behind the times on digital marketing launched with Hibu just before the holidays — and credits that timing with making their busiest season more successful than it might have been otherwise.
Overview
Montgomery Bakehouse is a fourth-generation, family-owned bakery in Huntsville, Texas. The business specializes in cakes, pies, pastries, breakfast items, and its signature Texas Tornado cookies, sourcing many ingredients locally. With a lineage spanning four generations, the bakehouse brings a depth of craft and community connection that chain competitors simply cannot replicate. The challenge wasn't the product—it was reaching the customers in surrounding communities who didn't yet know Montgomery Bakehouse existed.
The Challenge
Montgomery Bakehouse recognized that the way customers communicate and discover local businesses had shifted significantly. Social media, website contact forms, and online search had replaced the phone book and word of mouth as the primary discovery channels, but the bakery's digital presence hadn't kept pace. "We began to realize that people were communicating differently than years past and knew we needed the technology to reach our customers and expand our reach beyond our local market," Kaitlynn McPherson said. Previous digital marketing providers had left the team feeling burned and cost-wary, making the decision to try again a careful one.
The Hibu Solution
What differentiated Hibu from past providers was the presence of an actual plan. "Unlike past providers we had used, Hibu came with a clear, thought-out strategy to get us where we wanted to be," Kaitlynn said. Hibu rep Jake Navasard walked the team through a detailed recommendation. Not a generic pitch, but a breakdown specific to Montgomery Bakehouse's goals, market, and budget. The assurance that Hibu wouldn't "set it and forget it" was backed up by ongoing communication and accessible support staff whenever the primary rep is unavailable, something the team described as noticeably lacking from previous partners.
Two tactical elements drove early results: a prominently placed contact form on the new website, and local ranking targeting in an affluent neighboring city the bakery hadn't previously been reaching. Both were designed to convert online interest into real orders.
The Results
The results came at exactly the right time. Montgomery Bakehouse launched with Hibu in September, just ahead of the holiday season, their busiest stretch of the year. The influx of inquiries and orders driven by the new website and local ranking work had a direct positive impact on the bottom line during that critical window. "Had we not started when we did, our holiday season may not have been as successful or even remained flat," Kaitlynn said. That timing gave the team peace of mind going into the season.
The broader shift has been in how the business reaches customers. For a fourth-generation bakery built on in-person relationships and local reputation, having a digital channel that extends the brand into neighboring communities and converts online visitors into orders is a meaningful expansion of what was previously possible. The communication and responsiveness from the Hibu team have been consistent highlights throughout. Kaitlynn would recommend Hibu without hesitation. "Hibu has helped us grow and reach the customers we have wanted to reach with good products, a clear, straightforward plan, and have done it all with transparency and great communication."
In 90 days, Hibu generated more than a thousand leads for Montgomery Bakehouse:
- 1,598 Leads
- 4,644 Ad Clicks
- 15,449 Website Visits
Hibu is a leading provider of digital marketing solutions to local businesses across the US. With Hibu, your business has a truly integrated marketing program designed to increase your visibility online, drive visitors to your website and generate leads. Visit Hibu.com or call us at 855-409-6569 today to get more from your digital marketing.
