ProfNet Experts Available on Digital Coupon Marketing, Financial/Business Resolutions

NEW YORK, Dec. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Below are experts from the ProfNet network who are available to discuss timely issues in your coverage area.

You can also submit a query to the hundreds of thousands of experts in our network – it's easy and free! Just fill out the query form to get started: http://prn.to/queryform

EXPERT ALERT

• Digital Coupon Marketing Predictions for 2017

EXPERT ROUNDUP

• New Year's Resolutions

MEDIA JOBS

• South Florida Reporter – The Real Deal
• Editor/Journalist – MT Newswires
• Senior Reporter, Business of Law – Law360

OTHER NEWS & RESOURCES

• Holiday Gift Guide: Last-Minute Ideas for Bloggers and Storytellers
• Blog Profiles: Holiday DIY Blogs
• Journalist Spotlight: Amanda Baltazar, Freelance Journalist

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EXPERT ALERT:

Digital Coupon Marketing Predictions for 2017
Cheryl Black
CEO
YOU Technology
"I expect the unexpected in 2017 as the dust settles from the election. People will return to frugality as they wait to see what happens with the economy and our country. Rewarding customers with relevant coupons, rewards, and offers is a highly effective tool, especially in times of economic uncertainty. Emailing shoppers with personalized offers is not only helpful, but also highly motivating to your customer. Retailers who take the time to deliver relevant digital offers to shoppers will have an enormous advantage in attracting customers with what they want because digital offers uniquely give marketers the ability to target, personalize, and measure ROI very precisely."
Black joined YOU Tech in early 2007, when she first acted as COO, overseeing software engineering, IT, product, and customer facing capabilities. In late 2007, she played a major role in changing the direction of YOU Tech, pioneering digital coupons as a new scalable line of business. She assumed the role of CEO in early 2014 when YOU Tech joined the Kroger family. Black began her career in 1982 as a software engineer at Cullinet, a leading database provider. Since that time, she has held leadership positions in numerous organizations, including Digital Equipment Corporation and Cap Gemini. She was bit by the startup bug in 1999, when she moved to San Francisco and started a company in a rented house with 55 employees. She then joined Cariocas, an early competitor to YOU Tech as VP of product and services in 2001. She holds an MBA from the University of Denver. A former ballerina, she enjoys running, reading and international travel in her free time, and was recently charged by an elephant in Tanzania.
Website: www.you.net
Contact: Chris Navalta, [email protected]

EXPERT ROUNDUP: New Year's Resolutions

Following are experts from the ProfNet network who are available to share tips on business and financial New Year's resolutions for your readers:

Before the Ball Drops, Set Your Financial Resolutions for a Brighter 2017
Ken Hevert
Senior Vice President of Retirement
Fidelity Investments
"The start of a new year is the perfect time to review your financial plan. Even if you don't like making specific resolutions, you can still resolve to identify financial areas that might need some improvement and make some smart financial moves before Dec. 31."
Hevert can speak to the findings from Fidelity's eighth annual New Year Financial Resolutions study (to be released Dec. 13), which reveals that many Americans are in better financial shape this year and predict their future will be bright in 2017. He can also discuss the benefits of setting both long-term and short-term savings goals; the hazards of being unprepared for whatever 2017 throws your way; and the top financial resolutions, the advantages of setting them and what to do to make them stick.
Contact: Julia B. Mellon, [email protected]

New Year's Resolution: Getting Your Insurance in Order
Keith Brown
CEO
Aon National Flood Services
"Everyone is at risk of flood. In fact, you're more likely to flood than have a fire over a 30-year mortgage."
Flooding can happen every single day of the year, whether due to weather events, such as hurricanes, heavy rains or snow melt, or due to burst pipes, backed-up sewers and more. In recent years, we had several major, even historic, flooding events, including Hurricane Matthew, that killed thousands of people and destroyed homes and businesses in Louisiana, Texas, Iowa and elsewhere. Brown can explain what options homeowners have for flood insurance in 2017, including FEMA's National Flood Insurance Program and the growing number of private flood policies that now offer more affordable rates and more variety in what is covered. Brown can also explain what changes lie ahead for flood insurance policies in 2017 (rate changes, flood map changes, etc.).
Website: www.nfsfloodcentral.com
Contact: Astrid Greve Spencer, [email protected]

