You are on page 1of 15

Erin Condren

Design
Taylor Ratkiewicz
Student Intern
The following writing samples are from a semester-long project I created for my
Stragetic Writing class. This was a mock media kit plan I wrote for Erin Condren Design,
and was not actually implemented by the company.

Table of Contents:
Company Fact Sheet............................................................. Pg. 1
Branding Platform................................................................... Pg. 2
Communication Plan............................................................. Pg. 3
Press Release for Erin Condrens Visit to TCU....................... Pg. 5
Media Advisory for Erin Condrens Visit to TCU................... Pg. 6
Twitter Pitch for Erin Condrens Visit to TCU......................... Pg. 7
Event Pitch for Erin Condrens Visit to TCU........................... Pg. 8
Company Profile on Erin Condren: CEO.............................. Pg. 11
Newsletter Mock Up............................................................... Pg. 12

Erin Condren Design Fact Sheet


4860 West 147th Street Hawthorne, CA 90250
www.erincondren.com
DESCRIPTION:
Erin Condren Design is a personalized paper goods and stationary company
dedicated to helping people stay organized in an exciting and colorful way.
MISSION:
The mission of Erin Condren Design is to develop new designs and products that
will make ones life a little less serious and a lot more fun.
YEAR FOUNDED: 2005
EXECUTIVE TEAM:
CEO/Founder
Erin Condren
Director of Operations
Al Marco
Director of Marketing
Lauren Lewellen
Chief Financial Officer
Katrina Monaco
FACTS:

A private startup company

Founded in 2005 by Erin Condren in her California home

Company headquarters are located in Hawthorne, California

Condren was inspired to start the company based on her busy life as a
mom.

Has 50 100 employees

Makes $10 million dollars in revenue each year

BRANDING Erin Condren Design


Competitive advantage themes seen collectively, they define Erin Condrens
competitive advantage. They are used to set priorities for all Erin Condren Design
communications, i.e. marketing, advertising, publications, news stories, etc.
1. Customers can personalize and customize life planners, notebooks, address
books, folders and stickers.
2. Choice of interchangeable covers with an array of colors, patterns, fonts,
layouts and monograms allow customers to constantly express their style.
3. Accessories are available that allow customers to stay organized in a more
exciting way. (i.e. event stickers can be customized to users daily activities
and the snap-in dashboards allow organization of meals, to do lists, and
exercise plans)
4. Shipping only takes one week (even with the customizable planners), so
users can start planning and organizing quickly.
Branding tag line: Its always a good time to get personalized, stylized and
organized!
**************
Mission: To develop new designs & products that will make your life a little less
serious and a lot more fun.
Vision: To provide an all-encompassing book for your life of what YOU want it to
be. (Inspire others to stay organized in a fun manner)

Erin Condren Communication Plan


Consumer Brand:
Erin Condren Design is a personalized paper goods and stationary company based
in Hawthorne, California. Founded by Erin Condren in 2005, she created a collection
of unique products that could inspire customers to organize and plan their daily lives.
Erin Condren Designs mission is to develop new designs and products that make ones
busy life a little less serious and a lot more fun.
Situation Analysis:
Erin Condren Design is a company that is passionate about organizing and planning.
The company creates products (Life Planner) that help customers plan their hectic lives
in an enjoyable way. As such here are the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and
threats for Erin Condren Design.
Strengths:
Strong online presence
Strong brand awareness
Positive reviews
Strong US sales makes 10 million dollars in revenue each year
High product quality access to durable materials used to create the products
Diverse product options offers customization for each product
Weaknesses:
Although prices vary for different products, Erin Condren Designs products are
pricier.
Lack of international expansion
Sells products in only three US stores (Staples Office Supplies) Most customers only
have the option to order products online.
Opportunities:
Expand to sell more products in stores
Expand internationally
Create different layouts and designs for the Life Planner
Grow diverse product lineup
Threats:
Strong competition from Plum Paper Designs and generic planners sold in stores
Online planners/organizers Customers can now plan their lives on their phones,
tablets and computers.

