MarketSpace recently announced the hire of Jenny Williams, Derek Lisko and Dona Ulakovic.

Jenny Williams

Williams joins MarketSpace as an account executive. She previously spent more than a year at another Pittsburgh-based agency, where she managed accounts for several clients in the healthcare, nonprofit, manufacturing and retail industries. She was also in charge of strategy development and managing the day-to-day activity of the account team.

Derek Lisko

Lisko, who joins MarketSpace as an account executive, previously held the role of new business account executive, also at another Pittsburgh-based agency, where he played in integral role in their new business efforts. Prior to that, he specialized in brand management at an agency in Dallas, consulting for brands including Advance Auto Parts, Auntie Anne’s and Hyundai.

Dona Ulakovic

Ulakovic has assumed the role of receptionist at MarketSpace Communications. Prior to taking on her new role, she spent more than 10 years at the Pittsburgh division of Sysco Food Services as an employee relations assistant.

MarketSpace is also pleased to announce a trio of promotions. Maureen Rooney was promoted from senior account executive to director of account services. On the creative side, Jenessa Kaldorf and Lindsay Polito were both promoted from graphic designers to senior graphic designers.

“Our culture is about promoting from within,” said Pam Peters, president & CEO at MarketSpace. “Our team defines MarketSpace, and their accomplishments are instrumental to the continued growth and success of our company.”

For more information on MarketSpace Communications, visit www.marketspacecom.com.

About MarketSpace Communications

MarketSpace Communications is a branding agency that delivers integrated marketing solutions in a collaborative, eco-conscious environment. In addition to creating and implementing brands, our core competencies include creative services, interactive design and development, public relations and marketing planning and implementation for all media, including social outlets. MarketSpace is a certified Woman Business Enterprise (WBE) in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

www.marketspacecom.com / http://www.facebook.com/marketspace / www.twitter.com/marketspacecom

What comes to your mind when you think of bright, bold china? Fiesta^®, of course! We recently worked with our client Homer Laughlin China, manufacturer of the world-famous and vibrant Fiesta Dinnerware, to redesign their e-commerce website. This site serves as a portal where consumers can make online purchases directly from the Fiesta factory. Our challenge for this top-of-mind brand was to not only make the site more intuitive and user friendly, but to also create a design that would complement the beauty of their brightly colored china. In other words, showcase its functionality and flair!

We answered the challenge by concepting and creating designs and textures that allow the true hero of the site, the china itself, to pop off the page. Additionally, we used their existing back-end e-commerce platform and updated it to provide improved reporting and inventory management, in order to save the organization money in development costs.

The site just launched at the beginning of this month, so check it out for yourself at www.fiestafactorydirect.com and let us know what you think!

We are pleased to share that last week our President & CEO Pam Peters, better known as our fearless leader, received a 2012 Pittsburgh Business Times Diamond Award. The awards program, held at the Lexus Club at PNC Park, recognized Pam and her fellow 14 recipients for their outstanding business leadership in southwestern Pennsylvania.

During Pam’s remarks, she remained her usual modest and grateful self by recognizing her staff and their accomplishments:

“To me, receiving this Diamond Award isn’t just about my business leadership,” said Pam. “Yes, the success of our company is part of that; but, even more so, it’s about our MarketSpace philosophy, our culture and most importantly our associates. MarketSpace is all about our people and their talents, and that’s what helps us grow.”

We couldn’t be any prouder of Pam’s accomplishments and we’d like to take this time to thank her for the amazing environment and marketing powerhouse that is MarketSpace Communications!

At MarketSpace, we’re passionate about all things eco-friendly. Because of our dedication to the environment and love for green marketing, our entire staff has made a pact to better our planet, and this April we invited all of our clients, friends and associates to do the same! In honor of earth day, we widened our GreenSpace initiative to learn what others in the community are doing to make our earth a little greener.

