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GOLF-HER'ST SUCCESS STORY by MaryBeth Lacy Suzy da Silva and Nicole Licata are not your typical success story. These young women founded CCM Marketing, a media buying agency, using their own credit cards in the summer of 2001. Fate dealt the nation a blow that year in September that did not thwart their mission. Merely four years later, they are one of the largest billing agencies on The Golf Channel. How did these young female entrepreneurs become successful in two male-dominated fields: direct marketing and golf? They attribute their success to their ethics. Suzy and Nicole's experience prior to founding their own company not only honed their skills in media buying and production but led them to identify the need for an agency with honest business practices. CCM Marketing develops, produces and places infomercials and commercials for numerous golf products on television. They help golf product manufacturers successfully take their products to market. They have had their hand in many of the long form advertising (infomercials) seen on the Golf Channel and other golf programming on cable stations nationwide. Their style of business is unique. Suzy and Nicole know the ins and outs of how products achieve success through media placement - particularly in their niche market of golf. "Selling a golf product is a lot different than selling just any widget. There are only so many golfers out there," states Licata, "and to hit them, you really have to know what you're doing." They advise potential clients on everything from writing the production script to order fulfillment. Their ethics come in to play all the time. Although media placement offers the potential for immediate and substantial income, it has an inherently hefty price tag. When Suzy and Nicole are working with a new client who they can see is not likely to succeed, they will advise against it. "Often we must tell a potential client that their product is not viable for Direct Response marketing," Suzy states. "We do not want to waste a client's money, especially since many of our clients are entrepreneurs, investing their life savings. It is important that we work toward a client's success, not demise." Their honesty and hard work is paying off. They have been well received by colleagues in golf - both male and female. Expertise and ethics, of course, are not gender specific. Suzy and Nicole's clients chose them for their business savvy, excellent service and because CCM Marketing makes money for them. |