Former Verizon Vice President Joe Saracino Joins Erwin-Penland as Chief Marketing Officer
July 18, 2011
GREENVILLE, SC – July 18, 2011 – Joe Saracino, who spent more than a decade and a half at Verizon in a variety of management positions including vice president of marketing communications, has signed on as the first-ever chief marketing officer at Erwin-Penland, a division of The Interpublic Group’s Hill Holliday and one of the largest advertising and marketing firms in the South.
The 275-person, Greenville, S.C., agency will task Saracino with developing and implementing the agency’s marketing plan and identifying and securing new business opportunities across the country in a variety of disciplines and vertical industries. The move signals a step up in ambition for Erwin-Penland – whose clients include Verizon, Denny’s, General Motors, Lockheed Martin and Hanesbrands – as the firm continues its evolution from regional upstart to national player.
Saracino is already intimately familiar with Erwin-Penland, having worked with the agency throughout its 20-plus-year relationship with Verizon. He will also lean on his experience with the dozens of other agencies with which he’s worked during his career to help position Erwin-Penland for new client opportunities.
“As we compete against a broader range of agencies for the opportunity to work with more world-class brands, we determined it would be critical to our success for us to have a seasoned marketing pro helping chart the course of our future growth,” said Erwin-Penland founder and President Joe Erwin. “We’ve thought for some time about bringing a chief marketing officer on board to help deliver the Erwin-Penland story to a national audience and beyond, but we had to identify the right person for the job. With his breadth of experience as a top-tier marketing and operations executive, there’s no question Joe Saracino is that person.”
Saracino held a variety of management-level positions with Verizon and its predecessor, Bell Atlantic. He most recently served as vice president of marketing communications for all of Verizon Wireless at the company’s headquarters in New Jersey. In that role, Saracino developed and led a $1.5 billion national media plan including buying, brand management, advertising, promotional planning, sponsorships and experiential marketing activities.
“Joe directed the agency relationships of every shop Verizon Wireless has worked with, so he knows what clients are looking for from their agency partners,” added Erwin. “That experience – coupled with his perspective of having worked with us as a client for so many years – will be invaluable to us as we continue to understand and meet the needs of our current clients and prospects.”
Saracino graduated cum laude from Drexel University in his hometown of Philadelphia with a Bachelor of Science degree in business administration with a concentration in marketing. His first professional position was with then-Bell Atlantic, where he served as an assistant manager in business development and marketing.
He began his career with Verizon Wireless in 1995 and rose to vice president of sales and marketing of the South Area, overseeing Verizon’s sales channel operations and marketing efforts in the region. Saracino was promoted to Verizon’s corporate headquarters in 2006, managing the company’s entire e-commerce portfolio including websites, social media, e-CRM and search engine optimization. After transitioning into the marketing communications role in 2007, he oversaw the naming, positioning and highly successfully marketing campaign for the DROID line of Verizon products and services that significantly increased the company’s smartphone sales.
“I am extremely excited about this new opportunity,” said Saracino. “I’ve come to know and appreciate Erwin-Penland over the past decade as they helped me tell Verizon’s story. Now, whether it’s highlighting great work by the Erwin-Penland team, showcasing a particular discipline or milestone achievement, I get to tell their story, our story.”
About Erwin-Penland
Based in Greenville, S.C., Erwin-Penland is a full-service marketing firm that provides advertising, experiential branding, event marketing, interactive, public relations and strategic planning services to clients including Verizon Wireless, Denny’s, Lockheed Martin, BI-LO Supermarkets and Advance America. The 275-person firm is part of Boston-based Hill, Holliday, Connors, Cosmopulos Inc., one of the nation’s largest ad agencies and a member of The Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE: IPG).
