Betsy Brown Wyatt, EVP, General Manager, Cramer-Krasselt
Company address: 246 E. Chicago St., Milwaukee, WI 53202
Website: www.c-k.com
Industry: advertising and public relations
Number of employees: 154
Family: Husband Dave Wyatt. Two sons, Parker, age 8, and Connor, age 5.
What was the smartest thing your company did in the past year?
Invested in Analytics. We have built an integrated analytics team that uses a holistic, cross-channel approach to reviewing data and making it easy to digest with tools such as Tableau dashboarding, statistical analysis and modeling, and proprietary data warehousing platforms. We are one of the rare agencies that are fully integrated with Google’s ad serving, search management, rich media and analytics tools, which provides analytic and efficiency advantages that greatly benefit clients. Our analytics team has an ongoing relationship with our media, account management and digital strategy teams, making sure important information is delivered and the data is well communicated, with important insights, implications and actionable recommendation.
In addition, C-K made a commitment to partner with local organizations, offering the agency’s resources and skills to improve Milwaukee. Those relationships not only resulted in globally-recognized and awarded work, they have also greatly help increase exposure and support for organizations like Sojourner Family Peace Center, COA Youth & Family Centers and the Milwaukee Police Department.
What’s new at your company?
Responsive technology. Whether it’s a responsive website, mobile app or social experience, C-K has been on the forefront of creating and implementing brand experiences across multiple screens. We have an informal, cross-functional group who works closely with our account and creative teams to explore emerging media and new technology opportunities to create and grow brand communities.
Do you plan to hire any additional staff or make any significant capital investments in your company in the next year?
We will continue to grow and hire in the Digital, Social and Analytics space. We are currently investing in proprietary social media monitoring and analytics products as our clients look more and more to us to help them maximize their marketing efforts and justify ROI.
What will be your company’s main challenges in the next year?
Managing big data. Seismic shifts in both technology and consumer behavior during the past decade have produced a granular, virtually infinite record of every action consumers take online and offline. The opportunity to mine this data is clear, but so is the challenge.
What’s the hottest trend in your industry?
Content production. Advertisers increasingly moving into the publishing space, looking like a content company, blurring the conventional distinctions between what constitutes advertising and what constitutes entertainment and information. In many ways it’s a direct reaction to the importance that search engines hold over content and brand discovery.
Do you have a business mantra?
“Make friends, not ads.” It’s the fundamental idea that drives the way we do business at C-K and is the root of how we’ve structured our company and the way we approach our clients’ business challenges. We’ve long believed that the brand with the most friends wins, so when we help our clients find ways to create truly strategic messaging that gets at fundamental human truths, we are doing so with a focus on the people who want to have relationships with those brands and we do so in the mindset of friend-making.
From a business standpoint, who do you look up to?
I’m drawn to socially conscious companies and brands that make involvement in social issues easier and more aligned with the core needs America faces today (jobs, hunger, healthcare and education).
C-K client Panera Bread is a good example of this. In addition to giving away free food at the end of the night, Panera established Panera Cares Community Cafes. The Cafes are an innovative model of food kitchens where each customer pays what they can for what they eat, eliminating food insecurity.
What was the best advice you ever received?
Follow your own moral compass. Do what’s right by your clients and employees. You’ll sleep better at night.
What’s the funniest thing that ever happened to you in your career?
Recently we had Take Your Child to Work Day in the office. I always like to open up the day by talking to the children (and their parents) explaining to them what we do. As I was standing in front of everyone in our conference room thinking how well the parents and children were reacting to what I was presenting, everyone started laughing. I looked down and saw my five-year-old standing behind me mimicking me. Nice to see I’m also respected at home.
What do you like to do in your free time?
When not sitting at a baseball, soccer, or basketball game, we bike as a family. I also volunteer at our sons’ school. I do make time for myself every day by running in the morning, and I squeeze in a yoga class when I can. I’m passionate about cooking and baking when I can find the time and I’m good at getting my boys to help me out in the kitchen so we can make it a family event.
