When Adidas Hockey was tasked with designing the Buffalo Sabres most recent Winter Classic jersey, they did market research. They studied trends, demographics, competitors, and history. But their most valuable tool was Eric Bodamer, their Buffalo-born senior designer. Bodamer brought something different to the table. He was from Buffalo. His family, friends, and neighbors growing up were his research. He knew Buffalo, inherently.
“For a kid from North Tonawanda, it was a dream come true,” says Bodamer.
During our 2018 Ad Week in October, Bodamer came back home to Buffalo to speak to our membership and guests, a crowd of close to 60 at Pearl Street Grill & Brewery. As Bodamer relived his childhood throughout his hour-long talk, he paid tribute to his blue-collar and gritty roots with love, often praising our city and its people for contributing to his own creative process.
He provided our audience with exquisite detail into the creation and stories that went into developing the Sabres’ 2018 Winter Classic jersey that they wore New Year’s Day at Citi Field. He explained the extensive and intricate pitch process. Most of all, he was explicit in expressing that it went against his wishes to include “NY” within our Sabres’ crest for the game.
Before heading back to the west coast, Bodamer let us in on the Vegas Golden Knights team branding that he was a part of prior to the 2017-2018 NHL season. From sitting with the Knights owners to dozens of naming concepts and selecting just the right color palette, he led us through the process from start to finish.
On behalf of all true-blue Buffalonians, we thank Eric for showing his Queen City love and never forgetting where he got his start. As Adidas continues to expand their footprint throughout the NHL, we guarantee you’ll see Eric’s influence through it all.
A few times a year, AAF Buffalo likes to engage our membership with interesting, informative Skillshops. These sessions feature topics that can range from copyright law to analytics to trade shows and more. On Monday, October 15th, Hadley Exhibits kicked off AAF Buffalo’s Ad Week with a Skillshop of their own. The firm hosted more than two dozen club members, presenting “Trade Shows in the Age of Digital.”
Our members took an in-depth look at what’s new in the fun and engaging world of B2B marketing. Our board member, Alex Keogan, hosted the night with an interactive presentation detailing what companies and agencies can do to really engage their or their client’s audience before, during, and after a trade show. Following Alex’s talk, the attendees took a tour of the 180,000 square foot facility where Hadley Exhibits designs, fabricates, and stores displays.
Keep an eye out for our next AAF Buffalo Skillshop in January 2019!
Role/years with AAF Buffalo: Communications Chair- 2 years
Occupation: Content and Digital Marketing Associate at Invest Buffalo Niagara
Twitter handle: @GregPokriki
Instagram handle: @GregPokriki
Where do you work, and what does your role entail? Invest Buffalo Niagara — Content and Digital Marketing Associate. I write for our blog. I host our podcast. I update our website. I run our social media channels. I craft our email newsletters. I do some public relations. If it’s content, it’s probably me.
What drove you to get into the advertising/marketing biz?
I’ve always been a very sentimental person. My favorite gift to get is the cheap, thoughtful one. And so I think I see value in everyday or common things. More importantly, I love making other people confront that sentiment that they might not have even known was there. I see romance in a street meat vendor. So storytelling led me to this field. More practically, in high school all my English teachers asked me if I wanted to pursue writing. In college I stood out as a writer. Getting that kind of attention at such a young age is influential. You have no frame of reference on how to become a writer, so to hear professionals complimenting you kind of puts it within reach. We all feel somewhat fraudulent in our field (at least I hope it’s not just me), but getting reassurances from people you respect and idolize is what got me started and what keeps me going.
What do you find challenging in our industry? Any conversation that starts with, “Hey, I read your article.” It’s either uncomfortable flattery or awkward criticism.
What advice do you have for emerging talent in your field? I suppose I am an emerging talent(?) in my field, so I should probably be taking more advice than I’m giving. My mantra, based off advice I’ve been given or read: Do more. The only way to get better is by putting out a large body of work. The only way to become a better writer is to write and read more. Other quick hits I love:
Proceed as if success is inevitable
The harder I work, the luckier I get
Tell us about organizations/charities you’re passionate about. I like helping kids. I tutored at inner-city schools throughout college. I was able to help a lot of refugee children who both wanted to learn and wanted a friend. That was rewarding. Almost every child is creative, but it gets taught out of us. I’m passionate about keeping that spark alive.
