Andrea Obston
Andrea brings four decades of experience in public relations and marketing to her accounts. She founded the firm in 1982 to offer mid-sized clients the kinds of marketing advantages that enable large corporations to gain a competitive edge. Since its inception, Andrea has handled local and national accounts ranging from insurance products to publicity for an astronaut.
Before starting her own firm, Andrea worked at a large advertising firm heading up the PR Department. Among the accounts she handled were Advest, Union Trust, 7-UP, the Farley Company and the Connecticut State Lottery.
Prior to that, she was an internal marketing consultant for The Travelers Companies. One of her programs, marketing financial services to women, was responsible for a 95% increase in business in this market segment.
In 2005, Andrea was named the outstanding Connecticut Woman Business Owner of the Year by the Connecticut Chapter of the National Association of Women Business Owners (NAWBO). She was also honored by The Greater Hartford Chamber of Commerce, when she was named the 1998 Small Business Leader of the year.
Andrea is a contributing author to the 2012 book Media Magnetism – How to Attract the Favorable Publicity You Want and Deserve. Andrea is an adjunct professor in the public relations department of Quinnipiac University’s School of Communication. She is an active public speaker and has presented programs for the American Waterworks Association, the Connecticut Bankers Association, the Connecticut Association for Home Care & Hospice, the Connecticut Bar, the Connecticut Association of Nonprofits, Hartford Foundation for Public Giving, University of Connecticut MBA program and Hartford College for Women, Greater Bridgeport and Waterbury Foundations and Progressive Business Conferences.
She has an MBA in marketing from the University of Connecticut and her bachelor’s degree (magna cum laude) in public relations and public communications from Boston University.
Email – AObston@aomc.com
BJ Flagg
Nurenu Brand Marketing – Web Partner Affiliate
BJ Flagg is a 25-year marketing and communications veteran. Her first foray into the internet was in 1989, explaining how the internet would change the world. She owns Nurenu Brand Marketing a web-centric design agency affiliated with our firm.
BJ combines her depth of knowledge of the marketing industry with a passion for creating interactive solutions that leverage a company’s brand. Her robust team provides full web-centric design, development and maintenance services to clients with a high level of technical knowledge. Whether it’s a simple site or one with extensive backend needs such as multi-lingual, blogging, e-commerce, the team has the range of development capabilities to make it happen. They also provide many other online marketing solutions such as email marketing and digital advertising.
She is a frequent speaker at marketing industry events, blogosphere contributor, and Twitterer. BJ’s specialty is building and maintaining brand strength through listening to the needs of the client and translating those needs into creative, brand-building web solutions.
Bob Breno
Creative Director/Illustrator
Bob has more than two decades of experience as a graphic designer working in many artistic mediums. In addition to serving as art/creative director for with several major advertising agencies, including Mintz & Hoke in Connecticut and Leo Burnett in Chicago, Bob is an illustrator and has had his cartoons published in the Saturday Evening Post and Utne Reader.
Since opening his own studio in 1996, Bob has designed websites and interactive projects for a diverse client base, including Workforce Alliance, Wisdom House Retreat and Conference Center, Axis Logistics, Seacrest Retirement, Co-Efficiency, KeepMeHome, Action Nurses, Envelopes and More, and Gorvello Café. He has also received a host of awards for his design work, including a CLIO, Communication Arts Annual, Design Magazine Annual, and Connecticut Art Directors Club. To visit Bob’s website, go to www.bobbreno.com.
Erica West
Business Manager
Erica brings over five years of administrative and customer service experience to Andrea Obston Marketing Communication. Before joining the team, Erica worked for a local Connecticut plumbing supply house where she was the Showroom Sales Assistant. There she handled client inquiries as well as offering a consistent, organized and welcoming environment.
Erica also worked as Project Lead for a Fortune 500 company, where she obtained years of experience working with the public along with an extensive list of administrative skills. Erica studied at Delaware State University where she majored in public relations.
Ron Obston
SEO Content Producer
Ron Obston is an SEO content producer committed to helping organizations deliver their best message to their online audience. That’s why he specializes in search engine optimization (SEO).
SEO is the art and science that creates web pages to engage people and rank in search engines. Ron helps us accomplish this by researching and crafting the content that’s most useful to the people who seek it.
He believes searchers deserve content crafted for them, so that it’s useful, empathetic and inspired by relevant information. He helps to upgrade your website to make it self-evident to your audience so they see what they can get from it.
You benefit from his carefully-honed skills of more than two decades creating Internet content. His skills are the ones baked into the DNA of a television producer to connect with diverse audiences. He produced a daily magazine show, created medical education videos for hospitals and medical device companies, directed live surgery webcasts from operating rooms.
For more than 15 years, Ron served roles as vice president of broadcast operations, executive producer, writer-producer, and account executive at BroadcastMed in Farmington, CT.
Earlier in his career, he was an executive producer at Ciné-Med in Woodbury, CT, producing surgical procedure videos to train nurses and doctors. Before that, he was executive producer of a daily magazine show at WFSB Channel 3 in Hartford, CT.
Andrea Obston
Andrea brings three decades of experience in public relations and marketing to her accounts. She founded the firm in 1982 to offer mid-sized clients the kinds of marketing advantages that enable large corporations to gain a competitive edge. Since its inception, Andrea has handled local and national accounts ranging from insurance products to publicity for an astronaut.