From purchasing recycled glass countertops to eliminating the use of plastic water bottles, we thoroughly enjoyed receiving everyone’s submissions, spreading the word and encouraging others to go green. To sweeten the pot, we even threw in a free gift and a shot at a grand prize. Everyone who submitted a pact received one of our awesome MarketSpace branded eco-friendly jotters. And congratulations to Judi Boren who won the grand prize of organically cultivated herb gardens to make her home a greener place!

But just because the campaign is over, it doesn’t mean you still can’t join the effort. Help MarketSpace encourage eco-friendly behavior by submitting a pact and we’ll reward you by growing your own virtual flower in our GreenSpace garden. Every little bit helps!

The Diamond Award aims to honor outstanding business leaders in southwestern Pennsylvania. The winners are all CEOs or hold the equivalent position within their company or nonprofit organization.

During Peters’ acceptance speech, she described the valuable gamble she took when beginning MarketSpace. “Yes, I was taking a risk,” said Peters. “But it’s so much more than that.

I’ve always had a passion and drive and believed that anything is possible – absolutely anything if you put your mind to it.”

Peters was also sure to attribute the award and her successes to her employees.

“To me, receiving this Diamond Award isn’t just about my business leadership,” said Peters. “Yes, the success of our company is part of that; but, even more so, it’s about our MarketSpace philosophy, our culture and most importantly, our associates. MarketSpace is all about our people and their talents, and that’s what helps us grow.”

Peters started her career in a corporate environment, and from there joined a local advertising agency as a creative director. In October 2005 she founded MarketSpace, which has since grown to more than 20 employees, and is today a flexible, nimble agency leading the way in marketing, technology and green solutions for clients. Peters has guided the agency’s client list to span 30 active clients across the nation, though the majority are still local to the Pittsburgh region, where Pam was born and raised.

Outside of work, Peters dedicates time to a number of local community organizations. She is on the boards of the St. Gregory Centennial Endowment and Butler County Community College, and volunteers on the St. Gregory Super Bingo committee. She also supports the annual Cranberry CUP in Cranberry Township.

MarketSpace is a certified Woman Business Enterprise (WBE) in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

For more information on MarketSpace Communications, visit www.marketspacecom.com. For more information on the Pittsburgh Business Times Diamond Award, visit www.bizjournals.com/pittsburgh.

About MarketSpace Communications

MarketSpace Communications is a branding agency that delivers integrated marketing programs in a collaborative, eco-conscious environment. In addition to creating and implementing brands, our core competencies include creative services, interactive design and development, public relations, and marketing planning and implementation for all media, including social outlets.
www.marketspacecom.com / http://www.facebook.com/marketspace / www.twitter.com/marketspacecom

April 2, 2012 – Cranberry Twp., Pa. – MarketSpace Communications, a full‐service branding agency based in Cranberry Township, was recognized by the Pittsburgh chapter of AIGA, the professional association for design, at its recent PGH365 Design Competition & Exhibition. This year’s annual event, held at Guardian Storage on the evening of March 22, celebrated the city’s best design work and designers.

MarketSpace received a design award from the association for a campaign called “GreenSpace” that the agency developed for its own website. Launched on Earth Day, GreenSpace is a vivid and visually appealing virtual garden where MarketSpace employees and clients can go to make a pact by showcasing their commitments to living a greener lifestyle. The MarketSpace design team illustrated a spring-like outdoor atmosphere with bright, bold colors, and provided interactive elements for site visitors to learn and share eco-friendly knowledge.

“Our agency is thrilled to be recognized by AIGA Pittsburgh for our creative talent, ” said President and CEO of MarketSpace Communications Pam Peters. “We are honored to be acknowledged among Pittsburgh’s finest and to showcase our agency’s commitment to delivering innovative, creative marketing communications that produce solid results for our clients.”

For more information on MarketSpace Communications, visit www.marketspacecom.com. For more information about AIGA Pittsburgh or PGH365, visit www.pittsburgh.aiga.org.

