Events

Connect Over Cocktails | Thursday, February 9, 2012

American Marketing Association (AMA) is teaming up with the Association for Women in Communications (AWC).

Need an excuse to get out of the house for a few hours? Or, looking for a way to meet other marketing & communications professionals? Grab your business cards and join the AMA and the Association for Women in Communications – Austin Chapter for the first “Connect over Cocktails” event of the year! We’re co-hosting this event with the AWC Austin Chapter Thursday, Feb. 9 from 6 to 8 p.m. at Casa Chapala, 3010 W. Anderson Lane, Austin, TX 78757.

Events are free to members and $5.00 non-AMA members. You get two great associations for the price of one. Sign up now as space is limited.

Register @ http://www.cvent.com/d/xcq9hj

When:
Thursday, February 9
6 to 8 p.m.

Where:
Casa Chapala
3010 W. Anderson Lane
Austin, TX 78757

SIG Roundtable: Market Research | Tuesday, February 14, 2012

The Focus Group Turns 70
The focus group method turns 70 years old this year and though the process has morphed over the years—from the lab to the living room, the mall , the elaborate office suite, the telephone, and now the web—its value as a method that brings us closer to the customer persists. So, just what is a focus group? Who uses them? When are they used? Where are they done? What do they tell you? Where do the find the people to be in them? All this and more.

So Join us for the Marketing Research topic of the Quarter— Focus Groups. And where else but at an actual focus group facility, one-way mirror and all.

Sponsor – Tammadge Market Research www.Tammadge.com
Event will be held at their facility at 210 Barton Springs Road, Suite 515
Coffee and breakfast provided.
Directions

Facilitator: Dave Roberts, PhD., Customer Research International
Dave Roberts, PhD heads up CRI’s full service business overseeing methods and analytics. Dr. Roberts has designed, moderated, and analyzed over 4,000 focus groups since 1979.

Register @ http://www.cvent.com/d/4cq9bl

Where: TBA
Networking: 7:30 – 8:00 am
Program: 8:00 – 9:00 am

Free to members
$20 for non-members

February Power Luncheon: I’m Better Than You Are! – How To Take a Premium Position in the Marketplace | Thursday, February 16, 2012

I’m Better Than You Are! You have a product or a service. It’s a premium offering to your customers and prospects. But is your product or service really better? How you do get the marketplace to a perceived value that’s greater than your competition. Come learn how to Take a Premium Position in the Marketplace from Gerardo A. Dada, Head of Product Marketing at Rackspace Hosting.

Attendees will learn:

Breaking away from the pack in a commoditized market
Three market strategies for market leadership
Developing a premium positioning strategy

About Gerardo A. Dada, Rackspace
Gerardo A. Dada is an experienced technology marketer with over 15 years of driving business strategy and product marketing for leading technology companies including Rackspace, Bazaarvoice and Vignette/OpenText. Before that he was Director for worldwide developer marketing and community at Microsoft and led mobile developer programs and tools marketing at Motorola.

Gerardo is an expert in product marketing, online strategies, social marketing and enterprise software. He has written for leading business and technology publications around the world and is a frequent speaker at industry events. Gerardo is the author of the blog www.theAdaptiveMarketer.com and is on twitter @gerardodada

Register @ http://www.cvent.com/d/scq9b9

Date and Location:
Cool River Café
4001 West Parmer Lane
Austin, Texas 7872

February 16, 2012
11:30 am to 1:00 pm.

Early Registration Pricing – good until 2/15/2011:
Members and Student Members: $25
Non-members: $40

After 2/15/2011 at noon, regular pricing applies:
Members and Student Members: $35
Non-members: $50

Power Exchange Conference 2012 | Thursday, February 23, 2012

The AMA is proud to be a part of the Power Exchange Conference – San Antonio. Come ignite your brand and learn how experiential marketing and social media strategy can grow your business and event participation.

Listen, learn and engage with marketing heavyweights such as:

Eric Ly – Co-founder of LinkedIN and CEO of PresdoMatch

Rick Calvert – CEO and co-founder of Blogworld and New Media Expo

Stephen Nold – Tradeshow News Network

Gary Hoover – Pioneer of book superstore BOOKSTOP. Founder of Hoover’s and Hoover’s World.

