Nation’s First Municipal Data Center: Videos from the Groundbreaking

The WeConnect data center groundbreaking was a great success. The mayor of Westerville, city CIO, DRS CEO and county director all spoke to a crowd of around 100 people. The speakers talked about the vision behind WeConnect, what is means for the city and how businesses will benefit from it.

WeConnect is a private-public partnership with the City of Westerville. DRS, LLC, a Youngstown-based technology firm, has designed a 16,000 square foot data center that will offer broadband access and connectivity to residents and businesses in Westerville and beyond. DRS will also manage the data center.

The following videos are interviews from the groundbreaking.

DRS CEO Mike Meloy

DRS CEO Mike Meloy and PALO Creative President Rob Palowitz

City of Westervile CIO Todd Jackson

DRS CEO Mike Meloy

Mayor Kathy Cocuzzi

Local Ad Agency Adds To Staff

PALO Creative announced today two new additions to its staff. The full service advertising, interactive and PR agency’s continued clientele growth and interactive development push has created the need for internal growth. This is the second hiring initiative within the year for the agency.

Ron Scirocco is the new marketing and media director responsible for creating and implementing marketing plans for the company’s wide range of clients as well as executing media strategy. He has worked in marketing and advertising for 16 years and previously worked at agencies in Cleveland and Youngstown. Ron also was marketing director for several other large companies regionally. Kevin Mellott will be joining the web team as an Interactive Programmer. He has an extensive background in building custom website applications for both private and public entities. Kevin will support PALO’s interactive initiative providing additional support for database driven websites and complex content management software websites. His more than 11 years of experience in programming will provide the extra support needed for PALO to continue to grow.

Rob Palowitz, President at PALO Creative said, “That’s one thing I truly believe and take pride in – hiring great people that add to the cohesiveness to our agency. Without great employees bringing more expertise to the table, you struggle with keeping innovation moving forward and therefore, hindering your progression of expertise in your industry.”

PALO Creative recently added a handful of new clients including Heritage Plastics, Diocese of Youngstown, and Color 3 Embroidery. It is also continuing mobile development work with numerous divisions within Parker Hannifin Corp, as well as increasing its commercial production portfolio with Witmer’s Inc, Blue Wolf Tavern, Eagle Rental Purchase and Steamers Tavern to name a few.

About PALO Creative

PALO Creative is a full-service advertising, interactive and public relations agency that has been based in the Youngstown area for more than 11 years. Its fully integrated approach to marketing allows clients to achieve proven results that are both timely and competitive. The in-house team of marketing, design, interactive designers and programmers provide clients with powerful, scalable interactive and advertising solutions that are as elegant as they are functional. For more information, visit the company’s web site at http://www.palocreative.com

Reaching the Alpha Mom

Reaching the Alpha Mom

PALO creates site for this new breed of Moms

PALO Creative announces the release of a new local business website. This site adds the list of more than 100 local, regional and national websites PALO has designed over the last few years.

Weecareohio.com was created for Wee Care Day Care, a local childcare center with locations around Youngstown. Through richly colored graphics and high definition picture galleries, PALO was able to design a site that gives parents a true depiction of the quality learning and care that Wee Care and its affiliate Lads n’ Lasses Academy has to offer. The site also serves as a place for parents to find government resources, school events and other updates throughout the year. It is just one way Wee Care is trying to reach out to the “Alpha Mom.”

“There is a new type of mom out there today; college-educated, tech-savvy, and they want to be involved with their children’s lives yet engage in a more active role outside of the home. The best way to reach them is to go where they are,” said Rob Palowitz, president at PALO Creative.

A recent study about moms and their mobile habits found that becoming a mom is a trigger for embracing the mobile devices and niche websites. Through market research and testing, PALO Creative was able to build a website that was easy and quick for moms to maneuver through, while also optimizing it for smartphones and tablets.

PALO Creative continues to develop custom websites and smartphone applications, some with e-commerce or m-commerce solutions and others with social media integration and easy to use administration portals. PALO also utilizes market research and web analytics in order to make sure the target audience is reached and clients can see their immediate return on investment (ROI).

About PALO Creative

PALO Creative is a full-service marketing communications firm with expertise in strategic planning, interactive web development, creative, media planning and buying, public relations and social media. PALO’s diverse clientele includes a mix of business-to-business as well as consumer-based clients on both a regional and national level. It is located in Leetonia and has a satellite office in Youngstown. For more information, visit the company’s web site at http://www.palocreative.com