COLUMN = GIRLS ON THE RUN
With more than 17 years experience in marketing strategy, branding, membership, and customer programs, writer and PR expert Catherine Keightley excels at developing marketing strategies that meet and exceed revenue goals on challenging budgets and timelines.
She is currently the executive director of Girls on the Run of Northern Virginia, a position she began in June 2010 after spending nearly a decade working as an independent marketing consultant.
In that capacity, she worked as a pro bono partner with The Women’s Center to clarify its evolving mission and quantify revenue opportunities, as well as developed the year-end board of directors’ presentation.
She also co-wrote the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments brochure to increase the number of foster parents enrolled in the Respite Foster Care program. The brochure was used to develop a radio script that resulted in a nearly 30 percent enrollment increase.
And Catherine developed new corporate positioning for InforMax, Inc., an international bioinformatics company, where she managed the roll-out of the new positioning in a variety of sales vehicles and branding initiatives.
Catherine also developed the brand platform for Leverage Computing and implemented the brand through traditional and online marketing programs. And she designed and wrote the content for the Metropolitan Institute for Plastic Surgery website (www.metplasticsurgery.com) in order to better align the website with new corporate positioning.
Previously, Catherine worked for ObjectVideo in Reston, VA, as its director of marketing. In that position, she helped develop, write, and present to the board of directors the business plan that outlined target markets, revenue potential, and areas of future growth in the security and surveillance market sector.
She also designed and implemented the marketing strategy and communications program for new corporate partnerships, premium client relationships, and public relations initiatives. The company subsequently received $4.5 million in additional venture capital funding and met first-year revenue goals.
From 2000 to 2001, she was the vice president of US marketing for Categoric Software, Surrey, a United Kingdom company. She created new corporate branding and implemented the new brand in international marketing programs and promotional events.
For Surrey, Catherine managed a $1 million annual US marketing budget and a four-person staff and established a Premium Client Program that resulted in a 150 percent increase in revenue earned from top-tier clients, and she developed and managed a US-based revenue-generation program and closed-loop prospect-tracking system, resulting in a 32 percent increase in qualified prospects generated per quarter.
A graduate of the George Mason University with a BA in English (Professional Writing/Editing), and eight graduate level courses in English, Catherine believes in civic involvement.
She is active in the Friends of the Orphans Regional Advisory Committee, and is a fundraising board member. She also works with the Frank Foundation Child Assistance International, GRACE Arts “Art in the Schools” Program, the Children’s Science Center of Northern Virginia, and the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.
Last spring, Catherine was instrumental in helping to organize and promote an incredibly successful fundraising benefit for Kidsave International, called Kismet for Kidsave, which raised nearly $140,000 for the program that helps connect kids in foster care with loving families.
For more information, visit www.girlsontherunofnova.org or send Catherine an email at ckeightley@gotrnova.org.