Communication Plan continued:


Goal:
To encourage others to stay organized in their lives and increase brand awareness of Erin Condren
Design
Objectives:
The following are a list of objectives that Erin Condren Design looks to reach and maintain:

To develop new products that increase US sales by 10%

To encourage customers to purchase Erin Condren Design products through marketing

efforts

To utilize social media to increase brand awareness by 25%

To increase social media presence by 40%

To stimulate discussion on the companys website
Target Audience:
Erin Condren Designs target market consists of American females over the age of 16 years old that
live hectic lives, full of school, work, nutritional plans, working out or other activities. Our
communication plan is geared towards women with a higher purchasing power since Erin Condren
Design products range from $30 to $60.
Communication Strategy:
To promote its message, Erin Condren Design will use all social media channels, advertisements and
product specials to communicate the message and endorse company products to the target
audience.
Key Messages:
The key messages that Erin Condren Design wants to send to its target market include informing
customers about what Erin Condren Design is, what is the quality of our products and how the
products look. Erin Condren Design will highlight the importance of staying organized and planning
ones daily life in the companys key messages.
Tactics:
To reach the objectives, Erin Condren Design will stay active daily on social media channels like
Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to encourage customer involvement with the company brand. To
increase brand awareness, Erin Condren Design will post pictures of products, inspirational quotes
and customer testimonials on all social media accounts. To encourage customers to purchase Erin
Condren Design products, the company will release advertisements on the first Monday of each
month.
Timeline:
This plan will come into effect in January 2016 and will continue throughout the year. Evaluation will
be done in January 2017.
Evaluation:
As the company grows, Erin Condren Design will continue to develop new designs and products that
will motivate customers to organize their lives. Through our communication plan, Erin Condren Design
hopes to encourage customers to plan and make the most of their days by purchasing our products.
To evaluate our success, we will measure the increase in company sales and the customer
interaction on social media channels.
4

Erin Condren Design Press Release


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Taylor Ratkiewicz
Erin Condren Student Intern
713-973-274 office
281-300-7583 cell
t.e.ratkiewicz@tcu.edu
Erin Condren visits TCU to promote new 2016 Life Planner
The first 100 students in attendance will receive 50% off a future Erin Condren Design
purchase.
FORT WORTH, TEXASOct. 15, 2015Erin Condren will visit Texas Christian
University (TCU) this fall to promote the new and exciting features included in her
2016 Life Planner. TCUs The Crew will host the event on Thursday, Oct. 15, 2015 at 5
p.m. in the Brown-Lupton University Ballroom.
Condren has always focused on keeping an organized yet exciting life, which
ultimately drove her to create Erin Condren Design. Therefore, The Crew thought
she would be the perfect candidate to speak to college students about the
importance of staying organized and planning the school activities in their lives.
The seminar will be Condrens first time to TCU, and will specifically focus on the new
details in the 2016 Life Planner, which is the most popular item among her
customers. The fresh, creative additions in the latest Life Planner include:
customizable layouts, interchangeable covers, sections for scheduling and
academia, and more that Condren will elaborate.
Due to the wide popularity Condren has on TCUs campus, the first 100 students in
attendance will receive 50 percent off a future Erin Condren Design purchase.
Other attendees will receive 10 percent off coupons at their tables to use towards a
purchase as well.
For more information on the event, visit www.erincondren.com/TCUvisit.
- end -

