It’s no secret that I love food … so it’s only natural that my love for food gets a home on Facebook and Twitter, and eventually on its own blog, too … it’s called NomNomist. My vision for NomNomist is that it becomes a community for food lovers who may not necessarily be gourmet chefs. Real people who like real food and who want to try new things and learn more about cooking. So without further delay, here is the newly unveiled NomNomist logo, created by our very own Eric Oltersdorf. It’s another home run IMHO. 🙂
Austin, Texas — Jenna Oltersdorf, principal of Snackbox, an Austin-based public relations and design firm, has been selected by Leadership Austin for the 2010 Emerge class.
“Being involved in the community both as a volunteer and as a leader is an important part of any professional’s career,” said Jenna Oltersdorf, principal, Snackbox. “It is with great honor that I participate in this year’s Leadership Austin Emerge class.”
In addition to Leadership Austin, Oltersdorf is a vice president of the Austin Chapter of the National Ovarian Cancer Coalition, a board member for The HeartGift Foundation, and is a volunteer for The Long Center’s Catalyst 8.
About Snackbox
Snackbox, a public relations and design firm, was launched in Chicago in 2006 and moved to Austin, Texas in fall 2009. Created by Jenna Gruhala Oltersdorf and Eric Oltersdorf, the firm boasts a network of experienced and talented professionals spanning the United States. Clients range from local businesses to international companies. For more information visit www.snackbox.us.
Snackbox Named Social Media Agency of Record by the Sewing Supplies Division of the Bernina Textile Group
Austin, Texas — Snackbox, an Austin-based public relations and design firm, has won social media assignments for the Sewing Supplies Division of the Bernina Textile Group, based in Aurora, Illinois.
“Bernina is an iconic brand in the crafting industry and we are tremendously honored to be a part of the future of the Sewing Supplies Division of the Bernina Textile Group,” said Jenna Oltersdorf, principal, Snackbox.
The Snackbox team will handle creating and managing social properties for the company as well as strategic media outreach.
About Snackbox
Snackbox, a public relations and design firm, was launched in Chicago in 2006 and moved to Austin, Texas in fall 2009. Created by Jenna Gruhala Oltersdorf and Eric Oltersdorf, the firm boasts a network of experienced and talented professionals spanning the United States. Clients range from local business to international companies. For more information visit www.snackbox.us.
Austin, Texas — Jenna Oltersdorf, principal of Snackbox, an Austin-based public relations and design firm, has been appointed vice president of the National Ovarian Cancer Coalition’s (NOCC) Austin chapter.
“After moving Snackbox from Chicago to Austin this time last year, I’ve worked hard to acclimate myself with my new hometown and work to make a difference,” said Jenna Oltersdorf, principal, Snackbox.
In addition to NOCC, Oltersdorf is also a board member for The HeartGift Foundation and is a volunteer for The Long Center’s Catalyst 8.
About Snackbox
Snackbox, a public relations and design firm, was launched in Chicago in 2006 and moved to Austin, Texas in fall 2009. Created by Jenna Gruhala-Oltersdorf and Eric Oltersdorf, the firm boasts a network of experienced and talented professionals spanning the United States. Clients range from local business to international companies. For more information visit www.snackbox.us.
By guest blogger Amanda McGuckin Hager of
GoMarket.me
Amanda@GoMarket.me
I recently sat in a 5th grade lesson on the life of Pioneers along the Oregon Trail. It reminded me that humans have long been leveraging the strengths of individuals for the greater good of the community. In fact, it is nothing short of an ancient concept.
It also happens to be the core concept of my Marketing mentoring site GoMarket.me, where we invite senior-level Marketers to share their experience, learnings and suggestions with our audience of Marketing students and newbies.
Imagine it as a cycle: senior-level Marketers get to be senior-level through experience, successful Marketing efforts and networking. They are born and nurtured in the community of Marketers. By contributing their experience, they help to grow and nurture the next generation, who grow to be senior level Marketers. The cycle repeats.
In using this as our foundation, we give to the community at large; we leverage the strength of individuals and we complete the cycle of sharing.
There is a power and a grace in this cycle that results in everyone benefiting: the author benefits with exposure; audience benefits with knowledge, and the site benefits with traffic.
For example, one such guest post, “What is Press Release Worthy” by Jenna Gruhala Oltersdorf, drove site traffic up over 420%, as the author is a senior level marketer widely known in her field, and in her community. When she mentioned her contribution, others picked up on it and it spread like wildfire.
These metrics reinforce the core essence: there is power and grace in community.
You love your significant other, right? And you enjoy your evenings and weekends together … but how would you feel if you spent 24 hours a day, seven days a week together? Could you do it?
Eric and I launched Snackbox together back in the fall of 2006 and more times than not, when I tell someone my husband is my business partner, I get the funny eye followed by a series of questions. People are more amazed than not that we could spend all day, every day together. But what makes our relationship successful both on a professional and personal level is that we met at work. We’ve worked together during our entire relationship together and the advantages outweigh the disadvantages.
