SuperMedia Gains CMO; YPG Loses SVP-Sales

Directory publisher SuperMedia has appointed Sandra Crawford Williamson as the company’s new EVP and chief marketing officer. She recently ran her own brand and sales strategy consultancy, and previously was COO of True.com, a relationship site. She has also had stints at Universal Studios, Coca-Cola, Nabisco and Procter & Gamble.

The company’s announcement says Williamson will be responsible for driving market strategy; advertising and marketing communications; customer acquisition; customer conversion and retention; customer research; analytics and database marketing; and marketing operations and processes. She also will drive brand strategy and development of SuperMedia’s portfolio of brands, which includes the SuperPages IYP as well as the SuperGuarantee, which is becoming increasingly central to the company’s product strategy.

As SuperMedia added a senior exec, Canada’s Yellow Pages Group lost one. The leading print and online directory publisher in Canada announced on Friday that Helena C. Cain had resigned as senior VP of sales, effective immediately. No explanation was given for her departure, other than a desire to “pursue other career opportunities” in her home city of Saint Johns, New Brunswick. Cain’s tenure with YPG was brief. She joined the company in October last year with no background in Yellow Pages or local media sales. Her previous job was vice president of enterprise and SMB sales for Bell Aliant and xwave.

There was no immediate word on Cain’s replacement.