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JESSICA SHIMEK
PUBLIC RELATIONS / BRAND STRATEGY / SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING
cell: 651.246.1211
email: [email protected]
twitter: @Tech_Reporter @OutdoorRooms @BlueOxAd
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Jessica.JMS
Linked In: www.linkedin.com/in/jessicashimhall
PROFILE
A well-rounded marketer with 10 years of experience in agency and in-house roles directing
successful omni-channel marketing initiatives for B2B and B2C accounts. Works with both traditional
and digital media in local and global markets as a publicist, account director, brand manager and
social media maven. A relationship driven leader with an entrepreneurial background and fine-tuned
decision making skills. An authentic and ethical manager with the ability to recognize opportunities
for success and see them through to fruition. Familiar working with high-powered, high-profile
clients and brands in roles behind the scenes and as a spokesperson. My communication tactics and
passion for business have placed my career on the front line of customer engagement.
INDUSTRIES
Emerging Technology, Ecommerce Software, Global Manufacturing & Engineering, New Business
Development, Non-Profit, Journalism, Travel & Tourism, Hospitality, Transportation, Food & Wine,
Politics, Sports Marketing, Luxury Retail, Consumer Goods.
CLIENT EXAMPLES
Startups: created initial business strategy and brand development for five successful business es.
Maintenance of full-scale marketing communications, social media, PR for 10 years;
The Outdoor GreatRoom® Company, Enjoy! Restaurant, Paradise Landing, Chateau St. Croix Winery,
Blue Ox Advertising.
Additional clients & projects: Erbert & Gerberts, Twin Cities in Motion, Hearth & Home Technologies,
Ethnotek Bags, Triton Barns, Morrissey Hospitality Companies, The St. Paul Hotel, Care Through
Action/Exposing Hope, 2009 Malawi presidential candidate James Nyondo, TUUCI, The Saint Paul
Foundation, The CCFC (Lightrail), Lutsen-Tofte Tourism, Facing Race, Country of Sri Lanka, Dr.
Gadget, Sotanlife, Bike 365, Surf Yogis, India Surf Festival, Kalani Retreat.
EXPERIENCE
PetSmart Corporate, eCommerce Marketing Specialist
Phoenix, Arizona || Jul 2013 – Present || www.petsmart.com
Assist with system transfer of PetSmart's back-end eCommerce brand data to a new solution to
streamline vendor relations and site UI.
• Use of SharePoint, SAP, PIM, GSI Commerce to execute product data transfer.
• Manage product positioning for specialty proprietary branded products and vendors.
• Support product development & definition, as well as assortment recommendations.
• Decide standardized naming conventions and manage brand consistency.
Pinnacle Cart eCommerce Software, Marketing and PR Director - Contractor
Phoenix, Arizona || Mar 2013 - Jul 2013 || www.pinnaclecart.com
• Plan, strategize, develop and schedule PR, social media & blog campaigns and implement
tactics for growing online presence in emerging social media channels.
• Manage day-to-day presence on social media channels including outreach to key influencers
and employees to drive earned media and brand advocacy.
• Manage new API marketing integration strategy and brand continuity (Avalara, Stamps,
Bongo, Exactor, Paypal, Chase, Intuit Quickbooks).
• Public Relations. Message development and deployment for promotions and crises
communication outreach related to new software releases.
• Write monthly articles for Internet Retailer Magazine on topics related to internet security,
merchant services, API integration and the state of online retail marketing.
• Attend networking events, manage trade show marketing (PR, schedule speaking
engagements, create displays & promos).
• Evaluate and make suggestions for the current website to modify format and content and
produce digital content, copy, imagery, graphics, video and audio.
• Monitor and analyze eCommerce Software Platform competition.
• Software tools: Salesforce, Hubspot, Wrike, Podio, Jira, PRWeb, Sprout Social, Hootsuite.
Blue Ox Advertising, Director of Marketing Communications, Co-Founder
Minneapolis, Minnesota || 2003 - Present || www.blueoxadvertising.com
Specializing in startup brand strategy and development, managing full-scale marketing
communications for 4 start ups and account maintenance for 9 years along with new accounts.
• SEO, Digital Marketing, Social Media Marketing Manager. Identify key metrics, establish
tracking and reporting for all social media channels and web outlets.
• Public Relations. Responsible for gaining local and national exposure. Product launches,
media tours, online newsroom development, corporate messaging, crisis communications,
special event coordination, award submissions, trade show management, community
relations, release writing, distribution, outreach. Occasionally managing relations with
external PR agencies on large budget projects.
• Facilitate new business sales, contract negotiation, online/print/radio/tv strategy,
implementation, account management.
• Marketing/Ad Planning. Manage budgets of $500k-$3 million annually, media buying and
contract negotiation. Agency Team Management. Leadership and development of strategic
marketing plans to drive revenue and engage customers, dealer channels, sales, marketing
and upper management.
• Websites & Online. Planning and implementation of aggressive web campaigns to drive
web traffic and ecommerce sales & cultivate leads.
• Software Integration. Research, purchase and train 25 employees: ERP, CRM, SaaS, UI, PR.
• Client Relations & Business Development. Networking & cultivating relationships.
• Production. Art direction, design, commercial photography for print and digital media.
• Brand Spokesperson/Expert Opinion Resource. Pick up: Inc., Forbes, USAtoday, Wall Street
Journal, NYTimes, MSNFinance, AOL Jobs, The View, Extra, DIY, HGTV, ABC, NBC, CBS.
