GuideStone Names Positioning Leader Innis Maggiore Agency of Record

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CANTON, Ohio (Sept. 25, 2006) - Dallas-based GuideStone Financial Resources, which sponsors the nation's largest faith-based mutual fund family, has selected Innis Maggiore as agency of record. As of August 2006, GuideStone's assets under management were approximately $8.8 billion.

Innis Maggiore, the nation's leading advertising agency specializing in the practice of brand positioning, will provide strategic counsel and services in marketing, public relations, advertising and direct communications for GuideStone.

For more than eight decades, GuideStone Financial Resources of the Southern Baptist Convention has been serving ministers, employees and seminary students. In 2005, the company announced plans to reach beyond its Southern Baptist roots to serve a broader audience of Christian evangelical churches, colleges, schools, hospitals and other organizations. GuideStone offers a full range of financial products to the evangelical market including retirement plans; life, health and disability insurance; mutual funds; and capital investment services to retirement, retail and institutional investors.

"The work is about aligning GuideStone's competitive position in the marketplace with its clear mission and values," said Dick Maggiore, Innis Maggiore president and chief executive officer.

Dr. O.S. Hawkins, GuideStone president and CEO, said Innis Maggiore's positioning philosophy appealed to the company's leadership during the agency selection process.

"Our goals are to enhance the level of financial and medical security for those who serve the Lord and reach out to those who share GuideStone's investment philosophy and values," he said. "Partnering with Innis Maggiore will help us position ourselves to communicate the value of our products and services to the evangelical market in order to better enhance the financial security of our Southern Baptist pastors at the crossroads. It was their positioning philosophy that set them apart and it will be their positioning strategy that will differentiate GuideStone."

Founded in 1918, GuideStone Financial Resources began as a relief organization providing assistance to retired Southern Baptist pastors and widows in financial need. The organization maintains a website at www.GuideStone.org.

Innis Maggiore is the nation's leading agency in the practice of positioning, building strong brand positions for companies in competitive markets. The advertising and public relations agency, with 2005 capitalized billings of more than $24 million, employs more than 40 associates at its offices in Canton and Youngstown, Ohio. Key clients include Alside, Aultman Health Foundation, Bank of America, Express Oil Change, Forum Health, GuideStone Financial Resources, NEOUCOM, Nickles Bakery, Parker Hannifin, Progressive Foam Technologies, RTI International Metals, and Republic Engineered Products. Innis Maggiore is a member of the American Association of Advertising Agencies, the Direct Marketing Association, the National Investor Relations Institute and the Public Relations Society of America.