Amanda Unger Email & Phone Number

Dallas, Texas

• Modernized the company’s communications and training strategies during a time of rapid growth and transformation from an outside sales team to a direct digital marketing model.• Built corporate training department and strategy to drive CRM adoption/usage, create custom training tools, and streamline communications for products and policies to enable sales growth for 300+ independent reps. Implemented monthly reporting and metrics to understand strengths and close gaps. • Influenced executive leadership team on change management strategies and crisis communication through high-risk situations.• Collaborates with stakeholders and executive leadership to implement comprehensive sales training and integrated communication plans, resulting in faster go-to-market product launches, successful technology releases, and outstanding user-first experience.• Craft press releases, manage media relations and lead coordination with external PR firm tasked with gaining brand awareness which resulted in several local and network TV media spots, web articles and product placement.• Ensure brand voice and competitive positioning through cross-collaboration with marketing, creative and product teams.• Planned, implemented, and launched the company’s first LMS that reduced onboarding costs by $60K. Worked with internal functional experts to develop 130+ education and training modules.• In response to COVID-19, transitioned customer training to 100% virtual and launched two weekly Facebook training series, reducing spend by 80% and increasing profits by 300%. • Collaborated with the IT team to successfully integrate HubSpot with the manufacturing back-end system to deliver real-time project statuses and shipping/tracking communications to customers.• Lead tradeshow & corporate events team, responsible for creating engaging and innovative corporate events, tradeshows, sales kick-off and school enrichment events.

Dallas, Tx

Dallas/Fort Worth Area

Support the Brand Strategy and Student Engagement team to execute brand communications for the Company’s entire portfolio of brands (ArtCarved®. Balfour®, Keepsake®, Balfour Yearbooks®). Establish and maintain brand standards, values, goals, purpose, and the Company’s culture via sales/brand company events, high school and university events. Enhance all areas of the public image of the Company with content creation and distribution through various digital, video, mobile, and broadcast channels.• Create and deliver compelling materials for print, digital, e-commerce, and social media channels.• Collaborate with internal teams and business units to deliver sales presentation materials and content for specific audiences.• Manage a team of regional marketing specialists and college interns to generate and develop relevant content for web, print and social• Ensure adherence in the quality of graphics, text, and other elements that have an effect on the Company’s brands.• Lead public relations efforts for new product launchesManaging editor of the company "newsroom" where content ideas are generated, assigned and produced for both internal communications and web/social.• Manage the company blog through Sitecore.• Work with management team on corporate communication needs as they arise.• Manage production timelines for a variety of projects within the publishing, IT and digital teams and ensure completion to deliver on-time within budget at the highest quality standards. • Prepare materials for brand communications and events such as the website, social media channels and corporate promotional materials with a keen eye for detail while being a steward of brand standards.• Plan and execute corporate sales events and tradeshows• Work with internal team and outside sales force to develop engaging high school and university eventsSKILLS: Sitecore, Bronto, Constant Contact, JIRA, Trello, Adobe InDesign, Photoshop, Lightroom, Illustrator

Dallas/Fort Worth Area

• Create tools & resources to inspire, educate and empower customers to create yearbooks• Organize & manage social media contests to engage customers & grow business• Tradeshow design & management• Lead design projects with freelance artists • Develop strategy & create content for social media platforms and blog• Product Manager for customer resource center and crowd-sourcing app, working closely with Product Owner and UI/UX, and overseas development teams to drive vision based on customer experience and prioritize development needs• Design support documentation and train reps and tech support on new system functionality• Experience with Constant Contact, Wordpress, JIRA, Trello, SamePage project management system.

Fort Worth, Tx

I sell publishing contracts to individual schools and school districts in Fort Worth area for Balfour, a leader in providing yearbooks, class rings, graduation apparel and accessories and letter jackets. My duties include:• Cultivating and maintaining professional business relationships with prospects, customers and decision-makers.• Organizing a weekly travel schedule, allowing for both service calls and prospect meetings in order to grow client base.• Managing yearbook accounts, providing educational resources, budgeting assistance, and production help for yearbook/journalism programs. • Designing custom marketing pieces, thematic graphic packages and yearbook covers for the schools I currently work with.• Training customers on various software platforms, layout and design, color management, photography, journalism writing skills in both classroom and workshop settings. • Attending various trade shows and student journalism conventions. • Communicating deadlines, financial information, and product availability between the manufacturing plant and customers. • Providing excellent customer service to teachers, principals, school officials and parents, resulting in a multi-year customer renewal rate of 100%.

