Most recently, he is the author of
Extraordinary
Comebacks: 201 Inspiring Stories of Courage, Triumph, and
Success, published by
Sourcebooks, Naperville, Illinois (2007). Since its
launch, it has consistently appeared in Amazon's Top 100
Motivation titles. Media coverage included Fox
Chicago television, Chicago Tribune, and some 20 radio
syndications and stations across the U.S. Before that, he developed and produced the National Agriculture Week television
special (major clients: Elanco (division of Eli Lilly), Ford Corporate, Tractor and Truck, American Bankers Association) and the American Home Week television
special (major clients National Association of Realtors, Benjamin
Moore, Clorox, Georgia Pacific, Glidden, Lucite, Kemper and Ryder
Corporation). Several new projects
are in the works as well.
Married with three grown children,
he has coached baseball, basketball, soccer, tennis and
softball. He captains USTA 4.5 tennis teams for
Winnetka, IL, and enjoys reading, Zen poetry and writing, and music (classical, opera, percussion, jazz and blues).
Publications, Trade Press [financial]: Publications, Interviews for Hollywood Screenwriter
If you want to succeed, you should strike out on new paths rather
than travel the worn paths of accepted success. The new public relations is best defined by its four most salient
characteristics:
Sarkett & Associates, Inc., the corporate parent of Sarkett New
Media, is a full-service public relations consultancy established
to provide personalized service. Since its inception in 1979,
a wide range of clients have been assisted in capitalizing on
their opportunities, and solving appropriate problems through
communications.
Besides the presenter DowElanco,
other sponsors of these specials have included some of the leading
organizations in agriculture: American Bankers Association, BASF, DeKalb
Pfizer Genetics, Federal Crop Insurance Corp., FMC, Ford Corporate, Ford
Tractor, Ford Truck, Honda, Procter & Gamble, and Stauffer Chemical. Download (nearly 500mb), view: In the 1990s, as clients
like Elanco and Ford and others downsized and/or merged, Sarkett &
Associates, Inc. responded creatively. We developed and
published software for the financial and educational fields: Our stock and options analytics
products were extremely successful, and allowed us to serve the global
investing public, from fund managers to neophytes, and everyone in between. Products: Education
Hungarian Pronunciation Tutor™ Inspiration
Extraordinary Comebacks: 201 Inspiring Stories of Courage,
Triumph, and Success The net result:
Being a developer and marketer ourselves creates additional
sensitivity to the marketing and business needs of our clients. The philosophy of the agency is simple. We practice the art and
science of the new public relations. This means we are goal-oriented
problem solvers first, communicators second and specialists third.
We conscientiously avoid applying pat answers and tired formulas
to client commmunications problems. As a result, we are able to
devise communications strategies and programs that are fresh,
vital, and most importantly, effective. Every agency and every consultancy claims to be unique, every
agency is. No two firms approach any given situation in exactly
the same way. 1. All public relations activities, by our definition, must be
viewed as marketing activities. That means that they must be focused on the achievement
of measurable and attainable goals. Upon starting work for a new client, Sarkett & Associates, Inc.,
conducts a thorough business and communications audit. An audit is necessary to become fully aware of the needs and
objectives which the organization is striving to achieve. And
it means listen -- we seek to understand. Compensation arrangements vary: hourly charges, project fees,
and monthly retainers can be arranged. All work is done based
on accurate and approved budget estimates. Production expenses incurred on a client's behalf are billed with
the customary mark up for handling. These expenses include printing,
photography, typesetting, artwork, and engraving, among others.
Postage, telephone, and travel are not marked up, however. John A. Sarkett
Many thanks for visiting.
Profile
John A. SarkettMarketing communications consultant
Specialties: public relations, Internet, television
He has directed
marketing and public relations activities for a varied group of clients at Sarkett
& Associates, Inc. since January 1, 1979. Past major clients have
included Eli Lilly, National Association of Realtors,
American Bankers Association, Ford corporate, tractors and
truck division, Steiger Tractor, and the Animal Health Institute.
Since August, 1995, he has devoted the lion's share of his
professional activity to the development and marketing of
Option
WizardŽ Scan. This innovative financial software
has partisans around the world, and has earned mention in
publications such as Barrons, Stocks and Commodities,
Futures, and Active Trader.
Before founding Sarkett & Associates, Inc., he was a vice president
of a small advertising and public relations agency in Chicago,
the John Volk Company (1976-1978), where, tongue-in-cheek, he developed the world's
first "do-it-yourself news conference", mentioned on the CBS radio
network, and received national marketing awards.
Previously, he had been the director of communications for the
Farm and Industrial Equipment Institute in Chicago, the nation's
oldest trade association (1975-1976).
Earlier, he had been an account executive at Burson-Marsteller,
Chicago, for the American Bankers Association, Abbott Laboratories,
and Massey-Ferguson (1973-1975). Before that, he worked at Bill
Dorn Associates, Minneapolis, on the CIBA-GEIGY and Pfizer accounts
(intern 1971, 1972).
John holds B.S. and M.S. degrees (both, 1973) cum laude from the
Ohio State University. He has won a number of awards in public
relations, including the Founder's Day Award from the Agricultural
Relations Council, the highest award in agricultural public relations.
