BIG Hires AT & T;’s Striff; Piazzo Puts Regis on the Web
Porter Creative Group signed two new SoCal high-tech clients, San Diego-based Wireless Knowledge and Irvine-based Capita Technologies.
Porter Creative, established at the end of 1998, saw a half-million dollars in revenue last year and expects to reach the $1 million mark this year. The firm is an example of the emerging technologically savvy public relations and marketing firms targeting high-tech clientele.
Lisa Porter, the firm’s co-founder, said the difference between working on behalf of high-tech clients vs. non-tech clients is that the tech sector is so cutthroat. One day a client is the fastest or the best and the next day some other company has claimed the title. In the same vein, she said, there’s a balancing act of trying to be first while not releasing new technology prematurely.
Thinking BIG
Aliso Viejo-based Broadband Interactive Group, a new media company, is beefing up. Hiring on virtually a daily basis, it has signed up Deborah Striff as vice president of integrated sales. She will spearhead Bluetorch (bluetorch.com), BIG’s cross-media network of television programming, Internet, print publications and competitive extreme sporting events. Specifically, it targets the participants and fans of skateboarding, wakeboarding, bodyboarding, snowboarding, inline skating, motocross and BMX.
Striff was formerly a national advertising manager with AT & T; and was a key member of AT & T;’s New Media Alliance, an in-house group that designed, developed and tested interactive advertising applications. BIG was formed in October 1999 and is backed by Irvine-based Broadcom Corp.
Sculley Sez …
If you’re old and gray, step out of the way said John Sculley, former Apple Computer chairman and marketing guru. He spoke last week at the Chapman University Economic Forum. That’s life in the “new economy.” The young 20- and 30-somethings do all the work while the elder 40-year-olds-and-up take on the consulting, mentoring and marketing duties in the dot-com world.
Another difference in the new economy is a power shift from the producer to the consumer. The new economy customer wants the best-quality, lowest-cost, customized service and wants it now, he said.
So take that, old-economy business models.
Sculley is now a partner with Sculley Brothers, a private capital group that invests in new companies, both high-tech and low-tech. Sculley is also a board member of OC-based Buy.com.
Bits and Pieces:
Piazzo, a full-service creative agency based in Santa Ana, designed www.ocean. pointe.net for Regis Homes’ latest home community in Carlsbad. Regis Homes is an affiliate of Irvine-based Sares-Regis Group The Orange County Ad Awards will be held March 25 at the Newport Beach Marriott Hotel & Tennis Club. For more information, call Denise Denison-Erkeneff at (949) 493-5019 Pink Dot Inc., an online grocery and prepared foods delivery service, revamped its web site, www.pinkdot.com. It says the site is easier to navigate and more intuitive. The company is based in Camarillo and has a total of 11 distribution centers in California, three in Orange County (Santa Ana, Costa Mesa and Huntington Beach) The National Association of Broadcasters’ NAB2000 trade conference will be held April 8-13 in Las Vegas. Sumner Redstone, chairman and CEO of Viacom will keynote the event April 10. Other speakers include FCC Chairman William Kennard and John Warnock, chairman and CEO of Adobe Systems Also coming up in Las Vegas May 15-16 is Web Commerce2000, an e-commerce marketing and web development conference The new edition of the Official Guide to American Historic Inns has been released. The historic inn and bed & breakfast guidebook is published by American Historic Inns Inc. in Dana Point Orange County resident Larry Barrios won the award for “Young PR Professional of the Year” at the first annual PRWeek Awards. Barrios is an account exec at MWW Group’s Los Angeles office Irvine-based Ocean Pacific launched Opmag.com last week. The site, which will target “Generation Y” is a joint venture with Kick Media, based in Venice OC resident and Major League Baseball player (Milwaukee Brewers) Matt Luke has signed up to be the spokesman for Reno-based Candybarrel.com. The dot-com is a candy retailer. A portion of the proceeds raised by candybarrel.com in 2000 will be donated to children’s hospitals throughout North America The most visited entertainment site according to Fortune magazine’s March 20 edition is Disney Online. Rounding out the Top 5 are Sony Online, Pathfinder.com (Entertainment Weekly), Entertaindom (Warner Bros. Online) and MTV.com Peter Jennings, ABC anchor and senior editor of “World News Tonight,” will keynote the Orange County Business Council’s annual dinner meeting April 10. To make reservations, contact the OCBC at (949) 794-7295 before March 31.
Sherri Cruz is temporarily filling in for Susan Schaben, who is on medical leave. Contact her at Cruz@ocbj.com