Bryan/College Station, Texas Area

I sell publishing and scholastic product contracts to individual schools and school districts in a mostly rural area of Central/Southeastern Texas territory for Balfour, a leader in providing yearbooks, class rings, graduation apparel and accessories and letter jackets. My duties include:• Cultivating and maintaining professional business relationships with prospects, customers and decision-makers.• Organizing a weekly travel schedule, allowing for both service calls and prospect meetings in order to grow client base.• Managing yearbook accounts, providing educational resources, budgeting assistance, and production help for yearbook/journalism programs. • Designing custom marketing pieces, thematic graphic packages and yearbook covers for the schools I currently work with.• Training customers on various software platforms, layout and design, color management, photography, journalism writing skills in both classroom and workshop settings. • Attending various trade shows and student journalism conventions. • Making presentations during school assemblies to high school juniors and seniors wishing to purchase class rings and graduation products.• Communicating deadlines, financial information, and product availability between the manufacturing plant and customers. • Providing excellent customer service to teachers, principals, school officials and parents, resulting in a multi-year customer renewal rate of 100%.

Fort Worth, Tx

Boutique invitation and graphic design studio, partnering with individuals and couples to meet their invitation needs for celebrating the social, family and business events in their lives. Using the highest quality materials available, all items are hand-crafted to meet the tone and feel of each client’s special event. My duties include:• Managing and maintaining all aspects of a small, home-based business.• Marketing my business and services through social media, print and wedding trade shows.• Designing and maintaining my own website.• Designing wedding invitations and accessory packages to fit all budgets.• Coordinating with businesses to create professionally designed advertisements, marketing pieces and business products.• Overseeing all aspects of the design process—from concept to creation, editing, printing, assembly and packaging.

Nacogdoches, Texas

Advertising Sales Manager for a student-run, twice-weekly college newspaper with a circulation of 7,000. Responsible for managing a staff of four advertising representatives, covering territories in the Nacogdoches area. My duties included:• Managing four student sale representatives responsible for covering various territories in the Nacogdoches area.• Coaching sales representatives on the sales process and pricing structure.• Training sales representatives on Adobe InDesign and Photoshop.• Personally managing all national and on-campus accounts that purchased advertising contracts with our publication. • Designed custom ads for space sold; designing complete ad campaigns for clients purchasing multi-issue publication.• Preparing the layout and placement of all ads in the paper prior to passing it onto the editoral staff• Maintainging classified ad space• Maintaining sales reporting; responsible for hiring representatives for open territories

Nacogdoches, Tx

I served two consecutive years as the editor-in-chief of the Stone Fort, the award-winning yearbook of Stephen F. Austin State University; one of the longest-running school annual publications still in print today. My duties included:• Managing a staff of 6 section editors, each responsible for the layout and design, content collection, writing and photography for the section to which they were assigned.• Producing an award-winning, 352-page publication with a press run of 2,300-2,500, annually.• Editing staff layouts for content, grammar, clarity and accuracy.• Working with the publisher to handle file submission and proof corrections in a timely manner. • Campaigning for page sales to Greek and on-campus organizations.• Establishing and maintaining design standards to fit the theme, both verbally and visually, tying together the theme with cover design, endsheets, division pages and graphic packages. • Setting deadlines to coordinate with the academic schedule of the staff and the printing needs of the publisher. • Cultivating a professional relationship with both our local representative and in-plant representatives.• Collaborating and sharing content with the photography and editorial staffs residing in the same department.With declining sales over the years, I worked with the student publications adviser and director to develop of point-of-sale T-shirt to be given away to freshmen ordering yearbooks at orientation. The program consisted of designing a standard, school-pride shirt that could be affordably produced, and selling sponsorship space on the back of the shirt to cover production costs. The project began in 2007 and is still in existence today. The highly sought-after advertising space gives businesses a strategic way to reach the incoming freshmen market.

Bachelor Of Arts, Journalism And English

Activities and Societies: The Pine Log, Stone Fort Yearbook, Omicron Delta Kappa, Association of Women in Communications

Education record