Darlene Kirk - Brand strategist and founder of Kirk Marketing Solutions, LLC.

Understand the most promising Consumer Trends, insights & related hands on business ideas with our 2012 Consumer Trends orientation.

Registration and more information:

For Registration Information visit kirkmktgblog.com.

For Group Sales or Sponsorship Contact Chris Anderson at chris@kirkmktg.com.

SIG Roundtable: Marketing Strategy | Tuesday, February 28, 2012

Building a Consistent Marketing Strategy: Integrating ALL Elements of the Marketing Mix A consistent marketing strategy will help your company dominate your chosen market. In this session, we will explore the interactions between the various elements of your marketing mix, including:

Product / services offering
Pricing strategy (including discounting practices)
Promotional messages across all media / channels
Sales channels / distribution strategy

This session promises a lively and thought-provoking discussion.

Dan Klopp – Sign Satisfaction, Inc.
LinkedIn Profile: http://www.linkedin.com/in/danklopp

Dan is an entrepreneur and business executive with a strong academic and experiential background in Marketing Strategy and Tactics. Before starting his current company, Dan was a marketing executive with several Fortune 500 companies, leading several product lines to market dominance. Dan holds an undergraduate degree in Physics from Millersville University, an MBA from Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business, and further post-graduate work in marketing at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of Business. In addition, Dan teaches business & marketing at the undergraduate and graduate level for a couple of accredited universities.

Register @ http://www.cvent.com/d/scq9b0

Where:
Waterloo Icehouse
1106 W 38th St.
Austin, TX 78705

Networking: 7:30 – 8 a.m.
Program: 8 – 9 a.m.

Free to members
$20 for non-members

Help Us Support The Community | Saturday, March 3, 2012

Ready to roll up your sleeves? Join Austin AMA as we sort food for the Capital Area Food Bank of Texas on March 3 from 9 am – 12 pm.

This is the launch of our Volunteer for Austin project, where we organize on-site volunteer opportunities for local nonprofits in order to give back to the community. Family and friends are welcome to volunteer, including children over 8.

RSVP by emailing Melanie.brenneman@gmail.com.

Not able to volunteer? Bring canned food donations to our Feb. 16^th luncheon and we’ll deliver them to the food bank for you.

What:
Austin AMA Volunteer for Austin project benefitting the Capital Area Food Bank of Texas

When:
Saturday, March 3
9 am – 12 pm CT

Who:
Anyone interested in helping their community, including family, friends and children over the age of 8.

Where:
Capital Area Food Bank of Texas, 8201 S. Congress Ave., Austin, TX 78745

RSVP:
RSVP to Melanie.brenneman@gmail.com. Please include the names of all volunteers who will be attending and contact information.

About the Capital Area Food Bank of Texas
In its 31st year of service, the Capital Area Food Bank of Texas (CAFB) provides food and grocery products to more than 300 Partner Agencies in 21 Central Texas counties.

SIG Roundtable: Sales & Marketing | Tuesday, March 13, 2012

Lead Nurturing: Profitable hand off between marketing and sales Lead nurturing can allow your sales team to be more efficient by letting them focus on qualified “ready-to-buy” leads. Done well, lead nurturing will also affect your quote-to-close ration and average order size. We will discuss:

What are the best practices for effective lead nurturing?
What are the sales versus marketing responsibility in lead nurturing?
Why the marketing mindset creates conflict with sales in lead management.
What can you do to make lead nurturing more effective for your organization.

Look forward to a lively discussion!

Richard Balius – Sales Management Academy
LinkedIn: http://www..linkedin.com/in/salesmanagementacademy<http://www.linkedin.com/in/salesmanagementacademy>
Twitter: @rbalius

Richard is skilled in helping business leaders with all aspects of sales management including selecting sales people, effective sales conversations, territory development and establishing metrics for the team. Richard has performed over 700 one-to-one coaching sessions with CEO’s and sales managers and had involvement in training over 500 sales professionals at companies like Astra Zeneca, J.M. Smuckers, TimeWarner, and Myriad Genetic Laboratories. Richard is has been a facilitator for The Alternative Board (TAB Austin) for 7 years and is committed to the Austin Business Community.