Hello! My name is Kim Moss and I have recently joined the team as the Director of Strategic Growth, to help Brand Iron Forge Brands and Drive Revenue! I am excited to blend my business development and sales background to identify companies where we can make a difference. I have more than 15 years of experience in both Marketing and Sales, with a wide variety of industries. I welcome the opportunity to leverage this experience – It is exciting to think that we can help businesses of ALL shapes and sizes to forge their brands and drive their revenue.

I am also a Colorado native, but have had some other stints around the country and most recently took my three kids on Semester at Sea, where we traveled around the world on a ship with 900 college students! I received my B.S. and MBA from the University of Colorado and I still bleed black and gold. I spend most Saturdays in the Fall at Folsom Field and usually travel to a couple of road games a year.

Starting my third week, I already know that this is where I belong – the environment and the people are a perfect match! Brand Iron has a very tight knit team, that I am thrilled to now be a part of.

Hello! My name is Michelle and I joined the Brand Iron team this week.  Already in my short tenure here, I have witnessed the remnants of a very intense sidewalk chalk battle, watched two dogs battle around my desk, and accidentally set off the alarm. Needless to say, every day is eventful here at Brand Iron, and I am so excited I was invited to be a part of this rockin’ rodeo.

I am a Colorado native, and have spent numerous weekends on real ranches, participating in real cattle herds, but none quite as fun as participating in this one. After finishing up 18 fun packed years in Denver, I jaunted up the road for a quick four year stint in the liberal and wacky town of Boulder. I graduated this May and found Brand Iron as the place I have always wanted to hang my hat.

When I am not holdin’ the reins of the front desk here at Brand Iron, I am usually off doing hot yoga or trying to find tickets to a country concert. The next time your path leads you to the Brand Iron front doors, I will most likely be the jubilant red-head that will be the first to greet you to our ranch. And as you wait for whatever rancher you came to see, you will have the added bonus of listening to the country music that drifts out of the buds of the headphones on my desk. Look for future updates on the everyday occurrences here at Brand Iron.

East to West

Hello!  My name is Madeline Smith, I go by “Maddie” and recently graduated from the University of Colorado in May of 2010 with a Communication degree.  I grew up south of Boston right on the harbor or “hahbah” as Bostonians would call it…they tend to frown upon the pronunciation of R’s.  I decided to leave Boston for college after witnessing my sister’s lifestyle throughout her four years at CU.  Although, I miss the ocean, I love the never-ending sunny days, mild winters, compared to Bean Town, and of course the fresh powder out west.

During my senior year of college I worked with a natural consumer goods company, Justin’s Nut Butter based out of Boulder, Colorado.  I loved working with a start-up company and was able to dive into many PR, Marketing, and Advertising aspects from a client perspective.  I also loved working in an industry with two of my passions; food and health.  This exposure made me want to get into the agency side of this line of work.  After making the big move from Boulder to Denver I did some contract PR and Marketing work for Scream  Agency.  I realized I wanted to stay in the agency side loving the variety of clientele and day to day work.

I am thrilled to be apart of the Brand Iron team.  I love the diversity of clients, the work we do, and of course the team here at Brand Iron, Patches included.  I am looking forward to baseball season as well….but not The Rockies…Go Red Sox!

We are excited to announce the addition of two new members to our Brand Iron team. Kassandre Linstroth has joined the firm as brand manager, and Leilani Derr comes on board as graphic designer. Kassie will be charged with creating and implementing powerful brand strategies for our clients while Leilani, who joins the agency’s creative team, will be responsible for providing Brand Iron clients with creative concepting and design for both print and website applications. Kassie joins us after working for advertising/marketing agencies in both Denver and Minneapolis. In June, she earned her MBA from the Daniels College of Business at Denver University focusing on integrated marketing and brand management. Before earning her MBA, Kassie worked with Target Corporation in strategic sourcing, responsible for vendor relations, product management, and the import process across Target distribution centers and import warehouses. Prior to Brand Iron, Leilani served as interface designer for Web Data Software, a web development services company in South Carolina. She is a graduate of Coastal Carolina University where she earned a degree in graphic design. Welcome Kassie and Leilani!

Hi, my name is Kassandre (in short, Kassie) and I am the newest Brand Manager here at Brand Iron. I hail from Madison, Wisconsin and yes, I do like cheese, own a Cheesehead, think brats provide a great source of happiness, and feel any winter day above 20 degrees is a heat wave.

