AMA Birmingham

August Power Marketing Luncheon
2015-08-19 11:30 - 13:00 UTC | Screen Shot 2017-05-17 at 9.08.00 AM
Keith Richards – A Passion for Cooking and Community
Keith Richards found his passion for Taziki’s and its Greek inspired menu on a 1997 trip to Greece with his wife, Amy. In 1998, they opened their first restaurant at the Colonnade in Birmingham. Today, Taziki’s has 47 locations in 13 states. Today, he is leading the Birmingham-based fast-casual effort, which was recently ranked by Restaurant Business as 13th on their Future 50 List, as well as being named one of the Franchise Business Review’s Top Franchises in both 2014 and 2015.
Earlier this year, the United States Healthful Food Council (USHFC) announced Taziki’s Mediterranean Cafe’ is the first national franchise to achieve REAL Certification, the emerging national standard for foodservice nutrition and sustainability. Taziki’s is now the largest chain restaurant to complete the certification process.
In building the Taziki’s brand, Keith employs a grass roots marketing strategy to become an integral part of the community. Taziki’s efforts are focused on building genuine relationships to ensure long-term growth, the importance of small businesses supporting their communities and how pursuing passion is the foundation of growing your company.

Learn, Connect, Advance Conference
2015-06-26 | Screen Shot 2017-05-17 at 9.08.00 AM
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About the Event
JUNE 26th, 2015: The Birmingham Chapter of the American Marketing Association is holding their biggest professional development event of the year… ‘LEARN, CONNECT, ADVANCE’ Conference. Featuring 3 keynote speakers and 7 breakout sessions (breakfast and lunch included) this event will feature dynamic programming on a variety of marketing topics, networking opportunities and leadership insights from some of the areas best marketers to keep you and your organization on point.
View The Full Conference Agenda

Be Sure To Attend The Conference After Party!
4:30 – 6:30: Conference Power Networking & Drinks @ Olivia’s
2013 2nd Ave N Birmingham, AL 35203

Members – $65
Non- members – $75
On event day – $85
Students – $35

May Power Marketing Luncheon
2015-05-20 11:30 - 13:00 | Screen Shot 2017-05-17 at 9.08.00 AM
The Sales Gap Model: Creating lift by moving McKinsey’s CDJ theory into a practical, sales driven, marketing process.

Guest Speaker: Sean Doyle, FitzMartin
Sean’s thinking, vision and experience are focused on helping clients truly align marketing and sales with one another and jointly with the customer. The FitzMartin process is linear and can be used to create “rational” buying experiences. This is a major “a-ha” for B2B marketers because it has repercussions for more than just tools but also behavior. It puts marketers in a position of serving as counselors/advisors to sales and across the entire enterprise.
Sean will share his lead tool, a sales gap analysis, and demonstrate how the Sales Gap framework was used by one of the 50 largest banks in the world to create marketing and sales alignment. He also will review the efficacy of marketing tools and sales behaviors and explain how that client created $100,000,000’s in sales (fee, loan and deposit growth) using this process.
Sean will share:

How you can identify barriers to sales
How you can advance your professional marketing skills from “I think that will work” to “this will work because…”
How to collaborate with sales in pursuit of today’s revenue (and management in pursuit of tomorrow’s growth)
A quantitative tool to evaluate sales process and behavior
A quantitative way to evaluate creative and predict its efficacy

As a principal of FitzMartin, Sean is a leading mind and voice on B2B sales and marketing strategy. Particularly adroit at applying the science of behavioral change to sales and marketing communications, Sean drives the team at FitzMartin to focus on the needs of business and business leaders. For over 25 years, Sean has worked with businesses to solve the most pressing sales and marketing challenges: planning, positioning, and branding of course, but also growth initiatives, sales optimization, metrics and analytics, high value hard to reach sales programs, customer experience mapping and design, sales technology integration, sales and marketing leadership coaching, even fractional CMO engagements.
Clients include Georgia Pacific, the Southeastern Conference and BBVA Compass. Sean’s first book, Enabling Profit, is a guide for an executive in charge of marketing but not trained to do it!
Early Birds Register and Pay by Friday Noon May 15: Members $20, Guests $30, Students $10
After Friday Noon May 15: Members $30, Guests $40, Students $15

**Early Bird prices accepted at the door for company checks and students cash.

April Power Marketing Luncheon
2015-04-15 11:30 - 13:00 | Screen Shot 2017-05-17 at 9.08.00 AM
Guest Speaker: Hatton Smith, Royal Cup
Join us as Hatton Smith shares the strategies behind Royal Cup’s two-tiered marketing strategy.
Royal Cup Coffee has built a national brand whose coffee and teas are not sold in stores. The company partners with restaurants, hotels, offices and resorts to develop custom blends of coffee and tea that customers recognize as special and unique. From Highlands Bar & Grill to the Waffle House – they’re serving custom blended coffee and/or tea manufactured exclusively by Royal Cup Coffee.
Fifteen years ago the company began offering its products online through EspresShip.com – an easy and convenient way for home consumers and businesses of all sizes to enjoy coffee-house-quality coffee. Royal Cup also recently introduced a customized Mercedes-Benz Sprinter Van with a complete barista bar outfitted with state-of-the-art brewing equipment, a full graphics wrap, and an exterior pop-up digital flatscreen monitor for images and videos.
Early Birds Register and Pay by Friday Noon April 10: Members $20, Guests $30, Students $10
After Friday Noon April 10: Members $30, Guests $40, Students $15

