Jan. 7_Mariellen launches Charlotte Sports Network on LinkedIn
After several years in the business and many successful sports socials the last few years, I decided to officially launch a networking group geared just for professionals working in the sports industry in Charlotte, NC. With so many major sports in our city, Super bowl bound Carolina Panthers, Bobcats, NASCAR, Charlotte Knights as well as a host of major league sporting events such as the Wachovia Championship, Bank of America Criterium, Coca-Cola 600, 24 Hours of Booty and others.
Not only will you finally be connected to Charlotte's elite business leaders in the sports, but build and grow your own business by making key connections. I plan to host a social in the spring, so stay tuned.

We invite anyone that is connected with sports in a professional setting such as
sports community leaders/team owners
sporting events
sports related products and services
sports event planners, coaches
sports media
advertising/marketing
athletes/retired pro athletes
agents
retail shop owners
club organizers
facilities/venues
Pro or semi-pro teams

Our passion is to create business connections, increase doing business and build awareness for the sports community in Charlotte.
Click here to join the group.
We look forward to 2009 and watching this group grow.

November 7_Fall M5 Poster design
A satisfied client called again. The upscale Charlotte restaurant, M5, needed a poster to remind customers it was time to order Holiday gift certificates. The creatives at the Auer Agency looked out the window, saw the leaves starting to fall and were inspired. The result: a cool, attention-grabbing poster in the fall spirit.

October 17_The Auer Agency inspires Matthews fitness team When the Matthews location for Lifestyle Family Fitness got ready to compete in a companywide fitness challenge, they needed a motivational identity. The Auer Agency created their logo and, riffing off the Presidential campaign, came up with the name Matthews Mavericks. For good measure, they threw in an inspirational tagline, “There’s only room at the top for ONE.” The Matthews team was ready to WIN.

October 16_Auer Agency is officially Trademarked
The United States Patent and Trademark office believes the name, Auer Agency, and its three orange circles is as distinctive and memorable as the CBS eye, the once-bitten apple and the Nike swoosh. So when you see the name or the circles look for the itty bitty TM.

Just like the innovative solutions we provide for our clients, we’re unique, too.

October 16_Auer Agency scores with Hale Razors Team
No, it’s not a skin care product, but Hale Razors is a product of the Auer Agency’s left field creativity. The Larry Hale Insurance Company wanted some nifty shirts for its softball team. Naturally, they came to Auer, the sports apparel experts. The Auer creative team designed a devilishly clever mascot, Lil’ Hale Razor (get it?) and then printed the shirts. One of Auer’s specialties is designing sports apparel with an innovative printing process called sublimation. The process allows designers to use more colors and print techniques than screen printing. The Hale team competed at the World Softball Tournament at Disney. Bet Walt would have been impressed with their shirts.


July 22_Auer Agency helps Canadian company launch private label cycling jersey line.

The Auer Agency provided design expertise, manufacturing knowledge and offered an introduction to other cycling industry contacts as Canadian-based Nspirez.com launched its private label cycling jersey line.

Nspirez.com plans to invite visitors to their site to submit inspirational quotes and positive messages. Each month one quote or message will be chosen and a cycling jersey designed.

The Auer Agency designed the first cycling jersey in the series.

July 21_Auer Agency helps launch innovative sports marketing event.

The Auer Agency is collaborating with Charlotte Health and Fitness magazine and Paschal Innovative Promotions to launch The Event Marketing Forum. The Forum, the brainchild of Mariellen Auer, brings together the directors of popular sporting events with potential sponsors. Event directors can pitch events or concepts to those companies with an interest in sponsoring sporting events.

“It’s a great match,” says Mariellen, the owner of the Auer Agency. “Having all the event directors and potential underwriters in one spot at one time, helps get the ideas - and the dollars - flowing. Sometimes it’s hard to make those connections. At the Event Marketing Forum, making the connections with the right event and the right sponsor is a lot easier.”

The Auer Agency also designed a flyer to promote the event.

The Auer Agency is a Charlotte-based sports marketing and graphic design firm that delivers innovative marketing and brand ideas to amateur and professional teams, schools and sporting event organizers.

July 21_ Auer Agency gets tasty assignment from local chocolatier.

The Auer Agency was hired by the Charlotte Chocolate Company to create an appetizing new identity and spice up the company’s collateral material.

“Some assignments are just too delicious for words,” says Mariellen Auer, the agency’s owner. “We had a fun time retooling the logo and giving the marketing material a tempting new look.”

