We've Moved

The Blogger platform has been good to the Idaho Ad Agencies blog for the past four years. But it's time for the blog to stretch its legs a bit.

That being said, you can now find the Idaho Ad Agencies blog at www.idahoadagencies.com.

Please feel free to head on over to the new site, or wait just a moment and you'll be redirected automatically.

Thanks to everyone who has visited the site over the years, and we look forward to seeing you at the new Idaho Ad Agencies site.

Imagine

imagine.

That's the headline you've probably seen by now on billboards around Boise. Three different billboards - each with a portrait of a woman who has undergone cancer treatment, and the side-effects that go along with it - are around the valley to promote Boise's Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure.

The women featured on the billboards and in other pieces for the Boise affiliate of Susan G. Komen for the Cure are Susan Chapman, Bobbi Fuller, Margo Vaughn, Cheryl Imlach and Stephanee Rowbury.



The billboards, website, and other support materials were developed by Stoltz Marketing Group. From the story on their website:

In the new "Imagine" campaign, the women's portraits are embellished with imaginary hairstyles, illustrating what they might look like if a cure is found. The resulting race posters, web site and other collateral material are the work of SMG's Crissie McDowell, Kate Holgate, Lindzee "Screw the Budget" Frei, and friend Katie Shamberg who together have raised more than $40,000 to find a cure over the last few years through their own nonprofit Think Pink, Inc.

Photography for the campaign was done by Todd Meier Photography.

There are a number of events leading up to the Race for the Cure on Saturday, May 9th. Be sure to check out the website for all the details.

Headline Roundup for April 2nd

Young Are Most Receptive To Online Coupons - via MediaPost

TiVo: Viewers Don't Skip Engaging Ads - via MediaPost

Product Labels: Missed Marketing Opportunity - via MediaPost

For One Ad Net, the Web Isn't Enough - via Adweek

Study: TV, Mags Ads More Effective Than Online Ones - via Mediaweek

Packaged Goods Giant Yanks $20MM from TV, Invests in Online Video - via MarketingVOX

REMINDER: RSVPs for Rockie Awards Show

RSVPs for the 2009 Rockie Awards Show are due by Friday, April 3rd. The show is scheduled for Saturday, April 18th at the Knitting Factory Concert House.

Anniversaries and Milestones

Congratulations are in order for a couple of shops that are celebrating anniversaries today:

• Wirestone is officially nine years old today.
• Mitchell + Palmer marks one year in business today.

Congratulations to both.

Headline Roundup for March 30th

Product Placement Goes Local - via Ad Age

Study Finds Americans Becoming Screen-Based Multi-Taskers, But TV Still Dominates - via MediaPost

Media X: Past Perfect - via MediaPost

Siloed: Clients Lag Agencies In Integrated Opportunities - via MediaPost

Newspapers Fail To Harness Readers' Social Power - via MarketingVOX

Do You Have a Killed Idea?

Steve Hall, Publisher of AdRants and co-founder of MarketingVOX, together with the folks at Blurb, are looking for the best of what never saw the light of day: the Killed Ideas.

From the Killed Ideas website:

We want ideas that could have changed the face of advertising, elevated a client’s brand to new heights, or won a webby – but instead ended up on the cutting room floor. TV campaigns, microsites, print goodness, viral – you name it, we want it. Whether it’s traditional or cutting-edge, we’re looking to show the best ideas to an audience who appreciate a killer campaign when they see it.

They've been accepting submissions for just over a month, but have extended their deadline until Tuesday, April 7th.

So if you've done some outstanding work that just never made it out the door, submit it at Killed Ideas and see how it stacks up against the rest. And of course, you can also follow Killed Ideas on Twitter.

Upcoming AIGA Event - Drink for Design

The next AIGA Idaho Drink for Design event is coming up on Thursday, April 23rd. From the group's website:

All designers need to be hydrated to keep up with all that creative genius out there, whatever your choice of liquid may be, i.e., vitamin induced pump-you-up water, cola, beer, mixed drinks... Come and enjoy liquid refreshment together and refuel your creative juices*.
*please no spewing

Details are as follows:

Date: Thursday, April 23rd
Time: 6:00 pm
Location: The Modern Hotel, 1314 W. Grove St, Boise ID

For questions or more information, contact the AIGA Idaho folks.

