What follows are the thoughts of clients and co-workers about Lisa Bastian in the areas of publications, public relations and leadership.
PUBLICATIONS
“I’m pleased to recommend Lisa Bastian for any project involving corporate publications, trade magazines and marketing projects in a variety of industries. While I was editor of The Meeting Manager Lisa was at the top of my professional contributor list. Over the years, she wrote more than 40 feature articles for me; four of which won awards from the Cincinnati Editors Association and the International Association of Business Communicators. I always knew I could count on Lisa to take the initiative with research and interviews, and produce articles that were comprehensive, accurate and timely. Her writing is fresh and interesting; her attitude is always professional, and her ability to work with people at all levels is incredible. If you need someone who can take on any project—almost as an extension of your own staff—you’ll appreciate working with Lisa Bastian.” –Tina Filipski, Editor, The Meeting Manager, (global meetings magazine, Dallas)
“I would like to recommend Lisa Bastian as a writer. Lisa has done freelance writing for our quarterly magazine, Christ Hospital Serving. She is an excellent writer, and takes direction well. She has a good interviewing technique and does a good job of capturing individual personalities. We’ve been very pleased with her work. Lisa is very good to work with—always pleasant and accommodating. She maintains a positive attitude throughout the project, no matter what problems may arise. She would be an excellent addition to any staff.” –Gail Meyers, Dir. of PR, The Christ Hospital (Cincinnati)
“We appreciate the outstanding job Bastian Public Relations has done on the many economic development articles and special marketing publications written for us; in particular, Location New Jersey and Guide to Mexico’s Industrial Parks. Our readers—and clients—are well-served by these pieces. Lisa’s copy is written in a lively, informative manner and always delivered on time. Most importantly, Bastian Public Relations is completely coop-erative in meeting the demands of our editorial agenda.” –Gerri Gambale, Editor, Area Development (national economic development magazine)
“I highly recommend Lisa Bastian for employment in any editorial setting. She has done very well in both the creative and technical sides of editorial work for several years [as Asst. Editor] at St. Anthony Messenger, a national Catholic magazine with over 400,000 sub-scribers….She won the job over 75 other applicants. Besides her professional skills, she has a personality that fits in well with co-workers. She is pleasant and enthusiastic, responsible, a team player—and has a sense of humor. I hope you give her every consideration.” –Rev. Leonard Foley, former Editor, St. Anthony Messenger (Cincinnati)
“I wanted to pass along some good news to you regarding our magazine supplement, ‘TradeLink New Jersey.’ The Northeastern Economic Developers Association has voted it ‘Best in Class’ [first place] for Special Section Advertisement as part of their annual Literature and Promotion Awards Competition. As our creative writer, I wanted to thank you personally for the hard work, dedication and writing expertise you provided to make the publication such a success. The award is an indication of your ability to gather and assimilate facts and present them in such an interesting and informative manner. You will be happy to know that thousands of copies of the piece have been distributed both here in the United States and at trade shows we have attended overseas.” –Tim Comerford, Manager of Area Development, PSE&G (NJ’s largest utility]
“Through this letter I am writing to confer my recommendation of Lisa Bastian regarding her work as directory coordinator for the Archdiocese of San Antonio. Lisa would make an outstanding addition to staff, and perform her essential duties superbly. Last fall, Lisa worked with the Communications Dept. of the archdiocese in compiling information for the 2010 archdiocesan directory. In her efforts, Lisa ably completed whatever tasks assigned to her, demonstrating a keen ability to follow directions precisely. She also exhibited a penchant for attention to detail when carrying out her duties. In addition, Lisa exhibited outstanding leadership skills in offering suggestions or taking the initiative to ‘see that the job gets done’ or perhaps was completed in a more efficient fashion. I believe that Lisa’s commitment to the archdiocese was an outward demonstration of strong values that she holds….” –Jordan McMorrough, Editor, Today’s Catholic newspaper, Archdiocese of San Antonio
