Looking to better brand your business and generate more buzz? Public relations, social media and advertising may work. But in the busy South Florida and national product marketing landscape, a brand ambassador has your back.

A “brand ambassador” is an advocate who represents a brand in a positive way, says GC Marketing services. The ambassador is charged with expressing the message of a company to consumers – or to anyone who would benefit from learning about the brand being promoted. This could be done via on-air messaging or print advertising, or by using “street teams” of people who spread the word – and possibly product samples – into the community of targeted prospects. Think of the brand ambassador concept as a public relations / human resources hybrid – someone who both educates consumers regarding the brand, and promotes it with traditional and new and social media.

This advocate can be an executive or employee with the firm, a paid spokesman, or – best of all – a customer or client who truly believes in the company or its products. Transforming company employees into brand ambassadors is a logical starting point. Educated in the benefits of the product or service, they’re sent into the marketplace to touch consumers and prospects. For example, if you market a product targeting young adults, a college campus is a goldmine that can expand your target audience in a big way.

Your team would scout out “popular” kids or leaders on campus. In fact, this has grown into a nation-wide trend. “Companies from Microsoft on down are increasingly seeking out the big men and women on campus to influence their peers,” notes the New York Times in “On Campus, It’s One Big Commercial.”

Tapping into the college network connects a brand with young people who know the ins-and-outs of social media and how to “be cool.” Simultaneously, they grant you access to their Facebook friends, twitter followers, Greek organizations, and other various networks on campus. Barnes and Noble has a national Campus Ambassadors campaign, as does Luna Bars, Red Bull, and Hewlett-Packard, among others.

Whether you look to your current staffers or the student union, seek out social, friendly, captivating people to spread the word about your brand. Having a great product simply isn’t enough. You need to actively educate people as to your existence and what you have to offer.

And brand ambassadors can help carry that marketing load.

For all of you legal and CPA firm marketers, attorneys and service providers, we hope you can join us for the upcoming Legal Marketing Association Crisis Management program being held at Greenberg Traurig in Miami on November 17th.  This is a program Don Silver has moderated several times before, which provides the audience to take part in a real life crisis situation.  Hope you can make it.

On Sunday, November 6, 2011, Margaux Grossman’s family and friends will lace up their sneakers to participate in the Margaux’s Miracle Foundation Third Annual “Walk In The Park” at Pine Trails Park in Parkland.

Boardroom Communications is proud to sponsor Margaux’s Miracle Foundation—President Julie Talenfeld is on the Board of Directors and Account Director Jennifer Clarin serves as the Board’s secretary.

The Margaux’s Miracle Foundation Third Annual “Walk In The Park” will be held from 11 a.m.– 2p.m., and tickets cost $25 for adults and $15 for students ages 5-18. Community service hours are available for student volunteers. For more information, please contact Sharon Sheinbaum at 561-213-4639 or visit www.margauxsmiracle.org.

Last week’s “Hollywood Welcomes the Stars” event marked another huge success for the Boys & Girls Clubs of Broward County. More than 400 people gathered at the Westin Diplomat Resort & Spa in Hallandale Beach to raise money for after-school programs. In addition to a cocktail party, dinner, and silent and live auction items, attendees also had a chance to mingle with local celebs and enjoy an unpugged performance by Grammy Award Winner, Jon Secada.

Boardroom Account Executives also attended the event after months of preparing. We were able to secure pre- and  post event media coverage while putting the spotlight on the importance of The Boys & Girls Clubs in our communities.

Come out this Sunday, October 23, 2011 to Heaven & Earth Salon in Plantation for JAFCO’s 3rd Annual Day of Beauty. Get pampered while raising money for a great organization in the neighborhood.

The event will be held from 10 a.m. – 4 p.m at 981 Nob Hill Rd., Plantation. There will be food donated by Mustard Seed Bistro and opportunities to win raffle prizes. For more information, please contact Gail Marlow at 954-749-7230 or visit www.jafco.org.

Boardroom Communications was the proud recipient of the Development Award at the recent “For The Public Good” event, hosted by Legal Aid Service of Broward County and Coast to Coast Legal Aid. Boardroom President Julie Talenfeld, COO Don Silver and Senior Account Executive Michelle Friedman were on hand to accept the honor in front of more than 350 prominent members of Broward’s legal and professional community. Michelle Friedman was also the recipient of a special plaque to commemorate her role as Publicity Chair for the event.

Boardroom has been a proud supporter of Legal Aid and Coast to Coast for several years. Don Silver is a past chair of the organization’s Executive Council and Michelle Friedman is on the NEXT Steering Committee, Legal Aid’s young professionals’ group. The event was held Friday, Oct. 14 at the Hilton Fort Lauderdale Marina Hotel and has raised more than $120,000 to date!

Much already has been written about Steve Jobs – his marketing genius, his control of public relations, his ability to skillfully meld the products he created with a pent-up consumer demand for those products (or so we thought once his products were released).

That was the brilliance of Jobs. To paraphrase something he once said, “It isn’t up to consumers to know what they want. It’s up to us to tell them.”

Steven Jobs was one of those transformative inventors who comes along once every few generations. Perhaps it is a testament to how much he touched so many that – as President Barack Obama commented – so many learned of Jobs’ passing on a device he had invented.

He was also a public relations and marketing mastermind. His retail success came from creating powerful products backed by the buzz that made people feel they must have those devices. Apple’s iMac, iPod, iPad and iPhone wowed audiences when revealed in grand on-stage debuts – with Jobs as the emcee. Journalists were awed, and their articles reflected their amazement.

And we consumers bit – hard.

Apple didn’t need “traditional” consumer electronics marketing. The company consistently avoids major announcement hubs like the Consumer Electronics Show, notes PRdaily. He launched the hype – and sustained it.

Most (dare we say All-But-Apple) cannot afford to sidestep the major events. We bend over backwards to please our patrons, and play the retail merchandising game the way the industry has created it. Yet Jobs’ prowess in product development showed us that the brand dictates the trend – and not vice versa.

By developing one-of-a-kind products with unique messages to match, marrying art and technology in a way we’ve never seen before, Jobs dominated the technology industry. As the article explains, many described Apple products as “funky” and “snazzy,” showing their appreciation for the visual appearance of the tech.

Steve Jobs was quoted once as having said, “The customer is not right, I am.” Masterfully brilliant, unabashed in his view of the world, in every essence of the word, Steve Jobs – in his jeans and black, mock-turtleneck – didn’t just sell us things. He sold us dreams.

And if you were listening, he sold us a new roadmap to successful marketing.

Boardroom Communications proudly supports Legal Aid Society of Broward County’s “For The Public Good Event,” taking place tonight, Oct. 14, at the Hilton Fort Lauderdale Marina. This event is an excellent opportunity to meet hundreds of prominent Broward legal and business professionals, members of the judiciary, nonprofit organizations, as well as others who support the mission of Legal Aid. This is the organization’s annual fundraiser, and has already raised more than $117,000, and counting. We hope to see you there!

You’ve Been Served!
For The Public Good 10th Anniversary

Friday, October 14, 2011
6 – 10 p.m.
Hilton Fort Lauderdale Marina