IMC SoCal February 2004 Chapter Meeting

LAX Renaissance Hotel, 9620 Airport Blvd., Los Angeles, CA
(1/4 mile north of Century Blvd.)
Tuesday, May 18, 2004
4:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.

Afternoon Session:
Marketing Creativity for Consultants

If you’re wrestling with a current marketing creativity problem for your consulting practice, our afternoon session on May 18 will be a valuable eye opener. You’ll learn how to apply “think-out-of-the-box” techniques used by people who have to be creative on a daily basis, and get paid for it. You will be a unique chance for consultants to go behind the scenes and enter the minds of a top marketing and creative group to find out:

What is Creativity?

Why do you need it?

How do you tap into it?

How can you use it to:
- Re-invent yourself
- Have more fun at work
- Stay in love with what you do
- Problem-solve in new and unexpected ways.

Our presenters will be Don Spector and Deborah Rodney, partners of The Next Level Marketing & Creative, who have spent over 25 years each being creative on behalf of clients like Disney, Absolut Vodka, and Public Storage. Their stories, exercises and puzzles are educational and fun. You’ll have a chance to do some of your own creative problem solving on the spot. Most important, they’ll open up your thinking and stimulate your imagination.

“I’ve never seen our Board members that excited. After the workshop, we used some of their techniques in meetings and fresh ideas came at us from all directions.”
Karl Schmidt, Board of Governors, Goodwill Industries

Afternoon Speakers: Don Spector & Deborah Rodney
	Don Spector, President, is one of the few ad agency creative directors to hold an MBA degree (Columbia University). He has served as VP / Creative Director of BBDO-West and Foote Cone Belding-LA, at the time the largest ad agency in the Western U.S. He co-founded one of the pioneering firms in interactive communications, breaking new ground for clients such as United Airlines, Hilton Hotels and Absolut Vodka. He has been involved in numerous product launches including Edge Shave Cream for S.C. Johnson and helped introduce the Xerox Telecopier. He has a wall of awards earned for work for clients ranging from startups to Fortune 500.
	Deborah Rodney, Vice-President, began her career as an art director at Foote Cone Belding-LA. After working at two more ad agencies, she became a freelance resource for almost every major LA ad agency, including Chiat Day, Grey Advertising and BBDO. As Deborah Rodney Creative Services, she developed clients in almost every category, including fashion, financial, health care, and home decorating. Her marketing and creative skills helped the successful launch of Pritikin Interactive, Lammies disposable baby products, and California Women’s Savings. She has won numerous awards. She holds a BA degree from Stanford University. She received her design education at Otis Art Institute and the Art Center College of Design.

Evening Session:
Selling the Brand When It's You^®

Build your consulting practice through branding. In our evening session on May 18, learn how to become the CEO of your brand. Join brand strategist Debra Valle as she guides you through this proven process to help you communicate your company's promise, speak more effectively to key customers, lay claim to your unique position in the marketplace, and discover your key selling idea. This session will help you discover your unique brand identity as a consultant and guide you towards a selling idea capable of attracting the clients of your dreams.

At the very core of every consulting practice sits an essential truth, often lost in a great whirlwind of marketing activities. In our haste to move faster, get clients and make money, we often rush to create marketing strategies with little thought of the image we are creating, the core message are communicating, or the clients we are attracting.

If you long to find a central message that captures the soul of your consulting practice, join us on May 18 as we explore Selling the Brand When It's You! This will be a much abbreviated version of Debra Valle's 9-session seminar of the same title. Highlights include:

Exploring your unique brand essence and current position in the marketplace.

Defining your vision, objective and target marketing statement.

Discovering the spirit/soul of your target audience.

Creating a unique selling idea capable of propelling your marketing efforts forward.

Evening Speaker: Debra Valle

Debra Valle is a nationally-known speaker, seminar leader, branding expert, alliance strategist, Professional Certified Coach (PCC), author, and founder / president of Marketing U Inc. -- a virtual university and resource center providing professionals and emerging businesses a supportive environment in which to incubate, create and transform ideas and dreams into business reality. Her 18-year career includes corporate and agency environments where she was responsible for brand positioning, strategic planning, advertising, and direct marketing. Her clients include the Michigan Opera, Chrysler, Mazda and Nestle. She is a member of the International Coach Federation (ICF) and is on the leadership team of the Orange County ICF chapter.

Time, Place & Cost

Place: LAX Renaissance Hotel, 9620 Airport Blvd., Los Angeles, CA
(1/4 mile north of Century Blvd.)
Date: Tuesday, May 18, 2004.
4:00 - 5:30 p.m.: Afternoon Session: "Marketing Creativity for Consultants" with Don Spector & Deborah Rodney, Partners, The Next Level Marketing & Creative.
5:30 - 6:30 p.m.: Networking & Cocktails (no-host bar).
6:30 - 7:15 p.m.: Dinner.
7:15 - 7:30 p.m.: Welcome, Announcements & Introductions.
7:30 - 8:30 p.m.: Evening Session: "Selling the Brand When It's You®" with Debra Valle.
Cost: $45 IMC members, $55 non-members, with online registration by Monday noon prior to the event. Add $10 for payment after that deadline or at the door.
Further information: Please contact Dennis McCue CMC of Dynamic Firm Management, 4570 Campus Drive, Suite 60, Newport Beach, CA 92660, 949-640-2220.
Payment by Check: Mail checks payable to "IMC SoCal" to Kim Athmann King, IMC Treasurer, c/o The Strategy Group, 2121 Rosecrans Avenue, Suite 3325, Los Angeles, CA 90045. Checks must be received prior to the event.

About IMC SoCal

IMC SoCal is the Southern California Chapter of the Institute of Management Consultants, the national accrediting organization for management consultants. We hold monthly Chapter Dinner Meetings near LAX plus special events. These are open to all consultants and their guests, and are a great venue for professional development and networking. We also hold monthly breakfast meetings in different Southern California cities.