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2025 American Advertising Awards Recap

Ad Club Of Buffalo

Everybody’s amped about the AAAs.

Not just because it was the most anticipated night of the year for the Buffalo advertising community, but because it was truly electric. (Watch your step near that Tesla coil).

Our fearless leader, AAF Buffalo President, Lindsay Neilson, put it best: “This was a year unlike any other show we’ve done before.” But it was also one of the more rewarding ones we’ve put together. With so many of our Buffalo agencies getting involved this year, this truly felt like a show for – and by – everyone in our ad community.

And what a brilliant, dazzling, radiant, additional-electrical-adjectives-looking community it is. If you haven’t seen the photos or the slow motion video from that night, check ‘em out. Y’all look positively conductive.

The night began with a greeting from Edison and his candy-filled light bulbs – such a bright idea. We had some supercharged snacks, buzzy bevvies, and a slow motion glambot wired to capture the energy of the night. Everything from the decor to the show reels to the fits, food, and Saxman Slim made for a night to remember.

We recognized an up-and-coming whippersnapper in Sean Donovan for our Future Star Award. Our Joe Crowley Award for Service went to Chelsea Carney – whose dedication to the board is unmatched. Riveter Design brought home the Mosaic Award for everything they bring to not only the advertising community but our community at large. And we honored the incomparable Tricia Barret of Crowley Webb with the highly coveted Levy-Osborn award for Excellence in Communication for being the ad badass she is. 

And the honors for Crowley Webb didn’t stop there as they also took home the Best of Show for the Highmark Stadium Talegate Trailer! Congrats to them – and everyone – for their achievements. The Martin Group took home a show-topping 53 awards as well as being a Best of Show Finalist for their Health Lives Here campaign. Rounding out the finalists was Stronghold Studio for the supercool Listening Bar Branding. And congrats to Henny Zack from Villa Maria for taking home Student Best of Show!

We had five judges from across the country evaluate 477 professional entries. They had a ton of glowing things to say about the craft here in the Electric City so our thanks go out to Chris, Amy, Eva, David, and Mick. You were all thoughtful and purposeful in your judging and discussions – we were lucky to have you.

The thanks continue though, as we could not have put on such a stunning event without the help of Crowley Webb for tackling the show reels, Farm for their killer showbook, Agency 15 for making all the social and comms look effortless, dPost for the intro, gallery reels, and slow mo booth, Riveter for kicking off the Entries for All initiative, Frank Coppola for his mother-fluxing decor, Mr. Smith and In-Room Plus for their help in developing the kickoff and branding elements, and of course all the board members that made the evening possible: special shoutouts to my stellar co-chair Hailey for tackling her first year as AAA co-chair like an experienced vet, to Lindsay for keeping this train of insanity on the rails, and to Mike, Kit, and Devan for their endless support in keeping this thing on budget and on brand. 

And an extra special thanks to our host, Electric City, and our sponsors NBC Universal, AI Digital, and Digital Table Advertising. This show could not have happened without you. Thank you, thank you, thank you. 

Cheers, all. Thanks to you all for coming out and making our 2025 AAAs absolutely voltaic. (That’s a word, right?)

Events Speaker Students

What is Advertising in Buffalo: Roundtable Recap

Ad Club Of Buffalo

Roundtable panelists

On Thursday, April 25th, AAF Buffalo sat down at FARM—with Andy Donovan, President at dPost, Jeff Pappalardo, Post Partner/Chief Creative Officer at Crowley Webb, Jenna Hutzler, Director of Project Management at Riveter, and Josh Gumulak, Account Director at FARM—to discuss what advertising is like in Buffalo. 

For those not intimately familiar with the advertising industry, it can often be a puzzle. What exactly does a project manager or an account manager do? And what’s the role of an account executive? The creative department, with its myriad of titles, can be equally perplexing. For instance, what does a creative director even do anyway? In our panel discussion, the experts shed light on these roles and their day-to-day activities. But they didn’t stop there. They delved into various topics, from Buffalo’s unique advertising culture to Delaware Blue Hens (you had to be there).