Whether you’re considering the possibility of starting a business with your significant other or just planning to tackle a big project at home, here are some of our tips for keeping things happy:
1. Separation of church and state. Work stays in designated work spaces (for the most part) and life happens elsewhere. We each have our own room that serves as our office space. We can go hours without seeing each other if the day is super busy and we actually talk quite a bit over instant messenger (I know, it’s silly. But it works!)
2. Clearly define each other’s roles. We’re at an advantage because we know each other well. We know each other’s strengths and weaknesses and it’s easy to designate who will do what in each project.
3. Know when it’s time to take a break. So I may have exaggerated a bit when I said we are with each other 24 hours a day, seven days a week. It’s important to get out and do your own thing, especially when you’re working with each other. It gives you both time to yourself and allows you to have your own individual experiences… something to talk about at the dinner table later that evening.
4. Don’t take advantage of the relationship. During business hours, our relationship is that of a creative and an account executive or a CFO and CEO … you get the idea. We’re constantly playing the roles of someone within an agency. After five o’clock (sometimes earlier in the day, sometimes later), we go back to being husband and wife. It’s okay to mix personal and professional during the day, but try to keep them as separate as possible.
5. Be supportive. We’re each other’s biggest cheerleaders and I think that’s why we’ve been so successful. You want to see each other succeed in general and when it comes to your business, you want it even more. Eric knows me well enough to realize when I need a hug and he’s always there to tell me I’m kicking butt. You keep each other level headed and uplifted.
As a married couple working together, I think we have it down to a science. We have a happy marriage and Snackbox has doubled in revenue each year of its existence. We’ve certainly had our share of ups and downs, but it’s all in how you look at it. We’re always working to learn the lessons (and learn them well!) so we can move on and do better the next round (and there is always a next round).
Happy Valentine’s Day SnackFans!
This month we learned that Jenna has been nominated for the Texas Social Media Awards. The nominees will be reviewed by a panel of judges. The judges will look at social media links provided, the nominee’s bio as well as comments posted by readers. To add your own comment or to read the comments that have been posted on Jenna’s page, click here. To learn more about the Texas Social Media Awards, click here.
In 2009 the Snackbox design division had the honor of working with Northland Bordeaux. Our tasks were great: Redesign www.northlandbordeaux.com for better backend usability, increase standings in Google and asisst with the site’s copy. We took on all three asks and are very proud of the end result.
Completely unsolicited and unexpected, we received a very nice note from Mark McElderry, Northland Bordeaux co-owner …
Hey guys,
We continue to get very positive comments on our website along with continued increases in traffic and inquiries. I don’t attribute it simply to the attractive layout of the site, but to the research, thought, strategy and design work that you put into it.
I just checked our Google rankings as well, and we have moved up substantially for many of the search strings that are important to us. I really think the quality of our customer prospect calls is improved as well. Who knows, maybe the impression made by the site is almost intimidating to some – like, “We probably can’t afford puppies from that caliber of kennel!” Not to pat ourselves on the back, but we want to credit you for giving us a very positive presence on the web…
Thanks again,
Mark
Thanks for the kind words, Mark! It was truly a pleasure to work with you and Cindy and we love visiting your blog! Great work!
Today, just three short years ago, Eric and I established Snackbox LLC as an Illinois corporation. After I left Edelman Chicago, we decided it was time to start our own place. Our first public relations client was Agility Recovery Solutions based in Charlotte, N.C. and our first design client was Crosland, also based in Charlotte, N.C.
Just six months after I became a full-time Snackbox employee, Eric left his creative director position at a Chicago ad agency to become full-time Snackbox as well. Soon after becoming fully committed to growing our firm, I found myself in a public relations pitch for the Chinet disposable tableware business, up against two other agencies, one of which was Fleishman-Hillard (one of the largest PR firms in the world). Our passion, smarts and creativity came through loud and clear in that pitch and we WON our first international client.
Over the course of the past few years, we have seen a lot of changes in both our business and the industries in which we practice. Journalists are experiencing lay offs left and right, social media is growing by leaps and bounds and ad agencies find themselves struggling.
This year marks the biggest amount of change that we’ve experienced to date, but the knowledge we’ve gained makes us stronger, smarter and better. After moving our “world headquarters” to Austin, Texas, we’re optimistic about our new home, connections and friends. We are working with some incredible partners and have shed the dead weight (I’m linking to the definition, not the actual examples in an effort to be the bigger person).
Thank you to all who have supported us – the success of Snackbox depends on you through your business, referrals, dedication and service. Happy Snackiversary!
Check out this piece written by our favorite professional speaker and author Thom Singer: Relocating to a New City? – Twitter Can Pave the Way!
You can follow Thom on Twitter at @ThomSinger and Jenna at @JennaSnacks