Idaho Business Review's Idaho Women of the Year

Congratulations to the recipients of the 2009 Idaho Business Review's Idaho Women of the Year honors.

As always, the 50 women selected are all incredibly talented in their own right. This year's honorees include a couple of familiar names in the marketing world, such as:

• Holly Sue Kerns, Kerns Brand Marketing
• Lynda Friesz-Martin, Lynda Friesz Public Relations

Congratulations to both, and all of this year's honorees.

Oliver Russell Wins in Houston

Work from Oliver Russell was recognized recently at the Houston Advertising Federation's ADDY Awards Show.

In total, five campaigns that Oliver Russell produced for Hewlett Packard's Personal Systems Group were recognized, including:

• Two Gold ADDY Awards
• Two Silver ADDY Awards
• One Citation of Excellence.

The agency has made photos of the work available on their website.

Headline Roundup for March 26th

RAB: Ad Agencies Call for Informed Digital Sellers - via Mediaweek

Marketers, Agency Execs Not Optimistic about Short-Term Ad Spending - via MarketingVOX

Panel: Agency Execs Advocate Ad, Marketing Fusion - via MediaPost

Optimistic CMOs: Budgets, Jobs Stable; Need More Digital Focus - via MarketingVOX

Marketers Lag in Shift Online - via Adweek

Making More Than a Good Impression - via Adweek

One Memorable Avocado

Nation's Restaurant News recently recognized work produced by Stoltz Marketing Group for Simplot Food Group. The piece, a print ad for Simplot's avocado products, was named the highest performing ad for 2008.

The magazine’s ADinsite™ study surveyed readers on twenty ads for recall, believability and both short- and long-term interest in the product advertised. The Simplot ad outperformed efforts by recognizable brands including Heinz, The Beef Council, Idaho Potato Commission, Butterball and Tyson.

Congratulations to everyone involved.

New Hire at Justinen Creative Group

Justinen Creative Group in Nampa has added Steve Creitz as Senior Illustrator. Steve will be managing JCG's various illustration projects, as well as assisting with in-house development of JCG's sister company Good Salt.

Steve has a decade's worth of experience in print illustration and art direction, and was previously an Art Director with Narrow Gate Media in Vancouver, WA. He will also be receiving a MFA in Illustration from the Academy of Art University, San Francisco this coming year.

Congratulations Steve.

IN PLAY: Idaho Lottery

As many already know, the Idaho Lottery has issued a Marketing Services Request for Proposal.

From the press release:

The Idaho Lottery is asking marketing and advertising firms to respond to three main service categories that include “Account Services”, “Creative Services”, and “Media Services”.

The initial term of the current advertising and marketing contract with Drake-Cooper of Boise will expire at the end of this current fiscal year on June 30, 2009. Drake-Cooper has been the advertising agency of record for the Idaho Lottery since operations began twenty years ago. “Going out to bid for these services is not a reflection on the performance of Drake-Cooper, but rather a responsible look at how we are doing business,” added Anderson.

Those who wish to respond to the RFP must submit a letter of "Intent to Bid" to the Idaho Lottery no later than 5:00 pm MDT on Friday, March 27th, and written proposal responses are due no later than 5:00 pm MDT on Friday, April 29th. Additional details about the RFP process, timelines and such are available on the Idaho Lottery's website.

What Makes a Good Creative Director

Our friends at The Denver Egotist recently published a two-part series (and rant) on What Makes a Good Creative Director.

Some highlights from Part 1:

The creative director is the last line of defense.
That is the last line of defense. When no one else in the creative department knows where to take a job, or how to crack a brief, the CD can do it. They have the experience, the savvy and the ability to produce the work when no one else can.

The creative director is well-versed in all crafts.
Great CDs are chameleons who understand the balance between concepts & strategy, and copy & design. Which is a nice segue into the next point.

The creative director is well-read.
But by reading a wide variety of books, periodicals and websites, the CD is furnished with a mind that can think outside of the annuals, and guide work that other agencies will follow.

