Congratulations Sandstorm! We submitted an inspirational quote for the 2011 Woman’s Advantage Calendar and from over 5,000 submissions, our marketing firm’s quote (and internal company philosophy) was chosen.Woo hoo!

Our inspirational quote will appear on our own calendar page (September 22) with our company name and  url. What a great way to increase our visibility and get a little free publicity. I love PR and marketing, and I love to win. This is such an honor. And a fun way to share a little insight about our marketing firm and the people who work here.

So you might be wondering, what was our winning quote and inspiration: “To become an exceptional leader, take the time to help others achieve their dreams” The extra special part – I found out today, on my birthday.

Merry Christmas to all and to all a half day! The Chicago Tribune was here to shoot some photos of the office for an upcoming story in January, and the painters are finishing up some of the trim. They got some great shots of our sweeping plastic drape and cluttered space. We’ve got the holiday shopping spirit and are doing some group online shopping at IKEA to get new desks, conference room tables, and chairs. Our plan is to take down the curtain on Monday to do our formal unveil of the new addition, and of course we’ll have photos!

We’re taking a half day today to start the holiday weekend early, so Merry Christmas everyone!

We made the list – the top 21 list that is! We are so proud to be in Brill Street’s Top 50 Generation Y Employers Chicago. Yep, we’re #21 (hence the top 21 list). And they wrote a nice bio about our company on their site that really exemplifies who we are as a company, and what it’s like to work with us, and for us. They even mentioned our guacamole contest!

This recognition means a lot to me – and has easily become one of my favorite highlights of owning a business for the past 11 years. I am honored and proud that Sandstorm is a company and has a culture that people want to work for. That’s why I started Sandstorm, to build a place that I would want to work at too.

The Web Marketing Association has honored us with the 2009 WebAward For Outstanding Achievement in Web Development and Design for National Association of Realtors’ Green REsource Council web site. The Green REsource Council was founded to make the knowledge of green real estate practices available to everyone and is the only environmental real estate designation addressing multiple specialties for agents and property managers.

We are very proud to be recognized for our green design work, and continue to strive to build intuitive online user experiences.