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Dazzle Issue 5: Growth

We’re excited to present Ideaworks Marketing’s latest issue of Dazzle, our award-winning agency magazine. We sincerely hope that you enjoy this issue, as we’ve worked hard to showcase the growth and success of our agency over the past 20 years with the hope that it inspires fresh ideas for your own personal and professional growth. A few articles that might be of particular interest to you include: “20 years of Passion and Perseverance,” an infographic look at the past two decades in business, along with a note from our team (pg. 6) “From My Perspective: Growing as a Women-Owned Business,” an insightful message from Ideaworks owner Judy Steve (pg. 9) “Sowing Seeds of Success,” our feature article that highlights new initiatives and our continuously evolving portfolio (pg. 10) “Life@197,” which includes snapshots of what’s new and exciting with our team (pg. 16)

We’re excited to present Ideaworks Marketing’s latest issue of Dazzle, our award-winning agency magazine. We sincerely hope that you enjoy this issue, as we’ve worked hard to showcase the growth and success of our agency over the past 20 years with the hope that it inspires fresh ideas for your own personal and professional growth.

A few articles that might be of particular interest to you include:
“20 years of Passion and Perseverance,” an infographic look at the past two decades in business, along with a note from our team (pg. 6)

“From My Perspective: Growing as a Women-Owned Business,” an insightful message from Ideaworks owner Judy Steve (pg. 9)

“Sowing Seeds of Success,” our feature article that highlights new initiatives and our continuously evolving portfolio (pg. 10)

“Life@197,” which includes snapshots of what’s new and exciting with our team (pg. 16)

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expansion authenticity Success<br />

ISSUE 5<br />

growth<br />

focus


4 5 6<br />

EDITOR’S LETTER<br />

FROM CHELSEY TUPPER<br />

DIRECTOR OF MARKETING<br />

COMMUNICATIONS<br />

IN IT FOR THE<br />

LONG RUN<br />

AN INFOGRAPHIC LOOK<br />

AT SMALL BUSINESS LONGEVITY<br />

THE REEL DEAL<br />

BEHIND-THE-SCENES OF<br />

OUR NEW AGENCY VIDEO<br />

FROM MY PERSPECTIVE:<br />

GROWING AS A<br />

WOMEN-OWNED<br />

BUSINESS<br />

INSIGHTS FROM IDEAWORKS<br />

OWNER, JUDY STEVE<br />

20 YEARS OF PASSION<br />

& PERSEVERANCE<br />

8 9 10<br />

SOWING SEEDS<br />

OF SUCCESS<br />

FEATURE ARTICLE<br />

14 16 17<br />

CELEBRATING<br />

LIFE @ 197 UNDERSTANDING THE<br />

GROWTH & SUCCESS<br />

A LOOK AT WHAT’S NEW “VALUE” OF VALUE-BASED<br />

AT THE AMERICAN<br />

WITH OUR TEAM<br />

ADVERTISING AWARDS<br />

AGREEMENTS<br />

INSIGHTS FROM IDEAWORKS<br />

OWNER & CCO, PETER STEVE<br />

contents<br />

EDITORIAL<br />

Editor-in-Chief: Chelsey Tupper<br />

Contributing Editor: Alyssa Ellsworth<br />

Art Director: Allison Simenkiewicz<br />

Contributing Art Director: Gabby Creazzo<br />

CONTACT US<br />

Call Us: 570-609-5650<br />

Email Us: info@ideaworks.marketing<br />

Visit Our Website: ideaworks.marketing<br />

FOLLOW US<br />

@IdeaworksAgency<br />

facebook.com/IdeaworksMarketing<br />

@ideaworksmarketing<br />

Ideaworks Marketing<br />

2 DAZZLE: ISSUE FIVE DAZZLE: ISSUE FIVE 3


EDITOR’S LETTER<br />

CHELSEY TUPPER, DIRECTOR OF MARKETING COMMUNICATIONS<br />

ALLISON SIMENKIEWICZ<br />

PRODUCER & DIRECTOR<br />

BRIAN LEONARD<br />

CONTRIBUTING PRODUCER<br />

CHELSEY TUPPER<br />

CONTRIBUTING SCRIPTWRITER<br />

ALYSSA ELLSWORTH<br />

CONTRIBUTING SCRIPTWRITER<br />

GET OUT OF YOUR<br />

COMFORT ZONE<br />

A BEHIND-THE-SCENES LOOK AT OUR NEW AGENCY VIDEO<br />

Our video producer/director Allison Simenkiewicz and members of our team got<br />

together to share details of the creative process behind our new agency video and<br />