Personal Finance and Goal-Setting
Dave Ramsey
Nationally Syndicated Radio Talk Show Host and Bestselling Author
"The Dave Ramsey Show"/Ramsey Solutions
Ramsey is America's trusted voice on money and business. He's authored seven bestselling books: "Financial Peace," "More Than Enough," "The Total Money Makeover," "EntreLeadership," "Complete Guide to Money," "Smart Money Smart Kids" and "The Legacy Journey." His show is heard by more than 12 million listeners each week on more than 575 radio stations and digitally through podcasts, online audio streaming and a 24-hour online streaming video channel.
Ramsey can address all aspects of personal finance, as well as general goal-setting for the new year. He is well-known for recommending the Debt Snowball method for debt elimination. "Normal is broke -- be weird" and "Live like no one else so later you can live and give like no one else" are commonly quoted Davisms. Along with getting out of debt, Ramsey can address getting on a budget, saving for the future, saving for retirement and education funding, and giving like crazy.
Website: www.daveramsey.com/mediarelations
Contact: Beth Tallent, [email protected]

The Five P's to Achieving Your Resolutions
Pamela Yellen
Financial Security Expert
Yellen shares the five P's of successful goal-setting that can help people who have failed in the past at keeping their resolutions and achieving their goals: 1) Passion: "You've got to want the goal badly enough that you won't allow yourself to become discouraged when the finish line proves hard to reach." 2) Persistence: "Cliché as it may be, if at first you don't succeed, well just don't give up. Any goal worth attaining is also well worth missing -- as many times as necessary." 3) Planning: "The road to defeat is paved with good intentions. The surface of the 'road to success' is smoothed with actual planning. Successful goal setters likewise require a carefully considered goal-plan that includes among its elements: ways to break the main goal into smaller, easier-to-accomplish parts; a realistic timetable; strategies and resources (including mentors); a system for tracking your progress; and fallback positions for when you encounter potholes and detours -- which you will." 4) People: "Family, friends and coworkers can give you the extra boost you require to reach your goal. Whether they are running alongside you, cheering you on from the sidelines, or handing you advice based upon their own scrapes and triumphs, enlisting the help of others dramatically increases your chances of success." 5) Positivity: "Mental attitude can carry you forward even when circumstances aren't breaking your way. Picture your path as an adventure, an opportunity, a competition and a growth experience. The task is the same regardless of how you view it. The outcome, however, is far more likely to be to your liking if you remain upbeat and optimistic at each step along the way."
Yellen is a financial investigator and the author of two New York Times bestselling books, including her latest, "The Bank on Yourself Revolution: Fire Your Banker, Bypass Wall Street, and Take Control of Your Own Financial Future." Pamela investigated more than 450 financial strategies seeking an alternative to the risk and volatility of stocks and other investments, which led her to a time-tested, predictable method of growing wealth now used by more than 500,000 Americans.
Online Press Kit: www.pamelayellen.presskit247.com
Website: www.BankOnYourself.com
Contact: Jennifer Thomas, [email protected]

Personal Finance Resolutions
Michelle Brownstein
Certified Financial Planner
Brownstein, a Certified Financial Planner with Personal Capital, the leading digital wealth management firm, shares the following personal finance tips for those resolving to improve their finances: 1) Create a Paper Budget: Before you embark on your shopping trips, note every family member, friend or co-worker you'll be shopping for and plan a maximum amount for each one. 2) Know Your Number: The number should be taken as the amount you want to spend during the holidays, and can be broken down on a per-person level. 3) Track Your Spending as You Go: Set a monthly spending goal with Personal Capital's spending tool to make sure you receive an alert when you're running hot. 4) Pay With Cash: Once you've established a spending budget you are comfortable with, ensure you stick to it by taking out the full amount of cash you need for all of your holiday spending. Since you'll eventually run out, this will help you take a close look at individual purchases. 5) Use Credit With Care: If you opt to use credit, make sure you are being diligent about sticking to your budget by tracking every purchase. Since every purchase will need to be paid back, make sure that you do not rack up excess amounts of interest on top of your balance each month. 6) Check for Coupon Codes and Sales: Even if you decide to skip Black Friday and Cyber Monday, there are plenty of top retailers announcing sales throughout the holiday season. Sites such as RetailMeNot can help you find coupon codes to apply to your cart.
To help people start on the right financial track in 2017, Personal Capital has also created a 30-day money challenge so people can stick to those financial resolutions; more info is available at the link below.
30-Day Money Challenge: https://www.personalcapital.com/blog/retirement-planning/30-day-money-cleanse-week-1-awareness/
Website: http://www.personalcapital.com
Contact: Alia Dudum, [email protected]

