President’s Address
By: Karen Conrad, President, BMA-Milwaukee

Once again, summer is just a warm memory and we can feel the crisp bite of autumn in the air. And of course that means it's time to kick off another new program year for the BMA. I am honored to be this year's President of the BMA Milwaukee Chapter, and look forward to another year of growth and discovery for our organization and our members.

I want to express my appreciation to last year's President, Mike Stefaniak, for his solid leadership in 2007/2008. Mike has left some pretty big shoes to fill and I believe I am up to the task, although I will be trading in his signature marathon-running shoes for a stylish pair of pumps. Mike remains on the Milwaukee chapter board in the role of Immediate Past President and also serves as Vice President, Chapters for BMA International. Thanks Mike for your continued commitment to the BMA.

We have a lot of new faces on our board of directors this year, leading the various committee activities that are instrumental in sustaining our chapter. You can get to know this hard-working group by visiting the BMA Web site by clicking here.

There's never been a better time to be a BMA member. We are the third largest chapter in the nation with almost 300 members strong. We have an outstanding year of events and programs ahead with an awesome line up of nationally recognized speakers, including top executives from Motorola, Kodak, Johnson Controls, CareerBuilder.com and Hard Rock International. Whether you are a college student, young professional, or seasoned marketer, BMA provides unique networking and educational opportunities to help you excel in this fast-paced, technology-driven, business environment. And we continue to set new attendance records at our programs and events, making BMA Milwaukee the place for networking with top B2B marketers.

I hope to see all of you at events throughout the year and look forward to chatting with you in person about how the BMA can continue to provide increased value to our members.

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WOW: BMA – Milwaukee’s 2008-2009
Programming Calendar
By: Joellen Bradach

There was a lot of interest and excitement surrounding BMA- Milwaukee's kick-off event on September 11th featuring Monica Levy of Johnson Controls, Inc. discussing their global re-branding for sustainability . The marketing professionals and students in attendance left the event excited and with information to share with their peers. Those attending BMA – Milwaukee 's events during the 2008-2009 year can expect to experience firsthand creative marketing ideas told in fun stories, and grow their marketing knowledge.

The topics for this year's programs are diverse — word-of-mouth and multichannel marketing, search engine optizimation and brand management to name a few. Many of the topics were generated at a brainstorming session in June open to all BMA members. This year the topics are taken to a compelling level of discussion with nationally recognized speakers such as Spike Jones of Brains on Fire, Eduardo Conrado of Motorola Corp. and Sean Dee of Hard Rock International. As an added value beyond the Featured Dinner Presenter attend the Success Seminars held prior to the dinner program. The Success Seminars are a focused forum to learn practical knowledge that is applicable in real world situations, and discusses how others have solved challenges. The Success Seminars combined with the Featured Speaker provides a comprehensive program at each event with knowledge for attendees at every level, from student to executive.

There are a few surprises in this year's BMA-Milwaukee Program, such as additional lunch programs and a new venue for several programs, the historic Milwaukee Athletic Club. The enhancements also continue in the consistent caliber of our speakers including Jason Ferrara of CareerBuilder.com and Dennis Vicchiarelli - Deputy Executive Director of World Business Chicago. BMA – Milwaukee is able to attract this level of speaker and have him/her genuinely excited about presenting to us because our chapter has the reputation as being a diverse group of marketing professionals that are highly driven to improve their individual and organizational marketing skills and represent a wide range of companies — from small and mid-market to Fortune 500. It's exceptional to be part of a BMA Chapter that attracts executives from leading companies across the country to share their expertise.

The information shared is invaluable and not found on any other program calendar in Milwaukee . If you are looking to network with other professionals in Milwaukee 's B2B marketing community and learn the latest trends, tips and best practices from leading experts, then the 2008-2009 BMA – Milwaukee events are the place for you.

Click here to check out the full event calendar.

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Marketing Six-Pack:
Revitalizing the Traditional Media Kit
By: Jessica Vollrath

A recent article written by David Chatham in Public Relations Tactics highlights the power of the media kit and what makes a media kit effective. Long considered a PR staple, media kits are filled with company information that helps reporters write complete and accurate stories.

Today, traditional media kits have been traded-in for flashy, web-based versions that are posted on a company's Web site. With strong growth in web users and technology, many are asking if traditional media kits are still effective, or are they simply a waste of paper and corporate dollars.