discuss how filming this project in-house drew all of us closer together.<br />

Most mornings, you can find<br />

me at the gym, getting a good<br />

sweat session in before a busy<br />

day at the office. Waking up in<br />

the wee hours of the morning<br />

isn’t fun, but it’s the best time to<br />

go since I’m also a workaholic<br />

who stays late at the office most<br />

nights. While working out, it isn’t<br />

unusual to hear a trainer say,<br />

“Getting out of your comfort<br />

zone is when you see change –<br />

it’s when the magic happens.”<br />

I wholeheartedly agree with that<br />

statement and have also found<br />

that it rings true in many aspects<br />

of life – not just when you’re<br />

pushing your body to the max.<br />

For me, my career is one facet in<br />

which that saying is especially<br />

true. Excitingly enough, I<br />

celebrated my two-year<br />

anniversary with Ideaworks in<br />

May. When I think about it, two<br />

years doesn’t seem possible,<br />

4 DAZZLE: ISSUE FIVE<br />

but then I recall how much I’ve<br />

grown in my career since, and it<br />

feels much longer – in a good<br />

way! I attribute much of my<br />

growth to my bosses Donna and<br />

Peter, who have each pushed<br />

me to become a better writer,<br />

editor, manager, presenter<br />

and communicator – a more<br />

seasoned professional overall.<br />

They have asked me to handle<br />

projects, clients and situations<br />

that were new to me, posed<br />

a bit of a challenge or were a<br />

healthy mix of both. I also credit<br />

this growth to my colleagues at<br />

Ideaworks as there have been<br />

many times when we’ve had to<br />

figure out a solution to an issue<br />

we didn’t foresee or think outside<br />

of the box about a project. And,<br />

by no means can I forget to<br />

mention the clients I’ve had the<br />

pleasure of working with since<br />

coming on board. Being faced<br />

with new projects or requests<br />

on a daily basis will undoubtedly<br />

force you out of your comfort<br />

zone – fast!<br />

I am not a fan of plateauing.<br />

When I feel that way with my<br />

workouts, I shake things up.<br />

When I feel that way with my<br />

professional growth, I read, I<br />

research, I do whatever I can to<br />

combat it. However, since joining<br />

Ideaworks, I haven’t felt stagnant.<br />

I’ve always felt challenged; I’ve<br />

always felt motivated to go<br />

outside of my comfort zone. It’s<br />

one thing (out of the many) I love<br />

about this agency.<br />

As we all know, life isn’t always<br />

comfortable. While some<br />

probably wish it were that<br />

way more often than not, it’s<br />

no reason to get into a funk.<br />

Embrace the uncomfortable.<br />

See what you can learn in the<br />

midst of those situations. For<br />

businesses and people alike,<br />

those that don’t take risks<br />

and get out of the comfort<br />

zone are also those that don’t<br />

grow, achieve goals and feel<br />

accomplished. Twenty years ago,<br />

Peter and our VP of operations<br />

Patty didn’t let the uncertainty of<br />

starting a marketing agency hold<br />

them back. Instead, they each<br />

got out of their comfort zones<br />

and began Ideaworks Marketing.<br />

The rest is history.<br />

“I have enjoyed working<br />

with our team on this video<br />

project as it has helped to<br />

strengthen my video production skills.<br />

It’s also always fun to work on a creative<br />

project of this nature. I couldn’t wait to<br />

share the final cut of the video with our<br />

team; I was so excited for everyone to<br />

see what I created!”<br />

– Allison Simenkiewicz,<br />

producer & director<br />

“One of the many things I find gratifying<br />

about what we do is how we take a<br />

concept and work together to bring it<br />

to life. Our new agency video started<br />

off as a group discussion, and it’s been<br />

fun to be part of the process since the<br />

beginning, especially when I had no<br />

idea how we were going to pull off an<br />

in-house shoot. Our team never ceases<br />

to amaze me though, and the shoot<br />

moved along seamlessly. This video was<br />

truly a team effort, and certainly evokes<br />

the theme of togetherness all the way<br />

through – just how we<br />

wanted it to.”<br />

– Chelsey Tupper,<br />

contributing scriptwriter<br />

PETER STEVE<br />

DONNA HANSBURY<br />

PATTY PUGH<br />

ALLISON SIMENKIEWICZ<br />

STARRING<br />

CHELSEY TUPPER<br />

BRIAN LEONARD<br />

ALYSSA ELLSWORTH<br />

“Creatively speaking, we set<br />

collective targets for the video,<br />

and I sincerely believe we hit<br />

each one. We wanted to speak<br />