About MarketSpace Communications

MarketSpace Communications is a branding agency that delivers integrated marketing programs in a collaborative, eco‐conscious environment. In addition to creating and implementing brands, our core competencies include creative services, interactive design and development, public relations and marketing planning and implementation for all media, including social outlets.

www.marketspacecom.com/ www.facebook.com/marketspace/
www.twitter.com/marketspacecom

Spring break came early at MarketSpace! Because this year’s trend is bold colors, the hues of bright blues and oranges have been filling our offices since the end of January, when we began concepting and designing creative for the fashion-forward season for our retail client, rue 21.

As the first chance to introduce the spring line, MarketSpace made sure to make an impact with bright splashes of color. Our creative team ate, slept and drank all-things retreat-like (non-alcoholic, of course) as they designed endless elements for the line, including interior signage, exterior signage, logos, window clings and coupons for the national retailer. All of these integral elements feature a call-to-action and price points for in-demand items essential to teens’ spring break 2012 excursions, including dresses, denim, shorts and flip flops.

Aside from inspiring everyone to get spring fever, MarketSpace designed the creative to entice rue’s target audiences with a colorful, lakeside vibe and to achieve the retailer’s goals of successfully introducing the line, increasing sales and driving website traffic. So get out to the stores and enjoy spring break, everyone, because we’re already on to summer!

A well-known nonprofit in the city of Pittsburgh, the Children’s Museum, approached MarketSpace to help execute an important community initiative. Inspired by the Children’s Museum’s MakeShop exhibit, the organization recently launched a campaign to offer micro grants to organizations who work with children and youth to provide meaningful “making” opportunities. The desired end result is to help foster a community of young makers in the Pittsburgh area. However, the Children’s Museum first needed the interactive assistance of MarketSpace’s team of digital wizards.

With multiple organizations involved, numerous anticipated entries and a short time frame, we needed to create a platform to enter submissions, view the entries and allow the public to vote from the ground up. MarketSpace designed a custom back-end online submission form with commenting capabilities, voting functionality, back-end reporting and analytics. We even integrated social media elements to further spread the word about the content and encourage more entries.

Be sure to visit the contest website and check out the user-friendly platform and functionality. And while you’re there, our friends at the Children’s Museum would really appreciate a vote!

Kudos to the creative team at MarketSpace! They have once again produced solid creative work, which has been highly regarded on a national level. Our courageously creative team earned our agency first runner-up status in the Pittsburgh Advertising Federation’s second annual RFPittsburgh.

The creative competition, open to all Pittsburgh Ad Fed members, provides the opportunity for any professional, from a student to a CEO, to get their work in front of some of the nation’s largest and most reputable companies. This year, StarKist Co. issued the challenge to create a full-page print ad that drives awareness and trial of the StarKist pouch line to fitness enthusiasts.

Out of more than 30 entries, MarketSpace designed the eye-catching advertisement with the headline, “Meet your new workout partner.” And in this case, the woman on a weight bench is clearly satisfied with her new workout partner, a protein-packed tuna pouch from StarKist. The ad also touted the product’s high-protein, low-caloric, convenient and flavorful attributes.

As a result of the recognition, MarketSpace will have the opportunity to submit a credentials package to StarKist and we can’t wait to show them our stuff!

Eye-opening creative is a specialty of MarketSpace Communications. So when the Pittsburgh AIDS Task Force (PATF) asked us to help boost awareness and attendance at the organization’s annual benefit by designing promotional event materials such as a postcard, invitation and program to coincide with their annual theme of “Open Your Eyes,” we knew we had the perfect creative solution that would do just that.

The annual event, based around a theatrical theme and entertainment by Broadway musical star, Christine Ebersole, included dinner, drinks and donations. Playing off of the annual slogan, MarketSpace designed captivating event collateral with the theme, “Open Your Eyes to the Stars.” Nailing it on our first shot, the MSC task force delivered PATF with a sophisticated, dramatic, symbolic red and black art-deco design that perfectly reflected the event’s theatrical atmosphere and would surely intrigue and inspire invitees. The client was enthused and thought the designs were a perfect complement to such an important event.

Guardian Protection Services (Guardian) is known for its premier home security products and services. What consumers don’t always realize is that Guardian offers other highly innovative products and services.