And a few nuggets from Part 2:

The creative director produces work
But a good CD will still want to do some of the work, usually about 25% of it. As a creative, that scares me. The idea that I could only spend one-quarter of my time doing what I love most is a chilling thought, but perhaps when the time comes I’ll be ready to slow down on the work and see a bigger picture. But the fact remains, creative directors should still have the ability to take a brief and produce some terrific work.

The creative director knows every creative brief intimately
The brief is the lifeblood of any campaign, and it should never be allowed to be anything less than perfect. I’ve worked in agencies that gave account managers ten days to write the brief and creative teams five days to solve it. This may seem out of whack to the uneducated, but when the creative brief is tight and provides solid, focused direction, the ideas flow.

The creative director can sell or present anything, and do it well
Selling and presenting is a skill; by the time you’re elevated to the dizzy heights of CD, you should be damned good at it.

Finally, the creative director improves the work
A good CD will improve the work. Period.

Now this is by no means a complete summary of the series that Felix put together. I encourage all of you to take the time to read the entire thing (yes, both parts). If you find something that interests you, or sparks a thought, take the time to leave them a comment.

Upcoming Event - Magic Valley Advertising Federation Luncheon

The Magic Valley Advertising Federation, together with Yellow Book USA, are presenting a luncheon event entitled How to Effectively Use Yellow Page Advertising in your Media Mix featuring speaker Matt Beck, Area General Sales Manager of Yellow Book USA.

Details about the event:

Date: Thursday, April 9th
Time: 11:45 am - 1:00 pm
Location: Twin Falls Shilo Inn, 1586 Blue Lakes Blvd N, Twin Falls ID
Cost:
- Members: $10
- Member Guests: $20
- Non-Members: $25

Additional details about the event are available here (registration required). To RSVP, contact Melissa Crane, either via email or by telephone at 208-308-0488.

Job Opening: Graphic Designer

Balihoo Creative in Boise has an opening for a Graphic Designer. Qualified applicants should have a degree in graphic design or closely related field, 1-2 years of agency or freelance experience, a solid online portfolio, etc. etc.

From the job listing on Craigslist:

The position “graphic designer” is pretty broad, you’re saying to yourself. Well here are some more details. We hesitate to call this “entry level,” but this is for someone at the front end of their career. The majority of the work is “nuts and bolts” - taking client approved concepts and building them out to print and online media. That being said, this isn’t a mindless job for an ape-like automaton. There’s really no such thing as a “junior” in our shop (except for maybe “mints”) so our new graphic designer will have the opportunity to work directly on identity, creative concepts and comps for significant client engagements.

Full details about the position can be found on the Craigslist listing.

2009 Rockie Awards Show

The Idaho Advertising Federation is presenting the 2009 Rockie Awards Show on Saturday, April 18th. Details below.



As promised above, here are all the details you'll need:

Date: Saturday, April 18th
Time: 6:00 pm
Location: Knitting Factory Concert House, 416 S. 9th St, Boise ID
Cost: $45 per person, or $350 for a table of 8

RSVPs should be directed to Sandy Anderson, either via email or by telephone at 208-867-1299

REMINDER: Call for Nominations - IAF Silver Medal Award

A reminder that nominations for the IAF Silver Medal Award are due by Friday, March 27th. Details about the award, and the nomination process, are available on the original post.

Award Winners in Northern Idaho

The Spokane Advertising Federation held their 2009 ADDY Awards Ceremony on Friday, March 6th, and among the winners were several from Northern Idaho.

Blue541:
4 Silver ADDY Awards, 1 Honorable Mention

Hanna & Associates:
6 Gold ADDY Awards, 11 Silver ADDY Awards, 4 Honorable Mentions

Imagination Graphics:
1 Honorable Mention

Salty Design Foundry:
Designer's Chair, Best of Division, 3 Gold ADDY Awards, 3 Silver ADDY Awards, 4 Honorable Mentions

Student Award:
Grant Hoki, North Idaho College
Honorable Mention

Congratulations to all of the award winners. A full list of winners from the club (which could very likely include some Idaho shops that I've missed) is available via the Spokane Ad Fed's website.