RedBlack Consulting is UMD AMA’s premium internal consulting group. Each semester, teams of AMA members complete a consulting project for local companies. Today, we have the opportunity to see all the work our RedBlack teams have done over the semester!
Faction Color
Faction Color is a post-production studio based in Bethesda, Maryland. They specialize in color grading and other finishing services. The RedBlack team includes Kairy Castro-Barrios, Jamie Gertler, Ella Lannon, Annika Santos, and Alex Spencer.
The team was tasked with focusing on growing the company’s Instagram and LinkedIn. The team’s other main goal was to establish Faction as a premier post-production service.
To grow the company’s social media, the team focused on revamping posting styles to emulate industry leaders with larger social followings, posting more consistently, and incorporating stories and highlights. The overall plan was to increase Faction’s brand presence and create connections within the post-production industry.
The team did extensive market research to see what Faction’s competitors are doing on social media. This led them to see what was effective. One of the takeaways was having individual artists post their work on the company account, this was a way to get more a personal look at Faction’s artists. Their research also found the best days and times to post on Instagram, which helped them create a custom content calendar.
“I'd say I learned that graphic is way more important than I realized to this line of wor. I thought PR/Marketing was more writing or something like that, but there was a lot of graphic design and work using canva” - Alex Spencer (RedBlack Team Member)
To aid in the transition from social media being in the hands of RedBlack the team created some mock posts as examples for Faction. Some are Instagram graphics and others are for LinkedIn. The group learned a lot about using Canva and creating a plan for their client through extensive research.
North Bethesda Primary Care
The next team worked with North Bethesda Primary Care, a concierge medical practice. The members of this team are Samuel Alexander, Michelle Gorner, and Esther Wei.
The team’s goal was to increase the client base of a newer physician Dr. Zeki. To execute this goal, the team took to social media to increase the visibility of the practice and reach larger audiences.
The team’s first steps were creating Instagram and Nextdoor accounts, and then creating content and a posting schedule for these platforms. They also made sure the website was accessible from all these accounts.
Nextdoor is a platform that connects users with their neighbors and local businesses. The team thought this would be a perfect platform to connect those in the North Bethesda area with North Bethesda Primary Care. They created posts that fit the constraints and attributes of the platform, such as a video with stress management tips from Dr. Possner, the owner and founder of North Bethesda Primary Care.
Tackling Instagram was important to create more of a brand presence on a highly prevalent social media site. The team found that content can be recycled between social media platforms such as posting videos created for Nextdoor as reels on Instagram. The team also saw success with aesthetic informational posts with health tips.
To help the practice with its internal social media efforts now that the RedBlack team’s project is over, the team taught Dr. Possner how to use Canva and left him with some templates and advisements created by the team. They also designed cohesive branding for the practice with consistent colors and fonts.
Germantown Chiropractic
Germantown Chiropractic and its RedBlack team from last semester is back! Germantown Chiropractic is a holistic chiropractic medicine practice. The team working on this account was Chris Brawn, Nina Brown, Kamari Buggs, Andy Grutkowski, and Emma McNamara
Last semester, the team was unable to plan their event healthcare event, so this semester they came in ready to plan! The healthcare event was made to help promote the practice and be a fun activity for the Germantown community.
To do some research, the team attended a local healthcare event. They found it was at a hospital and had job offerings which promoted a good turnout. The used these insights to plan their event and get a feel for the atmosphere of a healthcare event.
The team was able to help plan a Mother’s Day Game Night event. They assisted in creating graphics for social media to promote the event. The team assisted in the allocation of the event’s budget. The team emphasized the importance of getting the word out about the event by budgeting money for flyers and paid social media content.
More recommendations from the team include participating in a larger-scale collaborative healthcare-themed event to build a network of other medical professionals. They also suggest hiring a content manager to assist with social media management and content.
"As an account manager I learned that it takes a great deal of responsibility and even if you have large goals you need to take individual steps each week" - Chris Brawn (RedBlack Account Manager)
This team was able to continue what they started last semester by working together with their client to put together a successful event to promote Germantown Chiropractic.
JG Talks
We have another AMA-zing continuation team, this time with JG Talks, a public speaking program focused on helping students achieve academic and career success led by Jennifer Gershberg. The team members are Gianna Colonna, Julie Kalis, Kareena Agni, and Reeya Prasad.
The team decided to focus on a new part of the company’s marketing strategy as they did a lot of work with social media last time. The team's tasks were to expand marketing outside of social media, come up with event ideas, and gain more of a following from her events.
The team decided the new marketing strategy they would use was email marketing. They created a newsletter to help keep Jennifer connected with her clients and students.
"Ive been lucky enough to work with RedBlack two semesters in a row and both times I've had a great experience with the students. They've always been creative and receptive to my goals and just a pleasure to work with" - Jennider Gershberg (RedBlack Client, JG Talks)
To aid in future event planning, the team compiled a list of potential contacts to help Jennifer plan events. Along with this, Jennifer was able to run a time management and studying workshop with Phi Sigman Sigma, a UMD sorority.
The team also created a LinkTree to help consolidate all of the JG talks links that can be put in social media bios. They also created a feedback form students can fill out after events so Jennifer can tailor her future events to feedback.
AMA wants to thank all of our consulting teams for all of their work this semester. They created some amazing plans and content for their clients, we are so proud of them. Another thank you to our VP of Marketing Consulting, Austin Elkis! AMA and RedBlack appreciate all your efforts and time put into this program, we couldn't have done it without you!
If you are a prospective client and would like to be a part of RedBlack Consulting please contact our incoming VP of Marketing Consulting, Nina Brown at umdama.consulting@gmail.com.
Prospective students, please attend our Fall Kick-Off event to learn more about the application process!
-Maeve Smarick