As the VP of Collegiate Relations for the Indy AMA, I created the Indy American Marketing Association’s Marketing 360 event after working with and learning from students at various colleges around central Indiana. Students expressed great interest in going behind the scenes to learn about the day-to-day activities of marketing professionals. It’s important for students to get an idea of what working in their desired field is really like, and I wanted to show them that the opportunities in marketing are exciting, diverse and versatile.

On April 15, I led 15 college students around downtown Indianapolis for the 2011 Spring Marketing 360 event — the third Marketing 360 event..Students from IUPUI, IUPUC, Ball State and Indiana Wesleyan came together to learn more about the marketing industry through a series of 90-minute visits including company tours, presentations and time for Q&A.

Throughout this jam-packed day, we visited:

• Keep Indianapolis Beautiful – a nonprofit organization with a mission to unite people to build community and transform public spaces through aesthetic and environmental improvement
• Hirons and Company – a full-service advertising and public relations agency
• Compendium - an innovative company that utilizes a software to make it easy for marketers to publish social content to blogs, landing pages, Facebook, and Twitter — all with the purpose of acquiring new customers
• Indianapolis Convention and Visitors Association – an organization dedicated to the success and development of the city of Indianapolis.  By promoting the city on several levels, the ICVA works to gain Indianapolis recognition, tourism, and media coverage.

At each stop we sat down face to face and learned about each company from key members of the marketing, public relations, creative, sales and customer service teams.  The insights and advice were invaluable.

Quick tips for students to take away:

1. Intern – Make every effort to gain relevant and meaningful experience.
2. Be a generalist – Learn the about the whole marketing wheel; don’t pigeonhole yourself.
3. Volunteer – Get involved on your campus and in your community.
4. Learn – Lead, study abroad and take advantage of other opportunities for personal growth.
5. Connect – Meet with professionals and build your network.
6. Inform – Read, reflect and share; mentor and guide others.

To learn more about the Indy AMA’s collegiate programs, visit indyama.com or email collegiate@indyama.com.

Happy Earth Day! How are you celebrating?

Check out “A Billion Acts of Green®,” a project attempting to generate a billion green efforts before Rio’s Earth Summit in 2012. With the world population nearing seven billion people, that’s only one green effort for every seven people. If we each do our part, we can reach a billion green acts and then some.

My personal contributions include walking more and driving less. When driving is necessary, I’m finding ways to make my already fuel-efficient Prius even more efficient. I’ve already increased my average miles per gallon to 46.6 mpg. I’m also doing more reusing and recycling at home. And, as Borshoff’s “green queen,” I’m making sure that our company continues to find new ways to green the office as well.

If you’d like to celebrate with a crowd, check out the Earth Day Indiana festival on Saturday, April 23. Taking place at White River State Park, this annual event includes green activities and education for the whole family, food, music and lots of fun.

However you decide to participate, now is a wonderful – and beautiful – time to celebrate Mother Earth and all she has to offer.

March arrives each year filled with our hopes for a change in the weather – a signal we’ve moved past the bitter cold that’s surrounded us for months. This desire for a change  is on my mind; however, it’s not the weather change on which my coworkers and I are focused. As soon as the calendar turned to March 1, we began looking for a change in Hoosiers’ attitudes towards people with disabilities.

Since beginning with Borshoff in October 2010, I have been lucky enough to work with the Indiana Governor’s Council for People with Disabilities and am honored to assist with this year’s Disability Awareness Month. Annually observed in March, Disability Awareness Month is a statewide celebration to increase awareness and promote independence, integration and inclusion of all people with disabilities. This year’s Council-selected theme, “Cultivate Inclusion,” encourages everyone to contribute to not only a beautiful community, but also an inclusive one, by being open to the unique gifts of others.

One particular way we can all work on embracing the inclusion of everyone is to choose our words wisely. When I first began writing about disabilities, I was unaware statements like “wheelchair-bound” or “blind child” are unacceptable, and I would be lying if I claimed to have never used words like “retarded.”  However, I am now educated on the best ways to speak about disabilities and the importance of remembering the sensitivity of language. The two biggest lessons I learned were:

1. Remember to use people-first language, which introduces the person before the disability and shows that disabilities do not define people. For instance, “the child who is blind” instead of “the blind child.”
2. Slang terms like “retarded” or “handicapped” can be hurtful and aid in the formation of stereotypes.

So during Disability Awareness Month and beyond, I encourage everyone to be cognizant of word choice and the effects it has on the cultivation of an inclusive community. If interested in activities or events that celebrate Disability Awareness Month, be sure to check out www.indianadisabilityawareness.org.