What are three things you use at work every day? Post-it notes. Stress ball. Microsoft Word.
When you’re not working, how do you spend your free time (hobbies, side projects, etc.)? I watch a lot of baseball.
What’s your favorite app or social media outlet? Why? Twitter makes me laugh and keeps me informed. I’d like to use it less, though.
What’s the last thing you read? Yes We (Still) Can- Politics in the Age of Obama, Trump, and Twitter
Duff’s or Anchor Bar? Duff’s for the taste. Anchor Bar for the ambiance.
Why did you join AAF Buffalo? I wanted to foster a creative community in Buffalo.
What role(s) do you play on the AAF Buffalo board? I chair the communications committee.
What do you enjoy most about AAF Buffalo? Feeling a part of a creative community. I’m always impressed by both the brain power and willingness to share that brain power.
How has AAF Buffalo impacted you professionally? I’ve made so many connections and met so many talented people. It’s incredible when you’re at an event and sit back to think about how much talent is in the room. I love being a small part of that.
What differentiates AAF Buffalo from other groups? It is both socially and professionally valuable. Many groups I’ve had experience with are only one.
What’s one pro tip you can share with our membership that will make their lives better or easier? Write down everything. My notes app is home to so many terrible and often incoherent, 3 a.m. ideas. Every so often, there’s a decent one, too.
The annual gathering of the American Advertising Federation brought club and industry leadership together in Chicago for four days of education, networking, and awards at ADMERICA 2018. We bring you these updates from The Windy City:
Accolades for AAF Buffalo
While we came up a little short on our goal of a repeat as Club of the Year, we were still happy to exit Chi-Town with a stack of awards deeper than a pizza pie at Lou Malnati’s. AAF Buffalo received eight awards in the AAF’s Club Achievement Competition! For those of you keeping score at home, that’s 19 awards over the last three years.
2018 Club Achievement Awards 2nd Place: • Advertising Education • Public Service • Government Relations • Club Operations • Diversity and Multicultural Initiatives
A huge thank you goes out to each and every member of our board of directors who contributed to another successful year: Tim Bouchard (Luminus), Kyle Rogers (BlueCross BlueShield of WNY), Josh Gumulak (Gelia), Andrew Bevevino (Martin Davison Public Relations), April Brown (Delaware North), Shannon Silva (dPost), Ally Balcerzak (Lloyd), Erin Haskell (Great Lakes Orthodontics), Brittany Klotzbach (Gelia), Jillian Minderler (Quinlan), Jaime Applegate (NOCO), Grace de Rosa (Telesco Creative Group), Teresa Carosa (Independent Health), Paige Meckler (Crowley Webb), Lauren Carmer (FARM), Greg Pokriki (Invest Buffalo Niagara) club admin Tina Pastwik, and our student liaison Noah Herman. They balance their work and family, yet still find a way to volunteer their time and energy throughout the year to make club initiatives happen.
It would be remiss of us not to thank our members, corporate members, sponsors, and the employers of our board members for their tremendous support throughout the year. Your participation allows our organization to thrive and create opportunities for all involved in the marketing communications field in Western New York, and that backing is greatly appreciated.
Shout-Out to SU
The student team from Syracuse University, members of AAF District 2, earned first place in the 2018 National Student Advertising Competition for their Ocean Spray campaign.
The NSAC is the premier college advertising competition that provides more than 2,000 college students the real-world experience of creating a strategic advertising/marketing/media campaign for a corporate client. Students develop a marketing plan and then pitch their work to advertising professionals at the district, semifinal, and national levels.
Celebrating Diversity
The AAF’s Mosaic Awards recognize companies, agencies, and individuals whose commitment to diversity and inclusion is evident through their creative work and organization-wide initiatives. Our attendance at last year’s awards ceremony inspired the board to promote these practices at the local level with the creation of the CommUNITY Award for Inclusive Advertising. The local award in the American Advertising Awards competition recognizes content that extends beyond stereotypical portrayals and depicts multicultural communities and individuals as the complex, multifaceted, and dynamic groups they are. While you’re working on your 2019 submissions, check out a couple of winners from this year’s Mosaic Awards.