For years, Guardian has been partnering with homebuilders to sell all of these products and services to families who are embarking on a new construction project. The printed sales brochure that they were using to communicate their offerings to homeowners was older and not on par with their solutions. So they came to us for help.

Guardian’s goal was simple – update their brochure to better communicate their offerings. However, MarketSpace took the project to the next level while staying within budget and time constraints. To make the medium as innovative as Guardian’s offerings, MarketSpace designed an interactive presentation to be viewed on laptops and tablets during sales meetings. The piece uses high-impact imagery and copy, interactive capabilities such as back and home buttons, and rollover icons that allow the sales team to jump around. All this interactivity facilitates a seamless and robust presentation to Guardian’s key customers, and positions them, even more so, as innovative leaders in respective industries.

Distributed Systems Services, Inc (DSS), a high-tech solutions provider to a variety of industries, recently asked MarketSpace Communications to refresh two of the organization’s websites, the corporate website and the website for the company’s data center hosting solution. With a goal to recharge aesthetics and streamline content management, DSS hoped we could create two websites that would reflect and leverage their tech-savvy IT solutions.

Not only did MarketSpace rejuvenate both websites by implementing a professional, modern design scheme, our designers built the sites in one easy-to-maintain CMS system and created highly targeted, action-oriented content to get the right information in front of the appropriate audiences. The result is a cohesive, amplified, high-tech web presence that reflects the culture and services of the business.

January 27, 2012 – Cranberry Twp., Pa. – MarketSpace Communications, a full‐service branding agency based in Cranberry Township, was recognized by the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) at their 2012 Renaissance Awards. This year’s event was held at the Fairmont Pittsburgh on the evening of January 26, and seeks to recognize area practitioners and organizations for excellence in public relations.

MarketSpace received a Renaissance Award for the strategy and execution of a media relations campaign with a budget less than $20,000. The agency implemented the campaign for their client and creative fireworks display, pyrotechnics and special effects company, Pyrotecnico, to generate awareness surrounding their two-year selection as the sole provider of fireworks at Pittsburgh’s EQT Three Rivers Regatta.

The campaign included the creation and distribution of a series of press releases, company history, spotlight on Pyrotecnico’s technology, heritage video and photos. MarketSpace also identified unique story angles to maximize media coverage, and pitched feature stories to a cross-section of television, print, broadcast and online editors and producers, including local bloggers. As a result, MarketSpace generated extensive media coverage for Pyrotecnico, including more than 40 news segments and articles spanning television, print, online and radio.

“Our agency is thrilled to be recognized by PRSA Pittsburgh for our efforts in public relations, ” said President and CEO of MarketSpace Communications, Pam Peters. “A new offering to our full-service agency this year, we are honored to be acknowledged among Pittsburgh’s finest and showcase our agency’s commitment to delivering innovative campaigns that produce solid results for our clients.”

For more information on MarketSpace Communications, visit www.marketspacecom.com. For more information about PRSA Pittsburgh or the Renaissance Awards, visit www.prsa-pgh.org.

About MarketSpace Communications

MarketSpace Communications is a branding agency that delivers integrated marketing programs in a collaborative, eco‐conscious environment. In addition to creating and implementing brands, our core competencies include creative services, interactive design and development, public relations, and marketing planning and implementation for all media, including social outlets.

www.marketspacecom.com / www.facebook.com/marketspace / www.twitter.com/marketspacecom

January 23, 2012 – Cranberry Twp., Pa. – MarketSpace Communications, a full‐service branding agency based in Cranberry Township, has been named first runner-up in the Pittsburgh Advertising Federation’s second annual RFPittsburgh StarKist® Challenge.

Designed to drive awareness to the StarKist® pouch line by communicating its benefits to fitness enthusiasts, MarketSpace designed an advertisement with the headline, “Meet your new workout partner.” In this case, the new workout partner is not a person – it’s a protein‐packed tuna pouch from StarKist®. The advertisement featured a woman who, sitting on a weight bench smiling, is highly satisfied with the new partner. It clearly touted the product’s high‐protein, low‐caloric, convenient and flavorful attributes.

