Marina Maher Communications

Last night MMC hosted an event at the Yankees/Red Sox game (those darn Sox won again!). Although our agency is all about marketing to women, baseball is America’s sport; not just for men. That said, we just couldn’t stop thinking about how MMC would change the baseball experience to make it even better for women. What would we do differently? Glad you asked.

The Stats: As each batter stepped up to the mound, the Jumbotron flashed their stats – hits, RBIs and times at bat. While this information clearly helps you understand what the player does, we’d suggest also including information about who the player is. For example, what drives Derek Jeter’s passion for baseball?  What’s a “fun fact” about Nick Swisher? Women need both rational and emotional information to make a connection.

The Seats: I bet you think we’d say that the seats are not comfortable enough. Well, while I’m sure both men and women wouldn’t turn down the opportunity for more comfortable seating, our observation was that the seats weren’t conducive to conversation. Women like to share.  They want to discuss their point of view and get their friend’s input and perspective. So we’d recommend seats that swirl so you can more easily chat with friends around you.

The Ads: It struck us that the majority of ads that circle Yankee Stadium are male-focused both in color and brand. Women are at the games too and as such are “captive” for three or more hours. So speak to us:  sunscreen, comfortable shoes and exercise gear are likely top of mind for women at games.  Women are multi-taskers at heart, so the opportunity to take in a game and go on our phone to buy the latest sports-appropriate shoes would make any woman happy.

So if anyone at Yankee Stadium is listening, send me an e-mail if you’d like to hear more.

Industry Insiders, including Mashable, are already talking about New York Fashion Week, and Tumblr (a Social sharing site) is giving us a great way to stay up-to-date given the enormous amount of coverage we typically see from the tents.

This year Tumblr  is sponsoring approximately 20 fashion-specific online influencers at New York Fashion Week, many of whom have never attended Fashion Weeks in the past.   The goal of this initiative is to help build awareness of the fashion community on Tumblr, and to give the Fashion Industry a peek at these up-and-coming talents.

A steady stream of content will be posted to Tumblr.com/nyfw.  Seems like a great way to build alliances with up-and-coming talent that are extremely eager to get to Fashion Week.  We’re sure that these influencers will promote Tumblr in their posts and disclosure statements and help the platform get additional exposure with a new (huge!) target.

Yesterday, Team MMC took it to the streets…streets of Central Park that is. It’s a long standing tradition throughout the country – The JP Morgan Corporate Challenge, a 3.5 mile race to support local charities. For NYC, it was the Central Park Conservatory.

As we walked through the crowds of people, we couldn’t help but notice the creativity that thrives in this City – it was exemplified through the unique team shirts and slogans. The teams bonded as you saw groupings of the fast runners, joggers and walkers.

Team MMC made the race more interesting by offering $50 to the runner with the fastest time. AND the winner is – Annette Evans, coming in at 29 minutes and 33 seconds. A close second was Scott Slattery at 31:52.

Thank you to Mary Beth, Maree and Kate for helping to organize this event and thank you to our runners – Cathy Fitzpatrick, Marissa Festante, Erica Nadboy, Annette Evans, Scott Slattery, Cara Caulkins, Mary Beth and Maree!

A special thank you to our volunteers – Jen, Emily and Mariana.

Here’s to more wellness activities for Team MMC in 2011!

Anyone who knows me knows this: I’m a sucker for a deal. Offer me something with a discount, and I’m almost sure to buy it. Heck, I’ve even been known to purchase asparagus (which I hate) when it’s on sale. So when friend and colleague Scott Slattery approached me to make him a bona fide New Yorker and bring him to his first Broadway show, it was only natural that the first thing I did was check for a coupon. Hey, this city’s not cheap! And I wasn’t overly familiar with the show, “Next to Normal,” outside of the fact that it had won a few Tonys last year. 

Well, thank you, MMC for enrolling us in Plum Benefits, which provides discounts to various forms of entertainment, like plays and sporting events. With this service, it’s rare I pay full price to a Broadway play anymore… in fact, doing so has become almost become unjustifiable! 

And I’m not the only one who thinks so. A report released earlier this week from Valassis, shows coupon usage is continuing to increase, despite the growing belief that this recession is over. So how can consumers get the value they’re seeking? And how should discounts be doled out? While a coupon simply seems like money saved to shoppers, for us PR folks, it’s a great opportunity to reach consumers and provide an appreciated service. As much as I’d like to encourage mass couponing to satisfy my own shopaholic tendencies, I know better. Before couponing, first consider the objective and ensure it’s the right approach. 

On many of our Brands’ Facebook pages, coupons are in high demand. Giving away coupons in response seems obvious, but we used the opportunity to tell our fans we are listening to them. We developed various approaches to surprise and delight with unexpected giveaways and drive product interaction through rewards for posts. Now, our communities are active and flourishing, showing how couponing can be a strong opportunity to make an impact and engage people with Brands. 