Panelists agreed that advertising in Buffalo differs from advertising in New York City and other larger markets. Jeff, a former city dweller, noted his decision to move back to Buffalo after working there for some time, partly stemmed from the city’s cutthroat nature. Even though he felt competition could sometimes strengthen work, he shared that the best work of his career was created here in Buffalo. Andy agreed, sharing that many of dPosts clients are also picking up on this, citing that many have mentioned loving the friendly-collaborative nature of Buffalo’s advertising scene. Josh, heavily involved with AAF Buffalo’s District 2 operations, which cover New York City’s market, also noted that Buffalo’s quality of work is on par with our down-state relatives, remarking that he’s continually impressed with what our smaller, more nimble, agencies. Jenna also shared this sentiment, noting that the connected nature of Buffalo allows Riveter to tap talent perfect for the situation at hand with ease. 

Outside these topics, the panelists discussed:

  • Imposter syndrome, burnout, and other aspects of mental health in the advertising industry. 
  • How do you get that 1-3, 3-5 years of experience often required on a job application? 
  • The future of advertising as a whole, but also in Buffalo, and how we can adapt to the turbulent changes of our industry. 

Thanks to our panelists, FARM and Clarksburg Cider, for bringing this discussion to life.

 

Stuff

RECAP: 2024 Portfolio Review

Noah Herman

This year’ Portfolio Review event was held on April 13th from 10 AM – 1 PM at Villa Maria College. As always, students presented their best work to some of Buffalo’s brightest advertising pros and got invaluable feedback to take their work to the next level.

This year, students met with 12 pros in 10-minute 1-on-1 sessions for two and a half hours. Each participant presented their top 3 pieces, received feedback, and continued showing the rest of their portfolio. Award winning pros from Crowley Webb, Front Porch, Community Beer Works, Block Club, Riveter Design, and more met with students this year and enjoyed hearing about each project from the talented collection of student participants.

Each year after students share their work with all the professional volunteers, the pros nominate two portfolio review scholarships for outstanding work, portfolio craftsmanship, and presentation skills. So please join us in congratulating the following students:

ortfolio Review Scholarship: Henny Zack, Villa Maria College
Portfolio Review Scholarship: Tanner DeMarco, Villa Maria College
Honorable Mention: Julia Gibas, Villa Maria College
Honorable Mention: Heidi Stavrevski, Buffalo State University

The AAF board would like to thank all professional volunteers and give a major high five to all student participants. We can’t wait for next year!

Events Students Stuff

RECAP: Don Nichols Scholarship 2024

Noah Herman

AAF Buffalo hosts the Don Nichols Scholarship Competition annually to honor the late Buffalo great Don Nichols. Don Nichols began teaching at the Albright Art School and founded its Graphic Design Program in 1950. He then brought it to UB, where he served as the program’s head until his death on July 7, 1987. He was an extraordinarily dedicated teacher who educated hundreds of graphic designers, several of whom attained national prominence. Nichols received the Osborn Award for Creative Excellence from Buffalo’s Art Directors/Communicators and the Chancellor’s Award for Teaching from UB in 1982.

This scholarship competition presents students studying fine arts, marketing & communications, design, photography, writing arts, and illustration with a theme and encourages them to submit work that comments on that theme. This year’s theme focused on artificial intelligence. Below is this year’s prompt:

“Artificial intelligence has taken the world by storm and the industry of communication and design is not exempt. We’re all scrambling to get a handle on what this well mean for our skills and ultimately our jobs. Yet, the theory that this is merely a new tool in our toolbox seems to be more pervasive and reassuring. But using it correctly is the next challenge. What’s your take on AI and how it’ll shape our world in the next few years? Bring to life your thoughts and opinions in any medium you choose.”

