Content is King–thanks to our great speakers November 18, 2009

Yesterday’s session was great and provided wonderful insight into the relationship between content, experience and brands. Many thanks to our terrific speakers Melissa Rach from Brain Traffic and Eva Keiser from Risdall McKinney Public Relations. Also, Eva’s colleagues Laura Griffith and Cydney Wuerffel, provided a great case study of Go Girl, a product from a local firm which illustrated the power of integrated campaigns.

Eva posted the slides from her presentation on SlideShare. It can be viewed here. She also provided a link to a very funny Microsoft Advertising Customer break up commercial which we couldn’t view because of the audio quality.

St. Catherine’s University was such a wonderful location. Sara Cziok, MWMC’s professional development VP, and Katie Fisher, the professional development chair, pulled together another outstanding event.

MWMC Women@Work Workshop :: November 17 October 29, 2009

Content is King: From Web sites to social media, keeping your online content in control

Tuesday, November 17
1:00 to 4:00 p.m.
St. Catherine University
President’s Dining Room (#372) in the Coeur de Catherine building on the St. Paul Campus
 
Content strategy – the emerging discipline focused on helping organizations effectively create, maintain, and manage content – is suddenly all the rage. But, why now and what’s the web got to do with it? Attend the Women@Work Workshop to learn why content strategy is necessary; how to deliver useful, usable content online, where and when your customers need it most; what you can do to get (and keep) your online content in control.

Register Now
 
Content strategy – the emerging discipline focused on helping organizations effectively create, maintain, and manage content – is suddenly all the rage. But, why now and what’s the web got to do with it? Attend the Women@Work Workshop to learn why content strategy is necessary; how to deliver useful, usable content online, where and when your customers need it most; what you can do to get (and keep) your online content in control.  You’ll also get an up-close look at a couple of case studies that demonstrate how local companies are successfully integrating social media into their marketing mix.  

About Our Speakers:

Melissa Rach

Melissa Rach, Director of Content Strategy, Brain Traffic
Melissa is director of content strategy at Brain Traffic, an agency focused on helping clients tackle messy content problems. Using skills in messaging, information architecture, writing, and communication planning; Melissa has consulted for a wide variety of clients including General Mills, Best Buy, Target, United Health Group, Wolters Kluwer, and Wells Fargo. Melissa worked on her first online project in 1993. Since then, she has become a respected authority on how organizations incorporate interactive content into their overall communications strategy. Her methodologies have been taught at universities nationwide and recognized in books for nearly a decade, from Webmastering for Dummies (2000) to Content Strategy for the Web (2009).

Eva Keiser

Eva Keiser, APR, Senior Vice President, Risdall McKinney Public Relations
Eva has a proven track record of success and expertise in marketing communications and media relations. Working in an integrated agency, Eva is on the front lines bringing elements together – online and offline – to create momentum for a brand and drive Web site traffic. With a deep understanding of the media and storytelling, Eva has the uncommon ability to uncover stories within an organization that resonate with the media, and move readers to action. Over her career, Eva gained a wealth of experience through working on political campaigns, with grassroots organizations, and at various print and broadcast media outlets. Eva is an adjunct professor in the School of Journalism and Mass Communication at the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities.

Parking:
Free parking permits will be sent via email to all attendees who pre-register before 5 PM on November 15.  Permits will NOT be provided onsite, so you must pre-register to receive a parking permit. Permits are valid in the O’Shaughnessy/Event Parking lot, which can be accessed from Gate 4, and the Visitor Parking lot, which can be accessed from Gate 3.

NOTE: If you plan to register at the door, MWMC can only accept payment via cash or check; credit cards will not be accepted at the door.

Making lemonade out of lemons June 17, 2009

Lots of great things are in the works for Minnesota Women in Marketing and Communication this year. We have a great new board who is assembling a plan for the upcoming year at lightening speed and we have a great event coming up next week.

Organizations that can make it through the current economic storm will be well positioned for success once the skies clear. The final Women@Work workshop will help you set the course for being in the black in 2009 and beyond.

