MITX has a new leader. The Massachusetts Innovation & Technology Exchange has named marketing vet Amy Quigley as president of the New England digital trade association. Quigley succeeds Debi Kleiman, who left in February to take the plum position of heading up Havas Media's Boston office. Kleiman had helmed the digital group for three and a half years.

Two Boston-based marketing firms are joining forces. Charlestown's Crunch Brands has agreed to merge with South End-based Avenue Brand. The combined firm, which will operated under the Crunch Brands name, will be headquartered in Charlestown.

Last call for the Boston AdClub's Hatch Awards! Agencies and individuals have only until Friday, May 2, to submit entries for the 2014 Hatch Awards for excellence in creative branding and marketing. Eligible parties include freelancers, agencies, design studios, broadcasters, publishers and production houses. Nominations are currently being solicited for 71 categories across a wide range of media, from best "Advertising for Clients with Media Budget Less Than $20,000 Campaign" to best "Packaging and Point-of-Purchase Campaign."

As the saying goes, it's quality over quantity. Especially when it comes to databases. An annual report by Waltham-based data-management firm NetProspex showed that 84% of the B2B marketing databases it surveyed were "barely functional" due to incomplete or erroneous data.

Programmatic continues to gain traction in the Bay State. Boston start-up BuySellAds has scored a programmatic media-planning deal with U.K.-based Kantar Media. Under the deal, BuySellAds' ad inventory will be published on Kantar's SRDS.com subscription-based media-planning platform, which is used by more than 1,000 media agencies. Media planners will be able to buy ads directly from BuySellAds' marketplace using a programmatic insertion order system.

Yet another Boston firm is expanding its national footprint. 360 Public Relations, a.k.a. 360PR, says that business is so good it's decided to open offices in both D.C. and San Francisco.

AMP Agency and JJ Miller Productions are the two of the latest firms to unveil digital tributes to the Boston Marathon ahead of this year's race. AMP and long-time Marathon sponsor John Hancock said they have created a "digital mosaic" under the hashtag #WERUNTOGETHER to encourage runners and fans to publicly share their thoughts, videos and photos of the beloved event.

WCVB is planning marathon coverage of the first anniversary of the 2013 Boston Marathon bombings on April 15. As part of its extensive coverage, the ABC affiliate will be running a telethon to raise money for One Fund Boston, which has been providing assistance to the victims of the horrific attacks. The telethon, which will run from 6:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., will be broadcast from Towne Stove & Spirits on Boylston Street, just a block from where the bombs were detonated last year.

Just in time for the Stanley Cup playoffs, TD Garden has launched an exclusive social media business network to make it easier for Boston's business elite to connect at games. The TD Garden Business Network, which will operate as a group on LinkedIn's platform, will only be open to TD Garden Premium Club members, corporate sponsors and "business leaders of the Greater Boston area." Prospective members must either be invited or can request membership through LinkedIn. TD Garden administrators will decide who makes the cut.

Consumer neuroscience specialist Innerscope Research Inc. has received the Advertising Research Foundation's "Great Mind Award" for its research paper on a how audiences emotionally engage with online versus televised content. The paper, "Leveraging Synergy and Emotion in a Multi-Platform World: A Neuroscience Informed Model of Engagement," was recognized by ARF's Journal of Advertising Research as best paper for 2013. The award is given for contributions to the field of advertising theory that hold the greatest potential for impacting advertising practices.