Media Advisory/Photo Opp


Erin Condren will visit Texas Christian University (TCU) this fall to promote the new and
exciting features included in her 2016 Life Planner. TCUs The Crew will host the event
on Thursday, Oct. 15, 2015 at 5 p.m. in the Brown-Lupton University Ballroom.
Condren has always focused on keeping an organized yet exciting life, which ultimately drove her to create Erin Condren Design. Therefore, The Crew thought she
would be the perfect candidate to speak to college students about the importance
of staying organized and planning the school activities in their lives.
The seminar will be Condrens first time to TCU, and will specifically focus on the new
details in the 2016 Life Planner, which is the most popular item among her customers.
The fresh, creative additions in the latest Life Planner include: customizable layouts,
interchangeable covers, sections for scheduling and academia, and more that Condren will elaborate.
Due to the wide popularity Condren has on TCUs campus, the first 100 students in
attendance will receive 50 percent off a future Erin Condren Design purchase. Other
attendees will receive 10 percent off coupons at their tables to use towards a purchase as well.
For more information on the event, visit www.erincondren.com/TCUvisit.
WHO:

TCU students, faculty, staff, Erin Condren

WHAT:

The Crew hosts a seminar featuring Erin Condren, the owner and creator
of Erin Condren Design. The first 100 students in attendance will receive
50% off a future Erin Condren Design purchase.

WHEN:

Oct. 15, 2015 at 5 p.m.

WHERE: Brown-Lupton University Ballroom, TCU campus (2900 Stadium Drive).



Parking is available at the Dee J. Kelly Alumni & Visitors Center.
(www.maps.tcu.edu)
CONTACT: Taylor Ratkiewicz, Erin Condren Student Intern
t.e.ratkiewicz@tcu.edu

713-973-274 office
281-300-7583 cell

Twitter Pitch
Erin Condren to speak @TCU Thurs. Oct 15 at 5 p.m. on keeping an organized life
in college. Visit www.erincondren.com/TCUvisit for details.
(140 characters)
Website Story:
Erin Condren is launching her college campus tour for Erin Condren Design at
Texas Christian University (TCU), where she will speak to the TCU community about
the importance of staying organized with her 2016 Life Planner. The event will be
held on Monday, Nov. 2, 2015, at 5 p.m. in the Brown-Lupton University Ballroom.

Event Pitch
Website Story:
Erin Condren is launching her college campus tour for Erin Condren Design at
Texas Christian University (TCU), where she will speak to the TCU community about
the importance of staying organized with her 2016 Life Planner. The event will be
held on Monday, Nov. 2, 2015, at 5 p.m. in the Brown-Lupton University Ballroom.
Condren has always focused on keeping an organized yet exciting life, which
ultimately drove her to create Erin Condren Design. Therefore, her visit to TCU will
be the first of many seminars she will host on her college campus tour, where she
will speak to students about the importance of staying organized and planning
the school activities in their lives.
At this event, attendees will receive a complementary meal and dessert from Blue
Mesa Grill. During this time, they will also hear about Condrens journey to create
her company, as well as the new details included in the 2016 Life Planner product.
The first 100 students in attendance will receive 50 percent off a future Erin
Condren Design purchase. Other attendees will receive 10 percent off coupons at
their tables to use towards a purchase as well. The event will also include a Q&A
session with Erin Condren, and those who participate will have a chance to win a
free Erin Condren Design Life Planner.
If you wish to attend this event, please RSVP below.
www.ErinCondren.com/TCU
Twitter Pitch: (Character count-140)

Event Pitch continued:


Live Tweeting: (Character count- 110)

(Character count- 139)

(Character count- 140)

(Character count- 125)

Facebook Status:
Erin Condren is launching her college campus tour for Erin Condren Design at Texas
Christian University on Monday, Nov. 2, 2015 at 5 p.m. in the Brown-Lupton
University Ballroom. #StayOrganized and write down this event because you will
not want to miss it! RSVP now at www.ErinCondren.com/TCU.

