
Owner at Cifuentes Marketing
Greater Chicago Area

Owner at Cifuentes Marketing
Greater Chicago Area
For most of my life I have been fascinated with what makes people tick and how things work. In my professional career, I’ve used this natural curiosity to help me uncover hidden insights that can be used to create marketing that is effective in meeting the client’s goals and objectives. In addition, I am constantly challenging myself and others to put themselves in the place of the target audience – to always keep in mind the needs and desires of those who are the end user.
I’ve spent most of my career on the creative side, but I’ve always felt that something was missing from my experience as a creative. As a result, I decided to pursue an advanced degree on the strategic side in Integrated Marketing Communications.
My graduate-level educational experience at Roosevelt University has helped place me firmly between strategic and creative thinking and has helped solidify my personal philosophy: “Marketing must go beyond looking great. It has to meet or exceed the client’s expectations, while also respecting the target audience.”
Also, I’m well organized, have great communication skills and a passion for my work.
• Management: Project Management, Team Leader, Employee Development
• Creative: Creative Direction, Graphic Design, Photography, Copy Writing, Creative Message Development/Strategy
• Marketing: Integrated Marketing Communications, Branding/Brand Management, Public Relations, Direct Marketing, Multicultural Marketing, Account Planning
• Internet/Email Marketing: Web Analytics, Information Architecture, SEO, SEM, Permission-based eMarketing
(Privately Held; Marketing and Advertising industry)
June 2009 — Present (6 months)
• Created a marketing communications company focused on assisting in-house marketing departments with
their creative & strategic marketing needs
• Areas of expertise offered to clients include:
- Integrated Marketing Communications Plans & Campaigns
- Print Collateral Design & Development - Brochures, Sellsheets, White Papers, Case Studies, etc.
- Web Design & Strategy
- eMarketing - SEO, SEM, Permission-based Email, Information Architecture, Website Analytics
- Podcasting, Blogging
- Copywriting/Content Development
- Direct Marketing
- Advertising Design & Media Strategy
- Sales Promotion Campaigns
- Public Relations
- Trade Show Booths & Graphics
- Branding & Brand Management (including graphic standards manuals)
- Positioning & Creative Message Strategy
- Photography
(Public Company; Information Technology and Services industry)
April 2007 — June 2009 (2 years 3 months)
April 2007 to June 2009 | Talaris (Formerly De La Rue Cash Systems) | Lisle, IL | Creative Lead – Graphic Designer
• Marketing Communications Manager — Managed marketing communications projects from concept to completion for an average of 60-70 ongoing projects
• Project Manager — Completed over 280 projects in just over two years of service
• Digital Assets Manager — Developed the strategy for the company’s global web presence & permission-based email marketing program
• Creative Direction & Graphic Design — Provided creative direction to third party vendors & staff & provided graphic design production, when needed
• Brand Management — Maintained consistent graphic standards to build brand equity for the main brand and all product line brands
• Web Analytics — Implemented & maintained a comprehensive web tracking program using Google
Analytics & other tools
• Copy Writing — Provided creative/technical copy writing for most marketing projects
• Strategic Marketing Development – Assisted with the development of an integrated marketing communications plan & budget
• Direct Marketing — Developed & managed a complete direct marketing campaign program
(Online Media industry)
March 2006 — March 2007 (1 year 1 month)
• Creative Team Leader — Provided employee development, management & training
• Creative Direction & Project Management — Managed an average of 75 ongoing projects
• Brand Management — Maintained an developed corporate brand standards manual for 3 separate brands
• Integrated Marketing Communications — Developed integrated campaigns, creative briefs & communications plans
• Front-end Web Design — Interfaced with technology department to create dynamic, database-driven active server web pages (Web 2.0/eCommerce)
• Print Design — Managed print projects from concept to completion, including printer communications
• Promotional Email Campaigns — Created weekly html email theme lines, graphics, promotion codes and content for a list of over 430,000 consumers
• Information Architecture — Developed structures for user-centric websites, organized website content and reviewed website user experience processes
• Copy Writing — Provided creative/technical copy writing
(Marketing and Advertising industry)
June 2004 — February 2006 (1 year 9 months)
• Managed all points of business, including staff
• Developed a bilingual (English & Spanish) weekly newspaper, El Periódico Lo Nuestro Bilingual News, to fill the Hispanic market niche of DeKalb County, which later sold to a larger publishing group
• News Writing/Editing/Photography — Conducted interviews, wrote articles, shot photography
• Serviced ten separate clients, including Just Make It Happen Productions, Johnson Photography, Conexión Comunidad and others
• Marketing Client Work — Developed, managed and implemented integrated marketing communications plans
• Provided graphic design and copy writing for print, web & multimedia client projects
• Public Relations — Wrote & distributed client press releases
(Marketing and Advertising industry)
April 2002 — May 2004 (2 years 2 months)
• Conceptual Development — Brainstorming, Creative Strategy, Positioning
• Graphic Design — Print, web, multimedia
• Graphic Intern Supervision
• Project Management — Worked in a fast-paced, deadline driven agency environment with multiple clients in technology, food and other industries (B2B and B2C)
• New Business Development — Helped acquire several accounts, including Wellmark International ($3 million/year account)
• Clients Included: Motorola, Panasonic, Sara Lee, Wellmark International, ISBA Mutual, Spraying Systems, Dairy Management Incorporated, Zurich Life, WILD Flavors & many others
(Publishing industry)
January 2000 — May 2000 (5 months)
• Oversaw all points of production
• Graphic Design — Advertising design & publication layout
• Graphic Intern Supervision
(Publishing industry)
April 1999 — November 1999 (8 months)
• Graphic Design — Advertising design & publication layout
MS-IMC , Integrated Marketing Communications , 2004 — 2008
Graduated with honors. GPA - 4.0
BFA , Visual Communication , 2000 — 2002
Started my undergraduate degree at University of Tennessee-Knoxville and finished at The Illinois Institute of Art-Schaumburg. Graduated with honors.
Art history, design, emerging technology, new media, music, movies, computers, travel
• BMA Tower Award (Gold) — Wellmark (PreStrike/Mosquitoes) — Print Ad
• BMA Tower Award (Bronze) — Wellmark (Gentrol/Bedbugs) — Print Ad
• BMA Tower Award (Bronze) — Ruprecht Meats (Simply Natural) — Logo
• “Mosquito Love Shack” ad recognized by AdWeek magazine as “great creative” in April of 2004 (online article)
• Professional Advisory Committee Member for Advertising Program — The Illinois Institute of Art-Schaumburg, 2006
• Published in the 2008 Roosevelt University IMC Review — The Frito-Lay Natural Line Case Study