The larva that is an 11th hour scramble to stuff envelopes and fill out online entry forms each January turns into the beautiful butterfly known as the American Advertising Awards each June. The national show honors the best of the best in advertising. While our Spotlight Speaker Series pals from Brunner brought home a few gold awards for their work on The Journey, it was also great to see a lot of creative work that wasn’t necessarily on our radar before. You can see all the winners at the 2018 American Advertising Awards website. Here is a personal favorite from the night.
Come on. Who doesn’t like watching people being slapped by a tentacle in slow motion?
Once again, ADMERICA provided great opportunities for our executive board to hear from industry leaders and champions of diversity initiatives, meet with our fellow AAF chapters, attend a slew of workshops, and draw inspiration from the best of the best at the American Advertising Awards.
Due to a scheduling conflict we needed to move the date of the WNY American Advertising Awards show earlier than normal. In doing so we felt a rematch of last year’s wrestling-themed show wouldn’t be fair to all of our attendees and entrants with a shortened training schedule, so we turned over the creative reigns to our pals at Gelia.
As you may have seen in The Road to the ADDYs series, co-chairs Brittany Klotzbach and Jason Yates have been on a months-long journey to make this The Greatast ADDYs Ever. In a nod to Old Hollywood-style award shows, with an appropriately satirical spin on our industry, it’s safe to say the hard work of the entire ADDYs committee allowed the 420 attendees inside Kleinhans Music Hall to properly recognize the greatast advertising our region created in 2017.
Judges from Baltimore, Chicago, Pittsburgh, and Washington D.C. scored over 500 professional and student entries in January. Without further ado, see who had an extra great night by bringing home some hardware.
Professional Winners
A repeat of last year’s local competition, Crowley Webb brought home the most ADDYs with a total of 35 awards (14 gold, 21 silver). The Martin Group added 22 ADDYs (6 gold, 16 silver) to decorate their new digs on Main Street. Gelia (4 gold, 14 silver) and White Bicycle (3 gold, 8 silver) were the other firms to crack double-digit awards. Rounding out the top five was Telesco Creative Group with nine ADDYs (2 gold, 7 silver). A total of 26 companies took home at least one gold or silver award.
Best of Show
The best of the best on the greatast night in advertising went to Crowley Webb, picking up the Best of Show Award for their campaign for the Irish Classical Theatre Company’s The Wake.
Special Awards
In addition to the all of the work that is created, we pause each year to recognize several professionals for their contributions and accomplishments in the Buffalo creative community. The 2018 recipients were:
Mike Gluck, President at Gluckworks – Levy-Osborn Award for Excellence in Communications – This award was created to recognize outstanding achievement and service in the communications industry.
Brittney Sikora, Designer at White Bicycle – AAF Buffalo Future Star Award – This award honors an outstanding young professional in the marketing and advertising field who has demonstrated great potential in their early years in the industry.
Matt Low, VP, Creative Director at Crowley Webb – Joe Crowley Award for Service – This award recognizes not only hard work, but also outstanding achievement in furthering the activities and interests of AAF Buffalo.
The Veritiv Creative Use of Paper Award
An award designed to make digital natives a little twitchy, the Veritiv Creative Use of Paper went to a new winner this year as Crowley Webb creatively used paper for their 2017 Holiday Card for Praxis. A special thank you goes to Jean Clemens from Veritiv for her continued support of AAF Buffalo and this award.
The CommUNITY Award for Inclusive Advertising
Introduced for the 2018 competition, the CommUNITY Award for Inclusive Advertising recognizes content that extends beyond stereotypical portrayals and depicts multicultural communities and individuals as the complex, multifaceted, and dynamic groups they are. The award recognizes advertising that addresses issues experienced by under-represented communities and gives voice to groups that have been stereotyped or ignored in media and by society, increasing viewer’s perceptions and understanding of multicultural communities.
Crowley Webb’s poster campaign for Buffalo Prep earned them the first edition of the CommUNITY Award for Inclusive Advertising.
As mentioned earlier, college students were also included in the action. Taking home the Student Best of Show were Noah Herman, Danny Rosina, Randy Oviasogie, Jason Murawski, Danielle Romaneo, Joseph Pietromicca, Jessica Mjoen, Anna Simpson, and Shelby Janczyk of Daemen College for their Daemen All High: See and Be Seen campaign.
