I’m not adverse to adversity. I have probably spent much of my adult life looking to commit to the hard things, challenges.
I went on a lemon detox diet once and lived on a drink made up of syrup, lemon juice and water for 10 whole days – even though, my (much more sensible) friends, succumbed to real food after a day or two, I still had to get to the finish line. (To be clear, I wouldn’t do it again, or recommend it!).
This “no quitting” DNA has propelled me through life’s biggest physical and mental challenges. It’s what led me to cycling, triathlon and an Ironman, and it’s why I love doing hard things for fun. This lifestyle has brought so many rewards, including a close-knit group of friends who I think will now be in my life forever. One of the connections I made was Nimo’s CEO, Leann Jones.
When the opportunity arose to join as Head of Marketing at Nimo, I knew it was something I should pursue. And pursue it I did!
One of my first assignments at Nimo, was to oversee and coordinate our largest marketing activity of the year, exhibiting at the annual COBA conference. I was immediately thrown into campaign mode and what this means at Nimo.
As Gold Sponsors for the 4th year running, we needed a concept that would stop people in their tracks. At Nimo, we don’t take these challenges lightly. We care about every thought, every word, and we think deeply about how we can communicate in a way that truly matters.
We agonised for weeks over ideas. There were lots of great ones, but nothing quite hit the mark. Casting our net wide and removing all limitations, we finally had our “voila” moment. The elephant was born.
Elvis, to those close to him.
Our Elephant was strong, stable and secure, walking confidently and authoritatively into the future wearing futuristic goggles. The message, Strength for Today, Vision for Tomorrow. It was perfect. We had distilled hundreds of conversations with our Lenders into one powerful idea: Lenders don’t have to choose between stability and innovation; they can have both.
The elephant would loom large, printed on a tower in the middle of our stand. Nimo’s stand would literally be the elephant in the room.
The prep continued. I was leaping across a logistical minefield, at pace, coordinating with printers, event production people, and our team to create assets and curate presentations.
Finally, we were at the start line, COBA was here and despite all the preparation, I felt insanely unprepared!
At Nimo, we don’t just leave it to the event organisers. We roll our sleeves up, get to Bunnings, and finish the stand ourselves. This extra effort, needed right at the end, created panic explosions in my mind but, as I found out, it was totally worth it.
Leann and Peter got to Brisbane first, racing out to get the finishing touches we needed for our jungle theme. The next day, I stepped off the plane to a message from Leann: “Something has gone very wrong with the stand, but not to worry, the issue has been resolved.” Panic.
I raced to the exhibition hall, where I was told the horror story. Yesterday, some equipment had fallen, putting a huge hole right in Elvis! OMG. I looked at our stand, I looked for the hole, and I couldn’t see it. Leann and Peter had patched it up so expertly, putting plants in front of it. It looked seamless. Relief.
Our own little pressure cooker environment intensified as we worked against the clock to get the stand ready.
The announcements started: delegates would be entering in 5 minutes. I could feel beads of sweat gathering on my face as we raced for the finish line.
Just as I was closing my laptop, I saw the delegates filing in. OMG, we had done it! The stand looked amazing!
I, in contrast, was a dishevelled mess!
We were full gas the whole time we were there! At the end of it all, I felt like I’d just finished an Ironman. Huge effort, elation, relief, job done well.
The exhibition itself was a huge success, Elvis was a hit, and the people came to discuss The Elephant In The Room.
The COBA experience personified the Nimo ethos. Going the extra mile, for better outcomes, being the point of difference. Doing what we say we’ll do. There is no problem too big, we’ll tackle it, head on. Meeting people face to face, building relationships – bringing our mission to life. As a united team.
It’s in our DNA. I guess I’m fitting right in.