Why join the AMA?

Do you love or at least enjoy marketing? Do you read articles, blogs and books about marketing? Do you attend webinars and conferences about marketing? Do you enjoy networking with other marketers? Do you need new and fresh ideas to keep your marketing current? If any of this applies to you, you should join the American Marketing Association (AMA).

Monthly luncheons: The St. Louis Chapter of the AMA sponsors these. They offer current, relevant and interesting topics; speakers who can hold your attention; lively networking conversations and delicious lunch from Maggiano’s Little Italy. (Yesterday we heard from Richard Daniels and Seth Burgett of Yurbuds…the 9th most promising company as noted by Forbes Magazine.)

Free webinars: In the last two weeks, I attended a webinar on SEO and Social Media Marketing to Women. I frequently bring my lunch to work anyway, so I shut my door, log on, listen and learn.

Free virtual conferences: In June I attended the AMA Virtual Conference on Marketing Research. What a jackpot this was! Two of the sessions I attended (basically webinars) were completely relevant to a major initiative I am working on in my current position. These presentations were ‘live conference’ quality with well-established speakers.

I downloaded the slides from one presentation on global consumer trends and presented it to the team of executives working on our branding. This was the kind of secondary research you would pay more than the AMA membership fee, just for that one study.

After one session, we were invited to visit a virtual networking area. The first 60 visitors would receive a free copy of the speaker’s book. A $30 value, for free…more adding to the ROI of my AMA membership fee! (Once I finish the book, you will see me blog about it!)

Free content: At marketingpower.com, the official website of the American Marketing Association. White papers, best practices, newsletters, journals, magazines etc.

In just a few short months I feel like I have more than paid for the membership fee through these value-added items above. The new knowledge and content is making me more successful with my work and re-energizing my love of marketing.

Stepping out of your comfort zone

A year ago when I started my new job I had no idea how many new experiences were in store for me. The craziest, most exhilarating one to date was speaking on stage at our international conference to a crowd of 2,500 people.

The topic was our sports sponsorship and healthy living initiative. Along with my team, I was involved in setting the strategy and the launch of the program so it was an exciting and familiar topic. My name was suggested to lead the segment during a meeting that occurred without me! Ha! When I found out I was both horrified and flattered.

I’ve given marketing presentations to groups of 10 to 150 people. I’ve done community theater and mystery dinner shows to audiences of 100-200 people. I was very nervous and did not sleep the night before . This was completely out of my comfort zone. And while I did not ask for the microphone, it was an incomparable adrenalin rush and personal test.

I’m very grateful to have found this position that challenges me to grow as a person, a marketer and business woman while allowing me to show my personality and acrobatic skills. Did I mention I exited the stage after successfully completing a wicked cartwheel?

Note: I have to credit my art director/photographer, Amie Schilson, on this photo that makes me really look like I know what I'm doing!

Networking for professionals in transition

Last night the St. Louis chapter of the American Marketing Association held a speed networking event. In a little over an hour I met about 30 people, roughly half of which were in transition. Having been in their position a year and a half ago, I want to help them in any way I can. I actually enjoy networking. I love meeting new people, hearing about their background, company, expertise and their own story.

My first question to a professional in transition is “What do you want to do?” You would be surprised how many people don’t have a clear answer and are in the grey area of “I’m not really sure” which translates to the helpless feeling of “I just want a job.” Not to discount the frightening feeling of being unemployed, but just because you are in transition, doesn’t mean you have to settle and just find a job…this can be an opportunity for you to find the job doing what you really, really want to do.

My advice is to take the time to do your own introspection…and really think about what your ideal professional position would be. Write it down. This is a huge opportunity. Describe your ideal industry, company, culture, boss, colleagues, team, position, responsibilities, location, salary etc. What do you want? This may be the opportunity for you to finally get it. Why not?

So you get to a networking event and meet someone like me who really wants to help you, now what. When you describe your ideal job, I will do my best to connect you with people in my network at the companies on your list, or with people who work in your target industry, or who have the kind of position you are seeking. That’s a much more efficient use of your networking time, getting you closer to your ideal position.

