Introducing Mary Wynn Ryan of Winning Ways Marketing!

The Park Ridge Chamber of Commerce would like to introduce Chamber Member Mary Wynn Ryan of Winning Ways Marketing. Attend our Monthly Networking Luncheon next month for a chance to be featured!

If you think advertising doesn’t work, chances are you’re not saying what your best prospects need to know – even if you do a great job otherwise. That’s what decades of hands-on experience have taught Mary Wynn Ryan, an award-winning marketing writer and creative director. Her company, Winning Ways Marketing, helps small- to medium-sized retail and professional service businesses and non-profits say what matters in a way that works.

“To reach people you have to genuinely understand who they are, what they’re dealing with, and how to quickly explain where your service or product fits in to solve their problem,” Ryan says. “You don’t need to talk down to consumers, and you don’t need to snow business prospects with lots of jargon. In both cases you do need to empathize with them, and there’s an art and a craft to conveying that you really ‘get it.’

“I’ve been a writer all of my life as well as a corporate marketing VP, a business magazine editor, an ad agency creative director and more. I know what works and what doesn’t – and I know how to get it done on a budget. Today we can use blogs, websites, social media posts, brochures, eblasts, advertorials, sell letters, press releases, speeches, trade show exhibits and more to carry the message, depending on your audience and budget. But first you have to know what to say.

“Based on my experience interviewing leaders in hundreds of American businesses of all kinds and all sizes, I know each one has a great story that’s unique. Each one is more valiant and more courageous than they get credit for, and they deserve to have people know how they help make life better. My job is to bring what’s special about you to the customer’s attention, so you don’t sound like every other company in your industry.

“The prospect’s problem may be where to buy a statement necklace on a budget, how to find the right business accountant or lawyer, what to look for in a dentist or a contractor, or where to best put a charitable donation. If you have the answer, I can help you say it in a way that makes your best prospects choose you.”

Ryan was raised in Park Ridge and returned to raise her own daughter and son here. She serves on the board of the Park Ridge Chamber of Commerce and the Park Ridge Community Fund and is a former Park Ridge Alderman and a former Park Ridge Park District Commissioner. Her husband, attorney Peter Ryan, and her daughter Melissa have been honored as Park Ridge Community Stars, and her son Nick is an Eagle Scout from Park Ridge Troop 50. Find Winning Ways Marketing on Facebook and contact Mary at wynnryan@rcn.com.