"ama houston"

Social Media is not "Crystal" Clear for AMA Houston

We had no idea what to expect. Kayleigh Kannady and I were super excited to be considered a finalist for the AMA Crystal Awards and were ready to accept our prize.  My stepdad said, "When I heard Rachel had been nominated, it never occurred to me that she wouldn't win!" Thank you sir, I take that as a compliment!

Marketing Campaign - Medium Budget ($25,000-$150,000)

Winner: Atos Origin
Atos Origin in the Spotlight

I had just got home from the SapphireNow Conference in Orlando, Kayleigh was sporting a seven-month baby bump so we decided together to go business casual to the "Gala".

Wow, were we ever surprised. There was much glitz and glamour at the Crystal Awards Ceremony. I suppose we should expect nothing less from the people that do this for a living. Well done AMA'ers.

The venue was packed with over 500 attendees. The entire show was broadcast live by Omnovia. You can see us walk up (waddle up in Kayleigh's case) and pick up our prize. It was neat to go home and be able to show my girls after the show. See more vendors who helped here.

I was however a little disappointed in the build-up to the event. After jumping off the SapphireNow bandwagon, it was odd not to see the AMA putting on the same kind of show in the social media space. At SapphireNow, I had vendors coming up to introduce themselves in person, as we had been tweeting/facebooking each other for weeks building up to the show. It was really neat to see everyone come together.

SAP of course has a huge budget, and AMA is ran by volunteers, I realize that. However I really think we could join forces and do a little better at our online elbow rubbing. Maybe a little PR for the event? Maybe a dedicated twitter? Maybe a blog? I did like the idea of the projected tweets... that was cool.

Maybe I'm not looking hard enough. AMA Houston social media buffs, where art thou?

Wanted: AMA Mentor


Ok, so the marketer of the year isn't me (dangit). But I have good reason! I just now joined AMA Houston. What was I thinking? All this time, I've never been part of any organized group dedicated to my everyday work. This is my first one. 

I've been to PRSA group meetings, seminars, and have even been to some of the AMA stuff. I just never joined. I think I am secretly scared that I'll get too excited about it, become an over-eager participant and volunteer (or get volunteered) to death. I'm not one to join a committee without being devoted.

I feel like AMA is something I can devote some time to. I feel a little better when I see things like their blog, their postings, their database, award ceremonies, and such that give us marketeers somewhere to think. And I really like the idea of thinking locally and with focus. One of my goals for this group is to find me a marketing mentor. No, I dont want a job from you, (I have one--Go Atos!) I just want your lunchtime, your brain, your years of experience, what worked, what didn't? Everytime I think I've mastered something, I realized I'm only at the beginning. 

So, fellow AMA-ers. I hope to meet you and lunch with you soon.