Grady Britton

And the 2011 GB Grant winner is… Community Warehouse!

This year, Grady Britton will donate $25,000 of in-kind creative and marketing services to an organization that truly exemplifies Portland’s huge heart and giving spirit. Community Warehouse takes donations of furniture and household goods and gives them new life in the hands and homes of low-income families looking to make a fresh start. We look forward to working with these incredibly talented people to increase brand awareness, bolster creative and forever change the way Portlanders think about used couches. Game on!

The GB Grant Application period is officially closed. Thanks to everyone who sent an application! Check the grant page to vote on your favorite videos www.gradybritton.com/grant and stay tuned to find out who is awarded this year’s Grady Britton Grant.

For the fourth year in a row, Grady Britton is reaching out to those organizations that positively impact Portland. The Grady Britton Grant is a $25,000 in-kind gift of marketing services awarded annually to a local non-profit organization. Past recipients include S.M.A.R.T., The Dougy Center and Oregon Partnership. Grady Britton will provide $25,000 of in-kind agency services for creative development, while the recipient must be able to match the donation to cover production, printing, media buying and other costs.

The Grady Britton Grant is made possible because of great people in and around the Portland-Metro area. If you know of a worthy candidate, point them to www.gradybritton.com/grant by September 1st to be considered for the grant. During the application period, Grady Britton will also be posting video submissions from the entrants on the Grant page. We welcome your votes, likes, shares and comments.

In the last month, GB’s PR department has penned a series of best PR practices for companies looking to earn trust and credibility from their customers. Check out a quick compilation of our newest contributions:

• “How To Choose the Right SEO Firm,” a series of articles we’ve written for our friends at AboutUs
• “How To Work With Bloggers,” successful strategies on interacting with bloggers, contributed by PR SAE Marion Margiotta
• “PR Strategies for Small Business,” useful insights from GB’s Lindsay Yale

We love contributing advice on PR strategy, because it’s a great way for us to share what’s worked for us and get input from others on their experiences. But perhaps the best advice we can give clients about successfully executing PR strategies comes not through our words, but in our behavior– and how we practice our PR craft.

For example, when Lindsay Yale, in the course of “doin’ her thang,” is showcased by a top local reporter for “Doing PR the Right Way“ how can you not love that?

It’s great recognition, and a great reminder to practice what you preach. That’s really what PR is, isn’t it: demonstrating, not saying?

For the fifth year in a row, Grady Britton, has been selected as one of the 100 Best Companies to Work For, and was presented an award by Oregon Business magazine. For 18 years the magazine has honored Oregon companies whose management teams have created great places to work for their employees. Winners were announced on March 4th in a breakfast held at the Oregon Convention Center.
“The award not only honors the company, but is a testament to our amazing employees that consistently go all out to produce the best work for our great clients,” stated Frank Grady, president of Grady Britton.

This year’s ranking demonstrates that overall employee satisfaction, trust in its leadership, and great working environment make coming to work at the agency a great experience.

For the 2011 survey nearly 14,000 Oregon workers rated their satisfaction with 263 employers in 50 workplace qualities including Benefits and Compensation, Work Environment, Decision Making and Trust, Performance Management, and Career Development and Learning.

GB is hunting for a Content and Community Strategist to expand our social media marketing services and online content strategies for our clients — whether that’s in social networks, or finding creative, new ways to tell stories on clients’ websites or other web properties.

This person is part copywriter, part social media/community manager, part online trend tracker and part creative multimedia storyteller.  This role will work closely with our PR and interactive teams to concept, develop, execute and manage creative online content – anywhere online.

This isn’t a UX or IA job; instead, it’s a job for someone who wants to help brands engage in and seed conversations online.

How do you know if you’re a fit?  You live and actively participate in the digital world already (blogs, Twitter, etc.).  You have a flair for writing, but also deeply appreciate the nuances of brand authenticity and voice.  You’re passionate about learning about new industries, topics and trends, but are even more eager to find how to tell client stories in a fresh and interesting way that’s relevant to the online communities in which your client plays.  You work well in a fast paced, highly collaborative environment, spanning multiple disciplines (creative, PR, digital strategy, media and video/photo production).  And you’re as much a visionary as you are a practitioner.

Ideally you’ve got 2-3 years experience with this role and building the processes, deliverables and capabilities around this role.  You preferably have worked in an agency or other creative environment, but not required. This position will initially be on a half time contract basis starting January 1, with potential for full time employment fairly quickly.

If this is you, contact Becky Engel, our PR director at jobs*at*gradybritton.com and tell her why you’re our fit.

Image credit antigone78

Projects we can sink our teeth into: Grady Britton has been working with three deliciously exciting clients – Mother’s Bar & Bistro, KeHe Distributors and Choicelunch. Here’s the rundown:

Mother’s Bar & Bistro, Mamma Mia Trattoria

When Lisa Schroeder wanted to develop some new print ads and a cohesive online presence for her businesses, she reached out to her Facebook fans for agency suggestions and was introduced to Grady Britton. Lisa’s more than just the owner of two highly-acclaimed Portland restaurants, she’s also a published author and has an online cooking show. Grady Britton saw potential in taking these multiple entities and developing a single brand and central online hub for them. GB Partner Paige McCarthy shared her enthusiasm for the project, “Lisa has a larger-than-life personality and a great brand that make for an exciting online presence.” Work is underway, so stay tuned.

KeHE Distributors

When a very successful company is at the top of its category, it can be easy to ignore ongoing brand development. Such is the case with KeHE Distributors. This leading wholesale specialty food supplier needed to give some life and a story to its brand. Enter GB. “We’re going to make the KeHE brand come alive and own a leadership position,” Paige McCarthy explained. The refreshed KeHE brand not only will spotlight the company’s amazing story, but also provide a foundation for an improved web presence and social media strategy.

