5th anniversary walk

We at Stinson Brand Innovation recently observed our fifth anniversary. One of the ways we celebrated was a walk around our neighborhood where we started the company – and have enjoyed such tremendous growth over the last 5 years.

Roscoe Village is a thriving and diverse neighborhood of Chicago that we’re proud to call our brand’s home.

Here are a few photos from the walk.

Boise Chamber of Commerce Training – CHEM

On Wednesday, May 27, we presented a training workshop sponsored by the Boise Chamber of Commerce. The topic was “How to Create Greater CHEM-istry with Your Customers.”

We presented our C.H.E.M.^® model to a engaging group of professionals from a wide range of companies and organizations, including Healthwise, Washington Trust Bank, Affordable Services Corporation, Better Business Bureau, and University of Idaho/Boise.

Here are some “candid” photos from the 3-hour workshop.





Thanks to Michelle Travis of our StinsonGEM office for organizing the session and Jason Schultz of the Boise Metro Chamber of Commerce for sponsoring the training.

To read more about our C.H.E.M.^® tool, go to the Stinson Brand Innovation website.

4488 Feet - A Personal Summit

On Monday, Jenny and I took an all-morning trek up the Hard Guy Trail, No. 33 in the Ridge-to-Rivers system in the Boise Foothills. For hikers like us, it provides one of the most direct routes to the summit of Boise Peak. Our goal was to make 5,000 feet elevation.

We accessed this trail from the Corrals Trailhead off Bogus Basin road. The lower portion of the trail was desert country and offered no shade whatsoever. (While we read later that the higher portion is in thick forest, we never made it that high.)

Our total roundtrip mileage was about 7.4 miles with 1764-foot elevation gain.


From the trailhead, we started out on the Corrals Trail (No.31) for about 1.5 miles. We enjoyed the color and fragrance of lupine blossoming on the hills.


We then passed through a gate and headed down into a ravine to cross Crane Creek.


From there on Hard Guy will constantly gain elevation and take you to the top of a beautiful ridge with deep ravines on either side. Boise skyline was visible almost the entire time so you could keep your bearings.

Once we reached our personal summit at 4488 feet, we stopped to capture a photo of our accomplishment.

2 animals at Zoo Boise “branded” in naming contest

On Sunday, we took grandson Marshall to the zoo in Boise. All the animals were great, but especially two of the animal "kids" who were recently named.

• The red panda cub now was named Syringa, the winning name in a contest sponsored by Zoo Boise and radio station Mix 106. The name represents the Idaho State Flower. Syringa is one of only twelve surviving cubs born in the United States in 2008. A live feed of the red panda den is also available here. The red panda camera is courtesy of Serenity Retreat, Fiberpipe, iBeam Cameras and Darlene Gould. As part of the red panda Species Survival Program, the cub is scheduled to move to the Erie Zoo in Erie, PA.
• The young Grevy’s zebra has been given the name of Hope by students from Adams Elementary School. Hope is currently being introduced to the zoo’s other Grevy’s zebra, Wyatt. After their introduction is complete, the zebras will slowly be introduced to the giraffes, creating one large, multi-species exhibit.

Located in beautiful Julia Davis Park, in the heart of Downtown Boise, Zoo Boise is one of the most popular attractions in Southern Idaho – as well as a living science facility that is home to over 201 animals from 83 various species. Zoo Boise is a community treasure where nearly 300,000 annual visitors of all ages (like Marshall and us) can learn about our natural world and the importance of protecting and preserving it for generations to come.

95.5 WNUA-FM Says "Adios" - Now “Hola” to Mega 95.5 Brand of Spanish radio

WNUA, a pioneer 22 years ago with the adult-contemporary format that blended pop instrumentals and jazz influences, is poised to become a Spanish-language station, complementing the music of artists such as Shakira, Enrique Iglesias and Aventura with local on-air personalities, news and traffic. This according to a report in the Chicago Tribune.


As I listened on Friday morning, Ramsey Lewis is bidding fans farewell through the 9 a.m. hour. There is a brief audio montage recalling the history of the 95.5 frequency in Chicago, from the Moody Bible Institute to WDHF to WMET to WNUA. Then at 9:55 a.m., the plan is to begin playing 5,000 successive songs from the new brand over the next two weeks as a launch of Mega 95.5 programming.

I have been following the “flip” guessing game as other smooth jazz stations around the country dropped the format in recent weeks. But much of the speculation wrongly had WNUA embracing country, oldies or classic rock rather than what is being billed as Spanish hot adult contemporary.