Event Pitch continued:


Wrap Up Story:
Erin Condren spoke to almost 400 people about the importance of staying organized at Texas
Christian University on Monday, Nov. 2, 2015, at 5 p.m. in the Brown-Lupton University Ballroom.
Condren started the event off by explaining how her company grew to be a success simply
through using her passion for staying organized and checking items off her to-do list. She then
showed a promotional video of the 2016 Life Planner, and demonstrated how to use the exciting,
new features included in it to stay organized in school. This video and demonstration engaged the
audience in learning about how to use her product to stay organized.
Following her speech, Condren opened the floor for the Q&A session. Madeline Smith was the first
TCU participant to ask a question, so Condren presented her with a free 2016 Life Planner. Once all
questions were answered, Condren thanked the TCU community for hearing her speak and announced the upcoming events for Erin Condren Design.
Promoting the Event Before:
-
Promoting through various Social Media channels

o YouTube videos posted every Monday prior to the event (Start your Monday off

right and #StayOrganized)

o Facebook posts with the event link www.erincondren.com/TCU for updates and

more information

Images, Advertisements, and YouTube videos will be included in each status

o Twitter posts with images or videos for the event
-
Erin Condren Design representatives and staff will pass out flyers and snacks on campus to
promote the upcoming event and gain student interest.
-
Posters and flyers advertising the Erin Condren seminar will be strategically placed in popular
places on TCUs campus.

o Each poster will include an image of Erin Condren, details about the event, and the

event hashtags #ECCollegeTour and StayOrganized.
What is Provided at the Event:
-
Food and dessert is provided by Blue Mesa Grill
-
First 100 attendees will receive 50 percent off a future Erin Condren Design purchase
-
Other attendees will have a chance to win 10 percent off a future Erin Condren Design pur
chase
-
Participants in Q&A session have chance to win a complimentary 2016 Life Planner
-
Attendees also have the opportunity to meet Erin Condren after the seminar
Coverage for Post Event:
-
Erin Condren Design will use social media channels (Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and

Company Website) to promote the upcoming events for the #ECCollegeTour.
-
TCU will cover the event through their media department

o TCU 360, The Skiff, and TCU News Now
-
Local Media channels will cover the event as well.

o Local TV stations and The Star Telegram

10

Erin Condren Design Company Profile


As a busy stay-at-home mom for her twins, Erin Condren has always been
passionate about staying organized and checking items off her to-do list. Little did she
know though, that within a few years she would eventually turn that passion into a
million dollar company.
Condren graduated with a Bachelor of Arts from UCLA, where her interests
focused on design and production. After working for a few years at her familys
sewing facility, Condren found out she was expecting twins and knew her life was
going to drastically change. While she loved her job as a stay-at-home mom,
Condren knew it was time for a new adventure and career change where her
creative expertise would really shine.
Since she was young, Condren always had an entrepreneurial spirit, whether that was
through her jewelry-making venture she had in college or selling her pottery creations
subsequently. Therefore, following the birth of her twins, she started
designing her own stationary and stickers in her home to find a new artistic outlet. In
2004, Erin Condren Designs was born. However, as a mom of two with a passion for
staying organized and checking items off her to-do list, Condren knew that she could
expand from stationary and stickers to something even greater, yet she needed to
spread the word about her new entrepreneurial venture. With creative designs and
innovations, Condrens friends encouraged her to start selling the few products she
made at shopping parties, where customers instantly fell in love with her ideas and
the rest was history.
While Condren designs stationary, cards, stickers and more, the most popular item
among her customers is the Life Planner she created with her business partner in 2007.
Its a $50 planner that features plenty of note space, inspirational quotes, bright
colors, customizable stickers and photos. As a mom, Condren can relate to women
who live a hectic lifestyle, full of work, nutritional plans, working out or school events,
so why not combine those aspects into one life planner?
I could see other gals who were not as computer-savvy or phone-savvy and who still
want that book, and are juggling work, kids and a workout schedule they want to
write it down, says Condren.
While Condren initially started the business alone in her Hermosa Beach home, Erin
Condren Design has grown so much over the years that she has now more than 110
employees and $10 million in sales per year. She simply took her love for being a
mom and her entrepreneurial spirit and created a successful design company that
helps people organize their busy lives. Condren has confidently chased her dreams
and created a life she would have never imagined.
11

Erin Condren Design Newspaper Mock-Up

12

Newspaper Mock-Up continued:

13

You might also like