In a nation where many complain about a bad economy, unnecessary bureaucracy, scarce resources and poor customer service, here is another entrepreneur who has proven definitively that Jamaica continues to be a good place to build a successful brand and grow a business. For Maxine Miller-Burkett, Chief Executive Officer of Black Ink Marketing & Event Solutions Limited, Black Ink, life is about finding your own path when the ones before you are no longer viable and surrounding yourself with a team that is not only willing, creative and competent but one that sees the value and importance of their work, whether it is executed on a small
or large scale.
In the six years of their operation, Black Ink Marketing & Event Solutions Limited has made a name for themselves as THE marketing and events experts in the industry, lending their talent to a host of well known and recognisable corporate entities that are household names in Jamaica, the Caribbean region and beyond. Black Ink is now synonymous with quality launches, campaigns and events, living by their tag line “ReThink Marketing®”.
BUZZZ Magazine recently sat down with the marketing maven to learn about her journey, the business of her business, life lessons learnt and how
in less than a decade she has become one of the most sought after marketing geniuses in the industry, ‘inking’ deals others have only dreamt of.
The saying ‘necessity is the mother of all invention’ can easily be applied to Black Ink’s genesis, as Miller-Burkett saw the need and was determined to fill it and cement her company’s name in the marketing industry. “Jamaican companies do recognise the power of marketing as is evident with major brands crafting a marketing strategy; as well as having an agency that supports them in their product/ service launch or campaign. Additionally, most major international brands want to have a launch in Jamaica as they recognise that we are an important market to invest in.”
That is where Black Ink comes in. This multifaceted entity provides a plethora of services which includes, marketing consultancy and promotional sales support to boost consumer awareness.
Miller-Burkett notes that Black Ink is not that young a company, as she started in 2003 doing concerts and entertainment packages for various hotels. After leaving the hotel industry she was in great demand as hotel managers reached out to her to do so. “I would source the best musicians, bands and cultural groups who would be rotated through the various resorts to perform.”
Her 15 years in the tourism sector, took her to Frankfurt, Germany in the early 2000s as the Jamaica Tourist Board’s lead ambassador, as she is fluent in Deutsch. Furthermore her experiences distinguished her as a reputable trainer in the specialities of guest relations, speech and deportment and customer service; all key areas which ultimately served her well when establishing her own business. The success of her 2003 ‘Enchantingly Close To You’ concert featuring reggae artist Maxi Priest, cemented her passion for events planning.
Years later, while working at Red Stripe, she designed, crafted and executed several activities that made her the go-to person for positively impacting sales for the various brands. After years of working for others, she made the leap of making her passion her priority. “I decided to merge all my competencies in public relations, entertainment, sales and marketing hence, Black Ink Marketing & Event Solutions Limited was officially established.”
The business, she feels, came about because she identified a niche from the gaps that she saw in the marketing and events promotion fraternity. “Our strength is that we pay attention to detail, work according to clients’ specifications, and deliver real results. At the end of the day we strive for excellence and guarantee quality work. This is why we have been able to acquire accounts previously serviced by other companies; as well as retain clients, who readily refer us. We always strive to align the brand of our clients’ with that of ours.”
To simply say they do it all would be an understatement to the full scope of their organization. It encompasses product sampling, merchandising services, audit, event management including booth concept and design plus public relations services, such as content management and social media marketing. They bring even more to the table with human resource solutions for companies that seek staffing and training of personnel; finding the right person for the right job.
With such a wide array of offerings, no wonder Black Ink has been racking up awards both locally and internationally including the International Star Award for Quality in the Gold category from BID (Geneva 2017); Best Enterprise, Manager of the Year, from the Summit of Leaders, Socrates Award (Oxford U.K. 2017); and a nomination for the NCB Nation Builders Award, in the innovation category (Jamaica 2017). When asked which award holds the most significance, Miller-Burkett noted that each represents something unique, but they all symbolise one important universal factor: quality. “I’m a stickler for quality. People have joined our team and couldn’t understand why we emphasise quality but for me it is about always maintaining our standards and never giving our clients less than they deserve. Quality has meaning.”
“The International Star Award for Quality in the Gold Category was the first of the prestigious awards. The NCB Nation Builders nomination was an indication of local recognition and was like the icing on the cake because it meant we were contributing to the development of this country and to the economy. The Socrates Award was truly the crème de la crème as only 40 entities around the world were considered. These are typically universities and research institutions and only five companies worldwide. To put into perspective the magnitude of copping such a prestigious award, I was the only non-doctorate on the stage, hence my intention to pursue my PhD in Project Management in the near furture.” Miller-Burkett also noted, “It would be remise of us not to thank our clients for believing in us, entrusting us with their brands and for nominating us for these awards.” Black Ink is proud of it’s achievements to be a local business that is doing their part to promote Brand Jamaica through their regional networking, partnership and international recognition.
With any successful business, growth and expansion is necessary and Black Ink is no different. The depth of their repertoire makes them much sought after. This is evident as they hold partnerships in ten Caribbean territories. “Most of what we achieve outside of Jamaica is through supplier networks. We are the main conceptualiser of ideas and we of course work with the local talent in the respective countries who execute the activities. For example at the Trinidad Investment Conference, we got the infrastructure up and running and we dictated the look and feel while the person on the ground used our guidelines to execute the activities. We are adept at working a series of events such as the one we did for the Samsung Galaxy Note 8 launch also in Trinidad & Tobago that had to be coordinated in three different countries. Over the years clients had launches but each one looked different. With us the look and feel of all the launches in every territory are undoubtedly consistent. We ensure that the design is seamless and cohesive and that they are of the highest standard that our clients are used to.” We hold
ourselves accountable for delivery excellence which is why we get repeat clients.
