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Executive Director:
Kristen L. Smith, CAE
Her whole life, Kristen has been the beneficiary of word of mouth. Just about every job she's had came about from someone saying something about Kristen to someone else. So, it was only natural that she was lucky enough to become the executive director of the official trade organization for the word of mouth industry.
Speaking of word of mouth, Kristen would like to put in a plug for her alma mater (and that of her husband) – Purdue University, where she's a proud member of the John Purdue Alumni Club.
Contact:
Kristen@WOMMA.org
@KristenWOMMA |
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WOM Enthusiast:
John Moore
John Moore is putting his marketing where his mouth is as WOMMA’s in-house evangelist for all things word-of-mouth. Having spent a good part of his marketing career at two brands built upon word-of-mouth, Starbucks Coffee and Whole Foods Market, John knows the power of using WOM to drive sales and build brands.
At WOMMA, John serves as a WOM advocate by educating and motivating businesses to use word-of-mouth marketing effectively and ethically. He is also a spokesperson for WOMMA, addressing hot-button topics covered by traditional media and discussed in conversations happening in the online social media world.
John lives, works, drinks craft beer, and enjoys smoked brisket from his bunker in the badlands of Central Texas. (Otherwise known as Austin.
Contact:
JohnMoore@WOMMA.org
@WOMMAJohn
Blog: AllThings.WOMMA.org
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Director of Education and Events:
Kristin Horstman, CMP
Kristin Horstman has over 15 years of management experience working with corporate and non-profit organizations. As part of the senior management team at one of the largest Association Management firms, she oversaw the strategic development, financial management and execution of over 350 meetings, tradeshows, and conferences worldwide.
She has extensive knowledge and passion in global work, her first international conference organized in Seoul in 2001. She has also organized meetings in Asia, Europe, Africa, Canada and Mexico. In 2007 she was selected to work with the Mayor’s Office of Chicago to coordinate the Mayors Hemispheric Conference, a three day event for over 30 international mayors from the US, South America, Mexico, Canada, and the Caribbean.
Kristin achieved her B.S. degree in Hotel & Restaurant Management from Iowa State University in 1995 and obtained her professional certification as a Certified Meeting Professional in 2003 from the Convention Industry Council. When she's not at work you'll find her running, biking, and playing volleyball along Chicago's lakefront.
Contact:
KHorstman@womma.org
@Face2FaceMeet
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Director of Member Relations:
Tarah Remington
Tarah brings to WOMMA an undying devotion to member services and education, along with almost 10 years of association experience. Prior to WOMMA, Tarah worked for the American Academy of Family Physicians, and was responsible for the membership recruitment and retention of 22,000 medical students as well as affinity program development. She also was the membership manager for the American Optometric Association where she was responsible for the Paraoptometric Section of membership for the organization. She developed educational programs, worked with an elected Council and several volunteer committees, increased membership benefits and services, and created sponsorship opportunities for the Section and the organization.
Tarah grew up in a small town outside of Kansas City, MO and is the youngest of three children. If she wasn't working at WOMMA, her dream job would be singing on Broadway. For now, she'll just stick to karaoke.
Contact:
Tarah@WOMMA.org
@WOMMAtarah |
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Social Media Director:
Steve Ziemba
Steve's brings an eclectic background in sales, marketing, and account management to WOMMA. A tale of two decades, the 90’s found Steve working in the banking and consumer credit reporting industry, as well as playing soccer multiple times a week. Approaching the new millennium and a torn meniscus, Steve transitioned into a career more in tune with his creative side: corporate video production, online visual marketing, and social media marketing.
A native of the Chicagoland area, Steve holds a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Illinois and a Masters of Science in Integrated Marketing Communications from Roosevelt University. In his leisure time, Steve enjoys telling monotonous stories about his 2005 knee surgery and nebulous soccer tales from a bygone era. When not following Liverpool FC, Steve can be found coaching his son’s soccer team or downloading podcasts from NPR.