to who we are. We wanted to make<br />

people laugh. We wanted to show our<br />

edge and our desire to do whatever it<br />

takes to get a job done right. And above<br />

all, we wanted to do everything as a<br />

team.”<br />

– Alyssa Ellsworth,<br />

contributing scriptwriter<br />

“I jumped at the chance to work on<br />

our agency video! Even more exciting<br />

for me was the opportunity to show<br />

off our agency’s personality. We work<br />

extremely hard, but we also have a<br />

tremendous amount of fun as well.<br />

I think the video will be an amazing<br />

tool for clients to see our natural<br />

talents and each personality we have<br />

in the office. We came together as<br />

a team, played off of one another’s<br />

strengths and produced a<br />

really stellar piece!”<br />

– Brian Leonard,<br />

contributing producer<br />

KELLY ALANSKY<br />

GABBY CREAZZ0<br />

ELISHA CAPIE<br />

CHRIS KONNICK


SERVED OVER 345 CUSTOMERS<br />

Thank you!<br />

EMPLOYED MORE THAN<br />

82 TEAM MEMBERS<br />

COMPLETED<br />

MORE THAN<br />

6,600<br />

PROJECTS<br />

WON MORE THAN<br />

55<br />

AMERICAN<br />

ADVERTISING<br />

FEDERATION<br />

AWARDS<br />

BELONGED TO MORE<br />

THAN 10 PROFESSIONAL<br />

ORGANIZATIONS<br />

CREATED<br />

MORE THAN<br />

70 VIDEO<br />

PRODUCTIONS<br />

AFTER 20 YEARS OF<br />

PASSION & PERSEVERANCE ,<br />

IDEAWORKS HAS…<br />

All of us at Ideaworks<br />

Marketing are proud to<br />

announce that 2018 marks<br />

our 20th year in business.<br />

It was on July 20, 1998<br />

that we first opened our<br />

doors and started the<br />

process toward<br />

becoming a full-fledged<br />

marketing company.<br />

20 YEARS<br />

OF PASSION & PERSEVERANCE<br />

What started with two employees and a simple goal to<br />

“help our clients succeed” has resulted in achieving two<br />

decades of innovation and steady growth.<br />

Today, Ideaworks has more than a dozen talented<br />

professionals on staff, each with their own unique skill<br />

sets and agency expertise. Our company’s success<br />

and longevity are due, in large part, to these creative<br />

individuals, and the many others before them, who<br />

never settled for “good enough” and who always looked<br />

for ways to make our work innovative, engaging and<br />

results-oriented.<br />

These past 20 years have been an intense yet incredible<br />

journey filled with many accomplishments. We want<br />

to take this opportunity to thank our terrific clients<br />

and customers. Without them, there would be no<br />

Ideaworks. We also want to thank our many partners<br />

and associates who have helped us produce awardwinning<br />

work. Finally, a huge thank you to our families<br />

for understanding the long nights, the countless road<br />

trips and missed gatherings because work had to get<br />

done. Here’s to another 20 years and more. Cheers!<br />

PURCHASED<br />

MORE THAN<br />

25<br />

COMPUTERS<br />

SPENT<br />

MORE THAN<br />

$21,000<br />

IN STOCK<br />

PHOTOGRAPHY<br />

&<br />

DOWNLOADED<br />

OVER 19,934<br />

PHOTOS, VIDEOS &<br />

ILLUSTRATIONS<br />

BEEN TO 25 STATES<br />

AND 2 COUNTRIES FOR<br />

BUSINESS TRIPS<br />

SUPPORTED<br />

MORE THAN 15<br />

COMMUNITY CHARITIES<br />

BEEN<br />

LOCATED IN<br />

2 OFFICES<br />

& NOW RESIDE<br />

IN WYOMING &<br />

PENNSYLVANIA<br />

(AKA: WYOMING, PA)!<br />

SUBSCRIBED<br />

TO MORE THAN<br />

20 MAGAZINES<br />

& NEWSPAPERS<br />

ANNUALLY<br />

PRESENTED AT<br />

MORE THAN<br />

6<br />

NATIONAL<br />

CONFERENCES<br />

& CONVENTIONS<br />

6 DAZZLE: ISSUE FIVE DAZZLE: ISSUE FIVE 7


RISK FACTORS<br />

IN IT FOR THE LONG RUN<br />

A LOOK AT SMALL BUSINESS LONGEVITY<br />

AMERICA’S SMALL BUSINESSES AT A GLANCE<br />

55 MILLION<br />

WORKERS<br />

were employed<br />

by small<br />

businesses in<br />

2010, mostly in<br />

firms with 20-<br />

499 employees.<br />

RISKY BUSINESS<br />

Today’s small businesses have<br />

generated 65% of net new jobs<br />

over the past 17 years, but many<br />

owners believe the current economy will<br />

hinder their opportunities for growth.<br />

Slow Economic<br />

67% Recovery<br />

59%<br />

56%<br />

Taxes<br />

Uncertainties about<br />

Federal Regulations<br />

Despite these hindering factors,<br />

33% of small business owners<br />

are optimistic that the economy<br />

will get stronger.<br />

79.4%<br />

of business<br />

owners have<br />

no other<br />

employees,<br />

and most have<br />

fewer than 20.<br />

WORKING<br />

TOWARDS<br />

SUCCESS<br />

When it comes to<br />

running a successful<br />

small business, owners<br />

are crediting several<br />

factors for keeping<br />

their doors open,<br />

