For six years Cleveland’s Council of Smaller Enterprises (COSE) has recognized businesses with ten or fewer employees who have demonstrated best practices in innovation, growth/success, value to the community and the environment, promoting diversity and excellence in customer service.

By JAMES W. WADE III
Staff Reporter

For six years Cleveland’s Council of Smaller Enterprises (COSE) has recognized businesses with ten or fewer employees who have demonstrated best practices in innovation, growth/success, value to the community and the environment, promoting diversity and excellence in customer service.

This year, Visibility Marketing is proud to be a recipient of COSE’s sixth annual Ten Under 10 Awards. The award was presented to Montrie Rucker Adams and Todd Q. Adams during the luncheon at COSE’s annual conference at Cleveland’s International Exposition (IX) Center.

The conference is the perfect blend of education and networking. The region’s premier small business conference with nationally recognized keynote speakers and nine educational tracks allows small business owners the opportunity to design their own custom blend of small business education and enlightenment.

Four cornerstones guide the daily operations at Visibilty Marketing: Marketing, Learning, Sharing, Living and Giving. “We are genuinely interested in our clients, their needs, desires, goals and objectives," says Montrie Rucker Adams, chief visibility officer and founder of the 10-year-old firm. "We want to help."

The firm is happy to give away stuff for free -- in the name of educating clients. That's because Rucker Adams knows when clients understand why and how Visibility Marketing executes communications strate­gies, they are more likely to buy in.

And with social media flooding this space, there's an even greater learning curve for the firm and its clients. "We have to stay ahead of the curve," Rucker Adams says, noting that VMI incorporates this "new media" into its core offerings. And the firm is taking technology a step further by increasing its competency in areas like smart grid, health information technology and broadband so it can serve new partners in the tech­nology and energy management sectors.

VMI is a partner with Case Western Reserve Univer­sity on the Case Connection Zone fiberoptic project, which provides people with ultra high-speed Internet ac­cess "up to 100 times faster than what you normally get in your home," says Todd Adams, director of business development at VMI and the catalyst behind the firm's growth in the broadband category.

The firm is working on projects such as developing virtual block-watch clubs for neighborhoods; and VMI will manage the communications and public relations efforts for the City of Cleveland's $86-million smart metering water project.

By tapping into these new markets and serving as the communicator to educate the public on the value of such "smart" projects -- and by doing a little PR to increase the firms own visibility, VMI grew its sales 49 percent from 2008 to 2009.

"We are always in the open-mind mode," Rucker Adams says of the firm's expansion. "Maybe one day we won't be able to qualify for the Ten Under 10 Awards," she muses, considering the hiring opportunities she hope the firm will fulfill as it drives toward continued success.

Celebrating 10 years, Visibilty Marketing also has gone green. Spearheaded by Todd Q. Adams, chief officer of sustainability and innovation, IT veteran and expert in sustainability, Visibility Marketing has launched its “green” and sustainability initiatives by offering their clients: Green Visibility. Triple bottom line messaging that communicates a return on investment by integrating fiscal, social, and environmental responsibility. Media and public relations for renewable energy and advanced energy initiatives. Writing and editing green economy articles and publications. Communication campaign development for Smart Metering, home energy management, and water conservation campaigns. Facilitating public awareness and community education forums for advanced energy initiatives. Sustainable Communities Initiatives. Workforce development and sustainable adoption consultative services to Broadband Technology Opportunities Program grantees. Managing higher education research pilot programs in the areas of health and wellness, energy management, public safety, and education.

Strategy development in public-private partnership and community stakeholder consensus building.

To find out more about Visibilty Marketing call (440) 684-9920.