A change in call letters has not been finalized, but the new Chicago station branding will be Mega 95.5, and it will be available online through Mega955.com.

It may be small solace for loyal WNUA listeners, but its smooth jazz format will remain available online at yoursmoothjazz.com, as well as on smart phones via iheartradio.com and to those with HD Radios at 95.5 HD2.

You can read more at chicagotribune.com.

3 Ways We’re Making Sure “Small Is the New Big”

Big companies used to win out over small ones because of their experience, impressive client lists, and seeming permanence. Clients trusted big agencies because they were big, but the economic crisis has changed that. Small firms like STINSON Brand Innovation are now winning the confidence and the business of recession customers.

No matter the size of our company, we’re constantly working to earn and restore customer trust by doing what small consultancies do well:

1. Be available. Customers of small companies don't need to holler "agent" into a phone to talk to a real person. Make it easy for customers to find you and react quickly to requests and demands.
2. Keep your promises. It goes without saying, but always follow through on what you say you're going to do.
3. Grow sustainably. Consumer confidence is shaken and customers want to know that businesses are going to be around no matter what the economic situation. Assure customers you are acting in a financially responsible and sustainable way.

3,000 BIO Attendees Hear Elton John Speak on HIV/AIDS

Sir Elton John gave a moving keynote speech yesterday speech at the 2009 BIO International Convention in Atlanta. He spoke about the critical need for advances in the treatment of HIV/AIDS asking the biotech industry to confront the reality of the worldwide HIV/AIDS epidemic, saying, “It is not just governments that must confront the realities of the AIDS epidemic. It is all of us. With all due respect, it is the people in this very room.”



Elton John might have been wearing rose-tinted glasses, but his speech was anything but rosy. Despite medical advances, John told the hundreds of biosciences executives that HIV/AIDS "is still winning."

“It continues to devastate populations in the developing world,” John said. “But the epidemic is also worse than we thought in this very city and in this very country -- the richest and most powerful on the earth.” John implored the assembled executives to not just fight the disease with science, but also help change perceptions and public policy. Fighting the HIV/AIDS epidemic, John said, must be done not just with miracle vaccines, but by fighting stigma and breaking down barriers. “There are long-standing stereotypes and prejudices that inhibit our efforts to combat AIDS,” he said.

To support Sir Elton’s efforts, BIO has pledged $150,000 to the Elton John AIDS Foundation. You can make a donation at http://IAmBiotech.org/EJAF

ZLB Plasma Re-Brands Its Name to CSL Plasma

ZLB Plasma has changed its name to CSL Plasma to align more closely with its parent company, CSL Limited. CSL Plasma is one of the world's largest collectors of human plasma for use in manufacturing life-saving biotherapies.

Headquartered in Boca Raton, FL, CSL Plasma operates collection centers throughout the United States and in Germany. It also operates state-of-the-art testing laboratories in Knoxville, TN and Goettingen, Germany, and logistics centers in Indianapolis, IN and Schwalmstadt, Germany.

Employees of CSL Plasma adhere to the highest standards of quality and safety in collecting plasma because peoples' lives depend on it. The plasma collected by CSL Plasma enables tens of thousands of people who use plasma-derived biotherapies to live normal, healthy lives.

Plasma is the essential ingredient in manufacturing products crucial to treating a variety of life-threatening medical conditions. Plasma donors must be 18 years of age or older, weigh at least 110 pounds, be in good health and meet proper identification and residency requirements. To learn more about donating plasma or to locate a center, visit www.cslplasma.com.



CSL Plasma is a division of CSL Behring, a plasma protein biotherapies company, headquartered in King of Prussia, PA. CSL Behring is committed to saving lives and improving the quality of life for people with rare and serious diseases worldwide. The company traces its corporate roots to the founding of Behringwerke, established in 1904 by Emil von Behring, the first recipient of the Nobel Prize for Medicine and Physiology.

CSL Behring manufactures and markets biotherapies indicated for the treatment of coagulation or bleeding disorders, such as hemophilia and von Willebrand disease; immune deficiencies; and Alpha1 deficiency. Biotherapies are also used to treat clotting during cardiac surgery, cytomegalovirus (CMV) following organ transplantation and hemolytic disease in newborns. Additionally, biotherapies are used in critical care settings to promote wound healing and to treat shock, burns and sepsis.

CSL is focused on innovation through new product development, market development and life-cycle management of plasma-derived or recombinant products, vaccines, and biopharmaceuticals. CSL currently employs more than 10,000 employees in 27 countries.

