Jenny Brower
Branding and publishing. Marketing and account service. Business development and agency management. Jenny has a long history of doing things in twos, including twin girls and a pair of frisky Rottweilers. She even earned dual degrees from Vanderbilt in Fine Arts and Spanish Literature.
As the head of Mission Control at Mindpower, she uses her powers of duality for the ultimate good, giving clients (and potential clients) twice the mindpower. When Jenny’s not helping clients double their profits, you’ll find her enjoying the in-town cultural scene with her husband and daughters.
The Call for Papers is open for the 2010 Symposium for the Marketing of Higher Education. If you’ve attended in the past, you know what a fabulous conference this is. Over the years, we’ve participated as both attendees and presenters and have gotten a lot out of both experiences. This year, the conference will be held in always-sunny San Diego, so that’s extra incentive to attend!
If you have a session idea, please share it. For information on proposal submisisons, go to: call for proposals. This is the first year the Symposium is accepting video submissions (how cool is that?), so give it a whirl if you can. Nothing fancy, just you talking for 2 to 3 minutes about your session idea. The Call for Papers closes on April 9th, so please get your submission in soon.
I’m pleased to announce that I’m a member of the conference steering committee, so if you have any questions, don’t hesitate to reach out.
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Posted by Jenny Brower on March 24, 2010 at 10:52 am
Filed under: Conferences, Events & Presentations
Last Saturday (the day before Valentine’s Day), I decided to run out and buy a book for my valentine. We live close to two bookstores – the ubiquitous Barnes & Noble and the locally-owned Bound to be Read Books . As much as I knew B&N would have the book I’d was trying to find, I was compelled to first visit Bound to be Read Books, even though the book is new and they’re a mostly used bookstore. Aside from the obvious reason (they’re independently owned), why do you think I decided to visit Bound to be Read first? It’s because they always make their customers feel special and each visit is unique.
Here’s a list of what they did last Saturday to create a positive customer experience:
1) They were serving complimentary hot cocoa (my favorite) on a snowy Atlanta day.
2) They were offering $5 off any used book with a new book purchase. (I got “The Death of Artemio Cruz” by Carlos Fuentes for 95 cents.)
3) They were playing a fill-in-the-blank game on their chalk board – asking each buying customer to guess a letter of the book of the day.
4) They gave me a list of upcoming events and encouraged me to attend.
5) They said “Happy Valentine’s Day!”
Simple, cost-effective ways to keep customers coming back. Not only did they have the book I was looking for (“Just Kids” by Patti Smith), but they made the entire shopping experience delightful from beginning to end.
Their approach can be used by just about any organization. Give your customers an experience that sets you apart from your competitors and is true to your brand. You can’t always offer the most services or programs, the best amenities or the most sophisticated technology. But you can offer an experience that is authentic, memorable and joy-filled.
So, next time you’re in East Atlanta Village, stop by Bound to be Read Books and show them some love!
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Posted by Jenny Brower on February 17, 2010 at 3:23 pm
Filed under: Branding, Ramblings
Tags: Barnes & Noble, Bookstores, Bound to Be Read Books
Starbucks has received accolades and criticisms aplenty for its “My Starbucks Idea” program. My vote? I’m a fan. I’m not even a super-consumer. I’m barely a coffee drinker by most standards. But I appreciate when an organization opens itself up to its public. Starbucks has more Facebook fans than Coca-Cola. That’s quite a feat considering Coke’s history as the world’s greatest brand (yes, we’re Atlantans)!
Keeping tabs on “My Starbucks Idea” is fun. Starbucks knows they can’t make everybody happy – but that’s not the point. The point is active engagement. This concept shows that the Starbucks brand management team understands both the role of the influencer and the power of social media. They know that if you’re going to invest time, energy, and financial resources into social media, you shouldn’t treat it as another box to check off on your marketing or PR “to do” list.
We all know social media is the hot topic right now. It’s easy to feel overwhelmed when it comes to developing – and then carrying forward – a social media plan. But it doesn’t have to be so daunting. And that’s what makes “My Starbucks Idea” so great. It’s simple. And it shows they care about what their customers and partners think.
So, how are you using social media to converse with your constituents? Have you identified key influencers in your market (or in the direction you want to move)? Have you successfully engaged them? Is social media an afterthought for your organization or has it been fully embraced?
Starbucks understands that the more individuals they inspire to be brand champions, the more their longevity as a market leader is secured. And their approach to social media fully supports this. If you’re looking for inspiration for your social media strategy (and how it can feed your overall growth strategy), check out what they’re doing. And if you have other examples to share, we’d love to hear them!
