Cork Tree Creative

Coffee. Is it the beauty or the beast?

2010-08-18T10:18:00.000-07:00

On the average day we probably drink 3 to 4 pots of coffee at Cork Tree Creative and sometimes more if D-Rock is in the office :) We have a humble staff, luckily, that doesn't require anything fancy . . . just plain-old-Folgers-in-the-red-can kind of coffee. Lately, it seems our industrial strength Bunn can't keep up with the demand making me think (after just pouring my third tall travel mug of JOE) "Man, what is it about coffee that we all love so much?"

Having had a home office for several years I like that coffee brings people together. I remember sitting at my kitchen table with a cup of lightly-sweetened-by-Splenda-coffee and my computer starting my daily "do" list and feeling like something was missing. Randomly I would shoot out emails attempting to set up appointments and inevitably one would include coffee.

For decades, coffee has been a common ground for many professionals. Coffee shops became cosmopolitan many years ago and then experienced a resurgence in the last decade. The beany liquid has become a lure for fast food restaurants and the entire premise of a franchise for those like Starbucks.

I think for some, like me, coffee signifies the start of a productive day . . . the fuel for creative thinking. And, for someone who relies on being creative for a living, that's kind of important. But is it really the coffee that fuels me or the thought of having a common thread with co-workers, clients and friends? Is it the happy hour of the early hours or the actual caffeine that gets me charged?

I recently received a Keurig Coffee Maker from my darling husband as a gift and with big, bright eyes thumbed their catalog that showcases all of the different flavor options available when you buy their KCups. What a treat! Quickly I purchased variety pack after variety pack trying to find that cutesy coffee brand that I could call my own. I even purchased DECAF! I must say . . . I LOVE the Keurig but let me give a warning to all if I run out of KCups. This prompts me to believe that I have not only become a caff addict but also a slave to my rituals. I can almost smell the coffee in my sleep . . . before it's brewed. Sad, I know.

I could debate with myself all day about why and how and when I became quite so dependent on that hot, dark drink but the fact of the matter is . . . I need it. We all seem to need it (at least in our office.) I speak for the entire staff at Cork Tree Creative when I say, if there is one thing in this world that we can point to that helps get us through the day besides, hard work, dedication and a positive attitude . . . that's right, we're pointing to you JOE. With our mugs in the air, "Thanks for the lift."

L

Sometimes a sign is . . . just that . . . a sign.

2010-08-01T08:31:00.000-07:00

It had been some time since we moved into our new office space at 223 S. Buchanan and it seemed that getting a sign, the right sign, was going to be a challenge. We inquired, we waited, we reviewed designs, we waited, we spoke to a new set of sign producers, we waited, we complained to friends, and yet we still waited . . . and none of this torment resulted in a sign.

Now I realize that while reading this you are probably thinking, "Wow, what's the big deal about getting a sign? It is, afterall, just a sign."

Yes, it is just a sign. But, for us, and I'm sure many other business owners, it's been about much more.

Obviously, getting a sign gains us exposure in the community and serves as a geographical landmark of our location. Simple enough. But it also brought with it an overwhelming need to be established or have all of our ducks in a row. A relatively new business with only 18 months as a partnership under our belt, we are branded and successful but until recently, not completely established.

Our website was in need of an overhaul and our new office, where we once seemed organized, suddenly made us feel disconnected. That's when we decided, it's always been about that darn sign. We didn't feel real, or 'in place" until it was at least on order. So the day came when we reached out to a local sign producer Dave Thomas and finally the end was in sight.

Soon after meeting with Dave, and a timeline was in place, we started to re-evaluate EVERYTHING. An executive coach from San Francisco who I recently met put it best . . . our systems were not in order or in need of updates. And if there is any advice I can give other business owners, it's to get your systems in order. A system is defined as relationships, processes, policies, etc. Luckily for us, our relationships are all positive and working properly. In my opinion the most important, the partnership between myself and my business partner couldn't be more solid and all of our staff come to work, exceed our expectations and work drama-free. Equally, our relationships with clients are working and couldn't be better.