For more information, visit www.cslplasma.com

How to Accelerate Your Brand

We are excited about our upcoming teleseminar "How to Accelerate Your Brand" this Wednesday, May 20 at 1 pm ET/12 noon CT. In this virtual workshop, I'll present the 6 hallmarks that make up the ForwardFast branding model.

During the teleseminar, I'll be addressing some of the following topics:

• What is “brand innovation”?
• What can make a brand more likeable?
• What your brand looks like is more than a logo.
• What does your brand offer to the customer?
• What brand associations can be connected to your product?
• What is your brand experience – and how that can make the most difference?

If you'd like some new and innovative ideas to accelerate the adoption of your brand, join us for our free teleseminar...there's still time to sign up.

As a special bonus for attending this teleseminar, you will receive a complimentary e-book of my book Forward.Fast. How to Accelerate Your Health, Science, and Technology Brand.

We look forward to talking to you on Wednesday.

Celebrating 5 Years in Business

We are happy to announce that today, May 13, Stinson Brand Innovation is celebrating our 5th anniversary of being in business. In 5 years, we have grown to become the largest health, science, and technology brand consultancy in Chicago, and we are proud to be fulfilling our mission to accelerate the adoption of medical technologies for our clients' brands.

To honor our company's fifth year in business, we have re-designed and re-tooled our website to reflect the personality of our company and our people. You can check out our new look at www.stinsonbrandinnovation.com

We have focused our most notable website changes on several key areas including:

• Home page where visitors are welcomed with a portfolio slideshow and a video of the STINSON office and personality;
• Direct links to the company blog, http://BrandInnovator.blogspot.com, newsletter, multimedia content, and the book ForwardFast (www.forward-fast.com);
• Our Tools page highlighting each one of the company’s proprietary methodologies used to accelerate the brands of clients;
• STINSON case studies from the more than 100 brands spanning across five years of operation, featuring brand cases by product or category, by print, identity, interactive and events. This page also features the many creative awards STINSON has received.

We believe our website truly establishes a positive first impression of our brand. It now better reflects our personality, our attitude, our ethos, and our brand experience.

My personal and heartfelt thanks to all of you who have had a part in our growth and success.

3 Brand Marketers Use Ethnography to Get to Know Customers

When traditional market research fails, many companies are turning to ethnographic studies to better understand their customers' needs and desires.

1. P&G launched a program called "Living It" where managers and senior leaders spend time in the homes of low-income customers around the world to develop deeper customer insights and create successful innovations.
2. Google videotaped Chinese users as they searched using the powerful engine. The video allowed Google to see first-hand how the users were searching and exactly why they weren't getting satisfactory results.
3. ParagonRx is a firm we at STINSON Brand Innovation often partner with to observe how physicians communicate with patients and how they actually prescribe and even administer therapies.

Think about how your brand team can observe customers using your products or services. Encourage your sales and marketing managers – and your agencies’ creative teams -- to get out of the office and closer to the customer.

International Nurses' Day

Tomorrow, May 12, is International Nurses' Day (and Florence Nightingale's birthday). In honor of these two events, we at SBI Publishing (a division of Stinson Brand Innovation) are releasing our e-book Notes on Nursing by Florence Nightingale.

This e-book is one of the first in our new series entitled Innovation Classics dedicated to collecting and publishing the best - or perhaps the underappreciated - innovation writing of the past. Our first set of Innovation Classics e-books includes well-known stories that we are republishing for the purpose of providing them at no charge.


Nursing seems to be constantly reinventing itself, as it responds to new professional and technical developments. This, of course, creates the issues of branding the nurse’s contemporary identity in the context of the past. Some within the profession say this sense of disconnection with history affects nursing’s greater status and legitimacy within medical practices and hospitals.

Even Nightingale herself said, "I use the word nursing for want of a better term. It has been limited to signify little more than the administration of medicines and the application of poultices. It ought to signify the proper use of fresh air, light, warmth, cleanliness, quiet, and the proper selection and administration of diet--all at the least expense of vital power to the patient." Today, innovations in health, science, and technology are having a major impact
on the nursing discipline.

This book is the Nightingale legacy – research and practice. In Nightingale's view, nursing is a search for truth, the ability to collect accurate information and make correct observations. She wrote, "If you cannot get the habit of observation one way or other, you had better give up being a nurse, for it is not your calling, however kind and anxious you might be." While promoting and implementing research-based practice is not a simple task (nor is it solely reliant upon nurses), we will all benefit from the innovation forces advancing medical treatments.