In today's web-based business world, we still use traditional media kits with many of our clients. Web-based media kits can sometimes be difficult to find, hard to print and not user-friendly. Therefore, the key to using traditional media kits is that they must be engaging, organized and timely. With so many companies switching to online media kits, an engaging and effective media kit will stand out among the competition. The following tips will make a traditional media kit effective:

• Create attention-grabbing packaging. A nicely-designed, simple, two-sided pocket folder works best.
• Know the target audience and place important information by relevance. What will your audience want to know first? What will they be looking for? Place those items towards the front of the kit.
• Prepare a fact sheet. This can be used as a “quick glance” read about the product or company.
• Include any recent articles or press releases about the product or company. Put the timeliest information first, that's the information that will be most relevant to reporters.
• Include a business card or point of contact. Also, respond quickly to any requests by the media, as they may be on deadline.
• Make sure all items in the folder have the same design concept. You want all the documents and information in the media kit to fit nicely with the folder design, unifying all of the elements into a consistent identity.

Media kits deliver results that spark news coverage and foster relationships with reporters. Even though traditional media kits can be highly effective, that doesn't mean companies should necessarily terminate their online media kits. Online media kits are valuable for reporters who are already writing a feature story and need extra information to make it complete. Online media kits also give reporters immediate access to the information they need around the clock.

So when considering an online versus traditional media kit, the best solution for many companies is a collaborative approach utilizing both types of kits to generate news coverage and buzz surrounding products and services.

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The Big Swing 6: BMA-Milwaukee Golf Outing
By: James Wolter

The good times, and quite a few golf balls, were rolling at The Big Swing 6, BMA-Milwaukee's annual golf outing on June 23rd at Mequon Country Club.

A sellout field of 216 golfers enjoyed a beautiful day and joined dozens of additional attendees for a fabulous Cajun dinner and networking in a Mardi Gras themed club house. The many incredible raffle and event prizes were awarded to their smiling winners as the evening drew to a close.

The golf committee did an outstanding job of selling all 27 available hole sponsorships, as well as obtaining many other valuable sponsors and set a fund raising record for the organization as well as raising money for BMA student scholarships.

Planning has already begun for The Big Swing 7 so keep an eye on the Golf Page of the BMA-Milwaukee web site for information and sponsorship opportunities by clicking here.

Next Events

November 13, 2008
Success Seminar
SEO Demystified: Unveiling the Secrets to Ranking High
Speaker: Jen Keller of Keller SEO Services of Fullhouse Interactive

Evening Program
HelloMoto: Motorola Puts Its B2B Marketing Online
Speaker: Eduardo Conrado of Motorola Corp.

Click here for more details and to register.

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Recruit a Member – Win PGA Tour Tickets!

BMA International has launched a new membership campaign that offers a chance to win VIP tickets to a PGA Tour event in 2009.

From now until June 1st, BMA members who recruit new members will receive one entry into a drawing for the PGA package. There is no limit as to how many new members you recruit - recruit 10 members, get 10 chances to win!

Get the details here! 

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Save the Date: BMA Bell Awards -
Web 2.0 • April 7, 2009

Mark your calendars for Tuesday, April 7, 2009, to attend the 33rd Annual BMA Bell Awards - Web 2.0, southeastern Wisconsin 's premier B2B marketing awards program.  

If you're not up to speed on Web 2.0, this is your chance! Experience firsthand, this exciting B2B revolution and see how social-networking can enhance your brand.

Sponsorship packages are available -- please contact smarks@xxlmd.com for more information.

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New Members

We would like to welcome the following new members to the Milwaukee Chapter of the BMA:

Sara Banach – Manpower

Chris Campbell – Finn Digital

Nicholas Cutting – Johnson Controls

Curt Denevan – RCB Awards

Michael Dunham – MasterGraphics, Inc.

Karen Elsesser – Karen Elsesser Creative Representation

Cheryl Falk – HK Systems

Lou Freda

Kristan Grote – Magnetek Inc

Amanda Hoffmann – EMTEQ

Brent Kaufman – Fullhouse

Kristie Kay – McDill Design

Mary Jo Kruger – Monarch Creative

Eric Lein – PKWARE

Brad Logsdon – P&H Mining

Andy McKee – Monarch Creative

Thomas McLaughlin – Case Constructions Equipment

Terry Meinhardt – Monarch Creative

Tami Orlando – Monarch Creative

Jaclyn Peters – Mader Communications

Sharon Prill – Journal Interactive

Josh Quinn – Caffeine Communications

Jill Schmidt – Finn Digital

Karen Schwenke – Rexnord Industries

Annette Wagner – Dialog Systems

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Renewed Members

We also thank the following members of the Milwaukee Chapter of the BMA who renewed their memberships:

Mary Lou Bailey – Rockwell Automoation

Scott Baitinger – Mader Communications Group, Inc. 

