Today we’d like to introduce you to Russell Clark.
Russell, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I’ve been in event marketing and management for 24 years. I came to Atlanta for graduate school and to work the 1996 Summer Olympics. During the first half of my career, I was fortunate to work with major event properties like the Olympics, Atlanta Falcons, the Georgia Dome, Chick-Fil-A Peach Bowl, Bayou Classic and FedEx Orange Bowl. After a three year stint working for ISP Sports and Florida State University Athletics, I decided to step out on my own.
I started Alexander Sports Properties (ASP) and represented Georgia State University Athletics, CBS Sports Properties and FAMU Rattler Boosters. ASP focused on generating revenue for collegiate sports properties by selling multi-media assets. The market crash in 2009 put a damper on my entrepreneurial dreams and I went to work for Career Sports & Entertainment. This is where I began to represent brands for the first time. CSE allowed me to create experiential activations for The Coca-Cola Company, AT&T and Regions Bank. But the entrepreneurial bug bit again in 2014 and I joined the LNL Agency as a partner.
In 2019, a decision was made to chart a new direction and CTE Marketing was formed. CTE stands for Consumer, Trade Show and Entertainment. CTE Marketing has created indelible moments for its clients. We have worked with The Coca-Cola Company, Jack Daniel’s Family of Brands and Delta Airlines. In eight months, we eclipsed $1 million in revenue.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
It has never been smooth. That’s just the way things are as an entrepreneur. You learn to take joy in the journey and not destination. When the economy took a turn in 2009, it impacted what a lot of brands were doing with regards to investing in sports marketing. ROI was no longer a catch phrase and metrics became the norm. Starting CTE Marketing in 2019 was difficult because we did not have outside financing. We utilized the bootstrap methodology and paid cash for everything. Even though our clients knew our work history, they did not know how the new company would do. Client gave us test projects to prove ourselves. Once we proved we could deliver, things progressed fast.
CTE Marketing – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
CTE Marketing is a small and nimble experiential marketing agency. We specialize in producing consumer engagements, developing trade show booths and brand activations at entertainment & sports events. Our clients know we can deliver activations anywhere in the United States. We have a network of employees, contractors and vendors that give us the ability to scale up or down when needed. We specialize in branding tangible assets that give our clients the ability to amplify the number of contacts through social media. What sets CTE apart is that we have invested well over one hundred thousand dollars into our own assets (i.e. a/v, box truss, signage, furniture). Our ability to utilize these assets and create custom programming is what I am most proud of.
What is “success” or “successful” for you?
For me success is being able to honestly say CTE Marketing has created an opportunity to showcase our clients and employees in the best light. Moments at a concert or sporting event are perishable. Once they are gone only the memory remains. If we can say customers walked away with a great experience and told others about what “Coca-Cola” did for them at the game, that’s a win. If our staff and brand ambassadors are proud of that effort and express feeling good about working with CTE, that’s the win-win. Revenue is a byproduct of this type of success.
Contact Info:
- Address: 3077 McCall Drive
Suite 1 Atlanta, GA 30340 - Website: http://ctemarketing.net
- Phone: (470) 709-4823
- Email: admin@ctemarketing.net
- Instagram: ctemarketing
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