One Woman’s Big Idea Equals Big Business for Local Newspaper Publishers

April 27, 2006; 02:22 AM
Chicopee, MA - Liz Jusko, Vice-President of Sales & Marketing at Access2Media LLC, had a vision. She believed that small businesses should receive the same attention as large corporations when it came to customer service and spending their advertising dollars. A former customer service rep, Liz channeled this idea into a multi-million dollar corporation – partly on a bet with the publishers.

In 1998, Liz was selling classified advertising space to small businesses at Reminder Publications, Inc. She had the basics: a desk, phone and PC. “There was a newspaper network conference coming up and each year this particular conference sponsored a cash contest for the highest volume of ads,” Liz explains. “And every year the contest was won by two sisters. One of the publishers offered a challenge. If anyone could beat that sales team, he would double the cash prize. I took that challenge and ran with it.”

Although Liz knew the task would be difficult (she had only a handful of clients), she persevered and won the challenge. Liz began to see a potential for growth and it was not long after that her clients began to ask for more advertising options. She used her contacts as well as those already established by the publishers to offer her clients national and international advertising in a variety of forms. Liz was running out of space, literally. She moved up and into new offices. Liz then took pains to hire a diversified, multi-faceted and creative staff who share her unique agency vision.

From the beginning, her emphasis on client diversity and customer service gave Liz and her staff an edge over traditional advertising agencies. Today, Access2Media’s clientele ranges from large corporations to the small business owner. Her strong belief in giving a business what it needs to grow resulted in a unique group of a-la-carte services and the elimination of up-front agency consultation fees and traditional agency contracts. This type of value and service is what Liz envisions as the future of advertising.

“A client may need an additional edge to their existing campaign without going through a total overhaul,” explains Liz. “For example, perhaps a fresh approach is needed to highlight an existing product or service. We work with one of the leading creative professional photographers in the business, Steve Azzara. Steve is on the cutting edge, however he understands corporate needs, whether it be architectural photography or fashion. By offering single-service options the company only pays for what they actually need.” Ms. Jusko continued, “I wanted to answer the small business owner’s needs. How could they compete with larger corporations on a national basis without going over their budget?”

“The a-la-carte approach is very valuable,” said Ella Musina, President of Papillion Design a firm based in San Francisco. “Typically, it is assumed multimedia advertising campaigns take big advertising agencies and fees. I deal with many clients who have vision, but beyond the look and message they want to present, they know little about how to execute their advertising plans." Musina added, "Most often, they are not aware of all the different affordable opportunities. I steer my clients to look for agencies that offer blended multimedia options and the means to execute them. Access2Media’s concept is definitely a must.

“Big ideas and big business go hand in hand only if the clients are getting results,” said Ms. Jusko. “DHL Express has utilized the services of Access2Media for over a year now,” states Phil French, Sr. Manager IC Development, DHL Express, “and have been very satisfied with the results."

Liz, a native of Lisbon, Portugal, immigrated to the United States in the1980’s. Although facing a language barrier, she enrolled in primary schools in Western Massachusetts and graduated from Springfield Technical Community College. She understands businesses need to participate in the global marketplace in order to be competitive. A strong woman, Liz manages to travel extensively to meet the needs of the corporation while enjoying family life with her twin sons and her husband.

For additional information contact Liz Jusko directly at 866-612-0034 X 102 or visit www.access2media.com

About Access2Media:
Access2Media, LLC is a full-service advertising agency under the direction of Liz Jusko, Vice President of Sales & Marketing