Austin & Williams offers complete mailing services, a unique benefit that most advertising and marketing agencies on Long Island do not offer.

Behind the scenes is Sallianne Nicholls, the Director of Mail Services, who sees to it that deadlines are met and clients remain happy:
What are your day-to-day responsibilities as the Director of Mail Services at A&W?
I oversee the daily routine of Austin & Williams’ in-house mailing services; tasks like scheduling, inventory control, and quality control of mail, printed materials, and shipping.

Are there any funny stories of letter shop mishaps that have happened in the past that you could share with us?
None that I can think of, unless you think that James—our Lettershop Manager—breaking his toe was funny. Well, not the breaking part, but the fact that he yelled, and both Rob and I ignored him because he is always yelling at the machinery. But the second yell was slightly different, and we both came running.

What first attracted you to joining the A&W team?
The advertising community on LI is small, and I had always heard good things about A&W. I checked out the website and found the work was smart, clever and innovative. Plus, they are experts in Direct Mail, and since I have a production background and LOVE ink on paper, I felt the fit was perfect.

What are some of the things you enjoy most about working here at the Agency?
The caliber of the A&W team is unparalleled. Everyone here is great to work with and the company is constantly providing educational opportunities like seminars and webinars for us to learn more about the business. It’s a very team-oriented atmosphere here, too, and every member of the Agency shares their own expertise to each project, making the finished products we put out there that much better. All of this is really helping to keep me current and relevant.

Where do you see the future of advertising heading?
We’ve noticed that a lot of marketing seems to be gearing up toward social media. It’s exciting because it’s another facet of marketing that I’m excited to get involved in.

What about the direct mail aspect of advertising? Do you still see it playing a role in most advertising campaigns?
Absolutely. I think people still trust what they can read and keep; advertising that is physical and not so disposable.

Do you have a favorite quote? If so, what does it mean to you?
This is probably corny, but I would say something that my mother always repeated to me growing up (which was basically the Golden Rule): “Treat people like you want to be treated. Think of life as a big wheel—what goes around comes around.”

In your list of hobbies, you cite traveling as one of your favorite things to do—what has been your favorite vacation destination to date?
That’s a tough one because I love all my vacations, and always try to take a ski and beach vacation each year.

My favorite skiing/winter destination is Lake Tahoe in California. I fell in love with a mountain named Alpine Meadows. There is a chair lift you take up to the top of the mountain and you ski off to this rise and look out over a vista of sky, snow and trees—so big and magnificent! I have traveled to Lake Tahoe five or six times and that view still takes my breath away. Plus, the skiing is perfect!

But then I start thinking of skiing in Italy where we went glacier skiing. It took about 1-1/2 hours of chairlifts and trams to get to the starting point. It was so high, you were lightheaded and slightly disoriented as you started skiing down. It was a full day of skiing starting in Italy and ending in France—crossing over ice bridges (where a wrong move could send you falling in a crevice), having to ski in the guide’s exact tracks (because of the potential to start an avalanche). That was the experience of a lifetime.