Before starting her own firm, Andrea worked at a large advertising firm heading up the PR Department. Among the accounts she handled were Advest, Union Trust, 7-UP, the Farley Company and the Connecticut State Lottery.
Prior to that, she was an internal marketing consultant for The Travelers Companies. One of her programs, marketing financial services to women, was responsible for a 95% increase in business in this market segment.
In 2005, Andrea was named the outstanding Connecticut Woman Business Owner of the Year by the Connecticut Chapter of the National Association of Women Business Owners (NAWBO). She was also honored by The Greater Hartford Chamber of Commerce, when she was named the 1998 Small Business Leader of the year.
Andrea is a contributing author to the 2012 book Media Magnetism – How to Attract the Favorable Publicity You Want and Deserve. Andrea is an adjunct professor in the public relations department of Quinnipiac University’s School of Communication. She is an active public speaker and has presented programs for the American Waterworks Association, the Connecticut Bankers Association, the Connecticut Association for Home Care & Hospice, the Connecticut Bar, the Connecticut Association of Nonprofits, Hartford Foundation for Public Giving, University of Connecticut MBA program and Hartford College for Women, Greater Bridgeport and Waterbury Foundations and Progressive Business Conferences.
She has an MBA in marketing from the University of Connecticut and her bachelor’s degree (magna cum laude) in public relations and public communications from Boston University.
Email – AObston@aomc.com
BJ Flagg
Nurenu Brand Marketing – Web Partner Affiliate
BJ Flagg is a 25-year marketing and communications veteran. Her first foray into the internet was in 1989, explaining how the internet would change the world. She owns Nurenu Brand Marketing a web-centric design agency affiliated with our firm.
BJ combines her depth of knowledge of the marketing industry with a passion for creating interactive solutions that leverage a company’s brand. Her robust team provides full web-centric design, development and maintenance services to clients with a high level of technical knowledge. Whether it’s a simple site or one with extensive backend needs such as multi-lingual, blogging, e-commerce, the team has the range of development capabilities to make it happen. They also provide many other online marketing solutions such as email marketing and digital advertising.
She is a frequent speaker at marketing industry events, blogosphere contributor, and Twitterer. BJ’s specialty is building and maintaining brand strength through listening to the needs of the client and translating those needs into creative, brand-building web solutions.
Jenny Smith
Account Manager
Jenny has more than 20 years of public relations and marketing experience. She partners with Andrea Obston Marketing Communications to provide account management and tactical support. She was formerly director of public relations for The Pita Group, located in Connecticut. There she handled the development and implementation of public relations and marketing communications strategies for not-for-profit organizations.
Prior to that, Jenny served as vice president/account supervisor at Durazo Communications, an L.A.-based public relations agency active in the Hispanic/Latino market. While there, she led initiatives to assist the California Department of Health Services educate the state’s Latino communities about the health hazards associated with tobacco use.
Jenny also served as communications director for the United Way of Puerto Rico (Fondos Unidos de Puerto Rico) and the Gales Ferry, Connecticut-based United Way of Southeastern Connecticut. In her time as director, Jenny developed and implemented various public relations programs, planned and managed events, and supported volunteer allocations committees.
Jenny has an MBA in international marketing from Rensselaer Polytechnic University’s Hartford campus and a BA in journalism from Ohio Wesleyan University. The Public Relations Society of America’s Connecticut chapters named Jenny Public Relations Practitioners of the Year in 2008
Bob Breno
Creative Director/Illustrator
Bob has more than two decades of experience as a graphic designer working in many artistic mediums. In addition to serving as art/creative director for with several major advertising agencies, including Mintz & Hoke in Connecticut and Leo Burnett in Chicago, Bob is an illustrator and has had his cartoons published in the Saturday Evening Post and Utne Reader.
Since opening his own studio in 1996, Bob has designed websites and interactive projects for a diverse client base, including Workforce Alliance, Wisdom House Retreat and Conference Center, Axis Logistics, Seacrest Retirement, Co-Efficiency, KeepMeHome, Action Nurses, Envelopes and More, and Gorvello Café. He has also received a host of awards for his design work, including a CLIO, Communication Arts Annual, Design Magazine Annual, and Connecticut Art Directors Club. To visit Bob’s website, go to www.bobbreno.com.
Teresa McCann
Intern
Teresa is a rising public relations professional with experience in strategic communications, social media and management. Before her start at AOMC, she previously interned with the office of Public Affairs at Quinnipiac University working on event planning and guest relations. She is a current senior at the university and a member of Lamda Pi Eta, communications honor society and Kappa Delta’s Vice President of Community Service. She will be graduating this May with a Bachelor’s Degree in Public Relations, along with a psychology minor.
Erica West
Business Manager
Erica brings over five years of administrative and customer service experience to Andrea Obston Marketing Communication. Before joining the team, Erica worked for a local Connecticut plumbing supply house where she was the Showroom Sales Assistant. There she handled client inquiries as well as offering a consistent, organized and welcoming environment.
Erica also worked as Project Lead for a Fortune 500 company, where she obtained years of experience working with the public along with an extensive list of administrative skills. Erica studied at Delaware State University where she majored in public relations.