As college students finish gearing up for the new school year, the usual late-August concerns – Did I buy the right books? Do I know how to get to all my classes? – seem quaint in comparison to the unprecedented uncertainty that COVID will bring to the fall semester.  For the communications departments of our…  Read more

Outdoor play is beneficial to the health and development of children. This is a reasonable, fact-based statement, and is backed up by everyone from nationally recognized free play advocates to internationally renowned research universities. It’s a simple realization, rooted in visions of kids on playgrounds or asphalt courts, and now expanded across the ambitious expanses…  Read more

In a matter of two months, the entire world has been turned upside down. Office spaces are empty, with floors of staff members working from makeshift home offices. Normal interactions—from simple greetings at the grocery store to informal meetings over coffee—have been replaced with quick glances and necessary cancellations. Large public gatherings? Now a seemingly…  Read more

How did you get started in your profession/the industry? Paul Schmidt: I always knew I wanted to work in this industry. Graduating from Northeastern University with a Communication Studies degree and working on the ecommerce team at Reebok was how I got my foot in the door. From there, I continued my education and attended…  Read more

The most recent Gallup survey on telecommuting (released in 2017) revealed that 43% of Americans occasionally work from home (WFH). This seems reasonable, as enabling technology, family responsibilities, and the constraints of commuting have made telecommuting a favorable option—from time to time. But with the current COVID-19 health crisis affecting workers everywhere, time-to-time has transitioned…  Read more

It isn’t news that Instagram is becoming the preferred social channel above all others, but what about the growth of features and opportunities on the platform? One billion people use Instagram every month; this means marketers and brands alike have a lot of power to harness with the mobile app. Instagram is no longer only…  Read more

Giving is changing. In a time when everything is changing, that might not be a surprising statement. But it is more than people giving with a smartphone rather than by dropping a check into a reply envelope. A fundamental change is taking place in philanthropy—and it impacts colleges and universities and the way they go…  Read more

As we move into the new decade, the digital landscape continues to evolve to meet the needs of consumers. It’s up to marketers to be innovative and reach people on the channels they’re using, and to engage with them in the way they prefer. Lead generation and traffic are still top-of-mind for marketers, which means…  Read more

The holiday season is upon us. And for many individuals and organizations alike, this means the giving season is upon us, too. Here at The Martin Group, we’re blessed to be able to help some of the most important nonprofits in Western New York raise the funds they need to fulfill their community-enriching missions. This…  Read more