including their<br />

employees’ hard work<br />

and fewer regulations.<br />

68% of small<br />

business owners<br />

feel their businesses<br />

are operating at a<br />

successful level.<br />

In 2011,<br />

more establishments<br />

opened than closed.<br />

<br />

<br />

<br />

Quarterly Established Openings<br />

Quarterly Established Closings<br />

OPEN<br />

2010<br />

1,433,703<br />

Bankruptcies 47,806<br />

With 50% of the nation’s<br />

small businesses closing<br />

up shop in their first year,<br />

it can be hard to stay<br />

optimistic about small<br />

business longevity. What<br />

are the secrets to staying<br />

in business and locking<br />

down success?<br />

Let’s take a look.<br />

% change<br />

from 2009<br />

1.4%<br />

1,424,390 -0.7%<br />

-15.1%<br />

STAYING ON TOP<br />

Business owners are working hard to stay in business. Here are<br />

some of the steps they actively take to keep their doors open:<br />

80% 76%<br />

69% 65%<br />

Finding ways to cut costs<br />

Strengthening existing client relations<br />

Looking for new clients<br />

Refining business strategies<br />

A larger pool of<br />

qualified employees<br />

47%<br />

Improved demand<br />

for products &<br />

services<br />

CURRENT TOP INDUSTRIES FOR SMALL BUSINESSES<br />

According to small business<br />

owners, their success can be<br />

attributed to:<br />

43%<br />

Fewer rules<br />

and regulations<br />

57%<br />

FROM MY PERSPECTIVE:<br />

Growing as a<br />

women-owned business<br />

Earlier this year, individuals around the world recognized International<br />

Women’s Day, celebrating the many commendable achievements and<br />

advancements women have made in the workforce and beyond.<br />

As I reflect on women’s many achievements and what they mean for<br />

Ideaworks, I am grateful for the opportunities we have had through the<br />

years to grow and develop as a WBENC-certified women-owned business.<br />

This year marks our 20th year in business, and it is an honor to work<br />

with such a talented group of career-minded women, including<br />

Ideaworks’ president & CEO Donna Hansbury, vice president of creative<br />

and operations Patty Pugh and director of marketing communications<br />

Chelsey Tupper. Together with these ladies and the rest of our talented<br />

team, we have dedicated ourselves to delivering the best marketing and<br />

creative work for our clients. Our entire team showcases attributes that I<br />

believe are crucial to have not only in a women-owned business but in<br />

any business enterprise. Characteristics like sheer talent, respect for one<br />

another’s unique abilities, and a willingness to work hard, dive deep, and<br />

actively immerse ourselves in each client’s industry. These are the qualities<br />

that make our agency valuable to our clients and competitive in today’s<br />

ever-changing marketplace.<br />

It’s an honor to have built this business and team with my fellow female<br />

executives. I am genuinely grateful year-over-year that Ideaworks is a<br />

women-owned business, dedicated to solving clients’ most pressing<br />

marketing challenges with innovation, creativity and an exceptionally<br />

talented team.<br />

CANDY<br />

The confectionary<br />

industry, as a whole,<br />

grew 3.7% during the<br />

52-week period<br />

ending April 19,<br />

according to the<br />

National Confectioners<br />

Association.<br />

MOBILE APPS<br />

Venture-capitial firms<br />

such as Kleiner Perkins<br />

have begun investing<br />

in app producers to<br />

capitalize on this<br />

growing trend. The<br />

Sand Hill Road firm<br />

has earmarked $100<br />

million for the market.<br />

ACCOUNTING<br />

SERVICES<br />

Private accounting<br />

firms have seen a<br />

20.9% growth in<br />

profit over the last 12<br />

months, according to<br />

data from Sageworks.<br />

FAST-CASUAL<br />

DINING<br />

With a growing trend<br />

in gourmet food<br />

trucks, business has<br />

the potential to boom.<br />

It’s predicted that food<br />

truck industry<br />

revenues will grow<br />

over the next 5 years.<br />

GREEN<br />

CONSTRUCTION<br />

The overall green<br />

building market is<br />

expected to more than<br />

double from $49<br />

billion to $140 billion<br />

this year, according to<br />

a report from<br />

McGraw-Hill.<br />

-Judy Steve,<br />

Owner<br />

WHERE TO THRIVE<br />

1. AUSTIN, TX 2. OKLAHOMA CITY, OK 3. DENVER, CO 4. RALEIGH, NC 5. SALT LAKE CITY, UT<br />

6. DURHAM, NC<br />

8 DAZZLE: ISSUE FOUR<br />

7. SEATTLE, WA 8. HOUSTON, TX 9. NEW YORK, NY 10. SAN JOSE, CA<br />

Original Source: The Hartford, U.S. Small Business Administration, Business Journals, Inc.com<br />