“Our agency is thrilled to be recognized by an influential brand whose products are staples in cabinets across the nation,” said President and CEO of MarketSpace Communications, Pam Peters. “This acknowledgment is a testament to my team’s ability to create compelling advertising and is a well-deserved, highly regarded recognition for our agency. We’re grateful for the opportunity to have worked for such a respected brand and to be amongst such high‐caliber fellow winners. Pittsburgh is truly a city teeming with creative talent. We thank StarKist® and the Pittsburgh Advertising Federation, and congratulate our fellow winners.”

MarketSpace Communications will have the opportunity to submit a credentials package to StarKist® per the recognition. The agency’s advertisement was amongst 33 other entries submitted this year.

RFPittsburgh is an initiative open to Pittsburgh Advertising Federation members, which provides the opportunity for any professional, from a student to a CEO, to get their work in front of our nation’s largest and most reputable companies.

For more information on MarketSpace Communications, visit www.marketspacecom.com. For more information on RFPittsburgh’s StarKist Challenge, contact Joyce Perhac, executive director of the Pittsburgh Advertising Federation, at joyce@pghadfed.org or 412‐372‐2605.

About MarketSpace Communications

MarketSpace Communications is a branding agency that delivers integrated marketing programs in a collaborative, eco‐conscious environment. In addition to creating and implementing brands, our core competencies include creative services, interactive design and development, public relations, and marketing planning and implementation for all media, including social outlets.

www.marketspacecom.com / www.facebook.com/marketspace / www.twitter.com/marketspacecom

For the first time ever, it was announced in 2011 that 41% of Americans read most of their news online, surpassing newspapers for the first time in history. Online news is second only to television news, which it is also projected to surpass in the near future.

Infographic from the Mashable.com article, “For the First Time, More People Get News Online Than From Newspapers”

Although these figures may seem grim to some, this shift actually increases brands’ chances of landing that ideal feature story. With the creation of thousands of online news sites, blogs and social media networks, in conjunction with traditional print, it creates the perfect storm of new and unique ways to pitch.

The Pew Research Center for the People & the Press supports these findings in a recent study and proves that the digital news age has actually increased readership overall. The source claims, “There are many more ways to get the news these days, and as a consequence Americans are spending more time with the news than over much of the past decade. Digital platforms are playing a larger role in news consumption, and they seem to be more than making up for modest declines in the audience for traditional platforms.”

So although the public relations landscape may be changing, it is growing. It’s critical to adapt to this ever-changing news cycle and become an expert at pitching online sites, niche bloggers and editors through social media.

Kearstin Dwyer

January 17, 2012 – Cranberry Twp., Pa. – MarketSpace Communications, a full-service branding agency based in Cranberry Township, continues its growth with the addition of two new associates throughout December. MarketSpace recently welcomed Kearstin Dwyer and Christina Zimmer and altogether, has added nine associates over the past year.

Dwyer, who joins MarketSpace as a sales account executive, previously spent five years in integrated marketing for PepsiCo advising brands such as Pepsi, Gatorade, Lipton and Tropicana. Kearstin brings her extensive experience with account management, new product launches and the development and execution of cross-promotional marketing campaigns to MarketSpace. She was brought on to maximize business development and client relationships for the agency.

Christina Zimmer

Zimmer joins MarketSpace as a graphic designer. Previously a freelance designer and substitute art teacher in Pittsburgh, Zimmer touts both a bachelor’s in graphic design and a bachelor’s in art education from Edinboro University. Throughout her career, Zimmer has spearheaded a wide range of creative projects from the creation of promotional materials to the development of brand identities.

“We are extremely fortunate to continue to expand at MarketSpace,” says Pam Peters, President and CEO of MarketSpace, “As a result of substantial client and project growth over the past few months, we are able to add tremendous talent and experience to our full-service team.”

For more information on MarketSpace Communications, visit www.marketspacecom.com.