Take me and “Next to Normal.” I wouldn’t have seen it without the discount. (Sorry Scott). But the show was so fantastic, I’m already planning on going back, and even better for its producers… going back with friends. Because I received a small percentage off, I’ve now become an advocate. And in that spirit, here’s my pitch: “Next to Normal” is a must-see. Bold and moving, you’re sure to cry. Probably more than once. This intense tale of a dysfunctional family striving towards somewhere “next to normal,” will leave you wonderfully surprised at what you just experienced on Broadway. The pop rock music and shifting set energize and excite as forcefully as the story itself. So go, blog readers, and let yourself be moved. Just don’t forget to check for a coupon code first!

Over the course of my year in New York City I have become more and more thankful for what I have in my life. I know New Yorkers get a bad rap for being constantly pessimistic – though they of course will tell you they are realistic – yet somehow this city has had an adverse affect on me.

I went to California last month to visit my best friend, and before going I thought I would never want to return. However, after a few days in LA, I realized that I was missing NYC. I missed my little (cozy) apartment, I missed my friends, I missed the daily activities that had evolved into routines. I thought I would love the laid back California style, but it made me long for the streets where people walk into you if you don’t move quickly enough.

I even missed work – I hated to think that things could just continue on without me. While a vacation is always good, it feels good to make things happen in the office – it provides one with a sense of accomplishment. Plus, having been exposed to a few of my friends’ jobs has really made me cherish my own – where I am encouraged to get out and experience NYC in order to provide fresh insights to my clients. 

People say the grass is always greener on the other side, and now I know this to be true. Yet, just because I am thankful for what I have does not mean that I won’t strive for bigger and better things—that’s just part of the dedication and initiative that comes with being an MMCer.

This past weekend, a few MMCers decided to get out of the office and head across the bridge (literally) for some inspiration and food-for-thought! We’re always brainstorming about NEW & fresh ideas to bring to our clients and wanted to head out and explore this great city to help inspire our thinking. What better way to that than a NYC walking tour? This wasn’t any ordinary NYC walking tour, this was even better: a food walking tour! Bruce, our guide, led us across the Brooklyn bridge, offering up a few interesting facts along the way to help fuel our thinking.

Our first food experience was at NY pizza institution, Grimaldi’s Pizzeria, which has been serving hungry New Yorkers for over a decade. Directly over the bridge, customers have been known to wait hours for this coal-oven pie. Thanks to our handy tour guide, we didn’t have to wait on the line, but we did have to wait 45 minutes for the pie to be made before we could devour it. With our mouths watering, we took our classic NY pizza to the newly built park under the bridge and ate with gorgeous views of the skyline and bridge.

As with any meal, our food walking tour would not have been complete without dessert. After finishing up our pizza, we walked a few steps to The Brooklyn Ice Cream Factory, owned by the famed River Café and housed in a twenties fireboat house right on the water. There was a small selection of flavors – just the essentials, including vanilla, chocolate, strawberry, butter pecan and coffee. Each was ice cream perfection – creamy and refreshing!

All together, food, sights and friends, it was a perfect way to see a part of NYC we hadn’t seen before – through food!  

 ~A very special shout out to Rachel L. and Marissa F. who helped contribute to this post

There is a great xkcd comic that says, “I’m happy to grow up.  But I won’t pretend that fun things aren’t still fun out of fear of looking silly.”  As a newcomer to NYC living – check out my previous post on life as a commuter – I’ve found the Big Apple provides many opportunities to embrace this motto.

Most recently, a flock of young-at-hearters descended upon Union Square for a pillow fight flash mob, with thousands of people participating.  And if you’re looking to grab a drink in a place more reminiscent of your childhood friend’s basement than a bar, look no further than Fat Cat in the West Village, which offers rows of ping pong and foosball tables, among other games. 

But my favorite childlike exploit in the big city so far infuses my life with a weekly dose of youthful glee – Skee-Ball.  Last month, I joined Brewskee-Ball, the first ever league of its kind, and every Monday night my team rolls at Williamsburg’s Full Circle Bar, whose parody of the Old Spice Superbowl commercial was a recent hit on YouTube.

With more than 400 teams in NYC, San Francisco, Austin, Charlotte and Wilmington, NC, Skee-Ball is quickly becoming the next great American bar sport.  It’s even caught the attention of mainstream media: NPR’s All Things Considered covered the past “skeeson” championship, ESPN.com posted a video tutorial from one Brewskee-Ball star roller, and The New York Times was rumored to be mulling about at this past Wednesday’s match.

If you can’t make it out to Brooklyn to watch an official league match, Manhattan plays host to two great Skee-Ball bars as well – Ace Bar in the East Village and Crocodile Lounge on East 14^th Street, where you can get in touch with your inner child while earning a free slice of pizza with each beer you purchase.  And, if all else fails, you can always download the iPhone app.