Choicelunch

Fortunately, thanks to Choicelunch, school lunch programs aren’t what they used to be. The Danville, Calif.-based company creates and serves delicious school lunches with locally-sourced, organic, all natural and kid-friendly ingredients for nearly 15,000 school children in nearly 200 schools in the San Francisco Bay Area and Southern California. The company chose Grady Britton for two public relations projects: one to spread the word about its summer cooking classes for kids and parents, and a second to announce its new brand identity and newly designed website. The projects generated a variety of print and online mentions, as well as a Daily Candy Kids San Francisco feature and a TV feature with ABC 7 in Los Angeles. We’re excited to use our media-relations skills on behalf of this great company that’s helping kids make smarter choices about the foods they eat.

A couple of new faces have been spotted around the Grady Britton office. Who exactly is this mysterious “Sue” and this so called “Brian”?

Fear not, Sue Kim and Brian Hildenbrand are legitimate, key-fob carrying members of the Griffin family. We’re excited to announce them as our newest hires!

Sue specializes in radio, print and interactive production. Working as a senior producer and traffic manager, she is involved in building interactive flash websites, producing brand videos and keeping production activities on track. No one can quite remember how we got by before Sue’s arrival.

A former New Yorker, Brian came to Portland in search of greener, more bike-friendly pastures. As part of the media team, Brian masterminds buying and planning strategies for clients including Blount and Climax Portable Machine Tools. Brian has had a successful West Coast transition so far, and doesn’t even miss the subway rats.

Award Marks Third Annual Grant of Marketing Services to Local Non-Profit Agencies

Portland, Ore. (August 2, 2010) – Grady Britton (GB) is proud to award its third annual $25,000 Grant for professional services to Oregon Partnership, a statewide non-profit based in Portland working in the field of substance abuse prevention and suicide prevention. Grady Britton will work with Oregon Partnership on a program to promote its new Military HelpLine––1-888-HLP-4-VETS ––that provides confidential advice and referrals for returning military, veterans, and their families.

According to Oregon Partnership, mental health issues and suicide among veterans are escalating problems. Data indicates that there are 18 suicides a day nationwide among this population. Such statistics prompted the introduction of a bill in Congress earlier this year. The bill required the Veterans Administration to conduct a study to understand the factors contributing to veteran suicides, and to identify steps to prevent future tragedies. At the request of the Oregon National Guard, the Oregon Partnership was asked to begin operating a private and confidential help line for returning military personnel and their families, offering referrals to counseling and other resources. Grady Britton will provide creative services to help the Oregon Partnership publicize the Military HelpLine in all corners of Oregon, especially in rural areas where veterans may feel cut off from information and support groups which exist primarily in the Valley core.

“Those who have served in the military and their families often face a myriad of problems that sometimes seem overwhelming. That’s why we see an urgent need to get the word out about the new Military HelpLine,” said Peter Jurney, Development Director of Oregon Partnership. “Grady Britton’s grant couldn’t have come at a better time. The award will enable us to reach our service men and women and their families to let them know help and support are just a phone call away.”

Oregon Partnership teaches prevention of substance abuse and suicide at the elementary and secondary level; manages statewide campaigns against underage drinking and prescription drug abuse; works with community drug-free coalitions around the state; and operates four 24/7 crisis lines: Oregon’s suicide LifeLine; Drug and Alcohol HelpLine; YouthLine, staffed by teens; and the new Military HelpLine. Oregon Partnership takes more than 36,000 crisis line phone calls each year, half of which are suicide calls. It saves lives every day through referrals to counseling and resources, and when necessary, by doing suicide rescues.

“We were overwhelmed and humbled by the number of wonderful organizations that applied for this year’s Grady Britton $25,000 Grant. After careful consideration, we chose Oregon Partnership because of the outstanding work they do in the areas of education and prevention for youth and the community. We also saw the immediate need to support our military and their families, many of whom put their lives on hold and now need our help,” said Grady Britton President Frank Grady.  “We’re proud to have the opportunity to work with this remarkable organization, and look forward to supporting them and other Portland non-profits making a positive impact on the lives of others.”

Any Portland-area 501(c)(3) organization was eligible to apply for the $25,000 professional services grant through Grady Britton’s Web site, which the agency plans to award yearly. Grady Britton looks for a recipient that is working to make a difference in our community.

This is the third year that the grant has been available, and the agency saw a 100 percent increase in applicants, a list that included a variety of organizations ranging from children’s charities to recreational facilities to social services.  The 2009 GB Grant recipient was The Dougy Center, for whom the agency created a refreshed identity, including redesigning a brochure and website, as well as developing web banners and a radio spot. All work focused on helping The Dougy Center spread its message of hope for children and families grieving the death of a loved one, and to grow its network of supporters. To learn more about the work Grady Britton produced for The Dougy Center, visit http://gradybritton.com/category/showcase/gb-grant-showcase/the-dougy-center-gb-grant

The last few months have been busy here at the ol’ GB Ranch, thanks to the addition of two new awesome client partners, who are tapping our expertise to create exceptional experiences for their B2B audiences.

Howard S. Wright, a leading construction and construction management company on the West Coast, hired Grady Britton to develop a strategy to commemorate its 125^th Anniversary. We’re also executing a number of PR projects to highlight the company’s solid capabilities, well-respected leadership team, and numerous construction wins.  All part of helping this brand’s rich heritage come alive.  Literally.  Stay tuned.  Work to come.

Next up: KAVI Corporation, whose structured collaboration solutions are used by thousands of organizations and associations nationally. Grady Britton developed brand positioning and a new website to engage customers as it expands into the enterprise market. The site launched in June.

We’re thrilled to have you part of our family!