David Bate – Waukesha County Technical College

Karen Bergquist –   Racine Federated, Inc. 

Joellen Bradach – Image Systems, Inc

Noreen Brooker – Brady Corporation

Elizabeth Brown – Cleaver-Brooks, Inc.

Thomas Brunhart – ROM Squared, Inc.

Ken Brunnbauer  – Rockwell Automation 

Karen Conrad – Johnson Controls, Inc.

Dean Eggert – Eggert Creative Inc

Terry Engle – P&H Mining Equipment 

Dale Fillus – P&H Mining Equipment 

Bill Finn – Finn Digital LLC

Mike Fischer – Plus Digital Print

Matthew Gonnering – Widen Enterprises, Inc. 

Curtis Gorrell – Bader Rutter & Associates 

Tim Grove – Finn Digital LLC

Matt Hamrin – Morgan & Myers 

Bonnie Hoeft – The Novo Group 

Amanda Hoffman – EMTEQ

Dee Jensen – Heritage Quality Printing

Karren Jeske – EMD Chemicals, Inc. 

Carol Kelly – Rockwell Automation

Kris Kepler – Johnson Controls, Inc.

Lori Knapper – Pentair, Inc. 

Gail Koch – Koch Consulting

Joe Konop – Alto-Shaam

Kate Kotecki – Kate Kotecki Writing & Editing Services 

Scott Latus – Image Systems, Inc.

Vicki Lee – PKA Marketing

Chris Lesar – Webcom, Inc. 

Keith Lester – Rockwell Automation 

Eric Lien – PKWARE

James Locatelli – Locatelli Financial Management

Diane Looby – P&H Mining Equipment 

John Mader – Mader Communications Group, Inc.

Andy Mansfield – ANMAN Design LLC

Marvin Mason – C&H Distributors 

Tim Meffert – Proforma Effective Solutions 

John Moebius – Sells Printing Company

Pat Monroe – AEM

Diana Myre – Comstar

Laura Nelson – Nelson Container Corp

Sabrina Nelson – Johnson Controls, Inc.

Julie Olson – I. Level Media, Inc

Kristin Pader – IFS

George Patrick – P&H Mining Equipment 

Maureen Pauley – Johnson Controls, Inc.

Richard Peterson – Avicom Marketing Communications 

Tiff Pua – Finn Digital LLC

Andrea Rawlings – Wisconsin Oven Corporation 

Carrie Reuter – NEAS, Inc.

John Rickinger – Le Poidevin Rickinger Group 

Joette Rockow – University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee 

Richard Rumpel – Sells Printing Company 

Teresa Schell – Plastic Components

Miranda Schield – Vollrath Associates, Inc.

Rich Schmig – Plum, Inc.

Jackie Schneider – Johnson Controls, Inc. 

Chuck Schroeder – Insight Marketing, LLC

Chad Schultz – Innovative Signs, Inc.

Synoilva Shaw – Briggs & Stratton Corporation 

Amy Silver – Milwaukee Electric Tool Corp 

Angela Smith – InPro Corporation

Lisa Stich – Pentair Water 

Steven Stocker – Staples Marketing Communications

John Stolowski – Metso Minerals Industries, Inc. 

Jeff Utschig – Saratoga Communications Inc.

Susan Van Winkle – Milwaukee Area Technical College  

Rick Wagner – Digalog Systems Inc. 

Wyatt Webb – Marketing Images, Inc. 

Stephen Weinstein – Cooper Power Systems 

Jeff Weis – Great Northern Corporation 

Gary Wemmert – Dorner Mfg. Corp.

George Whitely – Stephan & Brady, Inc. 

Michelle Witthun – Yaskawa Electric America, Inc.

Travis Wolf – Finn Digital LLC

Conrad York – Northwestern Mutual

Pamela Zajichek – Abbott

Carey Zimmerman

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To contribute articles or story topics, contact Joellen Bradach at jbradach@imagesystems.biz.