June 23: Bottom Line. Tough times call for tough measures…or for making lemonade out of lemons. How can we make our businesses and our work recession-proof? You’re about to find out. Register for June 23 workshop>>
 
Speakers:

• Wendy Nemitz is the founder of Ingenuity Marketing Group; a firm focused on helping professional service providers market and sells their services better. Wendy has worked in sales and service marketing since 1984. In 1987, she was the first marketing professional at Olsen Thielen, a large local CPA firm in Minnesota. She went on to be the director of marketing for Rasmussen Colleges, Minnesota’s largest and oldest private two-year college system, before founding Ingenuity Marketing.
• Stacey Ackerman, MA,is an experienced marketing pro, having helped business owners in a variety of industries — from retail to construction — develop low-cost, high-impact marketing programs. She is skilled at stretching the marketing dollar further for both B2B and consumer-oriented companies. Ackerman shares her knowledge as a faculty member at Globe University, and conducts numerous seminars for small business owners. Stacey is the director of marketing services for Small Business Builders– A Division of Haworth & Company, Ltd.
• Chris Bez,principal of Creativity Consulting and Coaching. She is an award-winning marketing and advertising executive who brings the results of over 20 years’ experience and learning in corporate management to entrepreneurs and executives seeking to create or grow success in their businesses. Chris is a multimillion-dollar sales person and national motivational speaker in the area of corporate promotion. Chris specializes in working with her clients to craft and implement reality-based, holistic plans to help them creatively navigate even the most tumultuous business cycles. She attended college at the University of Wisconsin and the University of Georgia, has guest lectured at Bentley, Boston University and Babson College and is the author of the book, Don’t Dust Your Desk While The Office Is Burning – A Common Sense Guide To Business Survival. She has been featured in the Star Tribune, on the syndicated show, Right on the Money, the Lori & Julia Show on FM107.1 and KSTP Channel 5 News. Her client list includes many positive, successful, and dynamic executives from a number of Fortune 500 companies and outstanding entrepreneurial ventures.
  

Meghan Wilker named to “Women to Watch” list May 26, 2009

Congratulations to Meghan Wilker, managing director at ClockWork Active Media Systems, MWMC member and speaker at last week’s Women@Work workshop and now an acknowledged Woman to Watch. Last week the Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal named Meghan to it’s list of “leaders to keep an eye on for continued success.” The article is available here.

Geek Girl Wisdom May 20, 2009

Meghan Wilker (pictured on the right) flew solo yesterday at the second Women@Workworkshop, “Online.”  Nancy was ill and Meghan jumped in and gave a wonderful presentation.

My favorite quotes from Meghan’s presentation yesterday:

• “You can think of your social network as the external harddrive for your brain.”
• “Fact and fiction travel at the same speed.”

In addition to sharing what social networks are and aren’t. She gave great case studies and discussed strategies for leveraging networks for individuals, brands and companies. And, Meghan discussed tools to help manage the constant and overwhelming information flow in Twitter and FaceBook.

 

A special page has been set up on Geek Girls Guide for MWMC members featuring the links Meghan referred to during her workshop.

Murder in the family closet April 24, 2009

Tuesday’s Women@Work workshop at the University of Minnesota was great. The speakers (Martha Carlson, Pat O’Donnell and Renita Van Dusen) were all excellent.

 

At our table, Linda Coffin mentioned that she’ll be accepting an award in the next few weeks from the International Society of Family History Writers and Editors. Linda wrote a piece called, “Great Uncle Andrew–The Murderer in the Family Closet.” The ISFHWE will announce the awards on May 13 in North Carolina. Congratulations, Linda!

MWMC video–take 2 April 20, 2009

Revised 4-20-09

Get “inline” for Women@Work Workshop April 10, 2009

Join us at the Heritage Gallery in the McNamara Center

We’re very excited to have our first workshop in the Heritage Gallery at the University of Minnesota’s McNamara Center. It’s a great venue that’s sure to stimulate your creativity. Toys and snacks will be on the table to keep our hands (and mouths) busy. The number of attendees is limited because of the space, but you won’t want to miss it.

The first session will be April 21 and will feature great speakers.

Building your personal brand and leveraging your networks have never been so important. Hear from three fantastic speakers who will lead us through building connections the old-fashioned way: through strong relationships and strategic positioning. Register now for April 21 workshop or all three workshops>>
 
Speakers

• Martha Carlson is a co-principal and executive coach with The Bailey Consulting Group. She specializes in women’s leadership development, executive coaching, team building, and facilitation. Martha also leads The Exchange: A Forum for Women Leaders, providing networking and professional development opportunities for groups of women from different industries and backgrounds.
• Pat O’Donnell is providing career counseling and recruiting for the incorporated, independent business, Placement Genius Inc. As a recruiter and career counselor since 1994, she has placed 50+ people per year in new jobs. Previously with the McKinley Group, Pat is a frequent presenter at professional associations and statewide universities.
• Renita Van Dusen is founder, principal and creative director of Affina Design. Renita is passionate about creating brand impressions that reflect the overwhelming majority of purchasing power of the marketplace – women. Renita has leveraged her extraordinary relationship-management skills to build a distinguished client list, including New Moon Girl Media, Christopher & Banks, Mall of America, Marshall Field’s and Imation. Her voracious appetite for brilliant design can be matched, perhaps, only by her unwavering commitment to both her employees and the community.