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Posted by Jenny Brower on December 14, 2009 at 11:42 am
Filed under: Brain Candy for Health, Brain Candy for Wealth, Brain Candy for Wisdom
Tags: Coca-Cola, Facebook, Starbucks
We’ve all read umpteen articles and blog posts on how online education is transforming the college and university landscape. I was reading this very one today: Will online education kill the university?. Despite its scary title – it actually paints a positive picture. One where colleges and universities figure out how to use the power of the internet to their advantage – by accessing more students, delivering more reusable content online, and generating new revenue streams (yes, most schools will experience growing pains as they figure out how to do this).
Online programs are expanding at a rapid pace and we might be getting close to a tipping point – where more schools offer a wide array of online programs than don’t. Programs that don’t required ever stepping foot on campus.
This transformation means brand-building is more important than ever. If you haven’t nurtured your brand in a while, it’s high time to think about it. With a strong, thriving brand, combating the competition becomes easier. With the adoption of more and more online programs, the competitive field expands, and as it expands, the importance of brand reputation increases.
My two cents? Don’t start thinking about it after your competition does – be the leader and have them chasing you.
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Posted by Jenny Brower on September 21, 2009 at 9:30 am
Filed under: Brain Candy for Wisdom, Branding
Have you heard about “The Rescue”? It’s a grassroots organization aimed at shining a spotlight on the humanitarian emergency — invisible children — occuring in Uganda. Uganda is facing Africa’s longest running war (23 years) with the LRA (Lord’s Resistance Army) led by a man named Joseph Kony. To make his point to the Uganda goverment he abducts children in middle of the night and turns them into child soilders. That’s the short version.
The team organizing “The Rescue” is using a similar marketing approach to that used by the Obama campaign. In a carefully orchestrated way, they are using text-messaging, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, email, promotional gear and word-of-mouth to build buzz and share information about their cause.
A favorite blogger of mine, Rohit Bhargava, studied how “The Rescue” organizers are harnessing the power of viral marketing and even developed a slideshow entitled “8 Marketing Lessons: The Rescue Of Joseph Kony’s Child Soldiers Campaign” to illustrate their smart approach. Rohit developed this presentation because he appreciated the organizers’ marketing savvy. A savvy marketer himself, he also knew that by sharing his commentary on their marketing tactics, he could help them reach an even broader audience.
If you’re searching for good examples of how to develop an integrated viral marketing campaign, spend some time studying “The Rescue” effort. Now, let’s hope their good work made a difference.
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Posted by Jenny Brower on April 28, 2009 at 2:10 pm
Filed under: Brain Candy for Health, Brain Candy for Wealth, Brain Candy for Wisdom
Email is not the best vehicle for sending college acceptance notifications. Just ask UC San Diego and other schools that have made the same error over the years. There is a certain beauty to receiving the “old fashioned” formal acceptance letter in the mail. It might be more costly, but it’s still classy.
We’re always working with clients to maximize their marketing budgets. And, at times, it makes sense to move a certain iniative online, and save on print production and postage. It’s more efficient and, depending on its purpose, can be as effective. All that said, please use traditional mail — or a personal phone call — in place of email when sending life-changing correspondence. No one wants to be a heartbreaker simply because the wrong button was pushed.
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Posted by Jenny Brower on April 3, 2009 at 6:45 am
Filed under: Brain Candy for Wisdom
Last week, I had a conversation with a prospective client about his plans for launching an exciting new project. It’s a great big project and amidst all the economic doom and gloom we’ve experienced lately, hearing about it was like a ray of sunshine. He had the option of putting the project on the back burner and waiting out the recession or going for it – in the process creating new jobs, good news and hope.
I’m always delighted to encounter another recession buster. And this gentleman was just that. Someone willing to move forward with a great idea. Whether it means starting a company, launching a project, hiring someone, or even kicking off a new ad campaign. Some days you have to look hard for it, but there is good news out there.
At some point, the tide will turn, and when it does, organizations that made smart, bold moves during this downturn are the ones that will emerge as market leaders when the economy begins its ascent.
So, recession busters unite! The game might be a little different now, but the greatest leaders are ones who rise up in the face of adversity.
Are you a recession buster? We’d love to hear your story.