A total of 20 ADDYs were awarded in the student competition with winners coming from Buffalo State College, Canisius College, Daemen College, St. Bonaventure University, and Villa Maria College.
Thank You to Our Sponsors
The 2018 WNY American Advertising Award Show would have been less great if it weren’t for the support of our sponsors FB Displays & Designs and VSP Graphic Group.
The Road to the ADDYs keeps going…
The gold and silver winners in both professional and student categories will have the opportunity to compete in the AAF District 2 American Advertising Awards with the hope of moving on to the national show in Chicago in June.
Congratulations to all the winners and another successful year of work in WNY!
See all the greatness in the 2018 American Advertising Awards show book below and make sure to view pictures from the night on our Facebook page which will be uploaded in the coming days.
Another great ADDYs Preview Night is behind us and what a night it was! The AAF Board of Directors and ADDYs planning committee were proud to have the opportunity to display 474 professional entries and 53 student entries, which included campaigns, billboards, print, broadcast and multi-media, among other assets. We had our largest crowd yet as over 160 attendees viewed a year’s array of diverse and impressive work while enjoying an evening of camaraderie with Buffalo ad industry peers.
Many thanks to all who planned and coordinated the evening, and congratulations to all for your award-worthy entries.
In no particular order, here are the best big game ads in the opinion of our board members:
Paige Meckler –Budweiser “Stand By You”
I’m a sucker for heart-wrenching commercials every year. I like that their spot doesn’t feature beer. Instead, it was about water. Specifically, the ad highlights the company’s disaster relief efforts. In my opinion, Budweiser can do no wrong. A+!
Tim Bouchard –P&G (Tide) “Every Ad is a Tide Ad”
I’m a sucker for clever ideas. I also love when jokes span across multiple jokes, in this case multiple commercials. The real reason I thought this campaign (yes campaign, not just commercial) was top notch was the main point wasn’t the joke, it was the value proposition that in almost every profession, every industry, every commercial there is a need for cleanliness and tidy clothing. This angle gave them legs so they could play with the audience and entertain them by having a spot during each of the four quarters. It was just plain fun.
Greg Pokriki –Amazon “Alexa Loses Her Voice”
The Alexa ad combined starpower and humor in a really creative way. It subtly showed you Alexa’s capabilities while being self-deprecating and self-aware. They managed to humanize a somewhat robotic voice and sometimes faceless, huge corporation. They’ve also followed up on it, encouraging users to ask Alexa to do her Gordon Ramsay impression. I shhh’d someone out loud at my Super Bowl party during this ad, so you know it was worth watching.
PS: My least favorite ad was probably the 15 seconds of a black, blank screen. They just didn’t get the message across.
Ally Balcerzak –Budweiser “Stand By You”
I’m not a fan of the beer, but Budweiser’s ads usually make my top five favorites and this year is no different. The company tactfully placed the spotlight on a major philanthropic initiative that has had a positive impact on millions of people this year alone. Pairing a Skylar Grey cover of Stand By You with visuals of the line flipping from beer to water says everything they wanted to without seeming boastful. This ad is a perfect example of the power of “show, don’t tell.”
Brittany Klotzbach –Febreeze “Bleep Don’t Stink”
Although there are so many different advertising tactics to get the viewers attention, the commercials that usually have the biggest impact on me during the Super Bowl are the comical ones. This ad made me laugh with its light-hearted humor and proud parents for not having a smelly child. I think this 30-second ad served its purpose, and there’s even a catchy hashtag that I would guess the company will build off of in upcoming advertisements.
Grace de Rosa –P&G (Tide) “Every Ad is a Tide Ad”
Definitely the winner of the Superbowl commercials for me. Just one second when you think it’s just another typical car commercial or Budweiser horse, David Harbour breaks the fourth wall. As the game went on, I began to think that every commercial he was going to pop out wearing impeccably clean clothes. In that way, they made every commercial come back to them – genius. Also, throwing Hopper into anything is a win for me.