While working on the company’s image, the Auer Agency also created a new tagline for the local chocolatier: “Please save the earth. It’s the only one with chocolate.”

The Auer Agency is a Charlotte-based sports marketing and graphic design firm that delivers innovative marketing and brand ideas to amateur and professional teams, schools and sporting event organizers…and loves chocolate.

July 17_ Auer Agency brands Charlotte’s Best Athlete Event.

When Charlotte Health and Fitness magazine wanted help in creating an identity and marketing materials to attract sponsors and nominations for its newest project, Charlotte’s Best Athlete event, it turned to Charlotte’s Best Agency.

“We created a brand identity for the event and then developed a series of marketing materials to promote the event,” says Mariellen Auer, owner of the Auer Agency. “It was critical that the image grab people’s attention and spur interest because the magazine wants to franchise the event to other cities.”

July 17_ Auer Agency Whips Up Appetizing Poster for Charlotte Restaurant, M5

The trendy Charlotte restaurant, M5, wanted to highlight their menu choices featuring Mediterranean summer produce - squash, eggplant, peaches and tomatoes. So they asked the Auer Agency for a poster design they could to display in the restaurant.

“The project had some interesting ‘ingredients’,” says Auer Agency owner, Mariellen Auer. “It had be edgy, turned around quickly and star the vine-ripened tomatoes. It was unusual, for sure. That’s why we jumped at the chance to create the poster.”

The design executed in “tomato reds” and “healthy greens” on a golden background invites the patrons to savor these great foods.

Did the client like the design? “They ate it up,” says Mariellen.

M5 is located in SouthPark and is part of the Harpers Restaurant Group. At the restaurant, old world meets new. M5 Modern Mediterranean blends the flavors and timeless elegance of the Mediterranean with contemporary urban chic.

June 4_Auer Agency Redesigns TNBA’s Logo and Helps the Rename and Expand the Organization.

When The National Business Association appointed Mariellen Auer vice president of the local chapter, little did they know what a fortuitous decision it was.

Not only did Mariellen help them redesign their logo, but she also guided the organization in a name change that better describes their mission. The National Business Association 4 Sports has sharpened its focus on sports related businesses. Auer also helped launch a second Charlotte area chapter. Expansion isn’t over yet. Auer and the group are looking to add chapters in Pittsburg, Tampa, Atlanta and Kansas City to go with the two in Charlotte and one in New York.

Oh, and Mariellen came up with a new tagline for the organization: Putting on a New Game Face. The tagline will be displayed on the new brochure her agency designed and produced for TNBA4S

April 17 _ Auer Agency Helps Market a Safe Neighborhood for Young Bicyclists.

Learning to ride a bicycle is part of growing up. But, with crowded streets, dangerous intersections and complex traffic laws, where can young people go to learn safely? A concerned father and avid cyclist has created a safe neighborhood called Veloville.

This neighborhood-in-a-box can be set up just about anywhere to teach young boys and girls to ride safely under the watchful eyes of parents and cycling experts.

How do you explain this unique concept to potential sponsors and users? You call the Auer Agency for some “out-of-the-box” marketing. Auer designed the Veloville logo and an attention-grabbing folded business card to show to interested organizations. The agency also helped with the design of the actual Veloville “neighborhood.”

April 9 _ Auer Agency Designs a Royal Affair

The Metrolina AIDS Project’s annual fundraiser is an important event for the organization. The gala features a fashion show, a silent auction, food and drink. The money raised helps the organization fund its important mission in the community.

So, they go all out to make the event memorable.

This year the Auer Agency designed the sophisticate, heraldic-looking logo for the inviting printed invitations. The Auer team also created an electronic invitation, poster, postcard, signage and table tent cards.

March 26_National Association of Women Business Owners Welcomes New Member, Mariellen Auer.

Mariellen Auer has been accepted as a new member of the Charlotte Chapter of National Association of Women Business Owners (NAWBO).

NAWBO is a dynamic group of Charlotte women who meet to support women business owners, strengthen the wealth building capacity of members, create changes in the business culture, develop strategic alliances and affect public policy.

“It is a very nurturing and exciting environment,” says Mariellen. “The people I meet and the events I attend will help me grow and strengthen my business.

“I’m looking forward to learning from other experienced business owners. And, I’d like to get the sports-related business owners together to share ideas.”

March 17, 2008_Mariellen Auer Appointed VP of Local Chapter of The National Business Association.