He is listed in "Outstanding Young Men of America" and "Who's
Who in the Midwest."
Accredited by the Public Relations Society of America (APR) in
1981, John has also been an active member of the Agricultural
Relations Council, American Agricultural Editors' Association,
National Association of Farm Broadcasters, and National Agri-Marketing
Association.
John writes in his free time (recent credits:
Option Wizard Trading Method,
SFO, Active Trader, Technical Analysis of Stocks and Commodities,
Futures, Hollywood Scriptwriter, and North Shore). His own feature film script
was reviewed by
story departments of several Hollywood studios, garnered
positive comments from Warner Brothers, but ultimately,
was not chosen among the 400 or so films made each year.
Tim Kazurinsky, March 1998
Harold Ramis, January 1998
Wayne Beach, January 1996
Darrell Royal, September 1995
Sarkett & Associates, Inc.
The new public relationsForethoughts for marketing and communications executives
John D. Rockefeller
The most successful businessman is the man who holds onto the
old just as long as it is good and grabs the new just as soon
at it is better.
Robert P. Vanderpoel
When a man has some one object in view to be achieved in a given
time, it may be absolutely necessary for him to walk out of all
the common roads.
BurkeThe new public relations
OLD PUBLIC RELATIONS
NEW PUBLIC RELATIONS
Marketing follower
Marketing leader
Reactor
Initiator
Ignorant of management's needs
Sensitive to management's needs
Feelings-minded
Hard information-oriented
Soft information-oriented
Cash flow-minded
Isolationist mentality
Management team mentality
Task-oriented
Goal-oriented
Measurement optional
Measurement mandatory
Publicity-oriented
Multi-disciplined
Not accountable per staff officer
Accountable per line officer
"Journalism spoken here"
"Wharton School spoken here"
Sarkett & Associates, Inc.
Practitioner of the new public relations
In order to give maximum personal attention to each client, John
A. Sarkett works as a one-man agency. The "associates" in the
company's name represents a number of artists, photographers and
media representatives who have served the agency for many years,
and may be called on at any time to lend their special services
to help solve client problems.
Sarkett & Associates, Inc. offers public relations counsel and
program implementation in the following areas: marketing, corporate,
financial, agricultural, international, industrial, employee,
community relations, as well as public affairs. Our programs are
goal-oriented, measurable, accountable. In short, we are practitioners of the new public relations.
Sarkett & Associates, Inc. began January 1,
1979. The company won its early recognition with breakthrough
work for Steiger Tractor, Inc., Elanco, and the MidAmerica Commodity
Exchange, among others. The times changed, and we changed with them,
venturing into television production and syndication in support of
the National Agriculture Week Television Special, which aired in
March of each year from 1982 to 1990.
National Agriculture Week creates a focus of national attention on
American agriculture and simultaneously, gives farmers the
opportunity to communicate their message to the nation. Here is a
brief history of the occasion:
A similarly structured presentation was developed for and presented by the
National Association of Realtors,
Chicago. This annual special aired from 1984 to 1986, and was also
sponsored by:
Violin Scale Charts™
Agency philosophy
A unique outlook
We believe what makes our company unique is reflected in the following
"philosophical notes on the business of public relations."Philosophical notes on the business of public relations
2. The new public relations can generate enormous communications
power and consequent results. The reason is public relations employs
all avenues of communications: new media one - to - one communications, literature, publications, advertising,
a/v, publicity, promotion, and much more.
3. When understood in this context, advertising is more properly
considered yet another tool of marketing . . . rather than a detached
enterprise undertaken for its own sake.
4. Sensitivity is the sine qua non of public relations . . . sensitivity first
and foremost to the client and what he or she is trying to achieve,
then to the market, the media and everyone else.
5. Sensitivity may be viewed as the essence of marketing. The
question is: "what does the market want?" Not: what can I sell?
6. After approaching client problems and situations with sensitivity,
the agency should be expected to go the next step and provide
leadership.
7. An agency relationship is an investment, like any other. It must return more value, measurable value,
to the client than the value invested in the communications program.
There must be a payback; clippings alone are usually not enough.
Clippings that invite reader response, which may be turned over
to the sales force as leads might be enough, however.Starting out
Research may then be indicated to provide further information
about the client's business and the way the market perceives the
client.
On this solid information base, goals, strategies, and plans are
determined. Provisions are made for measurement.
It is the aim of the agency to dispatch client communication in
a timely, conscientious and economical fashion. A communications
program is never considered complete unless it has undergone thorough
evaluation. For some clients, this means investment in sophisticated attitudinal
research. For others, it simply means charting the progress of
the program against its objectives at regular intervals.Fees and expenses
Professional service feesExpenses
All supplier invoices are paid by the agency and categorized in
the monthly invoice sent to clients on the last day of each month.
The invoice is due within ten days.
For further information, please contact:
Sarkett & Associates, Inc.
485 Sunset Road
Winnetka, IL 60093
847.446.2222 (voice)
jas @ sarkett dot com
Key Counseling Services/Public Relations
Typical implementation services/Public Relations (Marketing)
Typical implementation services/Public Relations (Corporate)
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