Rutherford wins 2017 SWOTY award

Jill Rutherford has a favorite saying, “It is a rare person who can take care of business while taking care of hearts.”

Rutherford, as partner and vice president at the Reno-based OGC Creative, has tried to apply those principles in the workplace and in life.

“For me, it’s not always about the bottom line,” Rutherford said. “It’s about making sure you take care of all the people around you from your family, friends, co-workers and clients.”

Rutherford was presented with the 2017 “Saleswoman of the Year” (SWOTY) award at the Professional Saleswomen of Nevada’s 30th Annual Awards Luncheon and Fundraiser last Tuesday at the Atlantis Casino Resort Spa.

OCG Creative is a web development and marketing company that Rutherford explained strives to keep its clients satisfied, whether its optimizing a company’s web exposure or developing a new brand.

One of OCG Creative’s clients is Front Office Staff in Reno, for whom OCG developed and monitored a new web site along with designing a new brand and company business cards.

“Last June we needed to figure out how to improve our website and SEO (Search Engine Optimization) and turned to OCG,” said Rena Zatica, vice president of marketing and sales for Front Office Staff. “They swooped in and went to work and as a result, we’ve gotten 31 new clients. Jill is such a wonderful person to work with.”

Rutherford previously owned an ad agency in Reno, but as the recession hit in the late 2000s, she merged her agency with OCG Creative.

“I realized real quick that I was going to become obsolete if I didn’t find other things to do,” Rutherford said. “People didn’t have the big budgets anymore, and web development was where everything was headed.”

Rutherford mentioned that in November of last year, OCG Creative was ranked in the “Top 10 Local SEO Companies” nationwide on the site topseorankers.com.

“We’ve been through some ups and downs, both myself personally and with the business,” Rutherford said. “But if you keep that vision, believe in what you’re doing and work hard, it will all come together.”

Rutherford was one of five finalists for this year’s SWOTY award. Other nominees were: Staci Nauman, Keller Williams Real Estate; Robyn Nichols, Reno-Tahoe USA; Shari Pheasant, Horse Power Strategies; and Kimberly Wade, Nevada Humane Society.

Laney Fix, a 12-year-old member of Girls Scouts Sierra Nevada was named the 2017 “Junior Saleswoman of the Year.” Fix earned her Girl Scout Silver Award for her own Project Cookies & Kittens. She sold 3,406 boxes of Girl Scout cookies this year.