DAZZLE:<br />

DAZZLE:<br />

ISSUE<br />

ISSUE<br />

FIVE<br />

FIVE 9


How Ideaworks Continues<br />

to Evolve Its Portfolio After<br />

20 Years in Business<br />

written by: ALYSSA ELLSWORTH<br />

cultivation<br />

Achievement<br />

progress<br />

focus<br />

When a child is learning how plants grow, a teacher<br />

or parent often places a few items in front of him or her: a pot, soil,<br />

seeds, water. Whomever is doing the instruction goes on to explain<br />

the process. First, take your seed and push it into the soil. Cover it. Pour<br />

a little water on – not too much. Set your pot in the sunshine. Water it<br />

each day. Wait patiently. The desired outcome, of course, is to show<br />

the child that with some work – the right conditions for growth and<br />

a little tenacity – seedlings become full-fledged plants. As a child<br />

matures, one might hope that this becomes an analogy for his or<br />

her work ethic.<br />

As business professionals, this analogy, though simple, is one that<br />

shouldn’t be lost just because we might have learned it when<br />

we couldn’t comprehend its deeper implications. In marketing,<br />

especially for business owners and operators, it is crucial to<br />

continue “watering” your business. Without embracing current<br />

technological innovations, exploring new avenues for expansion<br />

and learning about clients’ most pressing challenges in order to<br />

offer actionable solutions, we become stagnant. We are no longer<br />

valuable, no longer the kind of lush, green plants that once bore<br />

fruit. If a business turns stagnant, clients and prospects will, quite<br />

simply, take their business elsewhere.<br />

We are proud to say that the growth analogy<br />

has not been lost on us at Ideaworks, even<br />

as we proudly celebrated our 20th year<br />

in business this past July. As marketing<br />

professionals, we’ve continued “watering.”<br />

We’ve continued examining the right<br />

conditions for growth, much like a child<br />

places a pot in the sunlight, filled with hope.<br />

We’ve continued to exert that tenacity so<br />

we can sow the seeds of success through<br />

two new initiatives: gemworx and GPS<br />

Marketing small business packages.<br />

10<br />

DAZZLE: ISSUE FOUR 11<br />

10 DAZZLE: ISSUE FIVE DAZZLE: ISSUE FIVE 11


Don’t shy away from encouraging your clients to leave you an online review;<br />

these reviews will greatly help to build your business and increase your brand’s<br />

online visibility through search engine optimization (SEO). This is because the<br />

more people talk about your brand online, the more likely it will be for your<br />

website to appear on the first page of results for searches performed on Google,<br />

Bing or Yahoo. Some SEO experts claim that reviews represent around 9.8% of<br />

all ranking factors. Additionally, online reviews are absolutely crucial for those<br />