• Published Journalist/Photographer: Better Homes and Gardens, The Designer, Luxury Pools,
Garden Design, Need Magazine, Star Tribune, Downtown Journal, Butane-Propane News,
Internet Retailer, Casual Living Magazine, Ocean Home Magazine.
The Outdoor GreatRoom Company, In-House Marketing, Advertising & PR Coordinator
Eagan, Minnesota || 2003 - Present || www.outdoorrooms.com
• Management of the global marketing mix, reported directly to the CEO, CFO & VP of Sales.
• Generated cost-effective marketing management and vendor negotiations to end each year
an average of 30% under-budget (without compromising business growth goals).
• Created and managed all Social Media accounts, SEO, backlinks, keywords, adwords, main
website and landing pages.
• Marketing support to 350+ dealer accounts (online, specialty, big box). Including Best Buy,
Costco, Sears, Kohls, Frontgate, HomeDepot.com, WayFair.com and 25 national sales reps.
• Successfully rolled out 120+ new products from 2003-2012 to trade and consumer markets.
• Development of critical advertising campaigns that exceeded ROI by 10-35% year over year.
• Trade show industry event coordinator. Example: developed and coordinated the “Ideal
Outdoor Event” at the 2011 High Point Market. (Hosts: Casual Living Magazine, TUCCI, Henry
Hall Designs, The Outdoor Greatroom Company and Padma’s Plantation).
• Development of custom co-op offering for dealer accounts to enhance their online presence
through landing pages, social media, blogs, SEO and online content curation.
• Increased Venturi Flame™ Fire Pit Sales by 30% over previous year in June 2012 alone, a
result of product placement, negotiation, TV and online promotions with Dr. Gadget, The
View and Extra TV.
• Created, assembled partners, created contest rules and deadlines, managed conference
calls, designed landing pages, and garnered traffic and presented ROI for multiple online coop sweepstakes. Working with partner brands including Better Homes and Gardens, This
Old House, Cooking.com, Vibe Incentives, Wine Enthusiast, Omaha Steaks, Mr. Prindables,
Fat Brain Toys, Thompson Cigar, The American Tea Room, Baileys Nursery, Twin Cities in
Motion, Care Through Action.
Marketing That Matters, Marketing and PR Consultant.
Minneapolis, Minnesota || 2009 - 2011 || www.marketingmatters-mn.com
• Managed client relations, digital media and web updates, events, and press conferences.
• Manage client websites and strategize SEO, keywords, meta tags, images.
• Custom designed and managed online Facebook photography contest submissions.
• Worked with the CEO, supported the agency mission to promote and profit with a purpose.
• Clients included The Saint Paul Foundation, The Central Corridor Funders Collaborative
(CCFC) - The Lightrail, Lutsen-Tofte Tourism, Cook County Tourism & Facing Race.
INTERNSHIPS
Neiman Marcus, PR/Cashmere Sales Intern. Minneapolis, MN, Fall & Winter 2003
• Developed sales incentives to increase cashmere sales by 10% during off-peak months.
• Assisted public relations director with in-store runway events and corporate parties.
Minneapolis Downtown Journal, Photojournalist Intern. Minneapolis, MN, Summer 2003
Great River Greening, Volunteer & Event Coordinator Intern. St. Paul, MN, Jan 2003 - June 2003
Minnesota Timberwolves, Game Day Promotions. Minneapolis, MN, March 2002 - April 2003
SKILLS AND EXPERTISE
Mac & PC user: Adobe Master Suite CS6 (InDesign, Photoshop, Illustrator, Lightroom), MS Office,
iLife, Keynote, Pages. Social Media Applications for Business: Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest,
Flickr, Houzz, Google Analytics, Sprout Social, Hootsuite, Mention, SocialBro, Podio, DemandBase,
TweetDeck, HitWise, Evernote, DropBox, MailChimp, MyEmma, Constant Contact, QR Code Maker,
SurveyMonkey, JoinMe. Enterprise PR Platforms: Vocus, Cision, Meltwater Press, MyMedia Info,
GlobeNewswire, Haro. Website & Blog Development: Custom CMS, Wix, Wordpress, Blogger,
Google+, Druple. Marketing. Ecommerce, CRM, ERP, SAS platforms: Clarizen, Wrike, Hubspot,
SugarCRM, Magento, SalesForce, GreatPlains, SAP, PIM, SharePoint, GSI Commerce, Bigcommerce,
eDesk, Pipedrive, Zoho CRM, Nimble. Crowd sharing applications: Lyft, Sidecar, Uber, Rideshare,
AirBNB, Couch Surfing, Meetup, Oodle, CrowdFunding.
EDUCATION
Minneapolis College of Art and Design — Photography & Design Certificates, 2006-2007
University of St. Thomas Grad School — Organizational Management, MBA 2004-2006
University of St. Thomas Undergrad — Marketing Management & Business Comm, 1999-2003
Universidad de Sevilla — Semester abroad, Spring 2002
Semester at Sea (ISE) — Institute for Shipboard Education, Summer 2001
INTERESTS & ACTIVITIES
Harvard Business Advisory Council・DECA Judge・AMA・PRSA・Care Through Action
Volunteer/Adjunct Board Member・ChildFund International Supporter・College Tennis Athlete
USTA・Inner City Tennis Coach・Ragnar Relay Runner・World Traveler・Web, Social Media, Tech
Geek・Documentary Photographer・Landmark Education・Thunderbird International Volunteer
Recommendations available on LinkedIn - additional references are available upon request.