Tammy Glenn, who has worked for 17 years in communications roles with the County of San Diego, has been promoted to director of the County Communications Office.
She will succeed Michael Workman, who will retire in November after serving as director of the County Communications Office for 25 years.
“I am honored to have this opportunity, combining my experience in communications with my passion for public service,” Glenn told Times of San Diego.
“Our team engages with diverse communities to provide meaningful and trusted information about programs and services that make a difference in people’s lives, health, safety, equity, sustainability, and so much more. I am excited to continue to expand these efforts and our work with our partners and the public.”
Glenn joined the County in 2007 and has served as the assistant director of the Communications Office since 2012, supporting an award-winning team to provide critical and engaging information while creating opportunities for meaningful community input. Her other titles have included public safety communications officer and media and public relations specialist.
She also has led the Joint Information Center at the County Emergency Operations Center during many regional emergencies, working closely with local, state, and federal partners.
She and her team will manage County News Center and social media that provides updates to the public on programs and services. She also will oversee the County’s television station, which airs Board of Supervisors meetings, as well as Engage San Diego County where people can provide input on County projects.
Prior to joining the county, she served in community relations and marketing for five years (2001-2007) with the San Diego Blood Bank. Also, starting in 1995, she worked in TV news as a producer and news writer at KNSD, KUSI, and KGTV.
The County Communications Office, with 24 full-time employees, supports public and employee communications, along with community engagement, language services, and information about programs and services provided by more than 40 county departments.
California Pizza Kitchen Turned Mac-and-Cheese Mistake Into Marketing Success
California Pizza Kitchen, a restaurant chain headquartered in Orange County’s Costa Mesa, Calif., recently won praise on social media for its response to a disappointed customer.
A TikTok subscriber, known by the handle @fumptruck, posted a video about having a hard week. As reported by Ad Age, an advertising industry news outlet, the TikToker said she broke up with her boyfriend and injured herself. Then, she visited a California Pizza Kitchen restaurant and ordered a macaroni-and-cheese dish that arrived without noodles — just a tub of cheese sauce sans pasta.
The CPK marketing team monitoring social media activity responded to the customer with a free pizza and a gift certificate for a year’s worth of free mac-and-cheese.
“I can’t believe they did this,” @fumptruck said in her video. “This is so sweet and really good marketing.”
The comments section was full of praise for the restaurant chain. “That’s how a good company responds,” said one commenter. “Their marketing team is awesome. So smart!!” read another.
CPK didn’t stop there. The company also posted a response video featuring chef Paul Pszybylski, the chain’s culinary VP, teaching the right steps for making delicious mac-and-cheese.
“Since recently we gave one of our guests only half a mac-and-cheese, we’re going to give all of our guests half off mac-and-cheese starting today through the rest of the month,” Pszybylski said in the video.
Fans praised CPK’s response. “And that’s how you recover an oopsie,” wrote one person. “What a comeback!! I know what I’m having for dinner,” read another.
The TikToker’s video received more than 8.8 million views.
“The quick response is the latest example of how brands can benefit from acknowledging a mistake and leaning into it,” wrote Ad Age.
California Pizza Kitchen operates 185 locations worldwide in 32 U.S. states and 10 countries.
PR Firm Nuffer, Smith, Tucker Announce Promotions
Nuffer, Smith, Tucker, considered San Diego’s oldest operating public relations agency after 51 years in business, recently announced promotions for four staff members.
Brogan Bunnell and Anja Riedel were promoted to account supervisor, and Paige Shewmaker and Vanessa Rock were promoted to senior account executive.
Bunnell and Riedel, both whom joined NST three years ago, were previously senior account executives. Shewmaker, who joined NST as an intern in 2020, was previously an account executive. Rock, who joined NST two years ago, was previously an account executive.
NTS, founded by Dave Nuffer and Bob Smith (both now deceased), opened on April 1, 1974. Kerry Tucker joined the team in 1980 and grew the agency’s reputation as a leader in the agri-food space. From 2000 to December 2016, the agency was led by the late Bill Trumpfheller, a champion of local nonprofit organizations, universities and businesses.
In 2020, the agency was acquired by three long-time employees, including Teresa Siles, Mary Correia-Moreno and Price Adams, each with a tenure at NST of more than 15 years.
U.S. Presidential Race Sees Ad Spending Topping $2.1 Billion
With less than one month until Election Day, Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump are locked in a $2.1 billion U.S. presidential race, according to AdImpact, an advertising intelligence and analytics firm.
As reported by Inside Audio Marketing, an advertising trade publication, since Super Tuesday in March of this year, Democrats have spent $1.3 billion to the Republicans’ $768 million on presidential candidate-related advertising.
Since July 21, when President Joe Biden dropped out of the race for the White House, ending his bid for reelection after a disastrous debate that raised doubts about the incumbent’s fitness for office, Democrats have spent $1.1 billion on ads and future reservations, which is over than $400 million more than Republicans.
Also, as of Oct. 7, Democrats lead Republicans in future reservations: $266 million to $178 million.
Presidential campaign advertising has been especially favorable to Pennsylvania. The state has received one in five (21%) of all Presidential ad dollars since July 22.
By the time Election Day arrives, AdImpact also said roughly 79% of the total ad spending will have been allocated to seven toss-up states, including Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, North Carolina, Nevada, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.
The most popular themes for Harris’ presidential ads have included abortion, healthcare and housing. Inflation, the economy, housing, immigration and crime have topped Trump’s campaign ads.
AdImpact, based in Alexandra, VA., specializes in tracking and analyzing advertising data across various media channels, including traditional TV, digital and emerging platforms.
Rick Griffin is a San Diego-based public relations and marketing consultant. His MarketInk column appears weekly on Mondays in Times of San Diego.