brands that wish to stand out from their competition.<br />

Other reasons online reviews are so important include:<br />

of people trust online<br />

reviews as much as they do<br />

personal recommendations<br />

of people first check out a business or service<br />

online; this means that most of the time,<br />

prospective clients will form their initial opinion<br />

on your catering business solely based on what<br />

the reviews state<br />

of people will only interact with brands<br />

that have positive reviews, BUT if you do<br />

get a negative review, take the time to<br />

try and reconcile the situation because<br />

the reviewer just might come back and<br />

leave a positive note<br />

ONLINE MARKETING<br />

Introducing<br />

Ideaworks president & CEO Donna Hansbury’s brainchild, gemworx<br />

is a subscription-based online marketing platform built for caterers of<br />

any size. It is designed as an innovative tool that affords caterers the<br />

ability to create customized marketing collateral and event materials<br />

in a matter of minutes. Subscribers simply select a design from an<br />

extensive collection in the gemworx library, then customize the<br />

content with their own logo, photos and the like. Caterers can then<br />

download PDFs of their collateral or place an order for printing.<br />

A GEMWORX SUBSCRIPTION GIVES CATERERS ACCESS TO:<br />

table<br />

12 DAZZLE: ISSUE FIVE<br />

Burgundy Beef Tips<br />

with Mushrooms<br />

Braised Beef Tips in a Burgundy Wine and<br />

Beef Stock Reduction with Onions,<br />

Mushrooms and Fresh Herbs<br />

Bailey &James<br />

TOGETHER WITH THEIR FAMILIES<br />

REQUEST THE PLEASURE OF YOUR<br />

COMPANY AT THE CELEBRATION<br />

OF THEIR WEDDING<br />

SATURDAY<br />

AUGUST 26 2018<br />

SAINT VINCENT CHURCH<br />

1601 VETTEN WAY, CHICAGO, ILLNOIS<br />

dinner to fo low<br />

AT FOUR<br />

O’CLOCK<br />

Hundreds of<br />

professionally<br />

designed tools and<br />

materials created<br />

specifically for<br />

catering businesses<br />

Marketing tools<br />

that individuals can<br />

customize with their<br />

brand identity and<br />

information<br />

Operational items<br />

like item identifiers<br />

and table cards<br />

that can be easily<br />

personalized<br />

Themed collateral<br />

that caterers can use<br />

individually or as an<br />

entire campaign<br />

90%<br />

88%<br />

72%<br />

Revenue-generating<br />

materials like invitations<br />

and save-the-date cards<br />

that event professionals<br />

can sell to their<br />

customers<br />

Marketing resources<br />

like white papers and<br />

tip sheets to maximize<br />

caterers’ marketing<br />

efforts<br />

Since launching gemworx at the annual Catersource<br />

Conference and Tradeshow in Las Vegas earlier<br />

this year, our team has been working hard to make<br />

subscriptions even more valuable to users and<br />

celebrating our collective success.<br />

GPS<br />

small<br />

business<br />

packages<br />

GPS<br />

GROWTH • PROFITS • SUCCESS<br />

A SIMPLIFIED APPROACH TO CREATING A MARKETING PLAN THAT YOU WILL USE – NOT LOSE.<br />

Built from years of industry experience, our team developed GPS Marketing:<br />

A Simplified Approach to Creating a Marketing Plan You Will Use, Not Lose. This is<br />

a powerful tool that helps turn any small or large business’ ideas and visions into an<br />

easy-to-use, actionable marketing plan. We are currently in the process of putting<br />

together small business packages to attract more local clients, partnering with them<br />

to create actionable plans that boost sales and improve ROI.<br />

Completing the GPS Marketing workbook is the first step in this process,<br />

and it’s broken into five key areas, including:<br />

TRUE NORTH: Where a business must conduct an honest<br />

assessment of where it is in terms of its market, customers and<br />

competition. The section includes sample questions business<br />

professionals should ask themselves, a simple grid to conduct<br />

a S.W.O.T. (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats)<br />

analysis and more.<br />

ROUTE: Where business professionals want to go in order to<br />

grow their companies and increase profitability. Professionals<br />

are asked to take this step after they have determined who<br />

they are as a company. The Route section propels individuals<br />

to establish S.M.A.R.T. (specific, measurable, attainable/<br />

achievable, relevant and timely) goals using a template that<br />

separates what they want to achieve, how they measure their<br />

success, what actions are taken to achieve the goal and the<br />

timeframe needed to complete it.<br />

NAVIGATION: Where a business determines how to get<br />

where they want to be through the use of strategies (the “map<br />

view”) and tactics (“the turn-by-turn” perspective). Strategies<br />

are determined by setting a reasonable expectation for producing<br />

a desired outcome, e.g. “Communicate with clients at least 12<br />

times per year to engage them and encourage new business<br />

referrals.” Tactics are the specific actions you take, e.g. “Email a<br />

monthly newsletter to clients featuring blog articles. Include links<br />

to the blog, social media sites and upcoming events.”<br />

SYSTEM DISPLAY: Where a business determines<br />

what they want to say and where, i.e. the messaging and<br />

mediums. The section includes mediums for consideration,<br />

like loyalty programs, e-mail marketing, public relations efforts<br />

and QR codes. Tips are also provided so businesses can craft<br />

appropriate messages for their target audience that add value<br />

to their lives.<br />

EXPENSE REPORT: Where a business develops its<br />

all-important budget. This is where professionals must<br />

determine what they can afford to do without putting their<br />

company’s financial health in jeopardy. A marketing budget<br />

calculator is included for use.<br />

When Donna presented on the GPS Marketing<br />

Plan at the Catersource conference earlier this<br />

year, she left her audience with a valuable piece<br />

of advice echoing Benjamin Franklin:<br />

“If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail.”<br />

This sentiment has proven true to Ideaworks time<br />

and time again, especially as we continue to evolve<br />

our portfolio even after 20 years in business.<br />

DAZZLE: ISSUE FIVE 13


CELEBRATING GROWTH<br />

& SUCCESS AT THE AMERICAN<br />

ADVERTISING AWARDS<br />

SELF-REFLECTION: It’s a beautifully necessary act,<br />

both in business and in our personal lives, whether done in<br />

the comfort of our own homes early in the morning, while<br />

driving home after a long day or as we take time to look at<br />

the past year in review.<br />

At the beginning of each year, we look forward to the<br />

self-reflection that comes with compiling our submissions<br />

for Northeast Pennsylvania’s annual American Advertising<br />

Awards (formerly known as the “ADDYS”). Like in any<br />

reflective moment, the questions begin to roll. What creative<br />

work really pushed the envelope last year? How did we grow<br />

as an agency, and how does our work reflect that? We put<br />

trust in our best creative efforts and submit projects that<br />

showcase who we are – those pieces that best speak to<br />

our strengths.<br />

SILVER AWARD<br />

SNAPSHOTS<br />

DIRECT MAIL CAMPAIGN<br />

“Innovation meets nostalgia” was the unspoken theme of the campaign that<br />

earned us a silver award in Direct Mail. We sent View-Masters® to this client’s<br />

prospects, urging them to envision a partnership with this particular company.<br />