Before trading lakes for mountains, I lived in Europe and South America, experienced my first Heli Ski Trip, and discovered my innate favoring of the right side of my brain. I took my first job out of college with a food marketing and advertising agency in Minneapolis, MN, combining my love of food and creative story telling (about said food).  I got my fill working in production, media relations, traffic management, and account services. With my never-ending quest to learn more, I took my shiny new skills to Target Corporation and learned that there can never be enough training on what to do if pirates take hold of your shipping vessel. I am not lying. While at Target, I worked in strategic sourcing and imports. Right off the bat, Target hit the bullseye and positioned me in the Ready-To-Wear clothing team, and then the shoe team. I oversaw the entire import process from sourcing the vendor, analyzing sales trends, planning and purchasing, to shipping products safely to Target stores without any trace of Captain Morgan.

Deciding not to endure another indescribably cold mid-west winter, I packed my boot-bag and skis (and a few other items) and made my way out-west. I fulfilled a lifelong dream of being a ski bum before rejoining civilization at Daniels College of Business earning an MBA in integrated marketing and brand management. During my two years as a student, I competed and won the Race & Case Competition, consulted with a local marketing firm, and came across a company that believed in the power of branding as strongly as I. Enter, Brand Iron.

I am beyond excited to be a part of this creative bunch of engaging, intelligent people and look forward to telling the gravitating brand stories of our clients!

So if you have not already, stop by, say “Hi!” and bring me some cheddar!

I usually look much more professional than this

Hi, I’m Justin! I’m the newest addition to the creative team here at Brand Iron. I started here right as we moved into our amazing new offices (perfect timing if you ask me).

I grew up in Oklahoma, you know, “where the wind comes sweeping down the plains”, making me a perfect fit here at the Brand Iron ranch. As a freelance graphic designer I had the opportunity to work from anywhere, so last summer I decided to saddle up and hit the ol’ dusty trail, which led me straight to Denver City.

One of the best things about being a freelancer (other than the fact I could just roll out of bed and be at “the office”) is the opportunity to be involved with a variety of design projects. That definitely hasn’t changed since starting here at Brand Iron, which is one of the reasons that my transition has been such a smooth one. On top of the variety of projects ranging from coding websites to designing bike jerseys, Brand Iron has the added bonus of working with highly motivated talent and an inspiring work environment. I’m very excited to be a part of the Brand Iron team and I look forward to cranking out some awesome designs for our clients!

A tad more about me…

When my mom would take me shopping as a kid I’d make my own toys from objects I found on the floor. I’ve known what I wanted to do since middle school and have been designing professionally since the 11^th grade. Since then I’ve designed everything from edgy band merch for artists you’ve heard on the radio to corporate websites for brands you see in stores.

I have a balanced love of technology and nature. I love any sort of creative outlet, especially ones that require me to get my hands dirty. I love music, and chances are if you stop by I’ll be the one wearing gigantic headphones and maybe even dancing in my chair a little.

-Justin Clark, Design Bandit

Hi

It’s been a few months since my first day here at Brand Iron, (41 days to be exact) so while a little delayed, this technically serves as my introduction post.

The professional-me snapshot:
My early agency existence sprouted primarily public relations and social media experience. With a few shifts on the marketing scale over the past several years, I had a good feeling from the get-go about the awesome opportunity Brand Iron offered to continue down this path. Joining the team as a Brand Wrangler, (in Google Translate terms, think – account manager) I right away took the reins of the race horse that was my client project list.
My days were busy at the onset but great nonetheless. In fact, I’d like to take this second to say how rad the team is here at ‘the ranch.’ It’s always a transition to start somewhere new – getting ingrained in the processes, adapting to the culture, absorbing the general agency practices – but starting with day one I was embraced by this group. A collective mix of talent and passion, I realized it almost instantly. Things are different here. Hard work doesn’t come easy but here, it’s done well because the people love what they do. In short, I thought (and shared with others), ‘this is awesome.’

And now a few other things:
As a Colorado-native and former-Denver dweller, I recently (re)relocated back to the Mile High city, after being in Boston for a bit. Living just up a square from Harvard and a stone’s throw from the Charles River, I worked with PR firm Porter Novelli while there. From traffic and digital mapping to B2B software to commercial printers, I supported a list of technology companies through PR and online marketing. After my return, I spent a few months with the Denver Film Society as a part of the media relations team to promote the 32nd Starz Denver Film Festival, before saddling up with Brand Iron. Among many things, a definite high point of 2009 was investing in some serious mat and mental time to become a certified yoga instructor. Whether in the studio or at the office, the practice keeps me grounded.
Now that the weather has turned, I’m stoked to be back near the Rockies. White water rafting, baseball games (let’s go Sox!), and hiking – have set a goal to conquer my first 14-er this year – will fill the summer’s when-not-at-Brand-Iron activities list.