Personal Finance Resolutions
Larry Jacobson
Personal Finance Instructor
Online Trading Academy
Jacobson is a personal finance instructor at Online Trading Academy and is available to advise on personal-finance-related New Year's resolutions. Specifically, Jacobson can speak to the importance of financial planning, time and growth of money, the value of a personal budget, the cost of procrastination, the value of paying yourself first, how to choose your financial planning team and the automation of billing. Jacobson recommends setting goals to achieve your desired financial outcome. To create successful goals, he recommends that they are specific, measurable, attainable, realistic and timely. Goals become helpful when you have a plan that guides you through the steps and motivates you to action. In these uncertain economic times, it is important for everyone to understand how to handle their own personal finances.
Contact: Brooke Ferreri, [email protected]

Financial Resolutions
Scott Hanson
Senior Partner, Co-Founder
Hanson McClain Advisors
A Certified Financial Planner, Hanson is available to discuss financial New Year's resolutions. He is a senior partner and co-founder of Hanson McClain Advisors, a California-based financial advising firm. He has over 25 years' experience as a financial expert.
Contact: Jasmin Flores, [email protected]

Tips for Optimizing Your Online Self
Heather Hiles
Founder and CEO, Pathbrite, a Cengage company
Senior Education Advisor, Cengage
In the spring of 2017, many college students will be vying for the same open positions as the others in their chosen fields. As a result, students must differentiate themselves from other candidates -- making it a must that they put their best online selves forward. With the new year just around the corner, Hiles believes it's the perfect time for students to optimize their online selves. She offers students three valuable tips: 1) Review and refine social media presence: "Researching a candidate on social media is a way for prospective employers to learn who a person actually is. That's why it is extremely important for students to make sure they are putting their best selves forward on their profiles by posting, liking and sharing appropriate content, including content related to skills, interests and accomplishments (And remember, some memories are better left in the mind than online)." 2) Develop a digital portfolio: "Employers want to see that a candidate has the skills needed to be successful in their company. Students can showcase these skills by creating a digital portfolio. These online portfolios catalog achievements by providing a space for users to aggregate all digital evidence of what they have created, achieved and mastered." 3) Start networking online: "Once they have refined their social media presence and created their digital portfolios, students should start networking online through platforms like LinkedIn. By networking before they graduate, students can start making valuable connections that could help them get a job once -- and even sometimes before -- they graduate."
Website: https://pathbrite.com/#maker
Contact: Maggie Markert, [email protected]

New Year's Resolution: Creating Diversity in the Workplace
Andrew Faas
Founder
The Faas Foundation
Faas, author of From Bully to Bull's-Eye," says organizational leaders should resolve to get serious about diversity: "There are a lot of people who feel that many of the advancements on diversity and equality are at risk because of the election. Despite billions of dollars spent on diversity and harassment programs and ethics training, very little by way of advancement has been made. To send the right signals during these troubling times when there are so many raw emotions out there, leaders really need to differentiate themselves as an employer. The best way to differentiate themselves is to become an employer of choice by putting their focus on diversity, equity, harassment and ethics. Companies like Fox News, the Department of Veterans Affairs, the Wyndham Hotels, Amazon, Wells Fargo, and Volkswagen give us examples of corruption, harassment, denial, cover-ups, abuse, lack of diversity, and the list goes on and on. Unfortunately, we are hard pressed to come up with our list of organizations who we can hold up as positive examples. Organizational leaders should reflect on what keeps them up at night, and if issues like diversity, abuse, harassment, equity and ethics don't keep them up at night, then somebody should wake them up."
Faas is a philanthropist and management advisor promoting psychologically healthy, safe and fair workplaces. To do so, The Faas Foundation is partnering with the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence on a groundbreaking initiative, "Emotional Revolution in the Workplace," which will revolutionize the way organizations operate, leveraging the power of emotional intelligence.
Websites: www.faasfoundation.org and www.andrewfaas.com
Contact: Deb Zipf, [email protected]

