Bay Area Interactive Group (BIG) Launches Second Season of “Big Sessions” Podcasts Featuring Insights from Top Digital Marketers

Hosted by Jon Raj of Visa USA, New Podcasts Offer Up-Close and Personal Interviews with Leading Interactive Executives

SAN FRANCISCO (Oct. 2, 2006) – What are the issues on the minds of some of the top digital marketing experts from around the United States?

To answer that question, the Bay Area Interactive Group (BIG) has launched a second series of educational podcasts to help share the latest trends and insights about the fast-changing marketing landscape.

The podcasts, known as the “BIG Sessions,” are available for free download by visiting http://www.sfbig.com/education/big-sessions. The interviews are moderated by Jon Raj, Education Committee Chair for BIG and Vice President of Advertising and Emerging Media Platforms for Visa USA.

The new series features up-close and personal discussions with experts such as John Vail, Director, Interactive Marketing Group, Pepsi Cola; Susanne Lyons, CMO of Visa USA; Greg Stuart, CEO of the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) and co-author of “What Sticks: Why Most Advertising Fails and How to Guarantee Yours Succeeds”; John Durham, President of BIG; and other industry leaders. Additional podcasts in the series will be launched in coming weeks.

“These interviews offer an exciting chance to hear from these leaders in their own words, and give us insights into where our industry is headed,” said Raj. “I’m thrilled about these new podcasts since they offer a great way to communicate with people around the world about the many strategies, techniques and new technologies in marketing today.”

The new BIG Sessions are part of the second season of the podcast series. Archived interviews from the first season in 2005 are available on the BIG web site, and feature executives from CBS Digital Media, Yahoo!, Carat, Tribal DDB, AKQA and other firms.

The BIG Sessions are just one of the educational outreach initiatives spearheaded by BIG’s Education Committee. BIG also sends representatives to visit Bay Area high schools, colleges and universities to discuss career opportunities in marketing, advertising and communications. Additionally, BIG hosts quarterly discussion panels for local marketing professionals to stay up-to-date on key industry issues, and hosts a regular series of networking mixers.

BIG’s Signature Sponsors in 2006 include 24/7 Real Media, Google, Yahoo!, ValueClick Media and Washingtonpost.Newsweek Interactive.

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Contact:
Dan Soine
Bay Area Interactive Group
(415) 541-2870
dan.soine@carat.com