Vitruvian Who?

Howie Jacobson

howie jacobson Vitruvian Who?
Howie Jacobson, PhD, is the Emotional Intelligence & Empathic Inspiration Officer (EIEIO) of Vitruvian. He’s co-author of Google AdWords For Dummies and creator of the Checkmate Method of competitive positioning.  Howie speaks, writes, and consults on online marketing strategy. He has presented at the System Seminar, Early To Rise, StomperNet, Vital Learning, Perry Marshall’s AdWords Seminar, and his Bar Mitzvah.

Howie has been called “one of the great positioning strategists of his generation” by his teenage daughter, which is a huge compliment if you think about it.

Howie spends his leisure time pretending he’s not 46 years old, playing Ultimate Frisbee and folk-rock guitar. He also performs stand-up and improv in the shower, and occasionally in front of friendly crowds of paying customers.

Howie lives with his family in Durham, North Carolina and Champagne Castle, South Africa, depending on when you ask.

Kristie McDonald

KristieMcDonald Vitruvian Who?Kristie McDonald is the CEO of Vitruvian. Kristie has been in IT consulting for over 20 years.  With a background that includes McKinsey & Company and an Accenture spin-off firm, she has years of experience in strategy consulting, project management and general business management.

Kristie’s online experience began in 2004 when she was put in charge of the website and marketing program at the consulting company where she was an owner and director.  She went on to build and grow an E-commerce store and gained her significant AdWords experience and reputation working for a Chicago-based PPC management company where she managed over 100 different client accounts in industries such as legal, real estate, ecommerce  and travel.

Kristie holds an engineering degree in Computer Science from the University of Illinois in Champaign.

Joel McDonald

joelmcdonald Vitruvian Who?Joel McDonald is the Chief Strategist at Vitruvian. Joel is responsible for analyzing a company’s sales from predictable and controllable forms of traffic and applying those metrics into larger, infinitely more scalable marketing channels.

Joel brings a unique perspective to the advertising world compared to many advertisers; He didn’t actually begin consulting for other companies until he had already spent millions of dollars of his own money, and generated over a billion dollars in sales. Among others, Joel has consulted for companies including Mars Inc., RE/MAX, SEO Pro, US Concealed Carry Association, Better Networker, and Disney Resellers. Joel has also spoken at events of Jerry West, SEO Braintrust, Perry Marshall, Stompernet, Eben Pagan, and NewbiePPC.

During his free-time, Joel enjoys playing ice-hockey, Ultimate Frisbee, practicing (often useless) memory tricks, being a tourist, and perpetually adding to his screensaver by practicing his photography hobby wherever he, his wife & two kids travel.

Shane Keller

ShaneKeller Vitruvian Who?

Shane Keller is the PPC Director for Vitruvian.  He has been a consultant and manager of PPC accounts for over five years. In addition to PPC advertising and management, Shane has a strong background and expertise in video production, interactive design, and teaching.

With over 10 years as a designer and senior producer serving the video game industry, Shane gained extensive expertise in brand management  and team leadership.

He has worked for and with companies such as Disney, Pixar and Microsoft. Shane attended The Hartford Art School as well as The School of Visual Arts Film School in his hometown of NYC.

Garrett Todd

Garrett Pic Vitruvian Who?Garrett Todd is Vitruvian’s Director of Conversion Rate Optimization. He is a Google AdWords Consultant and a Conversion Rate Optimization expert specializing in A/B and Multivariate Testing on business websites.

As a Google Certified Professional, he has 8+ years of PPC advertising experience helping clients increase quality traffic to their websites.  He then uses split-testing tools to increase website conversions which drive higher sales & leads.

Garrett uses an artistic approach in marketing with a scientific way of analyzing data to make educated business decisions. Garrett’s core philosophy in business is Traffic + Conversion + Measurement = Profits.

He holds a B.A. in Management & Entrepreneurship from The Haworth College of Business at Western Michigan University.  His other interests include studying evolution, astronomy, cosmology, astro-biology, chemistry, physics, and microbiology. Less boring, he also enjoys fishing, boating, computing, and video games.

Jeff Clear