I’ve included my entire professional work history, showing breadth and depth in the various traditional and non-traditional duties of a professional communicator.
Public Information Officer – Utah Department of Agriculture and Food – Salt Lake City, UT – May 2018 to Present
• Manage press relations for the commissioner and other agency leadership and subject matter experts for more than 100 reactive stories
• Proactively pitch 4-5 stories and Op-Ed pieces per month to urban and rural Utah news organizations
• Oversaw the rebuild of state agency website consisting of more than 300 pages and 200 posts of content, representing seven divisions
• Write an average of 1-2 blog articles per month promoting UDAF services and agriculture and food industry producers
• Design and write PowerPoint content for commissioner and agency leadership presentations to legislative committees and stakeholder groups
• Earned two Pro Certificates with additional compensation awards for execution and quality work within the first 12 months of service at UDAF
Communications Director – Utah Association of Counties – Salt Lake City, UT – May 2002 to May 2018
• Oversaw all aspects of all association events, including two annual three-day conventions that involve hundreds of participants
• Created organization’s sponsor/exhibiting/advertising revenue program, raising more than $1.5 million in 16 years where there was nothing prior
• Orchestrated successful political forum, involving eight candidates running for governor of Utah in 2004
• Developed and produced 10 different animated “explainer” videos educating the public about county government
• Build and maintained five different websites, each with a different target audience, and maintained several social media platforms
• Designed and published dozens of PR, event, communications, training, and general marketing materials (including newsletters, signage, manuals)
• Created and promoted 7th-grade county government/civics lesson materials for the entire state (37,000 students/yr)
Marketing Specialist – MarketStar Corporation – Ogden, UT – April 2001 to May 2002
• Streamlined and simplified development of multi-million dollar proposals to the hi-tech industry
• Researched, wrote, and edited case studies and thought leadership papers for an e-mail marketing campaign
• Assisted in the development of proposed marketing strategies to national office products retailer
• Provided technical guidance in content, style, and readability of all marketing materials
Communications Director – Ogden/Weber Chamber of Commerce – Ogden, UT – November 1997 to April 2001
• Doubled Chamber’s presence in local and Salt Lake City media
• Developed several online media relations tools to increase the presence of Chamber members in the media
• Reduced Chamber expenses by $50,000 in the first two years by developing marketing cost savings plan
• Developed and implemented an e-commerce marketing & communications initiative
• Created style guide, streamlining design, colors, logos, icons, fonts, and other elements
• Direct production and writing of all publications (including two electronic newsletters) and collateral materials
• Serve as liaison to Chamber ambassador group that conducts about 50 ribbon cutting events annually
• Oversee advertising sales staff and one assistant that reach team goals of accuracy, deadlines, and revenue
Marketing/Communication Associate – United Way of Salt Lake City – Salt Lake City, UT – July 1996 to Nov. 1997
• Managed most in-house desktop publishing and video creation activities
• Oversaw the entire production of three quarterly newsletters
• Wrote copy and designed wide variety of collateral materials
• Created and maintained the organization’s first Web site
• Assisted with many roles and many levels of responsibility at events involving 10 to 2000 people
• Collaborated with a wide variety of vendors on print, video, event and other projects
Internships and Marketing/Communications Work While in College
Copywriter/Editor – Pinnacle Marketing & Communications, Inc. – Ogden, UT – August 1995 to July 1996
• Consulted with clients to develop effective copy for marketing collateral
• Wrote copy for print advertisements, news releases, brochures, and catalogs
• Wrote scripts for radio and video
Publicity Coordinator – Campus Recreation at Weber State University – Ogden, UT – March 1995 to February 1996
• Generated news releases for various recreational workshops, trips, and events
• Created publicity campaign for youth soccer camps
• Collected a database of media contacts for mailing news releases
• Designed and wrote copy for a variety of marketing collateral materials
Copywriter/Editor – Media Relations at Weber State University – Ogden, UT – January 1996 to June 1996
• Wrote and edited news releases
• Generated ideas for news releases
• Helped track news releases that were published
Advertising Manager – The Signpost at Weber State University – Ogden, UT – June 1994 to June 1995
• Directed all advertising sales for a tri-weekly student newspaper
• Oversaw a staff of three sales reps
• Assisted clients and designers in the creation of effective advertisements and campaigns
• Worked directly with student advisor, editor-in-chief, and production director to produce quality student publication
Advertising Representative – The Scroll at BYU-Idaho – Rexburg, ID – August 1992 to April 1993
• Sold advertising space for weekly student newspaper
• Worked with clients to create and build effective advertisements and campaigns