My hope, as the editor of this series, is that you will not just read Innovation Classics, but also apply their lessons to your challenges of creativity and innovation. Most of all, I hope that this and other volumes of Innovation Classics help you observe the changes from the past, and also imagine the applications for the future.

Click here to download your Notes on Nursing e-book at no charge.

4 Tips for Branding Your Emails

Given the number of emails you send every day, we should all be email-writing experts, right?

There are so many bad emails (in content, tone, and messaging), I was pleased to see this simple list from David Silverman, author of "Typo: The Last American Typesetter or How I Made and Lost 4 Million Dollars."

Here are his tips for effectively differentiating yourself through branding your emails:

1. Ask for something. All business writing includes a call to action. Before you write your email, know what you're asking of your audience.
2. Say it up front. Don't bury the purpose of your email in the last paragraph. Include important information in the subject line and opening sentence.
3. Explain. Don't assume your reader knows anything. Provide all pertinent background information and avoid elusive references.
4. Tell them what you think. Don't use the dreaded "Your thoughts?" without explaining your own. Express your opinion before asking your reader to do the same.

6 Moves for Exercise while Traveling

If you’ve been keeping up with my blog, you know I’ve been traveling a lot this year — everywhere from the Philippines to Boise, Idaho, and from Tokyo to Atlanta (where we got to visit with former President Jimmy Carter. Today, I'm on my way to San Diego.

I have been fortunate for these experiences and for the relationships I have established through these meetings and conferences.

The downside of traveling can vary for many — but for me it's hard to eat healthy and get enough exercise when I'm constantly traveling. I came across an article in Hemisphere magazine with simple, but effective suggestions on how to squeeze in the exercise.

Here are some quick, easy ways to get your heart rate up:

1. Pushups
Most people know how to do a pushup, so here are some tips to maximize your results: To further target your triceps and chest, place your hands closer together. For less effort, place your knees on the floor, with ankles crossed, and lower from there.

2. Squat Jumps
With hands on hips, in a squat position, jump straight up as high as you can. Upon landing, lower back into a squat position and, in one smooth motion, jump up again.

3. Dips:
Targets the triceps. Sit on a chair with your hands on the seat and extend you legs in front of you. Straighten your arms to raise yourself and then lower yourself back down.

4. Bicep Curls
Standing with your feet shoulder-width apart, hold a small piece of luggage in front of you with palms facing up. Keep your elbows stationary and repeatedly curl the suitcase up toward your chest.

5. Arm Raises
Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart. Hold a small suitcase with your arm straight down at your side and the palm of your hand facing behind you. Raise the luggage up in front of you, keeping your arm as straight as possible. Lower and repeat.

6. Crunches
Lie on your back on the floor, with bent knees and crossed ankles. Place you feet under the bed or dresser. Place your hands across you chest or behind your head and while contracting your abs, lift your shoulder blades and upper back off the ground.

5 de Mayo -- vivelohoy

Happy Cinco de Mayo, mis amigos.

To start the celebration, I picked up a copy of Hoy newspaper in Chicago. Read and hear the latest entretenimiento en espanol at http://www.vivelohoy.com/entretenimiento/

Including these headlines:

-- Siempre 'arrasando'

-- Protagoniza Salma Hayek el 'secuestro'

-- Pink dice que es bisexual

-- Lugar de fe y adrenalina

-- La escuela en casa

Plus, join us as we at STINSON Brand Innovation listen to VIVA92 on SiriusXM Radio.

6 Criteria to Assess Your REMS Consultant Options--Insights from ParagonRx

Stinson Brand Innovation regularly works with partners who specialize in complementary areas of brand support. For pharmaceutical safety risk management issues, we have teamed up with ParagonRx, a premier firm in the development, submission, implementation, and coordination of Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy (REMS) programs – not only to address what the FDA expects, but also to assure appropriate use and support commercial brand success.

Here is an article by Jeff Fetterman, president of ParagonRx, that appears in the current issue of our ACCELERATE Newsletter. Jeff brings a mix of corporate and entrepreneurial leadership to his role. His background includes leading cardiovascular marketing, clinical education, and strategic planning at DuPont Pharmaceuticals and serving as COO for DuPont Consumer Health. He is a co-author of Pharmaceutical Risk Management: Practical Applications.



Back in 2006, most pharmaceutical managers responded to the topic of risk management with an aversion, saying “If I ever have a drug with genuine safety concerns, I’ll call you.” Today, everyone is talking about risk management…and for good reason.

