WHO I AM: My name is Mary van de Wiel. (Call me Van!)
WHAT I DO: I teach people in business how to use and understand the power of branding to dramatically increase sales. FYI Your brand won’t sell a thing if it ain’t got that zing! So I specialize in teaching clients how to avoid falling into the trap of ‘Dead Brand Walking.’ What’s the focus? I’m passionate about creating a stronger, more energized brand that emotionally connects with your target market. Guess what that does? It brings more interest, desire, more visibility, credibility and, of course, makes you more money. Remember, Zing is Ka-Ching!
HOW I DO IT: It’s all about tapping into that creative spark and energy at the core of your business. We work together to find the #1 thing your business needs to succeed: – an energy all its own, and a personality that attracts attention, and customers and one that is:

• Unforgettable.
• Compelling.
• Consistent.
• True to what you deliver.
• True to who you are.
• Fun. You heard me, fun. That’s key!

… I uncover your brand’s strengths and weaknesses – so we can pull the great stuff to the foreground and scrap the stuff that doesn’t work. What’s more, I coax out the sass, flair and power in your brand so it sticks out and turns heads…

HOW IT HAPPENS: I uncover your brand’s strengths and weaknesses – so we can pull the great stuff to the foreground and scrap the stuff that doesn’t work. By getting to know you, your business, and your personality, I can locate and fix the areas where your brand is flat, inconsistent, or not reflective of you. I coax out the power, flair, and uniqueness in your brand, so it sticks out and turns heads. That’s when the money starts to flow again.

WHY YOU NEED HELP: You know branding is key. You know a great brand when you see one. And, you can tell when your brand just isn’t there. But what you probably can’t put your finger on is just what’s missing, what’s “off,” and how to correct it. Or, what your brand should be in the first place. It needs to communicate who you are in a flash. That can be a tricky thing to figure out and pull off. In other words, I help you recognize who you are, so others can!

WHY ME: I’ve done this successfully for major corporations around the world. In fact, across four continents. I’ve got years of experience and major acclaim. But more importantly, I have a rare intuitive knack: I can spot a bland brand from miles away. And I know instinctively how to rejuvenate it. I’m a big-idea, visual thinker – which is what you need. Someone who can see the whole picture and bring a vision to life.

MY TRACK RECORD: Would you believe I showed my branding genius back at age seven? My sister and I formed the “Five Leaf Clover Club” in Maracaibo, Venezuela. I came up with the name and designed the logo, name tags, signs, everything.

OK, maybe that’s not such hot resume material. But how about this:

• Founder, CEO and Executive Creative Director of an independent branding and communication design agency with offices in New York and Sydney, Australia.
• Consulted for Fortune 500 clients across four continents.
• Led national brand campaigns for the launches of People Magazine in Australia, the Macau International Airport in China and the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia.
• Clients have included Conde Nast Magazines, American Airlines, Sony, Coty, Hearst, The Museum of Modern Art, NY, Sydney Opera House, Time Inc., Zurich Australia Group and News Corporation.
• Award-winning brand campaigns for global clients. Check them out at www.maryvandewiel.com

And that’s just the corporate stuff. I’ve helped entrepreneurs of all stripes, from all over the world, to develop hugely successful brands for their own small businesses.

“Van is without question the most creative, energizing, and brilliant communication/marketing/brand visionary I know. She is able to zero in on on a core message and make it sing. She gets whatever the “point-of-pain” your client is experiencing and knows how to speak to it. Her visual acumen has a flair that captures eye and mind at the same time. In addition to being highly talented, she’s fun and entirely pleasurable to work with. I love working with her, pure and simple.”

Janet Wigfield
Vice President, Executive Director, Conferences + Events, Working Mother, Media
WorkingMother.com

MY LIFE STORY, POCKET EDITION:

It’s probably no accident that “standing out” is the theme of what I do. I did a whole lot of it growing up. I didn’t have much choice.

The daughter of a Dutch sea captain, my family moved from Venezuela to Canada, then Holland, then sunnier Sydney, Australia – all by the time I was 15. And wherever we went, there was no other kid like me.

I was the only one who’d lived in a Shell Oil colony, spent weekends on a houseboat and other days in a tropical garden fighting over mangoes with a bunch of iguanas; the only one who’d ridden a bike to school in the snow; the only girl who was over 5′10″, had a Dutch/mid-Atlantic/Canadian accent, and carried more than one passport.

I would later become the first and only entrepreneur in my family.

After graduating from Sydney’s University of New South Wales with a B.A. and Dip. Education and later, from the School of Visual Art in Communication Design, I taught Drama and English in a private girls’ school – coaching students to stand out on stage and on paper. Then, I plunged into the world of advertising, design and communications.

In 2001 I opened the doors to van de Wiel, Inc., my own branding and design agency. TIME Inc. came knocking with a big job: Handling the national launch campaign of People Weekly magazine in the Australian marketplace. Soon after, more Fortune 500 clients came knocking, my business took off and I had clients based across four continents (South East Asia, China, USA and Australia).

Business was good. In 2000, I made a quantum leap: Stepped on a QANTAS flight and flew back to the Northern Hemisphere to open a New York office. Soon after, we won the pitch for the national brand campaign for The National Constitution Center, the first museum dedicated to the study of the Constitution. Other good stuff came our way. Then I sold my company and after tinkering here and there, I put on the solo entrepreneur hat and launched A New Brand Landscape & Co. and its subsidiary, Zing Your Brand, where I work with remarkable people willing to do whatever it takes to make their brands STAND OUT LIKE CRAZY.

When I’m not making brand dreams come true, you can find me working the bags at Gleason’s Gym in Brooklyn. I currently live near the Brooklyn waterfront with my artist-inventor-sculptor-designer husband.

Business is great. But I’d be a multibillionaire if I had a dollar for every time someone stopped me and asked about the color of my lipstick. It’s MAC: CHERRY.