Twelve-year-old Brett Wilson told his parents, “I’m going to create a center some day for cancer patients and their families so they don’t have to go through the stuff we did.” No one took the 2-time childhood cancer survivor (nicknamed “Walking Miracle” by his grandmother) seriously, but the idea lingered at the back of Wilson’s mind. Twenty-seven years later, with graduate school, counseling positions, and medical complications from childhood chemotherapy treatments along the way, Wilson’s dream is a reality; in December of 2011, WalkingMiracles.org became an established 501(c)3 non-profit. Providing patient navigation and counseling services for cancer patients, survivors, and their families, Wilson wants to remove any barriers that would keep West Virginians from getting the cancer care and support they need.
Company Story
Wilson knew he needed a marketing company’s help. “I’d talked to about 7 or 8 different folks and they all wanted big money. I didn’t have big money, I’m a startup. I went on Jamie’s website (I had heard about him) and looked at his clientele list; one of his clients was a good friend. I hadn’t even met him yet. . .and I knew that he (Jamie) was a man of integrity because of (that association).” Wilson called Jamie.
“When we originally sat down and talked we met for dinner. We got to know each other and we got to talk. Because it’s cancer, cancer has an impact on a lot of people; it made it a whole lot easier that we were on the same page because we had a cause that we both believed in. . .”
Wilson valued Jamie’s marketing knowledge, an area he is weak in. “I said, I need you to just lay it out there. ‘This is what works.’ Because I wanted things to all have a major impact. . . he’s been around enough to know what marketing material has been out there in the community.” Also drawn to Jamie’s creativity, Wilson is adamant that it is one of Jamie’s greatest strengths. “He’s got a great vision for things; he tries to make you different. It’s not a cookie cutter approach.”
The Ability to Listen
Wilson also felt that Jamie really listened, declaring that another strength. Regarding his organization’s brochure, “I wanted to get people excited about it. We only do two fundraising events in a year, so we wanted something that people would say, “Man, this stuff is so good that I’ve got to hold onto this for later.” Jamie kept Wilson included in the process, running examples by him and the board and quickly making changes where needed. He put together a marketing package, designing a folder to hold both the brochure and a dvd to leave with businesses and others.
BWS created banners for Wilson; one hangs in his office, and the other is a standing banner for use at conferences and other venues. Jamie revamped Wilson’s business cards, and designed a new logo for the organization. “It was better than our original logo (a non-digital one); he did all the graphics and all the printing. And the quality of the print material—it was awesome. Everything looked good; there was no blurry ink. We’re (the board) all really, really excited about it. I was really happy with everything.” (Like all of BWS’s print material, these products were produced using environmentally friendly, soy-based oil inks. For more information, go here).
Jamie also helped WalkingMiracles.org by designing and donating a server based email distribution program to the organization. Although it was a “freebie”, Jamie continued to listen to Wilson’s needs. “He designed it and said ‘Now proof it.’ If I didn’t like some of the things or wanted change, (he changed it). He’d ask me, ‘What specifically are you looking for?’”
Wilson said, “He would even communicate with me outside of hours. . .I’d get an email at 8 o’clock, ‘Hey, I’ve been working on this thing; here’s what we’re looking at.’ It was kind of cool to get, ‘Here’s where we are in this process. . .”
Understands the Non-Profit
Though not Jamie’s biggest client, Wilson felt Jamie gave his all when doing work for WalkingMiracles.org. “Everything that we’ve gotten so far has been awesome. It’s been very reasonable. There have been times where I’ve said, “Hey can we do this?” and he’s been very flexible. He’s been very prompt. And that’s why I really enjoyed working with him and why I’m more than happy to promote him to other folks that are starting non-profits. Because that’s who we need, we need someone who understands what a new non-profit would be going through and help them provide what they need. And I would much rather work with somebody that has a small company that’s working for themselves that started like I did, that has a commonality with the vision that I’m doing, that can set another company apart.”
Recognizing the importance of non-profits, Bricks Without Straw has established the Frank Brown Community Partnership. For more information or to apply for your organization, please go here.