After reviewing submissions, the AAF Buffalo Board tallied the votes and is excited to congratulate this year’s Don Nichols Scholarship Competition winners.

1st: William Ankarberg, Villa Maria College


2nd: Laila Adeyola, Villa Maria College


3rd: Tyleek Sevor, Daemen University

ADDYS Events Students

2024 American Advertising Awards Recap – Camp Wannawinanaddy

Ad Club Of Buffalo

Before we get into the whole “camp” of it all, we just gotta say: the dedication and passion from everyone who put this show together was nothing short of inspiring. Oftentimes in our industry, things can get cliquey and competitive, politics get in the way of partnerships… it’s a thing. We get it. It happens. And yes, Mr. Smith Agency, dPost, and the AAF Buffalo Board had a beautiful camp romance, but we went into this show truly wanting to make Camp Wannawinanaddy a place where we all get together and celebrate each other no matter what “cabin” you’re in. Too kumbaya? F*ck you! (Better?) But we really did wanna make the best damn show we could for everyone because we love what we do, we love what you do, and because great work deserves to be celebrated. Period. Okay, now onto the show…

Nestled amongst the Villa Maria Forest, Camp Wannawinanaddy opened for its 2024 Winter Session (although, at 60º, we hardly needed our long johns).

After months of build-up and anticipation, campers filed in by the dozens and received their final Wannawinanaddy collector pins. Decked out in shorts, flannel, and sleeping bags (we even spotted a few visitors from neighboring Camp Crystal Lake), we were treated to s’mores, PB&J’s, and coolers filled with “Mommy & Daddy drinks.” After a few hugs and “Hello’s,” Camp Director Tony ushered us from Registration, up through Brand Rapids, and into Camp Wannawinanaddy.

Once inside, Camp Creator, Frank Cappola, treated everyone to a gorgeous landscape that set the tone for a spectacular show. Our Camp Counselors, Mary, Lindsay, and Evan, kicked off the evening and we got right into the awards. It was a show that saw us celebrate tons of fellow campers for their year of hard work and creative results—including junior camper, Jennifer Lay, who took home Student Best of Show! And we honored some extra special bunkmates: Dre LoPiccolo (Future Star), Kyle Rogers (Joe Crowley Award for Service), and Crista Pfahler (Levy-Osborn Excellence in Communication). We had a sing-along, tug-of-war, there was a raccoon and a bear… it was campin’ good time.

Crowley Webb’s haul shined as bright as the stars above, taking home a truly impressive 40 awards. But smaller shops won big too – especially Abbey Mecca, taking home golds, the Mosaic Award, and Best of Show for their work with The Buffalo and Erie County Naval & Military Park, “Two Wars: The Road to Integration.”

We’re clearly partial but this night felt like some good clean fun. And for as much as we wanna win an addy, we also wanna celebrate our friends and colleagues. Congrats to all the winners—we hope you had fun. If you wanna relive the evening, click here for the entire run-of-show or here for the full gallery.

(and it’s worth mentioning again… this show would not have happened without the massive support and guidance from Tracy Rozler at Villa, Shannon Silva, and Frank Cappola. A shout-out to all long-hours from the judges, Anibal, Chris, and Lauren. And one again to Mr. Smith for the theme and branding, the site, assembling awards, compiling the showbook… and dPost for writing the show, doing the reels, making some killer videos, and logistic-ing like you wouldn’t believe.)

Stuff

2023 Portfolio Seminar

Noah Herman

On the morning of November 11th at Daemen University, AAF Buffalo hosted its annual Portfolio Seminar. Students from all over Buffalo converged at Daemen’s Tower Gallery where Emma Lonnen, a Graphic Designer at Crowley Webb, Chelsea Turton, a Graphic Designer at Fisher Price, and Andy Rose, Vice President and Brand Development specialist at dPost, discussed the ins-and-outs of a great portfolio. With nearly 50 years experience between the three presenters, students gathered an array of input ranging from the technical to personal sides of presenting work.