Dan Nesselbush –E*Trade “This is Getting Really Old”
While I enjoyed the Amazon’s “Alexa Loses Her Voice” ad for validating my conspiracy theory that they are listening to my every move with that device. I respect the incredibly deep pockets of Procter & Gamble and their Tide campaign with an endless selection of Tide ads to choose from, many related to various P&G brands. My favorite ad of the night came from E*Trade with “This is Getting Really Old.” I thought the idea and execution was creative and humorous without using the crutch of celebrity appearances. Plus it did what an ad is supposed to do, get me thinking about how their service relates to me – yes, I’d like to find ways to retire by the time I’m 85.
Jenna Hutzler –NFL “Touchdown Celebrations to Come”
Humor in design is a tall order. So many things can go wrong but the NFL ad was genuine, light-hearted and was the perfect comedic relief in a sea of ads that felt like they were trying too hard this year (“Dilly, Dilly” has lost its momentum for me). I was watching with more than a few people who did not understand the Dirty Dancing reference and it was still well received. The movements OBJ and Eli Manning were the perfect amount of awkward but they nailed the jump at the end. It also supplemented nicely a year of carefully curated end-zone celebrations!
Andrew Bevevino –Squarespace – “Make It Happen”
This is probably a dark-horse pick, but my favorite ad of this year’s Super Bowl was the Squarespace ad with Keanu Reeves. Typically, I’m looking for a Super Bowl commercial to make me laugh. The spots that have long, serious voiceovers are lost on me, probably because I’ve seen so many of them over the years. I also don’t love the corporate social responsibility-themed ads, because they always seem a bit contrived. So, this Squarespace ad was right in the sweet spot for me. It was short, memorable and funny. I’m also a big Keanu Reeves fan, so I’m sure that helped Squarespace’s cause, at least as far as I’m concerned.
April Brown –Amazon’s “Alexa Loses Her Voice”
Amazon’s “Alexa Lost her Voice” ad is Super Bowl commercial gold. It does a great job of showing off how people are using Alexa, but also brings a creative twist to the sheer terror that could ensure for all avid Alexa users if she really did lose her voice. Ending it with Anthony Hopkins had me nearly in tears.
I also thought Tide did an incredible job of putting their spot together in way that leaves you guessing (and laughing) until the very end. And while Tide is getting a lot of praise for that, I think Tourism Australia deserves some too. Their spot with Chris Hemsworth and Danny McBride had our entire party up in arms about a remake of Crocodile Dundee–only to find out that it’s not actually happening, Tourism Australia just wants you to visit. I think the “element of surprise” strategy is really smart and especially effective when you have over 100 million people tuning in.
Josh Gumulak – “Doritos Blaze vs. Mtn. Dew Ice”
This ad has everything you could possibly ask for in a fun Super Bowl spot. Two superstar actors rapping a couple classic verses from Busta Rhymes’ “Look At Me Now” and Missy Elliott’s “Get Ur Freak On”? Check. Shameless and entertaining product plugs? Yup. Catchy hashtags? Sure. A double entendre shoutout to Game of Thrones’ Fire and Ice? Definitely. It may not have been the most socially focused ad of the night, but it wasn’t meant to be. It was meant to be a good time, and it certainly followed through.
Lauren Carmer –Verizon’s “Answering the Call”
Humorous commercials have played well in past years. And while I can’t get that Doritos vs. Mountain Dew lip sync battle out of my head, Verizon’s spot is sticking with me in a different sense. Several major brands appealed to the heart instead of the funny bone. Some missed the mark, sounding disingenuous in an attempt to be trendy. But spots like Verizon’s and Budweiser’s warmed my cold, shriveled heart with stories of people helping people. Verizon took it a step further, developing a corresponding website where visitors can listen to more thank you messages, share their own stories, or donate to the American Red Cross. I like how Verizon used this public stage to of course sell you something but also make a greater impact.
Kyle Rogers –Amazon’s “Alexa Loses Her Voice”
I hate to jump on the bandwagon but I can’t in good conscience vote for anything other than this 90 second piece of marketing brilliance. Aside from just generally being the funniest ad out there, Amazon brought together a collection of celebrities that span and connect with different demographics. I also appreciate the foresight to eliminate a potential PR issue with the altering of the Alexa’s name to prevent all of our respective echoes from responding to the ad. This was Amazon’s first Super Bowl commercial and I’m glad they took advantage of the opportunity to put Jeff Bezos out there. For many, this was the first time seeing his face and his visibility will go a long way to humanizing a company whose technology and vast stores of data can be frightening and concerning for a lot of people.