“Lisa brings us a fresh perspective as one of our writers for a parenting magazine aimed at child health issues. We rely on her thoughtful approach, unfailing good cheer and always timely delivery. She is a delight to work with.” –Leslie Laine, Co-owner, Laine & Lane Marketing Communications (Cincinnati)
“[Bank President] Gary Kocher had nothing but praise for The Bottom Line [revamped 3,000-employee bank magazine I wrote and edited]. We are all so pleased. Thanks for a good job, and keep up the good work. It is so great to hear Gary say, ‘It just keeps getting better.’” –Jeanne Wimberg, PR Director & Asst. VP of Marketing, PNC Bank (Cincinnati)
“Lisa edited the newsletter [Communique] for the Cincinnati Editors Association and turned it into one of the most dynamic newsletters that organization had ever seen. A remarkable accomplishment when a person impresses an ‘editors’ association with its own newsletter!” –Ginger Shawver, Publications Supervisor, Ohio Casualty Group (Cincinnati); former president, Cincinnati Editors Association
“I just wanted to let you know, again, that Communique looks great and reads well, too. I’ve heard numerous compliments from members—and some of these people are not prone to giving compliments! I wanted to pass along their praises. Keep up the good work!” –Terri Hornbach, former President, Cincinnati Editors Association
“Lisa was professional at all times. Very positive and productive in her editing of my work. She is a great editor.” –Sheryl Smith-Rodgers, award-winning writer (San Antonio); contributor to Country Lifestyle
“The client [Tandy Corporation] was very pleased, and so were we. Thanks for all your help [writing the marketing brochure].” –Marla Risne, Project Coordinator, Design Forum (Dayton architecture firm)
“I recently worked with Lisa Bastian on a medical writing project [that] needed to be completed in a relatively short time using software Lisa had not used previously. Lisa undauntedly learned the software, quickly assimilated details of the project, and capably assisted in its editing. With her help, the project was completed on time, and well received by the client. Lisa’s insight, experience and editorial acumen contributed to making this project a success!” –Deborah Sommerville, President, SciWrite Technical Services (Cincinnati)
“Lisa is a very personable and professional writer, and I thoroughly enjoyed the assignments we worked together on….She was always enthusiastic and excited to meet new people and carry out her assignment.” –Michael Attwood, Owner/Photographer, Attwood Studio (San Antonio)
PUBLIC RELATIONS
“Bastian Public Relations was instrumental in the successful rollout of our new Cincinnati One Book Yellow Pages. With no prior knowledge of our company or our business they researched and quickly grasped an understanding of our goals and expectations. Spending countless hours on research and writing, BPR produced and distributed a media kit that accomplished our objectives and told our story. Their dedication and commitment to this project exceeded all expectations. This is owed in large part to the well-organized and managed PR plan and final execution that delivered our message to the media. Due to the initial confidentiality of the project, BPR was relied upon to be totally ethical and extremely trustworthy from the onset. They worked extremely well under the deadlines and the stringent legal constraints that were faced. I would highly recommend Bastian Public Relations to anyone seeking professional public relations services that get results.” –Doreen Kevit Maycovich, Advertising & Community Relations Manager for Reuben H. Donnelley (Dun & Bradstreet, NJ)
“I met Lisa in 2001 when I was a partner with The Cartel Group, a Hispanic ad agency. She had just arrived in San Antonio and showed me all the great writing she’d done while in Cincinnati, including the book Cincinnati: City of Charm; very impressive. Lisa communicates openly and honestly. She’s a terrific person who can talk with a janitor or a CEO. She does whatever it takes to meet deadlines, including staying up all night (although, I hope you won’t put her through that). Lisa is so organized that she normally doesn’t have to go through stressful situations. She always maintains a calm, cool and collected demeanor–a professional who makes difficult assignments look easy. In terms of her technical and creative ability, on a scale of 1 to 10 I’d give her a ‘10’ because she’s the best, most flexible and fastest writer I know. I believe Lisa’s strengths are being versatile, adaptable and flexible. She can write copy for a web site, a magazine article, an essay, an editorial, a proposal – anything. And if she needs to, she will research on how to write or prepare something different and unique. Lisa is a professional I can count on, and I plan to work with her as often as I can.” –Irma Calderon Woodruff, PR Consultant, Vision Marketing Partners (San Antonio)
