PPB February 2018

by James Khattak PPAI And AMA Announce New Partnership AtThe PPAI Expo At The PPAI Expo last month in Las Vegas, the Association announced a new partnership with the American Marketing Association (AMA) that will deliver new benefits and opportunities to PPAI members. PPAI and AMA have come together on numerous issues and initiatives for more than a decade, and the new alliance opens the AMA’s outreach, education and business development opportunities to Association members. The partnership gives PPAI members access to special AMA membership rates and member benefits, as well as access to the organization’s publications and research, and opportunities for training, professional development, networking and buyer outreach. Get started at AMA.Marketing/PPAI2018 At Expo, AMA President Russ Klein joined PPAI President and CEO Paul Bellantone, CAE, for a keynote luncheon and association update to discuss the partnership and the benefits it would bring. PPB spoke further with Klein on his perspectives on the partnership and how it will benefit industry professionals and the marketing field. PPB: How will PPAI members benefit from increased access to AMA education, events and other opportunities? Klein: The AMA is a community of communities and is the only place where a connected intelligence across those communities—academic, collegiate and industry—can be accessed with one membership. Whether it’s solutions-based content and training you can use in your job; a badge of credibility emanating from our independent role as the standard- bearer for marketing; or the sense of home and safe place where you can exchange experiences with kindred spirits, the AMA is an essential community for marketers. Being part of that community also means you’re connected with influential marketers across a wide array of disciplines, including niche areas like higher education and nonprofit marketing, which are important fields for successful promotional product professionals. PPB: Do you see the collaboration between AMA and PPAI elevating the marketing field? Klein: The AMA/PPAI alliance is a highly complementary partnership of organizations who share an interest in getting best and next practices into the hands of our members. The AMA is the foremost knowledge-based enterprise in the world devoted to the furtherance of marketing practice and professional development of the individual marketer, and we are even stronger together with PPAI in elevating the esteem of the discipline. PPAI can deepen an AMA member’s knowledge of promotional product best practices, and conversely, the AMA can provide valuable context with respect to how promotional AMA President Russ Klein (right) and PPAI President and CEO Paul Bellantone, CAE, discussed the new partnership during a session at The PPAI Expo 2018. | FEBRUARY 2018 | 73 CONNECT