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Posted by Jenny Brower on April 1, 2009 at 6:18 am
Filed under: Brain Candy for Health, Brain Candy for Wealth, Brain Candy for Wisdom, Ramblings
Tags: marketing, recession
Last night, I was having a conversation with my dear friend, Terry, about the value of a liberal arts degree versus a vocation-specific degree (in between dishing dirt and making plans to meet for dinner). Terry has a degree in English and is now a highly-regarded interactive designer. He mentioned that when he was in college, the internet didn’t exist as it does today, so he certainly had no idea his career path would take him to where he is now. After years of wearing other hats in the communications field, his curiosity led him to focus his talents on interactive media. As we’ve all likely read, many college students today will wind up in jobs that don’t yet exist. Terry’s path certainly illustrates that.
This powerful point makes the case for the liberal arts. Liberal arts degrees get a bad rap from time to time — recently being called a luxury for the wealthy. But I agree with folks like Dartmouth’s retired president, James O. Freedman, who said that the liberal arts can prepare a student for serious employment better than vocational training alone. And, considering the global crisis we’re experiencing, is there not a better time to study cause and effect? To study the history of humanity? To increase our knowledge of other cultures and beliefs? To learn the art of persuasive communication?
Don’t get me wrong, vocational training is important, too. It just serves a different purpose. I’m all about options when it comes to education. We need to collectively remember that liberal arts studies can open the mind to all types of possibilities — and help increase the level of understanding among peoples — which is precisely what we need more of right now.
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Posted by Jenny Brower on March 17, 2009 at 10:05 am
Filed under: Brain Candy for Wisdom, Ramblings
Tags: college degree, education, interactive design, Liberal Arts
Governors State University is promoting a cool concept on its website homepage. It’s called “Why Not?”. The GSU administration is soliciting improvement ideas from students, faculty, staff and community members, and then selecting “winning ideas” each trimester. Ideas are submitted through a website form that lets you select a specific category — from marketing to parking to facilities to financial aid — and then state your issue/concern/problem needing improvement and your proposed solution.
This idea reminded me of the Starbucks program “My Starbucks Idea” that asks for account members (it’s easy to sign up) to submit ideas for the company to implement. GSU could take a page from the Starbucks playbook by providing more transparency, meaning Starbucks lets members actually see all ideas posted and then give a “thumbs up” or “thumbs down” depending whether they think an idea is worthy of consideration or not.
Using the web to spark conversation and engage the community in improvement and growth initiatives is a fantastic concept. Both GSU and Starbucks should be commended for their approach.
We’d love to know if anyone else is doing something like this and any success stories you have to share!
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Posted by Jenny Brower on March 16, 2009 at 9:45 am
Filed under: Brain Candy for Health, Brain Candy for Wealth, Brain Candy for Wisdom, Ramblings
Tags: Governors State University, Starbucks
In December 2008, CollegeClickTV surveyed 2,000 freshmen on 50 college campuses about their level of satisfaction with their college choice. 56 percent reported dissatisfaction with some aspect of their college decision. Reading this took me back to my freshman year at Vanderbilt. If I had been surveyed in December of that year, I would have likely said that I might transfer to another institution. My first semester grades were less than stellar (due to not listening to my advisor when he told me I was in over my head with my selection of courses). I had decided to take on two foreign languages along with my other coursework. One of them being Japanese. In the end, my only decent grade that semester was Japanese. It was so overwhelming, that it took up almost all of my study time. Between disappointing grades and adjusting to a new environment, I was most certainly less than enthusiastic about my college choice. And then everything changed. I made wonderful friends and identified majors I loved (Spanish and fine arts). Transferring would have been a huge mistake.
So, I challenge CollegeClickTV to go back to those same 2,000 students 2 to 3 years from now to see how they would respond about their level of satisfaction. My guess is that many would say they were happy they persevered through freshman year. Of course, careful research is key to identifying the right fit for each prospective student, but sometimes, even if the college does ultimately prove to be the best option over the long haul, that first semester can be rather trying. As college marketers, it is our job to ensure that the information students are using to make their selection is authentic to the institution, so that each student finds the school that best suits them. All that said, I have to give Vanderbilt kudos for sending me a video (yes, a VHS tape) that captured the essence of the institution and encouraged me to apply. I based my decision to apply on the print materials and the video they sent to me. I never visited campus before moving into the dorms. I crossed my fingers the entire drive up to Nashville that what I had read and seen did accurately portray the school. And, lucky for me, it did. It just took me a semester to find my groove.
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Posted by Jenny Brower on January 22, 2009 at 3:30 pm
Filed under: Brain Candy for Wisdom, Ramblings
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