What wasn't working was the flow of our office and our inability to dedicate time to us. I don't think this is all that uncommon for small businesses. Most find themselves in the growth stage operating reactively, pushing aside the many internal systems that may be established but in need of updates. Most growing businesses also struggle with the time to sit back and reevaluate operations and really plan, putting ideas and strategies on paper for them.

Not to serve as an example for all, our first order of organization came in the way we segmented our office. Having moved from a tiny office into more space than necessary, we all fanned out in seek of privacy. Well, that privacy didn't allow us to function as creatives. You can't confine yourself to a corner or nook of a building and work as an independent unit if you want a creative "system" to take hold.

So, we did what we believed was best and all moved into the lower level of our building. We can see each other, ask questions, spontaneously brainstorm and share music, laughs and lunch. So far it's working, albeit a short time in place.

I have to admit that at first I was the firmest of all believers in us each having own space. As the writer of the group, I often have to interview local business people and spend a large percentage of my day "in my head" and on the phone. That work regiment doesn't always lend itself to the loft-like atmosphere in which creatives often work. Man, was I wrong.

Secondly, we decided to dedicate blocks of time and treat Cork Tree as if it was a client. We brainstormed ideas for our website, developed a marketing strategy and outlined goals and objectives that may seem lofty now but are completely within our reach. In other words, we put on paper for ourselves what we normally do for clients. How refreshing.

Now that our website is serving all of the purposes we had in mind, our office and systems are reconfigured and that "darn" sign is up, it's time for Cork Tree Creative to enter a second 18 months in operation with a sharpened edge.

It may just be a landmark along a highway for many but to us that darn sign is a sign of many successful years to come and the start of something really great.

~L

Cork Tree Creative Experiences Growth

2010-07-24T09:17:00.000-07:00

It was only 18 months ago that my partner Jan and I joined forces to form Cork Tree Creative - an Edwardsville-based public relations and marketing firm. With more than 30 years of combined experience, we pooled our talents and launched the company into remarkable growth and new ventures in a very short time.

Early this year, we were pleased to add Cindy Sorgea as a public relations professional with more than 10 years working at PR agencies in St. Louis. We also enjoy the company, and creative talents of two interns joining us from Southern Illinois University Edwardsville Jen Baudendistel and Derek Weikle. Jen is a senior studying public relations and Derek is a student of SIUE's art program and assist our graphic design department.

While expanding our staff, we have also expanded services to include social networking and website optimization. While we developed a team that was generating really great looking websites, with all the bells and whistles, we wanted one for Cork Tree that we believe could serve as a true testament to our abilities. Our new Cork Tree Creative website is a great example of how we are able to meet the needs of a company as diverse in skills and services as ours, but also show off our personalities.

Somewhere between expanding staff, getting our brand established and building our client base to include companies in the U.S. and Canada, we moved in Oct. 2009 from a small office suite in the upper level of the Bohm Building on Main Street to a 3,000-square-foot historic building at 223 South Buchanan. The new space gives the Cork Tree team room to spread our wings and allowed us to embark on another new venture of launching a party and accessory gift set for a popular card game that will be solely designed and marketed by Cork Tree Creative to an International audience. This project - Bridget - has allowed us to apply both our public relations and marketing skills as well as our talents in design and packaging. We've managed the Bridget project from concept to completion and today are selling our products through a website designed by our team. It's a true labor of love.

Doing our day-to-day business for Cork Tree Creative and Bridget is important work but we are also true believers in giving back to the community, and in particular the environment. Our team wanted to create a regional program for the recycling of wine corks so we launched Rewind Your Wine, to demonstrate a commitment to improving the environment. Partnerships with Whole Foods, local wine shops and smaller grocery chains have resulted in the collection of thousands of wine corks that would otherwise end up in landfills. I personally appreciate the many volunteers who help us pick up corks and those who take the time to collect them while on the job. Nice work folks!