SELF-<br />

PROMOTION<br />

We took a comical approach<br />

to our 2018 calendar, featuring<br />

some “almost famous”<br />

four-legged friends while<br />

paying tribute to our charity<br />

of choice, Blue Chip Farm<br />

Animal Refuge in Dallas, PA.<br />

“CREATIVITY REQUIRES THE COURAGE<br />

TO LET GO OF CERTAINTIES.”<br />

– ERICH FROMM<br />

President & CEO Donna Hansbury and marketing communications<br />

manager Alyssa Ellsworth enjoying the Awards dinner<br />

This year’s American Advertising Awards Dinner was held at<br />

the Radisson Lackawanna Station Hotel in Scranton, PA. We<br />

accepted three silver awards in the Self-Promotion, Direct<br />

Mail and Brand Campaign categories with submissions that<br />

showcase some of our strongest capabilities:<br />

• Reinforcing consistent messaging<br />

and design across multiple platforms<br />

• Infusing projects with humor<br />

and nostalgia where appropriate<br />

• Using innovative marketing efforts to elicit a strong<br />

response from our clients’ target audience(s)<br />

BRAND CAMPAIGN<br />

This lively set of health and wellness resources encouraged<br />

individuals to take charge of their own well-being in the workplace.<br />

Alyssa accepting our three new American Advertising Awards<br />

Appropriately, the theme of this year’s Awards Dinner was<br />

Hollywood, which, when you think about it, is where individuals<br />

go when they have dreams of making it big, and once<br />

there, they aren’t afraid to let go of certainties with courage.<br />

Members of our team had a most enjoyable evening filled with<br />

networking, camaraderie and celebration, and we accepted our<br />

awards knowing they reflect collective growth and success that<br />

will only continue in the years ahead.<br />

14 DAZZLE: ISSUE FIVE DAZZLE: ISSUE FIVE 15


L IF E @ 197<br />

IT IS WHAT IT IS<br />

PETER STEVE, OWNER & CCO<br />

Kelly Alansky, our new initiatives<br />

manager, is enjoying watching her<br />

son Porter play t-ball for the first time!<br />

He’s excited to be on team Dash!<br />

Kelly also<br />

welcomed Eden<br />

Lane Alansky<br />

into the world<br />

on July 8 th !<br />

Welcome to the Ideaworks<br />

family, Eden!<br />

UNDERSTANDING THE<br />

VALUE OF VALUE-BASED<br />

AGREEMENTS<br />

Donna Hansbury,<br />

president & CEO,<br />

thoroughly enjoys watching<br />

her great-niece grow into<br />

the coolest little person<br />

on the block. Harper is<br />

coming up on two years old<br />

already this September –<br />

wow, how time flies!<br />

On April 25th,<br />

in honor of<br />

Administrative<br />

Professionals Day,<br />

we celebrated Chris<br />

Konnick, our amazing<br />

administrative<br />

assistant, by sending<br />

her a gorgeous flower<br />

arrangement and<br />

treating her to lunch.<br />

Chris keeps us all in<br />

line, manages multiple<br />

office tasks and often<br />

surprises us with<br />

afternoon treats!<br />

Thank you,<br />

Chris, for all you do!<br />

Brian Leonard’s daughter,<br />

Evangeline (Evie), recently<br />

turned seven! Following in her<br />

dad’s creative footsteps (Brian is<br />

our creative director), she chose<br />

a painting party for her and<br />

her closest friends. Originally,<br />

Evie chose a unicorn as the<br />

painting for the group. However,<br />

she later went with a horse<br />

“because boys might not like<br />

to paint a unicorn.” She is such<br />

a thoughtful and caring young<br />

girl! The kids really<br />

enjoyed painting;<br />

although, it seemed<br />

like the parents<br />

enjoyed “helping”<br />

them more!<br />

Alyssa Ellsworth, our marketing<br />

communications manager, married her<br />

high school sweetheart, Alex, in June.<br />

The couple honeymooned in Italy, and<br />

their favorite spots included Florence<br />

and the Amalfi Coast!<br />

Gabby Creazzo, graphic<br />

designer, was excited to hit<br />

the road with her friends<br />

and travel to Myrtle Beach<br />

in South Carolina earlier<br />

this summer. She especially<br />

enjoyed living the “beach<br />

life” for a few days, soaking<br />

up the sun and relaxing with<br />

a good book!<br />

Elisha Capie, graphic<br />

designer, recently got engaged<br />

to her longtime boyfriend,<br />

Will. They’re excited to begin<br />

planning and scheming for<br />

what is sure to be a fantastic<br />

wedding. Elisha is already<br />

close to finding her dress!<br />

Chelsey Tupper, director of<br />

marketing communications,<br />

