Vanessa Maniago is an experienced and passionate strategist with over 25 years of work in Branding & Advertising, Communications, National and State Public Health Initiatives, Cause Marketing, Legislative Affairs, Qualitative and Quantitative Research, Ethnography, Policy Work, Mission Fulfillment and Accreditation, Community Engagement, Program Development, and Organizational Strategy. Her work in National, State and Non-profit Public Health campaigns as well as Cause Marketing reflect her desire to merge her passions in focusing on purpose driven work, giving back, message creation and media placement. Vanessa has worked in Global Ad agencies, Healthcare, Higher Education, Non Profits, and Federal & State Public Health Initiatives. During her 5 years working on the National Youth Anti-Drug Campaign, a $300 million federal appropriation and campaign, which resulted in a marked decrease in drug behaviors and attitudes among youth, her ethnographic research with youth and the resulting insights were published in Social Marketing Quarterly, a peer reviewed academic journal focusing on Cause and Social Marketing as well as with ARF, the Advertising Research Foundation. Vanessa loves to write and tell stories of others’ challenges and successes as well as to create programs and initiatives that improve people’s lives. She has been the strategic architect and writer in the development of multiple award-winning branding initiatives that have produced results and ROI in driving awareness, creating preference and most importantly, in changing lives.
In her free time, Vanessa loves to kayak, swim, exercise, read, cook, sing, play tennis, see live theatre, and play charades with her husband, two sons, and daughter. Her family includes two rescue dogs – Piper, a Shepherd Lab Mix, and Misty, a Poodle Spaniel Mix.