You don’t have to settle but you do have to know what you want. And I want to help you get it.

Note: I am a board member of the St. Louis Chapter of the AMA. I highly recommend joining. You will meet smart, connected people and have access to exclusive content (webinars, virtual conferences, white papers) via the national AMA website marketingpower.com. Well worth the investment. Our next luncheon event is September 16 at Maggiano's by the Galleria. See you there.

Eat Pray Love

I’ve read the book twice and saw the movie last night. Loved it. Love the idea. It’s so easy to get stuck in your routine of life and lose yourself. Go to work, pay your bills, eat at the same restaurants, shop at the same stores, drive the same streets.

Not everyone can afford to take a year off and explore like Liz did. Skip the salmon and splurge on the carbonara; try a new bottle of Italian wine; have a conversation with a total stranger; sprinkle a new topping on your popcorn at the movies; buy a painting from a local artist; take a different path when you walk your dog; leave a waiter a $5 tip on a $7 bill; eat a hand-made lavender truffle from a local chocolate shop (kakao at Shenandoah and Jefferson); stop in to see your niece and nephew just to give them a hug.

So that was my weekend, how was yours?

Lap lane protocol

I love swimming laps at my local YMCA. It’s a gorgeous new facility with three lap lanes.

Swimming doesn’t feel like exercise to me. It’s so peaceful under the water; quiet, clear and a great place to think. I get into a zone, I think similar to runners where your body just takes over and you don’t have to think about it.

So what about the lap lane protocol? Let’s compare to the indoor track. If you saw someone running (not jogging) around the track at a quick pace, would you walk right in front of them and either just stand and stretch or walk at a leisurely pace? No? Me neither. But somehow in the pool, people lose their common sense and are not present in their surroundings.

Recently I was in the pool and swimming sprints—-swimming a lap as hard and fast as I could to elevate my heart rate and challenge my endurance. I was in the lane that opens to the rest of the shallow pool and a woman walked into my lane. I had my head down, only looking a foot or so in front of me so I almost barreled right into her. She was standing there, stretching, looking around oblivious to me.

I don’t know if this was a lesson from the universe to slow down and take an extra breath or a lesson to be more present and aware of the world around you. At that point, I just turned around and got back into my underwater zone.

Good Morning Riverview Ranch

Camping this weekend in Bourbon, MO at Riverview Ranch. Glorious weather, gorgeous scenery, breathtaking night sky with more stars than I've seen in forever.

No service on blackberry, so truly a weekend getaway with zero technology. Finished a book, wrote in my journal, sudoko'd, sat in the river, stared at the fire, laughed with my neighbors, recharged. Deep inhale, deep exhale.

Marketing and IT BFFs?

Yes, I said Marketing and IT. Really.

With any website or CRM program that has to integrate with a legacy billing system, marketing and IT have to work together and it’s much more fun if you can enjoy the experience. Dealing with data is an exact science. Dealing with data from an old, legacy billing system that was never designed to display the data or use it for customization of any kind, is a big hairy beast of a project that requires patience and collaboration from both Marketing and IT.

I’ve spent much of my career specializing in database marketing strategies. This means I’ve spent hours and hours working with IT and learning about select criteria, data pulls, file layouts, look-up tables, queries, API’s etc. I actually enjoy it. Most data problems are just logic puzzles…kind of like Sudoku. In the words of the very wise Weird Al Yankovic, I’m white and nerdy!

In my current position, one of my biggest projects is managing our replicating websites and shopping cart. I spend alot of my time with the Director of IT. We bonded from day one. He ‘covered’ for me on this project while I was on vacation. How often does IT cover for Marketing?

So yes, the Directors of Marketing and IT are BFFs…he loves soccer, Netherlands is his favorite non-US team, he has a spreadsheet charting all the winners of Survivor, and he drinks Jack and Coke.