Below are some takeaways and highlights:

  • Quality projects over the quantity of projects always! Every presenter agreed that showing even just 4 projects with interesting ideas, integrated or cross-channel solutions, and quality mockups went much further to recruiters than bombarding them with 10+ “small” pieces (those might be worth putting on social media).
  • Get out there! Networking is challenging, but coming to events like the ones AAF Buffalo hosts will help recruiters and agency professionals know who you are before applying and see that you’re out there and interested. It’s all about creating a connection, so don’t feel the need to be overly professional—strike up a conversation and say hello. You never know where it might go.
  • Submit your work in competitions. Competitions like the American Advertising Awards or the Don Nichols Scholarship Competition get tons of eyes on your work (and you!) without you having to wait for a formal job opening. Sometimes professionals at local agencies will make a note of the work they see and who it was by in case an opportunity opens up in the future. 
  • LinkedIn is a great place to be. Almost all the presenters have used LinkedIn in a professional capacity to find talent, connect with colleagues, or apply for jobs. LinkedIn is a great way to get your work, and yourself, out there—you’d be surprised who’s browsing for talent.
  • Be yourself. Each presenter noted they often see young professionals try to be “professional” or mimic the behavior of people they look up to. Show off who you are! Employers are looking for a diverse perspective to add to their team. They’re looking for a person who they’d like to spend 40 hours a week with, every week. Don’t be afraid to loosen up your shoulders and act natural, it’ll land you in a spot that’s a better fit for you and for them.

The tips in the bullets above represent a fraction of what Emma, Chelsea, and Andy covered this year, so mark your calendars for next November when three more Buffalo creatives will talk about what they think makes a killer portfolio.

ADDYS Events Students

2023 Jingle Bowl

Chelsea Carney

The Martin Group winning team holding the golden pin.

It was the yearly unveiling of the American Advertising Awards theme, amidst agencies vying for the coveted golden pin, a plethora of donated food and cans, and one agency emerging triumphant in the end.

Crowley Webb, The Martin Group, dPost, Mr. Smith, Mower, FARM, Luminus and more gathered for an incredible night of bowling at Manor Lanes. So, who took the golden pin home? The Martin Group—congrats! 

Attendees donated to FeedMore WNY upon entering the event. Together, we collected 208lbs of non-perishables to help feed a total of 173 families in our community. Let’s go, Buffalo!

The grand finale of the night was a camp counselor’s dream revealing 2024’s American Advertising Awards theme: Camp Wannawinanaddy. For the first time ever, two agencies are collaborating to put on a show night that campers will never forget—dPost and Mr. Smith Agency! We can’t wait to see their ideas come to life.

Thank you to all who came to donate to a good cause and helped us spread some holiday cheer. We’re wishing everyone a happy and healthy new year!

The outside of Manor Lanes bowling alley.

Events Speaker Speaker Series Students

2023 Spotlight Speaker: Nihilo

Chelsea Carney

As part of the 2023-2024 Spotlight Speaker series, AAF Buffalo was glad to welcome the creators of branding agency Nihilo, Emunah Winer and Margaret Kerr-Jarrett.

At Nihilo, Emunah and Margaret work with first-to-market and founder-led companies to build a unique and creative identity using their expertise across brand strategy and visual and verbal brand identities. 

Some of the key takeaways:

  • The principle of “creatio ex-nihilo” – creating something from nothing – is a challenging standard to live up to in today’s world. Giving yourself space to imagine bigger, to allow an idea that challenges preconceived standards to enter the picture, is worth pursuing. And they have found a great niche with Nihilo serving many first-to-market and founder-led companies seeking a unique brand identity to grow from.
  • Emunah and Margaret showcased several projects where they told stories through the lens of the hero’s journey. Not just advertising a product or service, but putting their target customer front and center, telling their story – and how the product or service makes an impact for them.
  • Respect your customers enough to know that they’ll “get it.” You don’t always have to spell out exactly everything you do. Honor the people who you’re for. They’ll understand the stories and the messaging you’re communicating and the value within that advertising.
  • Taking your work seriously doesn’t always mean making serious work – like the illustration for Giggly tonics pictured below, featuring a wonderful unicorn named Goldy.

