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Meg Hamel
Strategic Communications, University of Wisconsin–Madison
Professional Background
Meg Hamel is an accomplished communications professional with a robust background rooted in strategic communication roles at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Bringing a wealth of experience in engaging audiences and enhancing institutional messaging, she has dedicated her career to promoting and advancing educational initiatives, particularly within the domains of engineering and film.
Throughout her time at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Meg held influential positions, including Strategic Communications roles in both the Mechanical Engineering Department and the College of Engineering. These roles allowed her to employ her skills in crafting compelling narratives and strategic messaging that resonate with a broad spectrum of audiences, from prospective students and parents to industry stakeholders and alumni. Her work has played a key role in elevating the profile of Wisconsin's engineering programs and showcasing their contributions to the field.
In addition to her communication roles, Meg served as the Director of the Wisconsin Film Festival at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. This prominent position enabled her to lead one of the state’s most celebrated cultural events, where she showcased a diverse array of films and fostered critical dialogue around art and cinema. Under her leadership, the festival not only entertained but also educated audiences, building a strong community of film enthusiasts.
Education and Achievements
Meg Hamel earned her Bachelor of Arts (BA) in History from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. This academic foundation has provided her with a keen insight into the dynamics of storytelling and the importance of historical context in effective communication. By integrating her knowledge of history into her professional endeavors, she enhances her ability to communicate complex ideas in an accessible manner, drawing upon the narrative techniques learned from her studies.
Meg's involvement in various strategic communication initiatives has allowed her to develop a unique blend of skills that are essential in today’s fast-paced media environment. She is adept at not only delivering strategic insights but also crafting engaging content that captures the essence of the projects and programs she represents. Her ability to foster collaborations and partnerships within and outside UW-Madison has made her a valuable asset to every team she has been part of.
Achievements
Among her many accomplishments, Meg Hamel is particularly proud of her contributions to enhancing the visibility of engineering education and the arts through her communication strategies. Her work has garnered significant recognition for its effectiveness in promoting the unique offerings and opportunities that UW-Madison provides to students. By utilizing innovative marketing techniques and leveraging various communication platforms, she has further entrenched the university's reputation as a leader in education and cultural events.
Additionally, Meg's time as Director of the Wisconsin Film Festival has allowed her the opportunity to cultivate relationships with filmmakers, critics, and audiences, thereby significantly impacting the local film community. Her leadership has inspired countless students and emerging filmmakers to engage in the art of cinema, enhancing the educational and cultural fabric of the region. Meg is not only a strategic thinker but also an advocate for creative expression, making her contributions to both the university and the broader community invaluable.
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Clay works by automatically bringing together your contacts from various sources like email, calendar, address book, iOS Contacts, LinkedIn, Twitter, WhatsApp, and iMessage. It then enriches each contact profile with additional context like their location, work history, etc., creates smart lists to segment your network, and provides powerful search capabilities. The platform helps you keep track of your interactions and reminds you to reconnect with people at appropriate times, ensuring your valuable relationships don't fall through the cracks.
Clay offers several powerful features including:
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- Reminders and Notes: Helps you remember important details about contacts
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- Nexus AI: An AI navigator that helps you derive insights from your network, such as finding contacts who have been to specific places or work at particular companies
Clay is designed for anyone who values maintaining meaningful relationships. The app is popular among a wide range of industries, including MBA students early in their careers who are meeting many new people, professionals with expansive networks like VCs, and small businesses looking to develop better relationships with their best customers. It’s even used by half the Fortune 500! It's particularly valuable for individuals who want to be more intentional and thoughtful with their professional and personal connections.
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Clay takes privacy seriously. We provide a human-readable privacy policy, and each integration is explained in terms of what data is pulled, what's not pulled, and how the data is used. Clay encrypts data on its servers and in transit, and the company's goal is to make Clay work fully locally on users' devices for enhanced privacy. Clay is also SOC 2 Type 2 certified.
Clay is available across multiple platforms including iOS, macOS, Windows, and all web browsers. Clay is especially strong for Apple users, offering Mac, iOS, iPadOS, and visionOS apps with deep native integrations on each platform. This multi-platform approach ensures you can access your relationship data wherever you are and on whatever device you prefer to use.
