The Topic: How does a MarCom team of just two full-time employees manage the reputation of a national "living laboratory" spanning 29 states? At The Ray, we’ve approached our communications like a startup: building the plane while flying it. This session details how we "manufactured" a professional comms structure from the ground up by using Meltwater as a strategic force multiplier. I’ll share our framework for establishing a foundational engine that automates daily content sourcing and brand analytics, allowing a lean nonprofit to support a massive ecosystem of industry stakeholders and state DOT partners simultaneously.
Why this topic matters and what attendees will walk away with: Whether you are a nonprofit or a corporate startup, the challenge is the same: you have to look and act like a global giant before you have the headcount to match. This workshop offers a "behind-the-scenes" look at high-efficiency comms engineering, proving that a small team can use their data as a strategic force multiplier to establish world-class structure and maintain a 24/7 brand presence. We’re moving past the “do more with less” cliché to show you how to leverage intelligence as a force multiplier.
Attendees will walk away with:
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The "Startup-to-Scale" Blueprint: How to establish a formal Marcom structure when you’re starting from zero, including manufacturing a consistent brand voice for regenerative and resilient infrastructure.
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Content Sourcing at Speed: How we use Meltwater digests to curate daily social media posts that keep us relevant to industry stakeholders without spending hours on research.
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The Executive Intelligence Loop: Our process for transforming analytics into high-value newsletters for leadership and automated press releases that capture journalist interest in real-time.
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Stakeholder Support Workflows: How we use brand strategy and real-time analytics to serve as a resource for our state partners, providing them with the data they need to support infrastructure innovation.
Presenter:
Dallen McLemore, Communications Specialist, The Ray As the Communications Specialist for The Ray, I lead the daily operations of the lean MarCom team, becoming the voice of our social media, press releases, featured articles, etc.With my director, I have successfully navigated the complexities of a national digital transformation and the shift from a startup-like experience to a large-scale operation. Over the past three years, I have co-engineered a data-first brand strategy that supports a vast ecosystem of state DOTs and Fortune 500 partners, using Meltwater daily as a strategic force multiplier. I am the right person to lead this workshop because I have successfully navigated the transition from "building the framework" to "scaling the impact," and I am passionate about helping other lean teams turn their media tools into high-performance teammates.