We continue our Employee Spotlight Series this week with Dorothy Donaby-Juntunen.  A native of St. Paul, Minnesota, Dorothy moved to Richmond in 1993 from Connecticut. She and her husband reside in Powhatan, Virginia.  Dorothy has been with IFMG for over 8 years.

What is your role at IFMG?
I am the Financial Controller.

What does your role entail?
I oversee all accounting and financial functions within the business, monitor internal controls, and coordinate various functions with our corporate parent, Dominion Enterprises.

What do you enjoy most about your role?
It’s never boring or the same.  There is a lot of variety.  I enjoy problem solving.

Are you currently working on a new project and if so what is it?
Yes, “Operation Move-Out”.  Moving our office as harmlessly as possible is my current project.  We’re meeting weekly with staff, contractors, and our new property manager on items related to the move.  There’s a lot to keep track of.

What do you like to do for fun?
My definition of fun is “anything that is pleasing and causes happiness”.  I enjoy riding big roller coasters, riding horses, working in the yard, traveling to new countries, and sleeping.  I’m much happier after a good night of sleep.  Aren’t we all?

What is something that no one would ever know about you?
I cannot swim but I love the water.  I go snorkeling every year with a life jacket.  I used to be a quiet, shy child.

We get into some interesting debates here in the halls of IFMG. As a marketing services company that has built a business around lead generation for auto finance, we understand a lot about how to reach out to prospective customers and get them to respond to a call to action.  But it also means that we engage in some animated discussions around the strategy and tactics we can use to do that. Recently we’ve been taking another look  at one of the fundamental concepts of marketing, branding.

Opinions vary, but what it boils down to is this: how do you define a brand?  Is it the word-association game you play when someone mentions a company’s name? Is it the logo? Their message? The tagline?

If it’s done well, it’s widely recognized like Apple or Coca-Cola. Their names conjure up full experiences, for better or for worse. It can help increase stickiness and determine any given potential consumer’s propensity to buy.

Personally, I like Seth Godin‘s description:  “If you’ve never heard of it, if you wouldn’t choose it, if you don’t recommend it, then there is no brand, at least not for you.”  (“define:Brand“, December 13, 2009)

If that’s the case, and there are no associations for a company name or a brand, then does changing a logo really have any effect on how a company performs in the marketplace?

Amy Taggart is Marketing Manager for Interactive Financial Marketing Group.

Demolition at our new office in Midlothian is progressing nicely.  Today post two on our new office series focuses on some of the primary reasons to change locations with our…

…Top 10 Reasons the New Office Is Better:

1. Bathroom lights are automated to be turned on and off with motion sensors.
2. Our neighbors are actual adults who work in the space around us.
3. Legitimate office space comes without parachute pants.
4. The nature trail isn’t combined with the “Ghosts of the Commonwealth” walking tour.
5. Cabs are easy to find on Cinco de Mayo.
6. If you smile, you may observe others doing same.
7. Company directory missing tobacco stains and axe marks.
8. We’re plugging into the Internet.  It’s going to be big.
9. Two words: Ugly Biscuit.
10. Morning aromas consist of spring flowers and fresh water streams.