About MarketSpace Communications

MarketSpace Communications is a branding agency that delivers integrated marketing programs in a collaborative, eco-conscious environment. In addition to creating and implementing brands, our core competencies include creative services, interactive design and development, public relations, and marketing planning and implementation for all media, including social outlets. www.marketspacecom.com / http://www.facebook.com/marketspace / www.twitter.com/marketspacecom

There’s no better way to sell a food product than to feature it within a mouth-watering recipe. So that’s what we did for our client Rich’s—frozen food services extraordinaire. We created a 2012-13 recipe calendar, featuring a heap of Rich’s own products, to inspire ideas for new product purchases and use. From Spinach-Stuffed Pizza to Bread Pudding French Toast, each month features a new recipe, along with preparation instructions or tips. Each recipe also features a QR code that links to a video demonstration from the chef.

In addition to handling all aspects of the creative execution of the calendar, MarketSpace also coordinated and art directed the food photography and the chef portraits, as well as the videography for all of the chef videos. The calendars will hang on customer walls from January 2012 through June 2013 to inspire new recipes and motivate new purchases, fulfilling Rich’s appetite for food sales. It doesn’t get more delicious than that.

MarketSpace Communications recently helped our client Legrand relaunch an internal recognition program, the Pursuit of Excellence. With a vision to be the premier choice for electrical and network infrastructure products, systems and solutions, Legrand decided to redesign and relaunch this program to reward employees who make the organizational vision a reality. So we set out to make the creative as excellent as the employees.

MarketSpace Communications created inspirational posters, a brochure and signage to showcase a list of award winners, and a symbolic seal to promote the awards program. All creative was delivered with motivating messaging and design that would emphasize the importance of recognizing fellow coworkers who do exceptional work for the organization.

We’re always eager to help build a new brand, even more so when it’s as elegant as Iron Doors Unlimited. Recently our client asked us to create a capabilities brochure to sell its refined artisan-crafted wrought iron doors to retailers and builders, as well as market its exclusive distributor opportunities. As a newer company, Iron Doors Unlimited needed marketing collateral that would not only accomplish these goals, but also make a strong statement and help build the company’s brand presence.

MarketSpace designed a captivating brochure with a die-cut embellished front cover that illustrates the lustrous beauty and craftsmanship of the product. The brochure, which clearly communicates the company’s core competitive advantages to select target audiences, will help Iron Doors Unlimited carve out a large space in the iron doors market.

The design industry is constantly pushing the boundaries to be current and relevant in today’s quickly changing marketplace. Striving to mark all available canvases, whether print or digital, the field is continually adapting and pushing forward to produce relevant and groundbreaking strategies and artwork.

In a world flooded with smartphones, apps, social networks, eblasts, web banners, QR codes and video, consumers are closer to their favorite stores, restaurants and groups than ever before. The draw of this new viral world is instant satisfaction:

• Click for coupon now
• Check out the latest fashion here
• SALE, today ONLY
• Watch the Fall fashion video now

Consumers are more up to date than ever before.

Companies are also greatly benefiting from this new world, which provides outlets for helpful consumer feedback. With forums such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and the ability to “like,” companies of all shapes and sizes are able to track and gather consumer information that will help them better service and target marketing to their audience’s needs.

At MarketSpace Communications, we understand the importance of reaching consumers through these growing platforms. For example, when asked by our client rue21 to create a Back to School campaign with a viral twist, we were more than up for the challenge.

MarketSpace worked with rue21 to create a comprehensive effort that would not only draw shoppers into their stores with powerful window signage, but would also persuade them to watch videos online.

We created signs with a story for each style of guys and girls denim jeans for the Back to School season. By placing these signs in key areas throughout the store, rue21 was able to track which fashions and areas of the store were visited most by shoppers, and which stories fueled the most interest. On each sign was an enticing teaser as well as a QR code shoppers could scan to watch the video on their smartphone to get the rest of the story. We filmed and edited the :30 videos here at MarketSpace.

By embracing new social platforms, agencies are playing a huge role in the future of social marketing strategies and consumer interaction, as well as offering their clients the irreplaceable power of designing in a social world.