Communication Associate: Public Relations | Lori Melton | lmelton@d.umn.edu | (218) 726-8830
April 17, 2012 Susan Banovetz | Director of External Affairs | 218 726-6141| banovetz@d.umn.edu
Kathleen McQuillan-Hofmann | UMD Marketing and Communication Assistant | 218 726-7111 | kmcquill@d.umn.edu
UMD Student Employee Honored
Sam Ginsberg, student marketing director for KUMD and The Basement, was named Minnesota Student Employee of the Year by the Midwest Association of Student Employment Administrators (MASEA). He was nominated by Vicki Jacoba, Maija Jenson, and Ira Salmela of KUMD. Ginsberg is a senior majoring in marketing at UMD.
"Sam has been working with KUMD in our marketing department for over three years. This last October, we hired Sam to be in charge of the on-campus marketing campaign in an effort to increase our listener base with the UMD student body. It was one of the best investments we made this year," said Vicki Jacoba, KUMD station manager.
Ginsberg worked with KUMD's Marketing Director Ira Salmela to devise a plan to solidify KUMD's place on campus as a preferred source of music and information by the UMD student body. Together they devised a plan that utilized "guerrilla warfare" tactics to be seen everywhere, as often as possible.
Ginsberg's work in KUMD campus marketing involved booking, organizing, and attending events. He provided music at Bulldog Welcome week events, Student Activity Fairs, and others. He was the promoter of two full-scale campus concerts with meet and greets. Other events included a new annual Winter Treasure hunt for UMD's "Out Cold Week," a weekly prize wheel giveaway table, on-air ticket giveaways, interviews with top Hip-Hop Artists, sponsorships of events, and business sponsorship and donations for our efforts.
Ginsberg was not only tasked with managing student participation at KUMD events, he was also responsible for creating the marketing campaigns for each event including managing the creation of posters, writing web content producing on-air announcements, soliciting sponsorship and working with programming to balance on and off air marketing initiatives.
"Sam's initiative and drive to increase our promotional events and breadth of our marketing reach is what sets him a part from other student employees," said Maija Jenson, KUMD program director. "Every year Sam works with KUMD, he has doubled the number of events KUMD participates in or sponsors. "
"Sam's passion for the station is hard to match. The time, skills and effort he has put into his work with KUMD has benefited the station greatly. His legendary efforts with creating new marketing practices will benefit KUMD and UMD campus for years to come," Salmela said.
Jacoba isn't sure that Ginsberg's efforts can ever be matched. "I do have concerns that we are now "spoiled" with the work Sam has performed for KUMD. I worry that we may have a difficult time finding anyone who can achieve what Sam has accomplished during his time here, for he has certainly set the bar very high for those who follow."
Ginsberg will now compete in the regional portion of MASEA's Student Employee of the Year competition.
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