rachel r whitman
TRANSCRIPT
Rachel R. Whitman4964 Emmit Dr. N. Unit 8
Hugo, MN 55038612-384-3246
Summary
Communications professional with experience as a strategic member of branding and image development teams within the publishing industry. Highly effective copywriter for advertising and corporate publications. Organized and effective product manager for large scale national marketing endeavors with an emphasis on results tracking. Excels in social media development, strategic planning and public relations. Known for exceptional internal and external customer care.
Professional Experience
Augsburg Fortress Publishers, Minneapolis, MN 2004-2009
Augsburg Fortress is the publishing partner of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America—providing products and services that serve congregations across North America and Canada.
Product Designer (Sparkhouse—an imprint of Augsburg Fortress) 2009
• Revolutionized product development process by partnering with and uniting environmental education experts, writers, and early childhood development experts to create a new product line in a workshop format. The process innovation saved $100,000+ in development costs and was adopted for all new products prospectively released.
• Created a children’s curriculum (ReNew: the Green VBS) centered in environmental advocacy. Developed, branded, produced and marketed the product in 8 months using the principles of design thinking. Successfully built an online fan base of over 250 members using facebook, blogger, and Ning social media platforms. www.wearesparkhouse.org/renew
• Wrote advertising copy that appeared in industry related periodicals, banner advertisements on popular industry related websites, and email campaigns, resulting in market visibility and product sales.
• Executive producer of all video work for the ReNew product line—writer, talent supervisor and producer while on set filming ReNew commercials and product overview videos.
Marketing Communications Specialist 2008-2009• Social networking site administrator responsible for creating social networking
sites to expand Augsburg Fortress’ market reach. Served as the company’s voice for 4 new product lines, resulting in effectively communicating with hundreds of customers and increasing sales.
Rachel R. Whitman4964 Emmit Dr. N. Unit 8
Hugo, MN 55038612-384-3246
• Responsible for managing all corporate branding efforts for internal and external communications—helping to launch new company logo, color palette, and mission statement. Effectively communicated the new brand via the company catalog, website, email campaigns and printed mailings.
Marketing Coordinator 2006-2008• Managed the life cycle and coordinated all marketing communications projects
for the entire marketing team. In 2008, 687 projects were executed, 97% were completed on time or ahead of schedule.
• Marketing team copyeditor, effectively producing copy for advertisements, catalogs, press releases and enewsletter content. Resulted in defining a voice and point of view for 12 Augsburg Fortress brands.
• Switched project databases from FileMaker Pro to Microsoft SharePoint to improve process efficiency and project organization.
Customer Service Supervisor 2005-2006• Responsible for maintaining a call center of 30 employees, handling over 1800
calls a day. Hired, trained, coached and reviewed staff. Resulted in the creation of a training manual and online training database for all customer service and inside sales staff.
• Trained by the MN Employer’s Association—completed Supervision I and II courses, emphasized employee coaching, resulted in the promotion of four of my 12 direct reports.
Customer Service Education Specialist 2004-2005• Served in call center, specifically handling calls pertaining to Augsburg Fortress’
Education product lines. • Recognized by Augsburg Fortress for call quality and ability to upsell
consistently, resulting in an annual $25,000 increase in total sales revenue.
EducationBA, Journalism, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN 2005
AffiliationsBoard Member, Kantorei Chamber Choir, 2009-present
Computer SkillsMS Word, PowerPoint, FileMaker Pro, MS SharePoint, Excel, Outlook, Photoshop, Illustrator, Acrobat