The Charlotte chapter of The National Business Association (TNBA) has tapped Mariellen Auer, owner of the Auer Agency, (www.aueragency.com) as its local vice president.

TNBA is a networking organization of former and current pro athletes who have become entrepreneurs. TNBA helps its members grow their businesses by linking them with other members, service providers and select business owners who can provide sales leads, referrals and contacts.

“Charlotte has a number of sports-related companies and businesses owned and operated by former professional athletes,” explains Auer. “They just need help finding each other. That’s what I’m going to make happen.”

Auer also plans to listen to current members to learn their needs, recruit new members, organize regular and special events. Auer plans to make the Charlotte chapter an important part of every athlete/business owner’s growth strategy.

Current TNBA members, interested athlete/entrepreneurs and service providers can email Mariellen at info@aueragency.com to learn more.

The Auer Agency is a Charlotte-based sports marketing and graphic design firm that delivers innovative marketing and brand ideas to amateur and professional teams, schools and sporting event organizers.

March 3 _ Auer Cooks Up a Delicious Design.

A group of friends pooled their money to buy a used fire rescue step van (it looks like a FedEx delivery truck) to enjoy their passions - sports and tailgating. They decided they wanted to “pimp the ride” with fun graphics and design shirts to wear as they traveled to college and professional sporting events.

Through a referral, they found the Auer Agency. Now they have an awesome logo for their van, shirts and hoodies to wear…and even a brochure. The Auer Agency is also helping them find a body shop that can customize the interior of the van and make it truly tailgate-worthy.

January 12 _ Auer Agency Jumps in the Lake.

Pivotal Designs markets a line of wake enhancement equipment through its subsidiary, Wakeco. The equipment helps boats get on plane and up to speed quickly to control the size and shape of its wake, making wakeboarding more fun…and challenging. Boarders can actually surf behind the boat - without a rope.

Pivotal Design’s biggest challenge wasn’t the patented designs; it was the marketing identity for their unique line of equipment. They contacted the Auer Agency for some “rad designs.”

The Auer team dove into the project and created a logo for Wakeco along with business cards, product cards, business to business marketing tools and trade show panels.

March 10_ Technology Company Taps Auer Agency to Create New Logo.

Application Informatics, a software design company that specializes in building tools to monitor and manage hosted applications, chose the Auer Agency to conceive and execute a new identity for the growing firm.

“The company was deep into creating new products and didn’t have time - or the expertise - to focus on its image,” explains Mariellen Auer, agency owner.  “So they turned to us for guidance and designs.”

 

March 15_The Auer Agency Donates Logo and Invitation Design to Charlotte Men’s Group.

Men For Change, a group united against domestic violence, wanted to refresh their image in time for their 10th annual breakfast fundraiser.  And, they needed help getting the word out about their event.  They were pleased that the Auer Agency agreed to help them - gratis.

“We have a strong commitment to give back to the community,” says agency owner, Mariellen Auer.  “And this group is doing wonderful things to encourage men from all walks of life to speak out against domestic violence.  We were glad to help.”

Auer developed a new logo for the group as well as an invitation to promote their event.

 

March 17_ The Auer Agency Mints Coin-Shaped Business Card for NJ Banker.

So much for the square banker image.  Sovereign Bank’s New Jersey Market President, Warren Taylor, wanted something unique to give to clients and prospects.  The Auer Agency responded with a business card design shaped like a coin.  Two-sided card features a picture of Mr. Taylor on one side and the bank’s logo and values on the other.

“We took and actual photograph of Mr. Taylor and manipulated the image so that looked like it was engraved on the card,” says Mariellen. 

Sovereign Bank was founded in 1902 and today is the 18th largest financial institution in the United States.

 

April 8_ Weekend Warriors Wear Auer-Designed Jerseys.

Participants in the annual Carolina Panthers - Miller Lite Flag Football tournament sported new jerseys this year thanks to the creative skills of the Auer Agency.

128 teams competed in the two-day event, which raised $30,000 for the Levine Children’s Hospital at Carolinas Medical Center.  Every player wore a distinctive Weekend Warrior jersey.

“It was fun to see all the players competing and raising money for charity while wearing a jersey we designed,” said Mariellen Auer, agency principal.

 

April 18_ Auer Agency Creates “Plane” Shirt for Charity Event.

The twenty people on Thunder Road Brandworks team tenaciously gripped a long, thick rope.  On the other end of the rope was a 145,000 pound USAirways jet.  The goal was to be the fastest team to move the aircraft 20 feet.  It would be quite a feat.
 