As I reflect on my 26 years in the communications business (14 of those at Borshoff!), I realize how far I’ve come in my views on teamwork and collaboration. Early on, it was all about “me” and finding ways to shine and advance my career. Proving myself was a smart strategy, or so I thought. Yes, I have good ideas, good instincts and can hold my own in a client meeting. But in the past decade, I’ve learned that partnering offers the best results. It sounds cliché, but it’s so true.

At Borshoff, we have a balanced mix of left-brain and right-brain thinkers. And, we believe this offers the most comprehensive solutions and ideas for our clients. When presented with a project, we bring together an integrated team to develop a sound strategy, coupled with concrete creative.

Last week, my coworker of 13 years, Jennifer Berry, creative director/VP, and I gave a presentation to a marketing class at the IU Kelley School of Business. We presented our “creative” process, which to most people, probably seems pretty boring. As we stepped through the slides and case studies, I couldn’t help but think about the importance – and benefits – of offering different perspectives and well thought out strategies.

After the session, several students came up to thank us. One commented, “You can tell you two have worked together a long time. If I closed my eyes, I couldn’t tell which one of you was speaking; it was almost as if you were one person!” Jenn and I have joked about this for years, but it was fascinating for young students to make the same observation.

So as I do “my” job today, working with various account and creative teams at the agency to negotiate, problem solve and share ideas, I’m reminded that there’s strength in numbers. It’s maybe not always the easiest route as we work through differing (strong) opinions and conflicting recommendations, but in the end, when the two halves of the brain come together, that’s where the magic happens.

While working from home this morning – stuck inside because of a colossal Midwest ice storm – I watched with the rest of the nation eagerly awaiting news about the arrival of spring. Would Punxsutawney Phil see his shadow, indicating another six weeks of winter? Or, would his shadow stay hidden, ensuring an early spring?

News of an early spring couldn’t come at a better time. For the past couple of days, the city and surrounding areas have seen slippery streets, kids out of school, closed businesses, and inches of ice, sleet and snow. This follows a winter in which we’ve seen higher than average snow totals and lower than average temperatures. Thankfully, Borshoff has been able to stay open through it all.

Some of us, despite our best efforts to get to the office, have needed to work remotely. I began the morning with every intention of braving the elements to venture to the office. I pushed the button on my garage door opener, only to find my garage door iced shut with no plans to open. In fact, the garage door opener pulled the door away from the frame at the top, and now my cozy garage is exposed to the wind and snow that continue to hammer central Indiana. Yes, an early spring couldn’t come at a better time.

So, did Punxsutawney Phil see his shadow? He didn’t. I feel spring springing my way already. Thanks, Phil.

Awww. Summer in Indiana. As a lifelong resident, I have many fond images of growing up and now enjoying Indiana with my friends and family. And, working in the tourism business for many years now provided countless opportunities to see and experience what the Great State of Indiana has to offer visitors and residents alike – from sunny beaches to rolling hills to stunning urban skylines. So, it was quite an honor to be asked by Indiana tourism officials to be on a panel of judges for the My Indiana Summer photo contest. Wow – what a success! More than 1,700 photos were submitted by over 200 photographers.

Our job as judges was to winnow down those 1,700 photos to the top five. And now, it’s up to the people of Indiana and beyond – it’s up to you – to vote for your favorite image. Vote at My Indiana Summer.

I was in remarkable company, joined by Amanda Cecil, PhD, CMP from IUPUI, John Bragg, owner of John Bragg Photography, Ray Begovich, journalism professor (and mentor) from Franklin College and Tad Fruits, art photographer from the Indianapolis Museum of Art.

My biggest take-away was that there is little doubt that the heartland of America – our great state – is beating with zeal and great health. So go ahead, take a look for yourself at My Indiana Summer and vote today.

Borshoff principal Erik Johnson, APR, Fellow PRSA, shared his views on “Marketing in a recession: advertising agencies’ approaches to actively sustain client goals in the current economic environment.” Erik was part of a communications panel before executives from Indiana convention and visitors bureaus (CVBs) or destination marketing organizations (DMOs) during a June 18 Indiana Tourism Council meeting.Erik and other panelists spent much of the time stressing the importance of understanding today’s consumer mindset. They recommended giving special to your existing customer base, developing targeted audience lists, creating strong and well-thought-out key messages (including a break-through creative platform), and using efficient communications channels from advertising to news media to social media, as appropriate, to get the word out.

The program, held at Conner Prairie, also included Bruce Hetrick, CEO, Hetrick Communications; John Palmer, senior digital strategist, MediaSauce; and Jen Perry, account supervisor, Williams Randall Marketing.