It's been a busy 18 months and yet we continue to evolve, create partnerships in the community and do what we love. Thanks for supporting us as we enter this next phase of our business.

~Laura

TEAM MED GLOBAL CHOOSES CORK TREE CREATIVE FOR MARKETING SERVICES

2009-11-23T15:23:00.001-08:00

Team Med Global, a provider of medical consulting services, today announced that it has contracted with Cork Tree Creative for the development of its new website www.teammedglobal.com and for assistance in marketing its services to medical staff professionals throughout the country.

Specifically, Cork Tree Creative will provide assistance in marketing Team Med Global's educational sessions for Medical Staff Professionals (MSPs) and various consulting services offered to medical staff offices (MSO), Credentials Verification Organizations (CVO) and Managed Care Organizations (MCO), Ambulatory/Outpatient Centers and Specialty/Physician Practice Groups. Cork Tree Creative will also assist Team Med Global in delivering its message to medical professionals through trade publications and collateral materials as well as optimizing the Team Med Global website for greater exposure on the World Wide Web.
For more information about Team Med Global and its services, contact Donna Goestenkors at (618) 830-0057 or visit http://www.teammedglobal.com/.

Cork Tree Creative, owned and operated by marketing veterans Jan Carpenter and Laura Reed, is a full-service public relations and marketing firm located on Main Street in downtown Edwardsville. The company provides public relations, marketing, graphic design, website development and optimization, branding and advertising services to companies throughout the United States and Canada. For more information about Cork Tree Creative, please call (618) 656-7333 or visit www.corktreecreative.com

THE GODDARD SCHOOL IN EDWARDSVILLE TAPS CORK TREE CREATIVE FOR PR SERVICES

2009-11-23T15:20:00.001-08:00

Edwardsville-based public relations and graphic design firm, Cork Tree Creative, today announced that it has been selected by The Goddard School located in Edwardsville to provide comprehensive public relations services to the growing school.

Cork Tree Creative will assist the The Goddard School with media relations, event planning, recruitment strategies and internal and external communications programs. The Goddard School opened its doors in Edwardsville in February 2009 and now serves more than 120 area families with children ages 0 to 6 years. Owned by Edwardsville residents, Barbara and Thomas Burrows, The Goddard School is part of the Goddard School franchise, which was recently named #1 Childcare Franchise in the United States by Entrepreneur magazine, for the eighth consecutive year (January 2009) and one of the Top 200 Franchise Systems (in worldwide sales), by Franchise Times, for the second consecutive year (October 2008). The school is still enrolling for fall 2009.

Cork Tree Creative, owned and operated by marketing veterans Jan Carpenter and Laura Reed, is a full-service public relations and marketing firm located on Main Street in downtown Edwardsville. The company provides public relations, marketing, graphic design, website development and optimization, branding and advertising services to companies throughout the United States and Canada. For more information about Cork Tree Creative, please call (618) 656-7333 or visit www.corktreecreative.com

Cork Tree Creative Expands to Offer Social Media Services

2009-11-23T15:15:00.001-08:00

Cork Tree Creative, an Edwardsville-based public relations and marketing firm, has added Kerrie Smothers as director of social media outreach.

Smothers has ten years experience in radio as a host/producer at 101.1The River, 104.1 The Mall, and most recently, powerhouse Hot AC Y98. Her experience in radio included heavy doses of social media and the web, both as a user and creator of content. At Cork Tree Creative, Smothers will design and implement customized social media plans for clients looking to break into this crowded marketplace.

Social media refers to the use of social networking and online marketing sites such as Facebook, Twitter, FriendFeed and more to augment existing marketing and public relations programs. Cork Tree Creative is adding the services due to an increase in demand for social media marketing services over the course of the last year.

