For industry pros at the top of their game, "I'll take the job!" is the Smart Reply
Irvine, CA - June 12th, 2007 - As SmartReply continues to write the text-book on mobile marketing in the United States, the country's leading provider to the retailing industry is attracting some of the best minds in sales, marketing and technology from around the globe. The voice and mobile messaging solutions provider, based in California, has recently added a number of members to its strategic team, with the goal of maintaining its position as the authority in managed customer communications and voice and mobile marketing solutions.
A key component of the company's growth and success has been its commitment to recruiting top-notch personnel for every position - a strategy that has driven SmartReply to become a preeminent innovator in mobile marketing for the industry. Another deciding factor in SmartReply's success has been its commitment to product development.
To that end, SmartReply has promoted Mary Scimone, a veteran of the SmartReply Strategic Services group, to Director of Product Development, Loyalty Systems. Scimone's responsibilities will bring together disparate tactics into a comprehensive marketing solution - rewarding consumers with choice and control over the marketing messages they receive, and rewarding clients with ease of use, high ROI, and lower costs of communication.
Another new hire in charge of product development is Kelly Noel, who will help build consumer relationships directly with SmartReply as Director of Product Development, Direct to Consumer. Noel moved to SmartReply from the technology industry and has spent the bulk of her career in critical product development; developing strategic roadmaps and new markets, launching new products and creating and executing marketing plans. By combining Scimone's and Noel's experience, passion and dedication to effective customer communications with the company's innovation and leading technology, existing clients and the industry can be assured that SmartReply will change the way that brands communicate with their customers over the next few years.
With consumer-controlled marketing transforming the industry, incited by the proliferation of mobile phones, TiVo, satellite radio, and other personal communication devices, SmartReply continues to break new ground with new innovations in mobile and voice marketing offerings. President Eric Holmen, explains "over the years, we've built a very innovative culture, and in the past year our pipeline of intellectual property and new solutions has become a key asset and component of our growth." It is through this culture that SmartReply has attracted the best talent capable of filling such a pipeline; with the focus on new product development that it means to gain dimensional expansion in the marketplace.
SmartReply says that the starting point for successful mobile marketing deployment is consumer-control, or opt-in. With customer-controlled marketing, instead of ads being perceived as annoying, consumers are in complete control of the messages they receive, differentiating mobile marketing from mainstream media. Thanks to opt-in measures enforced by SmartReply, customers can sign up to choose which messages they receive, from who and when. Using the failures of email marketing as examples of what not to do, SmartReply has helped retailers throughout the country develop campaigns that deliver the right content in the right context. The concept which SmartReply is offering retailers, is transforming not only the methods marketers and suppliers are using, but the very nature of the buyer-marketer-seller relationship.
And it is that relationship that matters to SmartReply the most. Eric Holmen reflects: "mobile marketing in and of itself does not drive business transactions. Relationships do." In the spirit of this philosophy, SmartReply has endeavored to help retailers build the sort of relationships with their customers that are perceived as welcome and not invasive, guiding and helpful, not pushy or annoying.
Eighty percent of Fortune 1000 companies plan to incorporate mobile marketing by 2008, and with more than 100 million active text message senders, mobile marketing is set to implode with SmartReply driving the trend.
It stands to reason, then, that SmartReply is attracting not only the technically brilliant and innovative candidates from business development and production, but also the experienced and respected professionals in marketing and sales. The company's excellent record of outpacing traditional marketing methods' ROI and its ability to increase brand loyalty and drive sales for its clients, defines SmartReply as a growth enterprise bound to bring in and retain the best in the business.
More new hires at SmartReply include;
Nelson Chu, Senior Web Developer
Nelson Chu will be developing the web-user interface, to allow staff and clients to manage SmartReply's system at different levels. Chu has acted as the lead developer in web applications and services for clients in the food, wine, real estate, motor sports, retailing and mortgage industries.
John Moriarty, Account Director
John Moriarty joins the Strategic Services team from Valassis Communications, where he served as Project Leader on accounts such as J&J, Unilever and Pepsi. Moriarty has extensive experience in supporting sales team members, leading client relationships and direct marketing project planning, with emphasis on grocery, drug and packaged goods.
Bob Newton, Vice President of Sales
Bob Newton joins the SmartReply sales team from the broadcast industry, where he worked with FOX, NBC, CBS and ABC affiliates. He designed the ASP database model for prospecting, sales and customer retention and has executive-level experience in voice marketing and building communications platforms for B2B and B2C clients.
Vinay Singh, Mobile Application Developer
Vinay Singh joins the technology team from QUALCOMM, with experience in mobile phone technology and infrastructure.
Randy Taylor, Vice President of Sales
Randy Taylor joins the sales team with extensive experience in voice marketing and 20+ years in the sales marketing consulting business, specializing in telecommunications and telemarketing. He will be working from SmartReply's Texas office, responsible for the financial services, credit card and high tech division.
Kristi Troung, Production Specialist
Kristi Troung joins the SmartReply Production Team with 5 years in voice marketing production management.
Jason Whitley, Marketing Systems Administrator
Jason Whitley joins from Sole Technology, where he was an applications engineer. Whitley will be responsible for creating and managing technical media and brand related efforts for SmartReply. He brings over 15 years of business application design and development experience and will manage the technology aspects of marketing projects
Elisa Reynolds, Business Development Specialist (Internal Promotion)
Elisa Reynolds is promoted from the production team into the Marketing and Strategy department.
Doreen Fender, Executive Assistant/Compliance Administrator
Doreen Fenders joins SmartReply from the banking industry, where she was responsible for all regulatory requirements. She is currently finishing her law degree, with a concentration in Compliance and Regulatory and is responsible for SmartReply's compliance administration.
"I'm thrilled by the level of talent we have successfully brought to SmartReply, and I believe it's reflective of our innovative company culture, our momentum in the marketplace, and the energy that drives us all to strive for greatness," said Holmen. "Our new team members can now see first hand the quality of the team that built this company from the ground, up, and the clarity on our vision to change the way that brands communicate with their customers."
About SmartReplySmartReply's voice and mobile messaging solutions have created breakthrough-marketing results for leading retailers throughout the United States and Canada. As the only voice and mobile messaging company dedicated to meeting the unique marketing challenges and objectives of retail executives, SmartReply's clients now have the proven ability to increase store traffic, lower marketing cost and strengthen brand affinity. Because of this, SmartReply is the provider of choice for more than 80 major regional and national retailers. Headquartered in Irvine, California, more information for partners and clients can be found at
www.SmartReply.com or by calling (800)-785-6769.