For the last week or so, the office across from mine has sat empty. Don’t worry – Alison Simpson is still with Maritz. However, she just finished running 250km across the Sahara Desert while carrying all of her equipment on her back. While I think she’s a little bit crazy, I also really admire the kind of physical and emotional strength it takes to complete this type of challenge.

Before she left, I discovered that 70% of people who begin the race don’t cross the finish line. In the desert, competitors are subject to blood blisters, lost toenails and extreme physical pain. I can’t help but wonder about the kinds of changes to someone’s “filter” this sort of experience would incite. After a steady routine of work, exercise and home life, I imagine a 250km run in the desert would really change someone’s perceptions on both life and work. After running in 50-degree heat, the stress of that huge pitch or looming deadline probably doesn’t seem so daunting.

I’m looking forward to hearing all about Alison’s experiences and I hope I can appropriate some of her new outlook on work and life and apply it to my own circumstances. I know her commitment to both this wild adventure and NABS, the charity she’s chosen to support has already had an impact on every team here at Maritz. Everyone, myself included, is in complete awe of the raw strength and determination Alison has shown

Alison – we’re all glued to your blog and can’t wait to hear about everything when you get home. All of Maritz is rooting for you.

PS. I don’t want coming back to work to be too much of a shock for you. I’ve had some renovations done to your office to ease you back into it.

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Bob Macdonald, president and CEO, Maritz Canada

 

Why would anyone choose to run 250 kilometers across the hot Sahara Desert, unless they were starring in an action movie or being chased by wild camels? Actually, there is a very good reason for it: as an act of incredible strength and generosity.

Starting October 2nd, Alison Simpson, Maritz Canada's executive vice president, client services, and 8 others will run across the Sahara to raise $100,000 for the National Advertising Benevolent Society (NABS). NABS is an organization that helps people in the advertising industry facing challenges such as unemployment, illness or family crisis.  

Alison has always loved running and has completed several other marathons worldwide, but nothing like this one, which will involve 153 participants from 32 countries. Over 7 days, the runners will likely face fierce wind, sandstorms and daytime temperatures of up to 50º C. They have 250 km of tough, sandy terrain ahead of them in the Valley of the Whales, amongst hundreds of fossils of prehistoric creatures. They will essentially run 6 marathons back-to-back, covering 40 km each day for stages 1-4 and a stunning 80 km in stage 5. It all wraps up with a 10 km run in Stage 6 that leads to the finish line at the Pyramids of Giza.

As this is a “self-supported race”, participants must carry everything they need with them. According to her blog, some of the items in Alison’s 20 lb. pack will include painkillers, a camera, a photo of some of the people NABS helps support and a notebook. She invited Maritz colleagues to add words of inspiration to the notebook to help when she needs a boost.

Alison has been training hard for months, running with her backpack and building up her core strength, but as the race time approaches, she has admitted to feeling a healthy mix of excitement and fear. “What gets me through is to not lose sight of the great things we are doing,” she said, meaning both the experience she’ll be having, as well as the opportunities her fundraising will give to those in need. “I’ve grown up in the industry and know there is no safety net. I’ve seen great people struggle, and seen them get support from NABS.”

At Maritz, we learned the full story of the race and NABs at our June All Employee Meeting. Alison asked people to raise their hands if they knew anyone whose family had been touched by illness or unemployment. Everyone in that room put up their hands. It was quite a moment.

To support Alison we held a silent auction where employees contributed favours such as car washing, dinners and free coffee for a week (this, being Maritz, was a popular one!). We raised close to $4,000. Alison also received support from many others and has succeeded in meeting her fundraising goal. “I’ve been blown away by everyone’s generosity,” she said.

Follow Alison on her journey through photos and updates here: 

To find out more about the race or to join us to help Alison support NABS, see www.running4nabs.com

 

Laura Williams

Copywriter

 

 

From L to R: Colin Nanka (Salesforce.com),
Sandy Johnson (NEXCareer), Gavin Lucas (Bell Canada), Alison Simpson (Maritz), Stefan Danis (Mandrake)

On Thursday, April 7th, we hosted senior loyalty marketers from a variety of industries including financial services, retail and automotive in the Grand Banquet Hall at One King West in the heart of Toronto’s financial district. We invited some of the most influential loyalty marketers in the country to start a conversation. We wanted to share some key highlights from the loyalty 2011 research report and discuss our point of view on where we think loyalty is going in the future.