Thanks to Emunah and Margaret for making the trek to Buffalo to join us, and thank you to our sponsor Crowley Webb as well as all in attendance who joined for this inspiring conversation.

AdWeek Events Students

RECAP: ADWEEK

Chelsea Carney

ADWEEK always holds a special place in our hearts and is a week we always look forward to from the planning and preparation all the way to the night of and the stories and connections made that we get to hear about after. With a variety of events, all in one week, you’re bound to attend one (if not all!). This years ADWEEK, sponsored by Basis Technologies, included a returning fan favorite of course and a few new ones that are sure to make an appearance in 2024. Dig into the details below!

Stephen Gabris taking a headshot photo

ADWEEK Day 1: Headshots & Hops
Fresh off a massive Bills win against the Dolphins, AAF set up shop in the lobby of Seneca One to celebrate Victory Monday with Buffalo Advertising’s best game faces.

The Headshots & Hops event is one of the year’s favorites; a chance to network and drink and update our LinkedIn profile pics with something way better than your onboarding photo from seven years ago. 

While we chatted and clinked our pint glasses, Stephen Gabrus was on tap with some impressive glass of his own. This dude came prepared with multiple setups and gave everyone two different badass photos; one super professional neat & clean pic with traditional 3-point lighting (this is the one you show your parents and CEOs) and one rad multi-colored statement piece for the creative in all of us (this is the one you show everyone else).

Headshots & Hops was an awesome time and AAF Buffalo brought a whole new meaning to mugging for the camera. If you missed this event, you missed a good one – don’t sleep on it next year.

ADWEEK Day 2: Internship Skillshop
We spent AdWeek Day 2 at Riveter listening to a rockin’ panel share advice on landing internships. We heard from a variety of professionals including:

  • Jordan Hegyi, Partner + Creative Director at Riveter Design
  • Natalie Ryan, Account Manager at The Martin Group
  • Makenzie Fintak, Buffalo State Class of 2020 Grad + Fellowship Participant at White Bike
  • Dora Jones, Talent Acquisition Sourcing Specialist at Univera Healthcare
  • Moderator Noah Herman, AAF Buffalo Education Chair, Adjunct Professor of Graphic Design at Daemen, and freelance UX Designer 

Our panel spoke to an audience of nearly 30 students and ad professionals, giving everyone insight into finding—and succeeding at—internships in the marketing and advertising world. After an evening of great questions and conversation, attendees left with some important advice in their back pockets:

  • Know who you’re talking to—research the company and their work, along with the person who’s interviewing you.
  • Paid or unpaid isn’t everything—weigh the benefits of each including the experience you’ll get and the connections you’ll make.
  • Google yourself—because employers will too!
  • Keep your LinkedIn profile up to date—this is the first place employers will reference.
  • Have someone you’re comfortable going to with concerns—this doesn’t have to be your direct boss, but open communication with a colleague makes a big difference.

Here’s to our attendees landing some awesome internships in the future!

ADWEEK Day 3: Spelling B-e-e

“Kerning”…“Procrastinate”…“Lithography”

The first documented spelling bee in the United States took place in 1825, in a small town in Kentucky, organized by teachers as a way to promote literacy and education.

The first-ever AAF Buffalo Spelling Bee took place in 2023, pitting five contestants from the Western New York advertising community under the spotlight at Cole’s on Elmwood Avenue.

Ryan Weatherbee, content developer at Crowley Webb, came in as a highly touted speller and led off the order of participants. Scott Bartels, past AAF Buffalo President and senior digital product manager at KeyBank, returned to the club to join the festivities of AdWeek. AAF Buffalo VP of Communications Chelsea Carney joined the Spelling Bee along with her White Bicycle Colleague, brand strategist Jillian McGarry. Rounding out the competitors was Renee Helda, Senior Art Director at Mr. Smith Agency.