I’m looking to try and spend more time with my niece and nephew in Syracuse this year.
Shannon Silva
My resolution for 2018 is to be as happy as I am in 2017.
Greg Pokriki
If I spent as much time reading books as I did reading my Twitter feed, I would have already finished every great, must-read novel. So my resolution is two-fold: spend less time on social media and use that new-found time reading books.
Ally Balcerzak
I’m sticking with two resolutions I made for 2017 but never actually accomplished: to read more books and re-learn Spanish.
Brittany Klotzbach
I would say my New Year’s resolution is to be more active and volunteer in my community, and enjoy time with my family as much as possible!
Paige Meckler
Be the person my dogs think I am.
Erin Haskell
I’m not big on New Year’s resolutions. Waiting until the new year feels arbitrary to me. If I see something I want to improve I tackle it throughout the year. No waiting!
Grace de Rosa
Eat more vegetables – I know, it’s ridiculous but meat>vegetables any day. My husband and I need to be a bit more healthier I guess…
April Brown
My resolution is based on one word this year: FOCUS. Being more focused will help me accomplish personal goals both short and long term. Being more mindful of how I spend my time everyday is how I plan on focusing on what’s important to me. I waste a lot of time scrolling through social media, so that’s the first thing I’m going to change. There are always a bunch of little things I “plan on doing” or “have been meaning to do” so I think “focus” will help me with that. Here’s to a mindful 2018!
Kyle Rogers
To buy a house and plan a wedding without any episodes of cardiac arrest.
Dan Nesselbush
Carve out time for personal projects and do a better job anticipating when I really, really need to do my Christmas shopping.
Josh Gumulak
Cut down on waste. Similarly to what April is saying, which is great, I tend to also spend a lot of time on social media, as well as keeping up on current events and pop culture in general. Not that I plan to cut down on it, but to go about it more efficiently and consume similar amounts but in shorter, better spent periods of time, is one of my resolutions.
“And now we welcome the new year. Full of things that have never been.” -Rainer Maria Rilke
Ugly shoes and ugly sweaters abounded at this year’s Jingle Bowl on Wednesday, December 6. AAF Buffalo hosted its 4th Annual Holiday Bowling Tournament at Kenmore Lanes to support the Food Bank of WNY.
Buffalo’s creative minds came with open hearts to donate non-perishable food items amassing 649 pounds, enough to warrant its own show on TLC. Or as we like to put it, 540 meals for neighbors in need.
Manzella Marketing, Luminus, Telesco Creative Group, Gelia, Parkway Digital, FARM, The Revs Agency, Crowley Webb, Goldberg Segalla, 19 IDEAS, and Quinlan came together for the cause before hitting the lanes with their best Lebowski impressions.
Sixteen teams of four, including eleven company-sponsored teams, came to represent. But only one took home the glory and the coveted golden pin.
Manzella Marketing sleighed, pinning down prizes in every category. Scott Fierle was named the top men’s bowler, Nicole Meisenburg was named the top women’s bowler, and the Manzella team was named top team, sweeping the tournament. (Can you say ringer?) They wiped the floor with the rest of us, but we’ll spare you the details.
Thank you to Quinlanfor sponsoring the event and to Kenmore Lanes for having us. And thank you to Big Ditch Brewing Co., NOCO Express, and Certo Brothers for donating additional prizes.
Head over to our Facebook page if you want to see the full gallery of all the beautiful people who joined us in ugly shoes and sweaters
Each year, amid the hustle and bustle of the holiday season, we like to throw a few extra things on your to-do list with the American Advertising Awards. Here is a quick recap of some new highlights for the 2018 WNY American Advertising Awards (or ADDYs if you resist change).
The David I. Levy Communicator of the Year and Osborn Award for Creativity have been combined
AAF Buffalo’s roots trace back to a pair of organizations – the Professional Communicators of Western New York and Art Directors/Communicators of Buffalo – each with their own special awards to acknowledge individuals who helped shape our region’s creative scene.