and her husband Brian<br />

recently visited New York<br />

City. While there, they dined<br />

at Buddakan – the restaurant<br />

in which Carrie and Big host<br />

their rehearsal dinner in<br />

the Sex and the City movie.<br />

Chelsey has wanted to eat<br />

there ever since she first<br />

saw the film, and it did not<br />

disappoint. Their dinner was<br />

amazing, especially the oxtail<br />

dumplings!<br />

This past winter, Allison<br />

Simenkiewicz, graphic<br />

designer, adopted two<br />

bunnies, Henri and Trixie,<br />

from our local charity of<br />

choice, Blue Chip Farm<br />

Animal Refuge! Pictured<br />

is Henri. While he is a<br />

little on the shy side,<br />

Trixie warms right up<br />

to anyone and is super<br />

loving!<br />

Peter and Judy<br />

Steve, owners of<br />

Ideaworks, are<br />

excited to announce<br />

the engagement of<br />

their oldest son, Peter<br />

III, to his fiancée Sara<br />

Bielski! Peter popped<br />

the all-important<br />

question in April<br />

while he and Sara<br />

were at the Masters<br />

Golf Tournament in<br />

Augusta, GA. Also<br />

there was Tyler<br />

Steve, Peter’s brother,<br />

who captured the<br />

special moment.<br />

Congratulations,<br />

Peter and Sara!<br />

Recently, our agency was asked to<br />

participate in an RFP with a technology<br />

company that was looking for a partner<br />

who would be willing to enter a risk/reward<br />

(or value-based) agreement to win the<br />

business. While such RFP requirements are<br />

not new to us as we see similar requests<br />

with growing frequency in the industry, it<br />

did get me thinking about the real value of<br />

such agreements for both parties involved.<br />

In theory, a value-based<br />

agreement has benefits for both<br />

the client and agency when<br />

executed correctly.<br />

From the client side, they receive<br />

some assurance that the company<br />

they are partnering with has enough<br />

confidence in their work to risk some<br />

of their compensation. By nature, this<br />

type of agreement also creates a more<br />

open environment for the exchange of<br />

information and the mutual commitment to<br />

achieving agreed upon goals.<br />

For the agency, value-based agreements<br />

demonstrate their willingness to share<br />

the risk for the work they are developing.<br />

It instills a genuine focus on creating and<br />

executing a strategy that achieves success,<br />

although any agency worth its while should<br />

maintain this position with all its clients. It<br />

also makes the agency feel more like they<br />

are part of the client’s team – working<br />

together to produce measurable results.<br />

For the client, value-based agreements<br />

offer a way to evaluate the commitment<br />

of the agency they are considering<br />

employing. Beyond a screening mechanism,<br />

value-based agreements also provide an<br />

added level of confidence regarding the<br />

investment being made not only in the<br />

agency but also in the project or initiative<br />

under development.<br />

Regardless of which side of the equation<br />

you are on, both parties should expect to<br />

receive as much in return as they risk.<br />

Financial incentives aside, the most<br />

important consideration for all involved<br />

with value-based agreements is the<br />

measurement process. But how do you<br />

measure the success of a campaign,<br />

program, ad, etc.?<br />

Our experience with such agreements has<br />

shown that there are key factors that must<br />

be in place for such agreements to be<br />

successful including:<br />

• Mutually Defined Measurable Goals<br />

• Quantitative Baselines for<br />

Benchmarking<br />

• A Means to Empirically Track<br />

Performance<br />

If the proper measurements are in place<br />

and there is complete transparency on<br />

the part of both parties, then value-based<br />

agreements can represent the start of a<br />

wonderful and lucrative partnership for<br />

both the agency and client.<br />

16 DAZZLE: ISSUE FIVE DAZZLE: ISSUE FIVE 17


ALL IN<br />

NE PLACE<br />

Bailey &James<br />

TOGETHER WITH THEIR FAMILIES<br />

REQUEST THE PLEASURE OF YOUR<br />

COMPANY AT THE CELEBRATION<br />

OF THEIR WEDDING<br />

SATURDAY<br />

AUGUST 26 2018<br />

AT FOUR<br />

O’CLOCK<br />

SAINT VINCENT CHURCH<br />

1601 VETTEN WAY, CHICAGO, ILLNOIS<br />

dinner to follow<br />

Visit gemworx.com to learn more.

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