Celebrate 20 Years with The Williams Agency!

What does “Marketing with a Mission,” mean to you? At The Williams Agency, community comes first. With a focus on local food, culture, sustainable agriculture, and green business strategy, the Williams Agency uses its services and grassroots strategy to not only engage the community, but build something interactive and sustaining.

Nicola Williams, founder and CEO of The Williams Agency, celebrated her 20th anniversary. Her experience with event planning, marketing, and public relations is unparalleled, and her mark remains visible in the many events and brands seen in Cambridge and Greater Boston. With a strong and experienced team behind her, Nicola and The Williams Agency continue to grow.

I gained the opportunity to work as a Marketing Intern for The Williams Agency for 8 months while in graduate school, and it has been a wonderful blur of food festivals and localvore-friendly events and projects. To give you a taste of the accomplishments of The Williams Agency, here is a tour of the projects I got to participate and work on with the team.

Boston JerkFest

The Boston JerkFest is a Caribbean themed food festival that celebrates Caribbean culture and, my favorite, the delicious and spicy Caribbean cuisine. Whether you want to listen to live Jamaican music while sipping on a coconut, munch on a plate of Jerk chicken, or watch chefs compete for the best jerk dish in Boston, the Boston JerkFest makes everyone happy. The Rum & Brew on Friday night was a new twist this year, and it had a line out the door for two blocks. Unlimited tastings? Yes, please!

Buy Local Trade Show

Farm, restaurant, specialty food vendor, green business, and everything in between! The Buy Local Trade Show involves hundreds of businesses and gives a unique opportunity for businesses to connect, and together, make their work grow. Now, maybe you’ll notice […]

Turmeric: the Health Benefits of a Spicy Life

 

by Nusheen Orandi

What if adding only a fraction of a teaspoon of something to your cooking could prevent and treat Alzheimer’s disease while also having anti-cancer, antioxidant, and anti-inflammatory properties? This is no magical drug, but a spice that comes in a delectable shade of orange in your local grocery store. Turmeric, that is.

Turmeric, a powder derived from grinding up dried rhizomes (roots) of the turmeric plant, is a widely used spice in the Indian, Asian, and Middle Eastern cultures. However, research behind turmeric is largely aimed at curcumin, the most active component of turmeric that makes up 2-5% of it.

Could turmeric (curcumin) be the first treatment for Alzheimer’s disease?

It’s probably not a coincidence that India has one of the lowest rates of Alzheimer’s disease in the world. The relative lack of the disease in India, where turmeric (and thus curcumin) is a commonly consumed spice, has led researchers to conduct epidemiological studies that examine the effect of curcumin. Alzheimer’s is a devastating illness that deteriorates cognitive function. Researchers believe that one of the first pathologies of Alzheimer’s disease is the accumulation of plaques(protein fragments) in the brain. The build up of these plaques can kill nerve cells and produce free radicals that damage nerve cells, which is what leads to Alzheimer’s disease.

Where does curcumin come in? As an anti-inflammatory and antioxidant agent, curcumin could reduce or prevent these plaques from forming, thus preventing the neuronal breakdown that leads to Alzheimer’s disease. This could make a difference to millions of seniors worldwide who are at risk for or fall victim to this disease.

Is “curcumin” also “anti-cancer?”
A possible cure for cancer?
The discovery of this medical Holy Grail has been the dream of physicians and research labs alike. Although curcumin is likely not the whole answer, its anti-tumor properties give hope to the […]

Grassroots Marketing: Building From the Ground Up

Here at the Williams Agency, we have a few strongly held beliefs: we believe in green, we believe in culture, and we believe in local, among other things. This is why grassroots marketing is such a good fit for us. Grassroots marketing is a marketing style that depends on community, connections, and the power of people. Unlike traditional media, grassroots builds by distributing information from the bottom up, starting with small communities to reach a larger audience. Rather than advertising to the masses in hope of information  trickling down to thought leaders, we begin with those thought leaders and work our way to the masses.

Grassroots effort relies on people’s passion. Luckily for us, we work for a variety of clients that have causes that people can feel passionately about – whether that be food access, local business, and even sustainable fishing. Creating campaigns for causes that people feel passionately about makes connecting those messages to people a whole lot easier. It also forms long lasting, loyal and deep relationships with the communities we are engaging with on behalf of our clients.

Grassroots marketing can consist of one-on-one conversations, blogging, social media, event outreach, and many smaller communication channels. Really, it’s  whatever it takes the reach each person at their level and inspire them with our message or cause. It’s whatever it takes to build a connection and a relationship with people. People who become passionate about something enough talk about it, and share it, and promote it in ways much more effectively than a newspaper ad or a radio spot ever could alone. Grassroots is about creating viral, highly shareable content that moves on its own. These audiences connect with one another and build community.

And that’s our mission. To connect people. To foster relationships, and conversation. To connect those people […]

A Wild June: Boston JerkFest & Hyper-Local Craft Brewfest

A Successful 2nd Annual Boston JerkFest

  
Boston JerkFest – lived up to its reputation as the hottest festival in Boston this summer! Full, of spice, fun, & food, in its second year Boston JerkFest is only getting better and expanding. This year, we expanded the festival with an additional Rum & Brew Tasting room, Cocktail Demos, a Seafood Throwdown, Jerk Cook-Off, and more Jerk-style food from our food vendors!
Check out some of the key media we secured for the festival, and this Story- including attendee instagrams, tweets, facebook posts and more!
Boston Herald: Food, Flavors of the Caribbean Served Up at Boston JerkFest
Zagat: 10 Food Events to Look Forward to This Summer
BostInno: BostInno Approved: What to Do This Weekend
Lowell Sun: Boston JerkFest Promises to Spice Up Weekend
Boston.com: Food, Drinks, and More at 2nd Annual Boston JerkFest
Thrillist: 5 Parties You Need to Attend This Weekend

Hyper-Local Craft Brewfest a Hit

For the 3rd year in a row, the Sustainable Business Network’s Hyper-Local Craft Brewfest, with the help of the Williams Agency, has helped support local business, agriculture, and brew-lovers alike celebrate New England’s bounty through hyper-local product.  Get a feel for the event yourself through this attendee story .
BDC Wire: Photos: Hyper-Local Craft Brewfest Hits Somerville
Boston Globe North: Best Bets
Boston Globe: The Week Ahead: Nightlife
Boston Globe: 5 Things to Do in Boston Week of June 8-14
Boston Globe: Somerville Brewers Tap Into the Local Flavors
BostInno: Here’s Why You Should Go To Next Weekend’s Hyper-Local Craft Brewfest
Thrillist: Things To Do This Summer in Boston
Eater Boston: Hyper-Local Craft Brewfest; Fork in the Road Food Fest