“On behalf of the Career Education Association, I want to thank you and your staff for the wonderful work you did in representing our national convention. Never before had such a focused effort been made to publicize the event, and the results were outstanding. To be picked up by the AP wire service—what a coup!” –M. Kay Lawler, Pres., MKL Meeting Management (Cincinnati)
“During her two-year tenure in Kansas City, Lisa and I worked together on several major projects. Lisa was always creative, timely and effective in her work. In addition, she is consistently a joy to work with.” –Sheila Strand, Sr. Account Executive, Jane Mobley & Associates (Kansas City PR firm)
“Our Business Expo in Cincinnati never received as much media coverage as was generated by your outstanding efforts. Your publicity program brought us more coverage than we possibly could have purchased, and will make our job of satisfying our exhibitors and producing future shows that much easier.” –James Klaserner, General Manager, International Business Expo (Cincinnati)
“Lisa is a vibrant and dynamic communicator, and an excellent person. She’s a delight to work with.” –Lisa Owens, VP of PR, Regnier Valdez (San Antonio PR agency)
“Lisa Bastian is one of the best writers and creative communicators I know. Anyone who works with her will experience superior professionalism and benefit from her attention to detail. I would highly recommend her to anyone who is looking for a ‘top shelf’ communicator.” –Joy Capps, Principal, Engaging Business Communications (San Antonio); recipient of annual IABC global Chairman’s Award
LEADERSHIP
“With over 20 years in the communications industry, Lisa Bastian, principal of Bastian Public Relations, knows that the secret of good branding begins in one’s own back yard. Thanks to her guidance and leadership as presi-dent for two years, IABC (The International Association of Business Communicators) has built up a reputation of consistently offering stellar professional development seminars within a wide range of topics.” –Andi Rodriguez, Marketing & Media columnist, San Antonio Business Journal article “Branding power begins with employee buy-in” (10/19/07)
“Lisa is truly a big-picture gal looking for what is best for all parties. She is fair, creative, articulate, and just a down-to-Earth, good-hearted person. I hope to work on projects with Lisa in the near future.” –Debbie Pedigo, Corporate IT Recruiter, Whittman-Hart (San Antonio)
“I’ve worked with Lisa for several years as a fellow volunteer leader with the San Antonio chapter of IABC (International Association of Business Communicators). I watched her adroitly manage a diverse volunteer team toward fantastic leadership and professional development opportunities for the local communications community. She is a delight to work with, extremely energetic (but patient), always positive (but realistic) and obviously gifted in her writing, PR and marketing craft. The local chapter is in much better shape as a result of her tireless efforts over several years, experiencing unparalleled growth in her tenure. I would recommend Lisa to anyone needing communications guidance or expertise.” –Betsy Pasley, Director of Employee Feedback, USAA (San Antonio)
“Lisa Bastian’s leadership and hard work has contributed significantly to the success of the International Association of Business Communicators, San Antonio Chapter. I have had the pleasure of working with Lisa over the past five years as a fellow board member. I have also witnessed her professionalism and attention to detail as a writer and editor.” –Debbie Talley, Sr. Communications Manager, Clarke American (San Antonio)
“As the Administrator for IABC I found Lisa to be a real hands-on [IABC] president who went far beyond her job description to develop the chapter into a growing, respected organization within the San Antonio profes-sional community. She inspires others to contribute their best efforts, which is a true sign of leadership. I value her contributions, her comments and her friendship.” –Michele Bussone, Owner, Alpha Quadrant, Inc. (San Antonio)