The FDA Amendment Act of 2007 granted FDA sweeping new authority to require Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategies (REMS) of any product at any stage of lifecycle. In response, industry had three immediate questions:
1. What determines if REMS will be necessary?
2. How actively will FDA implement the REMS provisions?
3. Who should think about risk management?

REMS is needed for interventions beyond labeling to adequately mitigate risk. The ultimate arbiter of that assessment is FDA, but industry sponsors can influence the decision with rigorous benefit-risk assessments and contingency planning.

We’ve seen FDA actively implement REMS provisions, with one-third of all new chemical entities approved in 2008 requiring a REMS.

Based on this trend, you should think about risk management if you are on:
- A brand commercialization team in late-stage development or pre-launch planning. Because the probability of a REMS is 1 in 3, you should develop contingency plans to avoid delay in registration.
- Any brand team developing 505.b.2 products. While the molecule may have extensive data supporting a favorable benefit-risk profile, a new delivery system may introduce new patient hazards. FDA has requested several sponsors in this situation to conduct failure mode and effects analysis (FMEA) to determine if a REMS is needed.
- The brand team of any currently marketed product with serious adverse events (SAEs). To adequately mitigate risk, a brand team should both continually update the product’s benefit-risk profile and consider developing REMS contingency plans.

With the emerging importance of REMS, many service providers and consultants are offering REMS support. Here are some criteria to help assess your options:
1. Experience -- Have they designed risk management programs for at least 5-10 brands, to offer the benefit of significant cross-product experience?
2. Expertise -- Do staff members have expertise that has been published and recognized among risk management peers?
3. Methods -- Do they utilize validated evidence-based methods (such as FMEA) to reliably develop programs?
4. Independence -- Is program design separate from operations after program launch, to avoid concern about bias?
5. HCP Collaboration -- Do they have a process to collaboratively design with your customer – healthcare providers?
6. Flexibility -- Can they create a process and a culture to customize planning that balances the needs of regulators, patient safety, and corporate performance?

For more information, please visit http://www.paragonrx.com/

6 words in emerging neuro-nomenclature: “Brain Gain” says the cosmetic neurologist will see you now

At STINSON, we are keenly aware of the power of language in health care branding. On occasion nomenclature evolves that makes us sit up and take notice, as it did when our Peter Erickson saw this month’s The New Yorker article by Margaret Talbot.

What if these non-medical uses become tomorrow’s new field of medical practice?
1. “neuroenhancer”
2. “cognitive enhancer”
3. “neuorenabler”
4. “cosmetic neurology”
5. “quality-of-life consultants”
6. “neuro-society”


Neuroenhancers are perfectly suited for our efficiency-obsessed, BlackBerry-equipped office culture, writes Margaret Talbot. They make high-functioning, overcommitted people become higher-functioning and more overcommitted.

Talbot interviews one neurologist, Anjan Chatterjee of the University of Pennsylvania, who coined the phrase “cosmetic neurology” – the practice of strengthen ordinary cognitive abilities with drugs. Chatterjee predicts that some neurologists will refashion themselves as “quality-of-life consultants” to meet the demands of an aging population keen on the idea of maintaining their focus and mental agility.

Zack Lynch of NeuroInsights outlines of the coming market for neuroenhancers, referring to it as the “neuro-society.” Lynch sees improved neuroenhancers applied to boost personal competitive advantages as well as being applied to legitimate therapeutic uses.

Health care trends and their terminology are loaded with long-term implications and are likely to spark controversy, especially since our quick fix society is eager to take new drugs without first understanding the long-term side effects.

Read this fascinating article Brain Gain at http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=103274576

2 STINSON Brand Innovation clients to participate in upcoming TIDES® event

TIDES® 2009 is coming May 17-20 at the Red Rock outside of Las Vegas. It will bring together leaders in oligonucleotide and peptide development and manufacturing. The program presents novel, in-depth scientific data to advance the development of promising drug candidates.

The agenda includes comprehensive coverage of drug candidates in development, new strategies for formulation and delivery, and the latest in regulatory updates, quality initiatives, process and analytical development, and manufacturing. This allows attendees the opportunity to benchmark their progress against peers, advance their programs, and meet new collaborators.

Two clients of STINSON Brand Innovation will be among the leading pharmaceutical and biotech companies which are developing peptide and oligo drugs and diagnostics. They will be consulting with important users of their products and services in the exhibit hall.