Contact:
Steve@WOMMA.org
@WOMMA |
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Web Producer:
Jonathan Mannheim
Born in WOMMA's home locale of Chicago, Jonathan's auspicious technology beginnings at age 5 included accidentally breaking a computer store's security code before he was caught painting a beach on MS Paint by store employees. He soon after created an executable file on his father's PC which had it out of commission for a week, or so. Accidents happen.
Jonathan graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with degrees in History and Middle East Studies. Aside from Chicago and Madison, he's also lived in New York City and Jerusalem. He speaks Hebrew, understands Spanish and Portuguese, and attempts a smattering of English. And, so long as his knees allow, he runs marathons.
Contact:
Jon@WOMMA.org
@WOMMA
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Social Media Coordinator & Editor:
Pat McCarthy
Pat found WOMMA in the best way possible, through word of mouth (thanks to his friend, a former WOMMA employee, who recommended him after netting herself a job in sunny LA). Previously he labored a paralegal, salesman, and a canoe guide. He can tell many tales of traversing the lakes of northern Minnesota, but for now he’ll stick to editing the WOMMA Word.
He was born and raised in Evanston, IL. In 2006 he received a Political Science degree from Iowa State University. In his free time, he likes to write, play volleyball and travel to far flung places. He has Eurailed through Europe and explored Istanbul summer 2009.
Contact:
Pat@WOMMA.org
@WOMMA
Blog: WOMMA.org/word
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Sales Manager:
Kelly Hartweg
With 17 years in the hospitality and event industry in Chicago, Kelly knows all about Word of Mouth. Whether executing logistically complex events, offering great customer service in a luxury hotel or waiting tables, she always enjoys building word of mouth buzz, creating partnerships, getting consumers talking and seeing business come back.
More than 11 years of her career was spent managing events as well as selling and marketing the special event venues at the Midwest's number one visitor and leisure attraction, Navy Pier. Today, she is pleased to work in this exciting industry, creating meaningful partnerships with companies engaged in WOM.
Kelly earned her Bachelor of Science at Western Illinois University and has also continued her education in the meetings and events industry. A fan of yoga, golf and travel, she and her husband, Chris, live in Oak Park with their two sons.
Contact:
Kelly@WOMMA.org
@WOMMA
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WOMMA is accepting applications for School of WOM “faculty members” to present business case studies and best practices showcasing proven Word of Mouth & Social Media programs that generate customer-driven conversations.
Learn more and apply today!
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Updates and reactions to the FTC's Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising. Learn More |
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Before you leave, make sure you see these. |
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Webinar Library
Download podcasts, presentation decks, and watch SlideShares of WOMMA Webinars and Brand Council Webinars.
Visit the Library |
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WOM 101
Learn the art and science of creating effective marketing programs that get customers talking.
Download PDF |
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Ethics Toolkit
The WOMMA Ethics Toolkit defines best practices, baseline rules, and asks 20 questions to help you ethically comply.
Download PDF |
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Learn from the brands and agencies that successfully developed and measured WOM campaigns. Stand on the shoulders of these giants, use their lessons learned, and grow your WOM knowledge.
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31 Days of the Dragon
HP provided 31 HDX “Dragon” systems to 31 selected influencers for 31 days to give away to lucky readers of their sites. 31 top bloggers promoted the contest, HP, the HDX Dragon and each other, this has never happened before and it showed the collective power of a community banding together. Bloggers created and shared custom marketing materials, including a dedicated site, graphics, logos, videos and RSS feeds... more.. |
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The Atlas Solution: Stimulate the Economy, and Creating Buzz
The client is an upscale shopping center that opened just two years ago in the middle of a working class area of Queens, New York. An outdoor center, the owner found that the most difficult time of year was the post-holiday winter months. With the economy slumping in January ‘08, the Shops wanted to create something that would generate a lot of attention, speak directly to consumers concerns about the economy, and drive traffic to the center... more.. |
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