**Early Bird prices accepted at the door for company checks and students cash.

March Power Marketing Luncheon
2015-03-18 11:30 - 13:00 | Screen Shot 2017-05-17 at 9.08.00 AM
The Next Frontier of Marketing: Human Engagement
Presented by John Gardner, Luckie & Company The proliferation of technology, data and connectivity has accelerated and amplified every aspect of the marketing ecosystem, helping us as marketers optimize all our marketing processes. But, is that good news for the customer? In our zeal to serve up highly optimized propositions, have we gone too far? Statistics show that the effectiveness of marketing has never been lower while the attitudes of consumers toward marketers have never been worse. Have we become our own worst enemy in the pursuit of ROI?
John Gardner recognized the need to set his agency on a new path, to pioneer an approach for his clients that would help them recapture the love and support of their customers.
John calls this revolutionary approach “the human experience” because as humans, we all care about the entire brand experience, not just sales or service. Engagement and response are optimized by what is best for the customer – not for the organization. In this new paradigm, brands must first get much closer to their customers and listen to and engage with them over time and across channels and media.
Join us as John shares the new path he has forged for his agency called “the human experience” and how you might start to think about your marketing efforts in a whole new way that will separate your brand from the herd.
About John Gardner
John Gardner was named president of Luckie in 2013. John has worked with some of the top brands in the country, including Regions, Chick-fil-A, Marriott, Kohl’s, Saks, Disney, Liz Claiborne, AT&T, Nestlé, L’Oréal, Lane Bryant, GlaxoSmithKline, Novartis and Pfizer.

Early Birds Register and Pay by Friday Noon, March 13: Members $20, Guests $30, Students $10
After Friday Noon, March 13: Members $30, Guests $40, Students $15
**Early Bird prices accepted at the door for company checks and students cash.

February Fling
2015-02-26 17:30 - 20:00
Join us for a night of networking with Birmingham’s growing marketing community!

February Marketing Power Lunch
2015-02-18 11:30 - 13:00 | Screen Shot 2017-05-17 at 9.08.00 AM
Digital Storytelling on Steroids: Branded Content Marketing
Guest Speaker: Libby Romano and Lindsey Sims, Big Communications
Join us as Libby and Lindsey share how great stories have the power to create gravity – effortlessly drawing people into brands, whether written, spoken or seen. But if that information isn’t relevant, exciting, timely, and shareworthy, it is a waste of time. Don’t waste time.
Libby Romano, Director of Digital Strategy, and Lindsey Sims, Media Director, played principle roles in evolving Big’s public relations and digital services to meet this new challenge – effectively creating the agency’s content marketing service offerings from the ground up. They’ve been integral in leading the charge on all things content and implementing effective strategies for clients. What started as brand journalism back in 2012 with Big’s Alabama Gulf Seafood and Alabama Department of Commerce campaigns, evolved into a recipe for creating, developing, and delivering compelling branded content. They call it content marketing: digital storytelling on steroids.
Early Birds Register and Pay by Friday Noon February 13: Members $20, Guests $30, Students $10
After Friday Noon February 13: Members $30, Guests $40, Students $15

**Early Bird prices accepted at the door for company checks and students cash.

January Power Marketing Luncheon
2015-01-21 11:30 - 13:00 | Screen Shot 2017-05-17 at 9.08.00 AM
Tackling 100+ Unique Markets Through Effective Communications
Presented by Casey Lassiter- Associate Director of Communications, Healthsouth Corporation
Casey will share how her very small staff, handles communications and marketing for more than 100 hospitals in HealthSouth’s nationwide network.
The hospitals are in very different markets – some in small markets with no competitors while some experience the opposite. This creates a challenge for her team, which acts as a resource and support for all HealthSouth hospitals as well as the corporate office.
The presentation will include details on how they tackle public relations, media relations, crisis communications, creative services, online communications (including social media) and internal communications and marketing from a corporate level while still allowing hospitals to customize their message and marketing.
About Casey Lassiter
Casey Lassiter serves as associate director of communications at HealthSouth Corporation where she is responsible for the company’s external communications including public and media relations for both the corporate office and the company’s nationwide network of more than 100 hospitals in 33 states. In this role, she also serves as the media spokesperson for the company. Many of her current tasks include working directly with corporate leadership to communicate current and trending news for the company that involves media outlets in both the local and national markets. Casey has worked with HealthSouth’s development team and other departments to bring more than ten new hospitals and acquisitions to the HealthSouth network of inpatient rehabilitation hospitals and was part of the team that redesigned the corporate website and the team that redesigned more than 100 HealthSouth hospital websites across the country. Casey’s public relations work on the company’s Amputees Across America program received a Public Relations Council of Alabama Medallion Award and a Public Relations Society of America Award of Excellence Silver Anvil Award.
Early Birds Register and Pay by Friday Noon Jan. 16: Members $20, Guests $30, Students $10
After Friday Noon Jan. 16: Members $30, Guests $40, Students $15
**Early Bird prices accepted at the door for company checks and student cash.