COVIDIEN -- Covidien peptides are developed with superior manufacturing technologies, meticulous attention to quality, and commitment to research and development. "Through the technological innovations that are essential to our mission, we’re breaking down existing manufacturing barriers to enable new growth and expansion of our marketplace." See more at http://www.bulkpharm.mallinckrodt.com/DrugChemicals/index.asp

EMD BIOSCIENCES -- The brand of NOVABIOCHEM® is industry-leading in the manufacture of innovative reagents for peptide synthesis and combinatorial chemistry, labeled peptides, and custom manufactured products. NOVABIOCHEM supplies products to researchers in pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, academic institutions, and government laboratories throughout the world. "We are very proud of our multi-brand web site which has been created to provide excellent information tools to reach you - our key customers! Our on-line services, e-commerce, technical support, product listings, search capabilities, new product announcements, as well as future web site enhancements, are designed to further strengthen our commitment to provide the highest quality support to life sciences researchers worldwide. Our goal is to give our customers the edge in an ever more competitive research environment by providing them with the most innovative tools supported by comprehensive technical information." Learn more at http://www.emdbiosciences.com/html/NBC/aboutus.htm

20% Sub-Q Ig Submitted by CSL Behring to Further Expand its Immunoglobulin Franchise

CSL Behring announced Friday it has submitted a biologics license application (BLA) to the United States Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) requesting approval to market its 20% liquid formulation, Immune Globulin Subcutaneous (Human) (IgSc), in the United States for weekly replacement therapy in patients with primary immunodeficiencies.

The ready-to-use, high concentration subcutaneous immunoglobulin is stabilized with L-proline, a naturally occurring amino acid and can be stored at room temperature (up to 25°C [77°F]). If approved for marketing by the USFDA, it will represent another treatment option for patients on Ig therapy who want the freedom and convenience of safe, at-home self-administration of replacement therapy.

"CSL Behring has completed four clinical trials in primary immunodeficiencies in the last four years," said Val Romberg, Head of Research & Development at CSL Behring. “Submission of this BLA reinforces our commitment to serving the PI and rare disease community. We look forward to making this new therapy available in the U.S. upon FDA approval."

Primary immunodeficiencies are a group of genetic disorders that cause a malfunction in part or all of the immune system, keeping the patient from fighting off infections caused by everyday germs. For individuals with PI – many of them children – infections may not improve with treatment as expected, and may keep returning. As a result, patients may face repeated rounds of antibiotics or be hospitalized for treatment. Repeated infections can lead to organ damage, which, over time, can become life-threatening. In some severe cases of PI, infections may result in a patient being hospitalized repeatedly. Some infections, such as meningitis, may even result in death. Nearly 100 types of PIs exist. Most PIs are inherited, but in some cases the cause is unknown.

No single treatment works for all of the different types of PI. Infusions of replacement antibodies (immunoglobulins) can help supplement the immune system to prevent infection in nearly three-quarters of those people living with PI whose disease is due to an antibody deficiency.

Read more at http://www.cslbehring.com/s1/cs/enco/1151517263302/news/1236380122070/prdetail.htm

5 Ways to Cut-Costs While Staying True to your Brand

As I mentioned in yesterday’s blog, we were able to attend the presentation: “Cost-Conscious and User-Focused: Maintaining the Google Experience" at the 2009 Event Marketing Summit held at the Marriott Downtown Chicago. The presentation was given by Google’s Group Marketing Manager of Events, Lorin Pollack-Plato, who has more than 14 years of industry experience.

In 2004, Pollack-Plato was hired as the first event marketing professional at Google. She has been credited for building a team of people who collectively have found the perfect balance between a changing economic climate, the needs of the target audience, and the goals and objectives of events while staying true to the essence of the Google brand.

In her presentation, she shared her tactics on creating a meaningful and relevant brand experience, outlining 5 Ways to Cut-Costs While Staying True to your Brand:

1. Do as much as you can in-house, i.e. Do the work yourself

2. Create an experience around your brand using inexpensive details; Little touches go a long way

• Example: a simple branded cupcake

3. Find a negotiation tactic that works for you, and bid out pieces of an event; Do your research to make sure your vendors represent your brand well

• Try: eAuctions

4. Bring your brand to life however you can; Keep your core, and cut the fat

5. Be “scrappy”; Spend less, work harder without sacrificing quality results

Pollack-Plato also shared a few of her and her team’s proudest accomplishments, including this video that captured the iGoogle Artists Themes launch in New York:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HydsuXsaD8c