About Us:  I:Avalanche Corp. Marketing - Communications

Recognizing the tremendous international marketing power of targeted messaging, public relations and marketing technology, I:Avalanche formed in 2001, incorporating in 2005 with small business funding assistance from the Government Development Bank of Puerto Rico.

Our international clients consist of start-up and emerging companies in the health, technology, tourism and staffing arenas.  Clients using our public relations services receive valuable exposure and media placement in major market publications, such as:

• The Los Angeles Times
• BusinessWeek
• The New York Times
  
• Television, radio, and industry trade publications

Our client roster has included: Walker Art Center, Instituto de Cultura Puertorriqueña, International Eye Foundation, HotGigs Inc., KTCA-TV, Independent Television Service (ITVS — an arm of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting), and numerous biotech and defense industry contractors in the Washington-DC area.

Our clients know and trust us — as evidenced by their continued business and referrals.

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Our Team

I:Avalanche has assembled an outstanding team and identified the most value oriented, yet powerful and reliable ways to reach your desired market.

David Southgate, I:Avalanche CEO, has a unique combination of experience in technology and communications management in both North America and Latin America and directly manages all of I:Avalanche's client accounts, a partial historic list of client accounts which includes: Walker Art Center; Twin Cities Public Television (formerly KTCA-TV); the Independent Television Service; HotGigs, Inc.; WOSO Radio; Caribbean Barter; International Eye Foundation; Circle Studio; and Nancy Rose & Associates.  As a marketing-communications veteran with nearly 20 year's experience in for-profit and non-profit sectors, David has led public relations and marketing campaigns that have repeatedly tied directly to client revenues, business objectives and metrics. A frequently published international writer (ITWorld, CNET, JupiterMedia, TechRepublic) and blog contributor, David has also run the editorial staff for two major Internet sites, techies.com and PuertoRicoWOW.com, as well as more than 50 Internet projects.

David holds a bachelor's degree in journalism with a triple emphasis in news-editorial, public relations and advertising from the University of Minnesota's esteemed school of Journalism and Mass Communications. He has project management training and holds a certification from the Gartner Institute and is fluent in both English and Spanish. He currently resides in Ponce, Puerto Rico.

Sharon Schultz, I:Avalanche Senior Public Relations Consultant & Media Trainer, is a seasoned communications professional.  She has spearheaded national strategic communication campaigns, complex media relations programs, and media training initiatives. Her extensive professional media credentials make her the ideal media trainer for public and private sector clients ranging from NFL players to corporate and government officials.  Using state-of-the-art techniques, Sharon brings clients through a full range of media experiences, while working with them to hone their messages for appropriate media outlets.

As a public relations professional, Sharon has provided senior counsel to a number of Fortune 500 companies including Bristol Myers, Equifax Corporation, and Steinway. Sharon is an accomplished writer and public speaker who has been an anchor, street reporter, and field producer for a number of broadcast organizations including Associated Press Radio, Mutual Broadcasting, General Electric Broadcasting, WTOP Radio (Washington, D.C.), FOX Network News, and WTTG-TV (Washington, D.C.). She has held senior executive positions at Datapoint Corporation and Boeing Computer Services, a division of The Boeing Company.  At the U.S. Department of Education, Ms. Schultz was engaged as Press Secretary and Special Assistant to the Assistant Secretary for a significant division of the U.S.  Department of Health and Human Services.  Ms. Schultz received departmental recognition for her planning and implementation of national outreach activities and public-private sector initiatives with The White House and organizations including the ABC Television Network, Bank of America, Crayola, Kodak, and IBM. 
 

Pedro Menéndez, I:Avalanche Marketing & Public Relations Consultant, is an integral part of I:Avalanche Corp.'s International Marketing and Public Relations team.  He has successfully obtained press coverage in both English and Spanish speaking media for both local and international clients. As a main contributor for the company's Tourism, Relocation, and Business Investment Promotional projects, LetsGoToPonce, Pedro has been instrumental in converting online readers into subscribers, as well as bolstering the project's online presence. 

Prior to joining I:Avalanche, Pedro worked at El Nuevo Día, the largest circulation newspaper in Puerto Rico and the Caribbean, daily reaching up to 1.2 million readers. As part of his tenure at El Nuevo Día, he also worked for the newspaper’s web site, where he reported the news with a modern, humane, agile and youthful style, while keeping in mind the need for profound, objective and urgent stories in this online medium. He has tackled such diverse topics as politics, education, health, emigration, and security. 

Pedro's university preparation makes him unique in the communications field, as he has both science engineering as well as journalism to help him launch a successful career. Born in the city of Ponce, in the South Coast of Puerto Rico, Pedro holds a B.A. in Communications, with a concentration in Journalism from the Interamerican University of Puerto Rico. He also holds an associate degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Puerto Rico. He is fluent in both Spanish and English. 

Alma  Padilla, I:Avalanche Marketing Solutions Advisor, functions as both a consultant and a marketing solutions provider for I:Avalanche clients.  After carefully analyzing a client's existing marketing program, Alma determines its effectiveness in generating new business for the customer and subsequently recommends ways of expanding the client's marketing exposure and business opportunities. Prior to joining I:Avalanche, Alma worked in client service and market analysis for a variety of marketing agencies.  She holds a BA in Business Administration with an emphasis in Marketing from the University of Puerto Rico, Ponce Campus.  

Robbie Namy, I:Avalanche Design Director, holds a bachelors' degree from Cornell University and a masters in fine arts from the George Washington University. The owner of her own successful design company based in the Washington, DC metropolitan area, Robbie has also worked in advertising with Young & Rubicam in Europe and the Paris division of New York's Comptons.  She has taught design for over 10 years, most recently at George Washington University.


Leigh Baker Ronco, I:Avalanche Communications Web Design and Development Director, is a 28-year veteran of the communications and media design industry, including 14 years on the Web. Her specialty is well-built user-centered accessible, aesthetically pleasing online environments and communications that cross media, market and geographical boundaries. Leigh also runs her own company and with its own roster of stellar clients in the public and private as well as for-profit and non-profit sectors. Her respect for client budgets and unique ability to design artfully and program skillfully has made her the subject of a chapter entitled "Shoestring Warriors" in the top-selling New Riders book on creating beautiful, standards-compliant Websites within tight budgets, Web Design On A Shoestring by Carrie Bickner.
 

Our Services 

Among the keys to the success of our marketing-communications projects is our fresh, bottom-line approach to everything we do. With a broad base of talent and technology as our foundation, we can customize a package of services to include any or all of the following:

• Graphic design for Internet or print — customized for you
• Brand development — from corporate IDs to marketing collateral
• Content development — customized, written and edited for you
• Internet development and programming — content management, e-commerce, and prospecting
• Web site hosting on high-capacity, reliable, 24/7, virus-free systems
• E-mail hosting on reliable systems and platforms
• Results measurement — know who’s visiting, what their favorite pages are, the duration of their visits, and more
• E-marketing — for Web sites, we can help you generate more business

• Online and offline advertising campaigns
• National and international public relations campaigns
• And South Puerto Rico's (Porta Caribe) only highly segmented network of North American corporate and consumer customers (our product LETSGOTOPONCE.COM). These people have expressed explicit interest in South Puerto Rico's Tourism, Business and Relocation opportunities.
  

Whatever the customized solution, we focus on delighting you, our customer, by gaining a full understanding of your business and your needs. We stay with you every step of the way and deliver high-value results. We know that your image and business depend on it.

Contact us to learn more.