The teams were part of the Charlotte Chamber’s Airport Chapter fundraising event, Pull for Charlotte.  Only the Thunder Road team was decked out in a brightly colored shirt, specially designed for the challenge by the Auer Agency.
 
“Most of the teams just wore their company logo shirts,” says Mariellen Auer, president of the Auer Agency and aircraft puller extraordinaire. “Our team wanted to be different and unique so we designed the team‘s Pull for Charlotte shirts.”
 
“We didn’t win, but we were the sharpest looking team.”

 

May 18_ Auer Agency Helps Convene Movers and Shakers in Charlotte’s Sports Scene.

Mariellen Auer not only designs dynamic logos and exciting sports apparel, but she also throws a cool party.
 
“We’re using the exclusive Charlotte Sports Scene networking event as a way to build an organization of decision makers and sports leaders in the Charlotte market,” explains Mariellen. “Eventually we’ll compile a sports directory and have a sports summit to keep people informed of what’s happening in the Charlotte sports community.”
 
Committee members for the Charlotte Sports Scene include:
Mariellen Auer - Auer Agency  
Riley Fields  - Carolina Panthers Community Relations Director  
Gretchen Burleson - UNCC Charlotte, Belk Sports MBA  
Johnny Burleson - Concussion Marketing  
Roddy Broadnax - Sotto Wireless  
Johnny Rocco - Touchdown Club  
Matt Coben - Thunder Road Brandworks  
James Mathis  Center City Partners and head of South End Business District
Sharbara Ellis - Charlotte Bobcats, community relations  
Neal Boyd - Charlotte Sports Cycling  
Juddson Rupp - WSOC-TV, Account Sales Rep

 

June 10_ Auer Agency Booked to Redesign Panthers’ Bookmarks.

If a 6’5”, 300-pound professional football player looks you in the eye and says reading is important, you’re going to believe him.  The Carolina Panthers believe in the importance of every child developing reading skills.  Several of their community outreach programs focus on literacy.

The team wanted to make sure the message got through to area children so they asked the Auer Agency to redesign nine Panther Bookmarks featuring star players, cheerleaders and Sir Purr.

“Our agency supports all efforts to help children improve their reading skills,” says Mariellen Auer.  “We were excited to partner with the Panthers on the bookmark project.”

 

June 11_ Mountain biking races The Auer Agency Scores Key Contacts at National Sporting Goods Show.

Well known brand names like Wilson, ASICS, New Balance, Reebok, Under Armour, Spalding, Sportline, Russell, Rawlings, Easton-Bell, Franklin Sports, Upper Deck and others were at the inaugural SGMA Spring Market. 

And right in the middle of all the action was Mariellen Auer.

“I made some exciting contacts with several of the companies at the show,” said Mariellen.  “I talked to Upper Deck about possibly designing cards for them.  I had great conversations with the people at Brooks and Mizuno about apparel designs.  I met with the people at Smack Apparel and talked about helping them move their designs from cotton t-shirts to moisture-wicking tops.” 

“I made new friends and plan to incorporate new ideas from the show into my designs - which only proves that not everything that happens in Las Vegas stays in Las Vegas.”

 

July 1_Mariellen Auer Field Tests Her Bicycle Jersey Design.

Not only did she create the new jerseys for New Dominion Bank cycling team - the Automatic Drafts - but she’s also going to ride with the team to raise money for charity.

In September, the Automatic Drafts with new team member, Auer, will pedal from Charlotte to Myrtle Beach in the annual Break Away to the Beach ride for Muscular Dystrophy.

“I’m going to raise $1,000 for MS research,” explains Mariellen.  “It’s such a great cause and a fun two days.  I’m looking forward to riding…and wearing one of the jerseys.”

August 16_ Auer Agency Recruited to Create Identity for SourceAbility.

The regional recruiting firm, SourceAbility, called on the Auer Agency to design an identity package and create a web presence.

“I had worked with Mariellen before,” explains Tanya Calkins, president of SourceAbility.  “So when it was time to start my own firm, I naturally sought her out.”

“We designed the logo, business cards, stationery and marketing material for the firm,” says Mariellen.  “Then we tackled the content and creative look of their Web site.”

SourceAbility is a results-driven recruitment firm specializing in helping dynamic, growing organizations hire mid-level to c-level accounting/finance, information technology, operations and sales/marketing professionals. 

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