“Liaison”…“Minuscule”…“Advisable”

A challenging slate of opening words led to Weatherbee bowing out of the competition first, shortly followed out by Bartels.

“Optimization”…“Geotargeted”…“Analytics”

A few words for the competition drew inspiration from our 2023 AdWeek sponsor, Basis Technologies, a digital media automation and intelligence company.

“Celebration”…“Restaurant”…“Receipt”

Some more familiar words led to a fast back-and-forth as McGarry, Carney, and Helda took their turns in swift succession.

“Chautauqua”…“Scajaquada”

An interjection of some of the hardest-to-spell words from across the Buffalo region caught the contestants off guard, leading to McGarry’s elimination and leaving Carney and Helda in a one-on-one for the championship.

“Luxurious…“Lucrative”…“Succinct”

The hard-fought battle lasted longer than 60 words, but in the end, Renee Helda took home the title of Spelling Bee Champion when Chelsea Carney spelled “transformative” wrong in sudden death. Let’s just say that the stage has been set for the ultimate redemption in 2024.



ADWEEK Day 4: American Advertising Awards Q & A
On Thursday, October 5th, AAF Buffalo closed out AdWeek with an American Advertising Awards Q & A over at dPost.

Eager pros looking to shine this award season showed up and our seriously insightful panelists answered the community’s burning questions about the submission process, show night, and more.

 Here’s who sat on the panel:

  • Caroline Buchas (past AAF Buffalo President, Digital Operations Manager at Catholic Health)
  • Chelsea Carney (2x past Awards Chair, Senior Designer at White Bicycle)
  • Lindsay Neilson (current and past Awards Chair, Art Director at Mr. Smith Agency)
  • Adina Delmar (past Awards Chair, Senior Account Manager at Crowley Webb)

Emcee, Evan Pease (board member, Director of Post Production at dPost) kept the questions flowing for about an hour – sharing FAQs and taking live questions from the crowd.

The night ended with a bit of post-panel conversation, and attendees left with much more confidence leading up to the awards.

If you couldn’t make the event or have more questions as you start getting your entries in line, please send your questions to addyhelp@aafbuffalo.com. We’d love to help!

Submissions are now open and our biggest piece of advice to those entering is to start early! The platform automatically saves your work and won’t be entered for judging until you click “submit” so you can do a little here and there!

And no, the theme for the beloved AAF Buffalo American Advertising Awards was not revealed at this event. Our lips are sealed ’til Jingle Bowl on that one. 

Special thanks to our sponsors, @basistechnologies and @dpost.studio for this event and a huge thank you to everyone who came out for AdWeek. It wouldn’t have been the same without you!

Make sure to plan for 2024 ADWEEK in early October!

Announcements Board Events Latest News

RECAP: 2023 Annual Meeting

Ad Club Of Buffalo

The 2023-2024 club year is in full force and this year’s Annual Meeting was held at one of our favorite locations, Big Ditch Brewing.

Returning and prospective members had the opportunity to mingle before president Mary Pace kicked off the evening’s proceedings. After the introduction of new executive board members, and chairs the head of each committee gave the audience a taste of what to expect this club year.

We heard from:

  • Lindsay Neilson, VP of Programming on upcoming events and exciting new programs
  • Chelsey Carney, VP of Communications on where you can go to get the latest communications from the club
  • Joe Ray, Membership and Sponsorship Chair on how to become a sponsor and which membership is right for you
  • Noah Herman, Education Chair on how educational programs are back in session for students

In case you missed it, get ready for more professional development and networking opportunities with returning favorites like AdWeek, the student Portfolio Series, and the American Advertising Awards (AAA’s).

To get access to member-exclusive events and special discounts, become a member today.