And in the meantime, you’ll find me, along with the rest of the crew, doing what we do at our sweet new digs on 24th and Larimer. (More on that soon…)

-Abbey O’Neal, Brand Wrangler

My name is Heather Sundell and I am the newbie here at Brand Iron, it’s been almost a month since I started here as an Intern. I clock in at about 25 unpaid hours a week. Why? Because it’s awesome place to work.

A little over a year ago I became an economic cliché and was let go from my job. (Let the somber violin concerto commence.) After a few months of frantic job hunting and questioning my entire past 23 years of existence, I decided that a change was in order so I picked up my entire life and moved from the only home I had ever known, Los Angeles, to Denver.

Despite the change in location, I quickly started to realize that my English degree from the University of Southern California (no matter how prestigious the football team) was, as so many peers predicted, quasi-useless.

Apart from my education, my prior jobs in online marketing and web management weren’t exactly the directions I wanted to go. I began to rethink my strategy. I would have to go back to square one and offer my services as an unpaid intern.

So, here I am learning the agency business and I couldn’t be happier. Brand Iron is a wonderful company, and I feel so fortunate that I was given a chance to learn and grow in the branding and advertising industry with such friendly, knowledgeable co-workers.

At lunch the other day at the Blue Bonnet Café in Denver, Colorado (not a client by the way), this very warm and friendly gentleman approached me and my guest at lunch. Gary was his name and he expressed his true desire to make sure we were having a great lunch and if we needed anything, please let him know. He also communicated his sincere thanks for coming in today and eating at his restaurant. This isn’t a once and awhile occurrence, Gary does this all the time, making sure all his guests are treated well and taking care of. I eat there regularly and Gary is always there taking great care of his guests. Gary is an example of a true brand champion. He exudes customer service and appreciation of the people that come to dine in his restaurant. Whether you run a restaurant, a one-person company or a multi-billion dollar company, we can all learn from his approach to leading and “riding” for his brand. We can all get out in front of our clients and communicate our brand’s value and what it stands for. Customers enjoy hearing from brand champions. Let’s all lead our teams as brand champions to communicate and deliver our company’s value. “Hats Off” to Gary and his restaurant, the Blue Bonnet Café, in Denver, Colorado.

Written by Michael Doyle, President of Brand Iron

I think we can all agree that after going through this past year, it is certainly time for a “New Start” for the New Year. We could all use a fresh start for the economy, housing, banking, government and business. As it applies to your business, if you aren’t prepared and proactive to the challenges that are certain to arise, you will be left behind.

I can’t tell you how many times I have heard recently from our partners, clients, prospects, leads, etc. that people are “just waiting to see what happens”. Unfortunately, most who take this “wait and see approach” end up losing time and results.

With things being tight and people and businesses being guarded with resources, it’s a more competitive landscape than ever before. People and companies are struggling and the weak are getting ravaged. Are you positioning yourself and your company to be as competitive as possible? Now is the time to take advantage of the current economic situation and propel yourself to be the leader in your field.

Since it is the beginning of the New Year, it is time to make a “New Start”.

Revenue
Let’s start the thing that most people and companies are in need of: Revenue. Have you evaluated your lead generation activities? Are you doing enough to fill your pipeline? Are you utilizing online marketing, networking, partnering, calling and mailings to get people to say “yes” to meetings or walking through the doors of your business?

Sales
Do you know what it is going to take to get prospects to convert to clients? Do you know what it is going to take to move them off the dime? Are you asking for the business?

Brand Positioning
Do you have the right message? …a strong call to action? … positioning that separates you from the competition? Do you understand not just why you are as good as the competition, but why you are better than the competition? Why should someone purchase you, your product or service over the competition?

Are you being pro-active and creating enough opportunities for you to reach your goals and objectives? Are you doing enough marketing and sales activities to make the numbers work in your favor?

If you can’t answer “yes” to all of these questions, it is probably time to get off the dime and make the New Year a “New Start” to reaching your goals and objectives. Brand Iron can help you develop proactive goals for 2009 and a roadmap of what it is going to take to get you there.

It’s time to get started and map out a plan to succeed in this New Year.

Written by Michael Doyle, Brand Iron President