Birmingham AMA Holiday Networking Mixer
2014-12-10 17:30 - 20:00

AMA Coffee Talk
2014-11-20 07:30 - 08:30
Find out why joining AMA is a great value and an important investment in your future! Meet and mingle with both new and long-time AMA members. We want to get know you better and to share with you how AMA membership can benefit your career. Register now so we can reserve space. This is a FREE event!
Looking forward to getting to know YOU!

November Power Marketing Luncheon
2014-11-19 11:30 - 13:00 | Screen Shot 2017-05-17 at 9.08.00 AM
You Don’t Have To Wear Wing Tip Shoes To Be An Entrepreneur
Presented by Bud Cason, Owner, Founder and CEO, Bud’s Best Cookies
Join us as Bud Cason shares with us his story of what it takes to be a successful entrepreneur.
Bud’s Best Cookies is one of the country’s leaders in bite-sized cookie production. Bud’s manufactures several brands of cookies in 30 different flavors and varieties and produces over one million cookies per hour in their Hoover location.
Register by 12 pm November 14: Students $10 Members $20 Guests $30
Register at the door (space permitting): Students $15 Members $30 Guests $40

October Power Marketing Luncheon
2014-10-15 11:30 - 13:00 | Screen Shot 2017-05-17 at 9.08.00 AM
Connecting With Customers
Presented by Michele Elrod, Executive Vice President, Head of Marketing – Regions Financial
Join us as Michele shares with us Regions’ mission, the thrill of creating a new brand and the role of the iconic bike, how Regions is better connecting with customers, and Regions’ commitment to communities through financial education and sponsorships.
Michele Elrod has been a marketing professional for nearly 35 years, 30 of those in the ever-changing banking industry. In her words, “Today, marketing offers more opportunities than ever before to support your company and ensure that marketing is a revenue center.”
She earned her master’s degree from the University of Alabama School of Communication and Information Services, where she was recently recognized as the 2014 Outstanding Alumna in Advertising. The Birmingham Business Journal honored Michele as a top CMO in the 2014 C-suite awards. She currently serves in the University Of Alabama Culverhouse School Of Commerce Mentor Program and is a member of the Culverhouse Board of Visitors.

This event is sponsored by the Exact Target Marketing Cloud. The Exact Target Marketing Cloud from Salesforce is the platform for 1:1 customer journeys, connecting companies with customers in whole new ways. Learn more at exacttarget.com.

Sam Capra will discuss the world’s most powerful 1:1 digital marketing platform, the ExactTarget Marketing Cloud. Learn how it helps you make the most of every customer interaction—creating personalized, cross-channel customer journeys that deliver exceptional brand experiences.

October Networking Mixer
2014-10-02 17:30 - 20:00

September Power Marketing Luncheon
2014-09-16 11:30 - 13:00 | Screen Shot 2017-05-17 at 9.08.00 AM
Marketing Strategies For Companies In Their Early Stages
Presented by Devon Laney, President & CEO, Innovation Depot
Innovation Depot, Birmingham’s high-tech/biotech business incubator, was named Technology Incubator of the Year in 2011 by the National Business Incubation Association. As Innovation Depot’s President and CEO, Devon Laney offers a unique perspective on marketing strategies that can help early stage companies succeed on a limited budget and with limited internal resources. Prior to joining Innovation Depot in 2005, Devon worked on a broad range of marketing, I/T and strategic organizational projects with various Fortune 500 companies as an analyst with Accenture LLP in Atlanta. Previously, Devon worked on the development, redesign and launch of Energen Corporation’s intranet, and also served as the Entertainment Editor for nationally distributed Family Issues Magazine. Devon is the youngest member to ever serve on the Executive Committee of the Birmingham Venture Club, and the organization’s only consecutive back-to-back President. Additionally, Devon serves on the Executive Committees of TechBirmingham and BioAlabama, and he also serves on the Local Advisory Board of BBVA Compass Bank and The Alys Stephens Center Young Patrons Board. Devon is a member of the 2008 inaugural class of Leadership UAB, Leadership Birmingham’s 2010 class, and the Rotary Club of Birmingham. In 2009, Devon was selected as one of Birmingham Business Journal’s “Top 40 Under 40”. Power Networking starts at 11:30 am, Keynote Program is from Noon – 1:30pm REGISTER HERE
