Mr. Robert Baker, Senior Director of Advertising for Giant Eagle, visited campus to guest lecture in Dr. Powell\u2019s Advertising course. Mr. Baker intrigued the audience with lessons learned during his professional career.<\/p>\n
Upon graduating from college, Baker started his journey in the business world, thinking he would land a higher position immediately. He soon discovered that it was not going to be that easy.\u00a0Baker worked several jobs, trying to find one that would be the right fit for him, and pay well, but the time and effort required challenged his pre-conceived notions.<\/p>\n
Baker had his fair share of \u201cno\u2019s\u201d while he worked door- to-door sales and other entry-level positions.\u00a0He learned that one needs to understand what is being sold, and to believe in it, to be successful.\u00a0\u201cDon\u2019t stop when you hear no; keep on doing what you believe in.\u201d \u00a0This concept is very important to Baker because if he would not have been persistent in his trek up the corporate ladder, he would not be where he is today. He told the audience, \u201cDo the job in front of you\u2026even if it\u2019s not the job you want to do forever\u201d and\u00a0\u201cIf you do your job, do it well and then do a little more each time, you will end up getting your boss\u2019s attention\u201d and maybe an opportunity to take the position you really desire. \u00a0Baker stressed how necessary it is to do the job you are assigned well because that is why you were even given the position in the first place. \u00a0One needs to stay focused on their assignment if they ever want to be recognized and promoted.<\/p>\n
After working for a few different companies, several bumps in the road, and many learning experiences, Baker accepted a position with Giant Eagle.\u00a0He did not immediately become the Senior Director of Advertising, but it did not take long for the company to recognize his abilities.\u00a0He now oversees all of Giant Eagle\u2019s advertising efforts, a $60 million budget, and a staff of nearly sixty full-time Team Members.\u00a0He has worked to develop and improve programs like fuelPerks!\u00ae, a loyalty program that rewards customers via discounts at Giant Eagle\u2019s getGo\u2122 gas stations.\u00a0\u201cIt is extremely important to figure out a sustainable competitive advantage.\u201d Giant Eagle\u2019s fuelPerks!\u00ae has been just that,\u00a0yielding an impressive 90% scan rate.<\/p>\n
Giant Eagle now has over 400 locations and plans to continue expanding west.\u00a0They recently developed a segment called Market District\u2122, which is a higher-end supermarket with more fresh and local foods than traditional Giant Eagle stores carry.\u00a0The company is also developing innovative programs like Curbside Express, where a customer can order online and pick up their items at the store without leaving their car.<\/p>\n
With over $10 billion in annual revenue, it is clear that Giant Eagle\u2019s marketing efforts are working well. Baker also stressed the importance of making people (both Team Members and customers) feel valued.\u00a0His closing comments define his career, \u201cWork hard and you\u2019ll achieve success.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Mr. Robert Baker, Senior Director of Advertising for Giant Eagle, visited campus to guest lecture in Dr. Powell\u2019s Advertising course. Mr. Baker intrigued the audience with lessons learned during his professional career. Upon graduating from college, Baker started his journey in the business world, thinking he would land a higher position immediately. He soon discovered that it was not going […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":2479,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"sfsi_plus_gutenberg_text_before_share":"","sfsi_plus_gutenberg_show_text_before_share":"","sfsi_plus_gutenberg_icon_type":"","sfsi_plus_gutenberg_icon_alignemt":"","sfsi_plus_gutenburg_max_per_row":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2490","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-interesting-speakers"],"yoast_head":"\r\n