The Professional Communicators of Western New York presented the David I. Levy Communicator of the Year annually while the Art Director/Communicators of Buffalo awarded the Alex Osborn Award for Creativity. Now united as one group of marketing communications professionals, AAF Buffalo’s board decided that the time is right to combine the awards due to parallel criteria for the honors.
In an effort to preserve the legacy of David Levy, one of the top ad agency executives in Buffalo from the 1950s through the 1980s, and Alex Osborn, the inventor of brainstorming and manager of the Buffalo office of Barton, Durstine & Osborn (precursor to the global agency BBDO), we’ve merged and reintroduced the awards into one honor each year which will now be known as the Levy-Osborn Award for Excellence in Communications.
The Levy-Osborn recognizes outstanding achievement and service in the communications industry. Recipients of this award are individuals who, through a consistent, high degree of original thinking in their field, have left an indelible mark on the Western New York creative community. Winners have a distinguished record of achievement over an extended period of time, which includes contributions to their company, the industry and the community. Nominations for this award, as well as the Joe Crowley Award for Service and Future Star, are being accepted until January 8, 2018.
CommUNITY: a commitment to a more diverse ad industry
Our board was honored to win first place in the AAF Club Achievement Awards Competition for Diversity & Multicultural Initiatives in 2016-17. We had the privilege of attending the Mosaic Awards gala during ADMERICA 2017 and drew inspiration from those who are committed to promoting diversity and inclusion in the industry, which was evident through their creative work and organization-wide initiatives. Following that event, one goal of our executive board was to take action locally to increase awareness of those inclusive advertising practices and encourage the development of a more diverse community of marketing professionals in Western New York.
While we’re in our second year of working with high school students at Buffalo Prep, we decided the next step we’d take at the professional level would be through the creation of a local category in the American Advertising Awards competition. New for 2018, the CommUNITY Award for Inclusive Advertising is designed to mirror some of the principles of the aforementioned Mosaic Awards program.
The award recognizes content that extends beyond stereotypical portrayals and depicts multicultural communities and individuals as the complex, multifaceted and dynamic groups they are. This award recognizes advertising that addresses issues experienced by underrepresented communities and gives voice to groups that have been stereotyped or ignored in media and by society, increasing viewer’s perceptions and understanding of multicultural communities.
Changes with national American Advertising Awards categories
The public service print ad category will now accept campaigns.
Public service print ad campaigns of 2-4 pieces can be entered under category 22B. Work that qualifies as public service is advertising that has its goal being the improvement of the public’s health, education and/or welfare. Advertising work done for non-profit social organizations or causes, charities or NGOs should be entered in a Public Service category. Other Public Service submissions include work done for local, state and national governmental bodies, public safety, environmental, diversity, religious and education.
The Apps category has expanded this year to Apps, Games and Virtual Reality to accommodate virtual reality entries.
39E Virtual Reality: The computer-generated simulation of a three-dimension image or environment that can be interacted with in a seemingly real or physical way by a person using special electronic equipment.
The Elements of Advertising division now has a CGI category.
86B Computer Generated Imagery (CGI): Computer graphics to create or contribute to images in art, printed media, video games, films, television programs, shorts, commercials, videos and simulators.
Complete details about entering the 2018 WNY American Advertising Awards, along with exclusive behind-the-scenes videos following the production of the show, can be found at greataddys.com
Introduced for the 2018 competition, the CommUNITY Award for Inclusive Advertising recognizes content that extends beyond stereotypical portrayals and depicts multicultural communities and individuals as the complex, multifaceted, and dynamic groups they are. The award recognizes advertising that addresses issues experienced by under-represented communities and gives voice to groups that have been stereotyped or ignored in media and by society, increasing viewer’s perceptions and understanding of multicultural communities.
Buffalo’s creative minds came with open hearts to donate non-perishable food items amassing 649 pounds, enough to warrant its own show on TLC. Or as we like to put it, 540 meals for neighbors in need.
Manzella Marketing sleighed, pinning down prizes in every category. Scott Fierle was named the top men’s bowler, Nicole Meisenburg was named the top women’s bowler, and the Manzella team was named top team, sweeping the tournament. (Can you say ringer?) They wiped the floor with the rest of us, but we’ll spare you the details.
Thank you to 