Maritz Canada Inc. surveyed Canadians to determine their attitudes, behaviours, and experiences with their loyalty and rewards programs. Pretty much every Canadian participates in at least one loyalty program – well, 94% of us do. Canadians also told us that they are earning rewards, like points or miles, on almost half of all their discretionary spending. And, amazingly over 20% of Canadians told us that they would even pay more to buy a product that they could earn points on. Strange? Well, not at all, because over 40% of respondents told us they actually get a rush from collecting points. I must admit, it is exciting to get to that next clip!

As attendees, enjoyed waffles, smoothies and of course, copious amounts of coffee, we shared our point of view on where we think loyalty is going over the next ten years. As marketers, we need to build upon traditional ‘do this, get that’ type of loyalty programs. We need to be conscious of what motivates us as humans by understanding intrinsic motivators and some of the neuroscience that supports our decision-making. The loyalty program of the future will need to ensure three components are working harmoniously – consumer insights & analytics, digital, and creative. These components will create the ultimate customer experience and support the realization of what every business seeks of its customers – true loyalty. 

Looking for more... check out our insights paper by visiting http://bit.ly/loyaltyreport2011

Loyally yours,
Rich Robins

As marketers, we know how quickly the world changes. Your target audience behaves a certain way today then tomorrow comes: a new tool, social media platform or toy shows up and the behaviours completely change, which in turn means you have to change what you’re doing to reach your audience. You are not alone.

Somewhere in the North Pole, there is a jolly man who wears red – who, once a year has a long worldwide trip with multiple deliveries to make in a single 24hr window without being seen! He goes by Mr. C. During his trip, he delivers gifts to the good boys and girls, and on occasion may drop a lump of coal in the stocking of those who have been naughty. But the behaviour of these children changes. Some of them no longer believe in him; this puts a downer on his workforce. His market has changed.

On a nice Fall day, Mr. C reached out to our very own “Bobby Macdonald”… his brief was clear: Mr. C needed a solution to ensure that his workforce kept maximum Holiday spirit, all year long. To find out how things turned out, check this out: The Holigoggles. 

 

 

This is Maritz Canada’s 3^rd annual Holiday video (see here for others). We love to do these – not only because it gives us a chance to connect with Mr. C himself, but also because it gives us an opportunity to wish all of our clients, partners, friends and families the very best at this time of year.

A small, dedicated project team helped coordinate the scripting, filming, performing, post-producing and testing. (As you may have seen in our 2009 Snow Globe video, testing is not a phase that should ever be overlooked!)

There were a lot of funny moments in the Holigoggles video, but there’s also a big message: coming together in support of Parents for Better Beginnings (PFBB). PFBB is an organization that helps underprivileged children and their families in the Regent Park area of Toronto. We have been supporting them with various initiatives since 1996. In fact, one of our motivations in moving from traditional paper holiday cards to ecards in 2008 was so that we could save money on printing/mailing, and put those savings towards PFBB. To promote their work to a wider audience this year, we showcase PFBB in both the holiday video and in a second video, To Parents for Better Beginnings with Love. As well, we include a link to donate to PFBB right on our site. 

So, let’s recap: Coming together to meet a client’s needs innovatively and creatively. Supporting our community. Collaborating with our colleagues. Working hard. Striving for excellence. Testing and refining. Raising the bar year after year. Applying our expertise in digital solutions. Having fun. …These may have been themes reflected in and by the holiday video, but we’re proud to say that IS Maritz Canada, year-round.

 

Judi Samuels

Manager, Corporate Communications

 

and

 

Laura Williams

Copywriter

 

 

 

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Maritz Canada goes to market with new solutions and a new structure

 

 

Mississauga, Ontario, May 17, 2010  – Bob Macdonald, President and CEO of one of Canada’s leading Marketing services agencies announces a restructuring within the leadership team of Maritz Canada Inc..   “The purpose of this restructuring is to drive greater focus in delivering value to our clients by affecting the Human Dimension^SM of Sales and Marketing performance.”

 

Through the introduction of three solution sets: Sales Channel Enablement, Consumer Loyalty and Engagement Marketing, Maritz will further enhance its delivery of high impact Sales and Marketing programs that help their clients achieve their specific objectives by affecting the audiences crucial to their businesses. These solution sets will be led, respectively, by Dr. Rob Pearson (PhD), Mr. Rob Daniel (M.Pi), and Ms. Gayle Duncan (MBA).

 

In support of this vision, Mr. Macdonald is pleased to announce the appointment of Michelle Ubell to the position of VP, Client Solutions. “Michelle has been a member of our executive team since 2000. She is a passionate leader and an expert in delivering solutions that directly influence our clients’ business results.”  In her new role, Ms. Ubell will oversee the integration and delivery of the new solution sets through the leadership and support of client project teams across Maritz's offerings: Research, Learning, Loyalty, Marketing Communications, Events, Incentives, and Digital.