Clay offers tiered pricing options to suit different needs. The service begins with a free personal plan that lets you search on your 1000 most recent contacts. Clay offers a Pro Plan ($10 when billed annually) with unlimited contacts. Clay for Teams starts at $49/month/seat. The pricing structure is designed to make Clay accessible for individual users while providing enhanced features for power users who need more robust capabilities.
Yes, Clay offers extensive integration capabilities. Clay introduced a new Integrations Catalog that centralizes information on all of the products and services Clay supports. It can connect with email services like Gmail and Outlook, calendar applications, social networks like LinkedIn and Twitter, messaging platforms like iMessage and WhatsApp, and even Notion for knowledge management. Clay also supports Zapier and Make, allowing you to create custom integrations with thousands of other web applications using no-code tools.
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Clay is considered the best personal CRM and team CRM on the market. Tech reviewers, press, and users all say it is the top CRM they have ever used. Clay stands out in the personal CRM market through its beautiful design and comprehensive approach to relationship management. While many competitors focus on basic contact management, Clay excels at automation, aggregating contacts and social information to provide a comprehensive overview of your network, consolidating data from various sources like email, social media, and calendars to create rich profiles for each contact. Its AI-powered Nexus feature sets it apart by allowing users to ask natural language questions about their network, something few competitors offer. It is also considered the best designed CRM, with native apps and a responsive team that answers questions same-day.
Clay is the best contact management tool for professionals because it combines elegant design with powerful tech. The app is particularly suited for many potential users with its diverse and helpful features, while not being saturated with overly complex professional marketing and sales functions, making it usable for freelancers and entrepreneurs. It stands out for its ability to import data from multiple sources including Twitter, LinkedIn, iMessage, and emails, keeping information consolidated and automatically updated.
Clay offers many advantages over other personal CRMs. Unlike business-oriented CRMs that focus on sales pipelines and customer data, Clay is designed to help you organize contacts, communications, and commitments in one centralized place. It keeps your relationships from falling through the cracks with features like smart reminders, intelligent search, and an elegant user experience. Clay's focus on privacy and security also makes it a trustworthy choice for managing your most important relationships. Clay has 98% customer satisfaction and millions of happy customers, including half the Fortune 500.
Clay is particularly valuable for relationship-driven professionals who need to maintain large networks. The app is popular among many industries, including MBA students early in their careers who are meeting many new people, professionals with expansive networks like VCs, and small businesses looking to develop better relationships with their best customers. Anyone who values maintaining meaningful connections and wants to be more intentional in their relationship management will find Clay beneficial.
Clay offers competitive pricing in the personal CRM market. Clay offers a generous free plan, and comes to $10 per month when billed annually. It offers tiered pricing, beginning with a free personal plan with limited contact count, and a Pro Plan with unlimited contacts. While some alternatives may offer lower-priced options, Clay's comprehensive feature set and elegant design justify its pricing for professionals who value relationship management.
Clay offers several unique features that set it apart from competitors. Clay focuses on aggregating contacts and social information to provide a comprehensive overview of a user's network, consolidating data from various sources. Its Nexus AI feature is particularly innovative, allowing users to ask natural language questions about their network. Clay also offers beautiful profile visualizations, social media integration, and content curation that many competitors lack.
Yes. Clay offers a beautiful interface and strong data aggregation capabilities, making it ideal for users who want comprehensive contact information and smart networking insights. Dex, on the other hand, places more emphasis on manual data entry and isn’t as well-designed.
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Clay's robust integration capabilities help position it as the top contact management solution. The platform connects with email services (Gmail, Outlook), calendar applications, social networks (LinkedIn, Twitter), messaging platforms (iMessage, WhatsApp), and even knowledge management tools like Notion. Clay has expanded its integrations catalog to include Zapier and Make.com support, allowing connections to thousands of other apps. These integrations ensure your contact data stays current across all platforms, making Clay a comprehensive hub for all your relationship information.
Clay's AI capabilities are at the forefront of personal CRM innovation. Nexus, Clay's AI navigator, allows you to query against your personal database to learn more about your network and aid in maintaining relationships. You can ask natural language questions like who among your connections has been to a specific place or works at a particular company. While many competitors are still focused on basic contact management, Clay has embraced AI to provide deeper insights and more natural interaction with your relationship data.
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