According to Laura Reed, principal and public relations director for Cork Tree Creative, "As tweets, feeds, and status updates become the new language of mass communication, businesses are rushing to figure out how social media can help them increase awareness and sales. According to market researcher Forrester, companies are expected to increase social media spending 34% over the next 5 years. And when social media is correctly utilized, those dollars seem to be well-spent." Reed adds that Cone's 2008 Business in Social Media Study found that more than 55% of social media users feel more connected to and better served by companies with a strong online presence.

Smothers says "Social media is a great way to reach consumers and the press, as well as support a business's traditional marketing and SEO efforts. But it's not a one-size-fits-all solution. It's not enough just to be on these channels. You have to understand how to use them in a meaningful way."

Cork Tree Creative, owned and operated by marketing veterans Jan Carpenter and Laura Reed, is a full-service public relations, marketing and website development company located in downtown Edwardsville. The company provides public relations, marketing, graphic design, website development and optimization, branding and advertising services to companies throughout the United States and Canada. For more information about Cork Tree Creative, please call (618) 656-7333 or visit www.corktreecreative.com

Cork Tree Creative Kicks Off St. Louis Regional Wine Cork Recycling Program

2009-04-27T12:15:00.000-07:00

ST. LOUIS AREA’S FIRST WINE CORK RECYCLING PROGRAM KICKS OFF
THIS MONTH IN RECOGNITION OF EARTH DAY CELEBRATIONS

Edwardsville-based Cork Tree Creative Spearheading Initiative; Announces First Pioneers of the Program

Cork Tree Creative, an Edwardsville, Ill.-based public relations and marketing firm, kicked off a St. Louis-wide initiative this week in recognition of Earth Day to recycle corks used in wine and champagne bottles. This is the first organized, regional effort to collect corks from retailers, grocers and wine consumers. Known as “Rewind your Wine,” organizers of the program have taken on this initiative with hopes that recycling wine corks will eventually be as simple as recycling paper and plastics.

To kick start the effort, Cork Tree Creative is asking that any retailers, restaurants, wineries and grocers in the St. Louis area join in this region-wide, eco-initiative. “Wine corks are natural, biodegradable, renewable products that have the potential of being recycled into other usable materials. We hope to gain enough momentum through this program to help minimize the carbon footprint created by the St. Louis region’s disposal of wine corks,” said Laura Reed, principal of Cork Tree Creative. “Now that there is an easy method of collection in the St. Louis region, we can help divert some of the 15 billion wine corks that currently end up in landfills.”

Cork Tree Creative will collect wine corks from participating retailers in the region and make periodic deliveries to a Midwestern company, Yemm & Hart, that recycles wine corks into LEED Certified building materials such as cork tiles and partitions. By being the sole transporter of the corks, Cork Tree Creative hopes to reduce the amount of transportation required in the recycling process.

“We are pleased in the preliminary stages of this program to already have the participation of Erato on Main in Edwardsville and St. Louis-based Ionia Atlantic Imports. These two participants will help pioneer this effort and serve as responsible leaders in the cork recycling effort. We commend them for their progressive thinking and participation,” added Reed.
Nathan Woodhouse, partner in Ionia Atlantic Imports, says “It’s common practice in Europe and Australia to recycle corks. As an importer of Italian wine and someone who often attends large wine tastings and special events featuring wine, I see the amount of waste that can be generated from just corks alone. Why not just recycle them like we do glass wine bottles? I support this effort and whole-heartedly hope that it results in a comprehensive, regional effort.”

Wine retailers large and small, grocers throughout the St. Louis area and bars and restaurants that would like to participate in the program are encouraged to call Laura Reed at Cork Tree Creative at (618) 656-7333 for more information. All participants in the program will be recognized as a PIONEER in the Rewind your Wine initiative. Cork Tree Creative will begin the collection of corks at participating locations in June.

