By Vicki Powers

For many in the drapery industry, the final curtain began to fall not long after the U.S. housing crisis erupted in 2006. As new home sales declined, companies that had thrived for years selling shades and other drapery products to newly minted homeowners were forced to watch helplessly as revenues dried up and customers went away.

But at Blinds.com, one of the nation’s leading online drapery retailers, company officials continued looking for ways to turn the crisis into a window of opportunity.

In an effort to win over new customers, the company rolled out new products, explored new ad channels and even employed a series of new marketing techniques, like posting dry-cleaning hangers on doors.

But the results weren’t what the Houston company was seeking. After one particular …