New Year's Resolution: Create Your Customized 2017 Business Blueprint
Allison Maslan
Business Mentor and Serial Entrepreneur
Maslan, author of the Amazon #1 bestseller "Blast Off!: The Surefire Success Plan to Launch Your Dreams into Reality," shows entrepreneurs how to get out of their business rut by creating a Customized Business Blueprint using her "6 M's of Success": 1) Magic – getting clarity on your big and brilliant ideas; 2. Mojo – the expansive mindset you must have to succeed; 3. Magnetics – draw in awesome prospects; 4. Money – cash in on your magic; 5. Mechanics – create a solid structure you can build on; and 6. Map – your plan for success, now and in the future.
Maslan is a serial entrepreneur, having created and successfully run 10 different companies including cultivating a 20-year practice as a holistic physician. Her company Allison Maslan International offers Pinnacle Global, a three-tier business coaching program that teaches entrepreneurs how to accelerate their growth, capitalize on their success and balance it all with a meaningful life. She brings her three-day live Blast Off Business Breakthrough event back to San Diego on Jan. 20–22. The event has sold out five years in a row and offers participants the opportunity to create a Customized Business Blueprint. Her free video series for business owners, "The 12 Month Business Blueprint to Multiply your Profits and Simplify your Life," is available at the link below.
Video Series: www.AllisonMaslan.com/CEO
Online Press Kit: www.allisonmaslan.onlinepresskit247.com
Websites: www.AllisonMaslan.com and http://blastoffevent.com
Contact: Hannah Coloson, [email protected]

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MEDIA JOBS:

Following are links to job listings for staff and freelance writers, editors and producers. You can view these and more job listings on our Job Board: https://prnmedia.prnewswire.com/community/jobs/

• South Florida Reporter – The Real Deal
• Editor/Journalist – MT Newswires
• Senior Reporter, Business of Law – Law360

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OTHER NEWS & RESOURCES:

Following are links to other news and resources we think you might find useful. If you have an item you think other reporters would be interested in and would like us to include in a future alert, please drop us a line.

• HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE: LAST-MINUTE IDEAS FOR BLOGGERS AND STORYTELLERS. When you're a professional storyteller – be it a journalist, blogger, videographer, or cartoonist – you're only as good as the tools you use. This holiday season, there's a host of new gadgets and gizmos available to aid in the search of the story or combat any issues one may come across in their pursuit. Below, we've compiled a list of our favorite gift ideas, so you can keep the journalists, bloggers, and storytellers in your life equipped to catch their next byline: http://bit.ly/2hLNEu5
  
  
• BLOG PROFILES: HOLIDAY DIY BLOGS. Each week, PR Newswire's Audience Research team selects an industry/subject and a handful of blogs that do a good job with contributing to the conversation. This week, they look at holiday DIY blogs: http://bit.ly/2hiDznf
  
  
• JOURNALIST SPOTLIGHT: AMANDA BALTAZAR, FREELANCE JOURNALIST. In our Journalist Spotlight Q&A series, PR Newswire for Journalists and ProfNet users share their insight and advice on how PR professionals and experts can improve communications and increase their chances of being featured in their publications. In this edition, we catch up with Amanda Baltazar, a freelance writer for a variety of trade publications. Amanda writes about nearly everything -- except perhaps politics. A few of her trade and industry specialties include restaurants, food, beverages, retail, and health. She also writes essays for consumer publications: http://prn.to/abaltazar

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