 

“Our goal (at Maritz Canada) is to remain focused on serving both new and existing clients while continuing on our growth trajectory in the Canadian market”.

 

About Maritz Canada Inc.

Maritz Canada helps businesses bridge the gap between brand promise and brand experience. Maritz provides businesses with programs to understand, enable and motivate the people who have the greatest impact on their brands. Through the delivery of three core solution sets that focus in on clients’ businesses: Sales Channel Enablement, Consumer Loyalty and Engagement Marketing, Maritz affects the Human Dimension of Sales and Marketing^SM to ultimately drive business performance.

 

Maritz Canada Inc. has been operating since 1980. With over 400 team members, we are wholly owned by Maritz Holdings Inc. based in St. Louis, Missouri. For more information, please contact Judi Samuels at 905-696-5113 or visit our website at www.maritzcanada.com.

On Tuesday, January 12th, Haiti’s “fresh start to a new decade” was brutally interrupted by a devastating earthquake measuring 7.0 on the Richter scale. Since then, the human disaster has been unfolding right before our eyes. The earthquake ripped through the heart of the country, leaving a trail of death and destruction in its wake. There are fears that there could be more than 100,000 fatalities and countless more injured and missing. This is the immediate impact. In the long run, the threat of disease, illness, malnutrition, and more is very real.

We know this is just after the holiday season and we know we are closing out a year when people suffered financial strain but Haiti really needs every ounce of support as their country, their communities and their people's lives have been devastated by this tragedy.

Maritz Canada is calling on all its employees, friends, partners, suppliers and clients to help make a difference. We will be donating all funds to the Canadian Red Cross and they will be able to get the necessary resources on the ground, where they are needed! To donate and help Maritz Canada help Haiti, simply visit Maritz's portal page on the Canadian Red Cross website: www.redcrosss.ca/maritz.

Let’s make whatever difference we can. Please, tweet this, share it on Facebook and Linked In (display as your status), email folks to come here: together, we can make a real difference. You can also copy the embed code and display the widget on your own blog or site to spread awareness.

You can read about the International Red Cross efforts through their Website at:

http://www.redcross.ca/article.asp?id=33898&tid=001

Additionally, you can follow their progress in Haiti via the Red Cross Twitter account found here:

http://twitter.com/RedCross.

You could tweet: We all share the same planet - here's how Maritz Canada & you can show Haiti that we care http://bit.ly/6nKsfJ #MaritzCares

You could update your Facebook or Linked In status: Maritz Canada is supporting the Red Cross in its relief efforts in Haiti - please help however you can http://bit.ly/6nKsfJ

For more information on Maritz Canada & our efforts to make a difference, contact:

Judi Samuels
Manager, Corporate Communications
Maritz Canada
416 894-3501
judi.samuels@maritz.com

On Tuesday, January 12^th, Haiti’s “fresh start to a new decade” was brutally interrupted by a devastating earthquake measuring 7.0 on the Richter scale. Since then, the human disaster has been unfolding right before our eyes. The earthquake ripped through the heart of the country, leaving a trail of death and destruction in its wake. There are fears that there could be more than 100,000 fatalities and countless more injured and missing. This is the immediate impact. In the long run, the threat of disease, illness, malnutrition, and more is very real.

 

We know this is just after the holiday season and we know we are closing out a year when people suffered financial strain but Haiti really needs every ounce of support as their country, their communities and their people's lives have been devastated by this tragedy.

Maritz Canada is calling on all its employees, friends, partners, suppliers and clients to help make a difference. We will be donating all funds to the Canadian Red Cross and they will be able to get the necessary resources on the ground, where they are needed!

Let’s make whatever difference we can. Please, tweet this, share it on Facebook and Linked In (display as your status), email folks to come here: together, we can make a real difference. You can also copy the embed code and display the widget on your own blog or site to spread awareness.

You can read about the International Red Cross efforts through their Website at: http://www.redcross.ca/article.asp?id=33898&tid=001. Additionally, you can follow their progress in Haiti via the Red Cross Twitter account found here http://twitter.com/RedCross.

You could tweet: We all share the same planet - here's how Maritz Canada & you can show Haiti that we care: http://bit.ly/6cbuKi #MaritzCares

You could update your Facebook or Linked In status: Maritz Canada is supporting the Red Cross in its relief efforts in Haiti - please help however you can http://bit.ly/6cbuKi

For more information on Maritz Canada & our efforts to make a difference, contact:

Judi Samuels

Manager, Corporate Communications

416 894-3501 or judi.samuels@maritz.com

Maritz Canada