Cork Tree Creative, owned and operated by marketing veterans Jan Carpenter and Laura Reed, is a full-service public relations, marketing and website development company located in downtown Edwardsville. The company provides public relations, marketing, graphic design, website development and optimization, branding and advertising services to companies throughout the United States and Canada. For more information about Cork Tree Creative, please call (618) 656-7333 or visit www.corktreecreative.com
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Cork Tree Creative to Assist The Alliance with New Branding Effort for Edwardsville & Glen Carbon

2009-04-08T12:26:00.000-07:00

Great News!
The Alliance of Edwardsville & Glen Carbon has chosen Cork Tree Creative to assist in the development of a new "place brand" for the two communities. The brand will be used to position Edw/Glen Carbon area as a prime development location. We will also provide public relations and marketing services to promote the new brand throughout the country to targeted real estate and site selection professionals.

The Alliance of Edwardsville and Glen Carbon is a not-for-profit organization that works with each community in marketing and promoting the area for new business investments, job creation, economic growth and development. For more information about The Alliance, please call (618) 656-7601 or visit the website at www.edglenalliance.com.

More News About Cork Tree Creative

2009-02-11T12:39:00.001-08:00

Adding to our recent blog about the amount of news coverage we have received about our new venture, Cork Tree Creative, more headlines have been found on the St. Louis Post-Dispatch's website, foreheaders.com and webcorp.com Search for Cork Tree Creative and check us out. Or, you can always visit our website at www.corktreecreative.com

Cork Tree Creative is in the News

2009-02-10T06:09:00.000-08:00

The announcement of our new venture, Cork Tree Creative, is making headlines in the St. Louis area. We have been featured in the Edwardsville Intelligencer, Alton Telegraph, St. Louis Business Journal and most recently on www.examiner.com and in the Belleville News Democrat - www.bnd.com/news/local/story/

Read all about us or visit www.corktreecreative.com

Thanks

2009-02-06T15:54:00.000-08:00

Thanks so much to the many friends, colleagues and clients who sent us well wishes following the announcement of our new partnership - Cork Tree Creative. Your thoughts and wishes give us greater confidence as we work to build our business and creatively serve our clients' marketing, website and public relations needs. It's a work in progress, but please check out our website www.corktreecreative.com and give us your thoughts. Thanks again.

Laura & Jan

Cork Tree Creative is Up and Running

2009-02-03T21:53:00.000-08:00

Hi and welcome to the inagural blog for Cork Tree Creative. I'm its author, Laura Reed. I am also one of the principals of Cork Tree Creative, a responsibility I share with my business partner, Jan Carpenter.

Most can tell from our name that we are in the marketing/graphic design/public relations industry, but many wonder how we developed the name: Cork Tree Creative. Well, that's a funny story I won't fully disclose but I will tell you that Jan and I both thought it had unlimited marketability, sounded kind of cool and perhaps would get people talking. It's not particularly edgy but our selection of the name has sparked the inquisitive nature of many of our colleagues.

Cork Tree Creative is a new venture for us. We previously ran independent creative firms. Mine was Reed Communications, a public/media relations consulting firm, while Jan provided graphic and website design services through her company, Image Group Media. Jan and I have been working together in many capacities over the last 10 years and since our services compliment each other we decided to give it a whirl as a partnership. Together we offer the total package plus combined experience of more than 30 years. We're not old or anything, just seasoned. We like what we do and make every effort to have as much fun as possible.

I have created a blog as a way to offer marketing and PR advice to clients and friends. I read a lot online and often gather random thoughts about why companies do what they do when it comes to their marketing. I also read a lot of trend stories about the industry and would look to this post as a method of sharing that information with you. We will also share information about our clients . . . only information that is public knowledge, of course.

Not all will be this long but since this is my inagural posting, I thought I would give it the 'ole college try. I encourage you to check back often and visit our website http://www.corktreecreative.com/ for more information about who we are and what we do.

thanks for visiting and I'll talk to you again soon. blog ya later.

Laura Reed