To Read More: Purchase your copy of Volume 9 #6 January-February 2018
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In a nation where many complain about a bad economy, unnecessary bureaucracy, scarce resources and poor customer service, here is another entrepreneur who has proven definitively that Jamaica continues to be a good place to build a successful brand and grow a business. For Maxine Miller-Burkett, Chief Executive Officer of Black Ink Marketing & Event Solutions Limited, Black Ink, life is about finding your own path when the ones before you are no longer viable and surrounding yourself with a team that is not only willing, creative and competent but one that sees the value and importance of their work, whether it is executed on a small
or large scale.
In the six years of their operation, Black Ink Marketing & Event Solutions Limited has made a name for themselves as THE marketing and events experts in the industry, lending their talent to a host of well known and recognisable corporate entities that are household names in Jamaica, the Caribbean region and beyond. Black Ink is now synonymous with quality launches, campaigns and events, living by their tag line “ReThink Marketing®”.
in less than a decade she has become one of the most sought after marketing geniuses in the industry, ‘inking’ deals others have only dreamt of.
The saying ‘necessity is the mother of all invention’ can easily be applied to Black Ink’s genesis, as Miller-Burkett saw the need and was determined to fill it and cement her company’s name in the marketing industry. “Jamaican companies do recognise the power of marketing as is evident with major brands crafting a marketing strategy; as well as having an agency that supports them in their product/ service launch or campaign. Additionally, most major international brands want to have a launch in Jamaica as they recognise that we are an important market to invest in.”
That is where Black Ink comes in. This multifaceted entity provides a plethora of services which includes, marketing consultancy and promotional sales support to boost consumer awareness.
Miller-Burkett notes that Black Ink is not that young a company, as she started in 2003 doing concerts and entertainment packages for various hotels. After leaving the hotel industry she was in great demand as hotel managers reached out to her to do so. “I would source the best musicians, bands and cultural groups who would be rotated through the various resorts to perform.”
Her 15 years in the tourism sector, took her to Frankfurt, Germany in the early 2000s as the Jamaica Tourist Board’s lead ambassador, as she is fluent in Deutsch. Furthermore her experiences distinguished her as a reputable trainer in the specialities of guest relations, speech and deportment and customer service; all key areas which ultimately served her well when establishing her own business. The success of her 2003 ‘Enchantingly Close To You’ concert featuring reggae artist Maxi Priest, cemented her passion for events planning.
The business, she feels, came about because she identified a niche from the gaps that she saw in the marketing and events promotion fraternity. “Our strength is that we pay attention to detail, work according to clients’ specifications, and deliver real results. At the end of the day we strive for excellence and guarantee quality work. This is why we have been able to acquire accounts previously serviced by other companies; as well as retain clients, who readily refer us. We always strive to align the brand of our clients’ with that of ours.”
To simply say they do it all would be an understatement to the full scope of their organization. It encompasses product sampling, merchandising services, audit, event management including booth concept and design plus public relations services, such as content management and social media marketing. They bring even more to the table with human resource solutions for companies that seek staffing and training of personnel; finding the right person for the right job.
With such a wide array of offerings, no wonder Black Ink has been racking up awards both locally and internationally including the International Star Award for Quality in the Gold category from BID (Geneva 2017); Best Enterprise, Manager of the Year, from the Summit of Leaders, Socrates Award (Oxford U.K. 2017); and a nomination for the NCB Nation Builders Award, in the innovation category (Jamaica 2017). When asked which award holds the most significance, Miller-Burkett noted that each represents something unique, but they all symbolise one important universal factor: quality. “I’m a stickler for quality. People have joined our team and couldn’t understand why we emphasise quality but for me it is about always maintaining our standards and never giving our clients less than they deserve. Quality has meaning.”
“The International Star Award for Quality in the Gold Category was the first of the prestigious awards. The NCB Nation Builders nomination was an indication of local recognition and was like the icing on the cake because it meant we were contributing to the development of this country and to the economy. The Socrates Award was truly the crème de la crème as only 40 entities around the world were considered. These are typically universities and research institutions and only five companies worldwide. To put into perspective the magnitude of copping such a prestigious award, I was the only non-doctorate on the stage, hence my intention to pursue my PhD in Project Management in the near furture.” Miller-Burkett also noted, “It would be remise of us not to thank our clients for believing in us, entrusting us with their brands and for nominating us for these awards.” Black Ink is proud of it’s achievements to be a local business that is doing their part to promote Brand Jamaica through their regional networking, partnership and international recognition.
With any successful business, growth and expansion is necessary and Black Ink is no different. The depth of their repertoire makes them much sought after. This is evident as they hold partnerships in ten Caribbean territories. “Most of what we achieve outside of Jamaica is through supplier networks. We are the main conceptualiser of ideas and we of course work with the local talent in the respective countries who execute the activities. For example at the Trinidad Investment Conference, we got the infrastructure up and running and we dictated the look and feel while the person on the ground used our guidelines to execute the activities. We are adept at working a series of events such as the one we did for the Samsung Galaxy Note 8 launch also in Trinidad & Tobago that had to be coordinated in three different countries. Over the years clients had launches but each one looked different. With us the look and feel of all the launches in every territory are undoubtedly consistent. We ensure that the design is seamless and cohesive and that they are of the highest standard that our clients are used to.” We hold
ourselves accountable for delivery excellence which is why we get repeat clients.
To Read More: Purchase your copy of Volume 9 #6 January-February 2018
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