CreateAthon

Keeven White, of White Space Creative, presented a seminar at the last BMA function on partnering with non-profits in the creative world. The main focus of his presentation was how important it is for creative firms to connect with non-profit organizations as an effective way to build business. So many creative agencies are asked to provide "free" services to non-profits every day. Many creative agencies turn the work down because they don't see free projects as being profitable for their organization. I somewhat agreed with this fact until listening to White's take on helping build relationships with non-profits as a way to build profitability through press.

White, in an effort to give back to non-profits, found a manageable approach to helping complete free projects and grow business at the same time -- CreateAthon. CreateAthon began as a local event, founded by RIGGS, a marketing and advertising agency, and has grown to become a national event. The event is held for a 24 hour period, where an agency takes on as many non-profit design projects as they wish, and the designers have complete creative control.

Becoming involved in such an event not only gives the creative teams ultimate control of their designs, it also reels in free press, and boosts team-building. Non-profit organizations benefit from the great work created, and according to White, many of the same organizations come back for more paid projects over time.

All Natural Shampoo and Conditioner

Is your hair dull and listless? Does your hair color fade quickly? Do you pay high prices for the best salon products? As far as I am concerned, you don't need to pay high salon prices for your hair care products. And yes, I was one of those consumers that thought I had to have the best of the best for my precious hair -- until I was given some of the Real Solutions hair care products to try for free from one of my coworkers at Design North.

Real Solutions hair care products are sulfate free. If you google "sulfate" and "hair color" you will see that sulfates are part of the cause of color fading. This line of hair care products also meets all of the "natural" ingredients guidelines. You can find Real Solutions in many food, drug and mass retailers. The SRP is $5.99, and currently, you can find some of the bottles with $1.00 coupons.

As I stated, I have always been picky about the hair products I use, and was purchasing all Redken products. I tried Real Solutions beginning this weekend -- I will never go back to Redken. My hair is more manageable, silky and the color is much more vibrant. I highly recommend giving any of the Real Solutions products a try and tell me what you think.

Graduation

This weekend marked the end of a very long journey for me -- I finally graduated with a BA in Business Management and Communications! I had always been on honor roll throughout grade school and middle school; however, when high school came along I decided life was to be enjoyed and socialized way too much. I somewhat knew what I wanted to do in life after high school, but did not want to put the effort into college. Back in 1991, I began an associates degree at Gateway Technical College in Racine, Wisconsin, and honestly thought I would complete that degree. When I decided to get married and start a family, school was pushed aside. As my children grew older, and I returned to work, I found out real fast how important a degree is if you want to get where you want to be. Almost three years ago, I made the decision to return to school, and was determined to finish a bachelor degree. While raising a family, and working, I finally finished. I attended Concordia University Wisconsin adult education program and loved it! Concordia has two campuses located in Racine and Kenosha for the adult education program.

As an added bonus for my graduation weekend, my nephew graduated from kindergarten, at the West Suburban Montessori School located in Oak Park, IL. So I not only was able to enjoy my walk for my diploma on Saturday, but I also was able to watch my nephew receive his kindergarten diploma on Sunday.

Google Trends

What is Google trends? Simply put it is the most popularly searched terms in Google since 2004 until present. I learned about this cool Google function, from Jennifer Howard, Head of BtoB Markets at Google's Central Region offices, while attending a BMA Milwaukee event this month. Google now lists the most popular daily search trends as well on their site. Fun tool to play around with and something functional for the marketing community.

Favorite Brews

It has been a bit since I blogged about any beers I have enjoyed so now is the time to play catch up. One of my favorite beers is Leinenkugel's Summer Shandy. This is a weiss beer combined with a lemonade flavoring, which is a great combination for a summer beverage. I am sure many of you have tried this brew as Leinenkugel is quite an easy-to-find brand. I generally purchase this beer at a local grocery store or liquor store.

Another microbrew I purchased at Uncorkt, was Abita Purple Haze, which is a raspberry wheat brew. This is definitely a female style beer thanks to the strong raspberry flavor. I would suggest drinking this beer with a light dessert or fresh dinner salad.

My next blog update will be some of my less than favorite microbrews. I would love to hear comments from my readers referencing some of your recommended brews.