Blog Archives - Page 5 of 10 -

A Look Back

August 4, 2016October 28, 2016Scott Bartels

As another Ad Club year winds down, it is a perfect time to reflect on the many successes of 2015-16 and to look ahead to the future.

A better Ad Club

Our focus in the past year was to bring new and exciting events to our members as well as enhancing our successful annual events, this included:

More guest speakers from out of town including Anthony Shop, Anne Esse and Brokaw.
Introduction of member-only Skillshops to help you learn and grow in your career.
Brand Hack, an all-day “hack-a-thon” for our creative professionals and students
Networking trivia nights
Your favorite events, bigger and better: Preview Night, Holiday Bowling Tournament and Uber Bowl

Buffalo Wins National Honors

In June, the AAF honored the winners of the Club Achievement Competition at the “Salute to Achievers Ceremony” at the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim. This competition is designed to recognize outstanding accomplishments of its affiliated advertising clubs, showcasing the programs and projects its professional member clubs undertake each year. It was established to honor significant contributions to the AAF network of professional advertising clubs and to encourage excellence in areas of club operations that strengthen the AAF’s member clubs.

For the first time ever, the Ad Club of Buffalo received awards in the three categories we entered.

As part of AAF Division Two, which includes clubs with 250 to 499 members, we won the following:

Advertising Education – 1^st place
Communications – 1^st place
Programming – 1^st place

American Advertising Awards

What a night it was in March at the 2016 WNY American Advertising Awards show at Statler City, over 420 of the industry’s best gathered to celebrate the achievements of the year. We had a record of more than 500 professional entries and nearly 50 student entries. We continued celebrate our region’s great work with an impressive showing at the district awards level as well as a handful of winners at the national show.

On top of all this awesomeness, we were presented the AAF Incentive Award. This award is given to the top 10 clubs nationally that showed the highest increase in entries to the American Advertising Awards.

Saying goodbye…

The summer is always bittersweet as we say farewell to our departing board members and welcome a new group to help guide the club.

Matt Low served five years on the board, including last year as vice president. Not only did he lend his great creative talents and leadership to everything the club did, but Matt was instrumental in improving our academics committee and overseeing the Don Nichols Scholarship Competition.

Corey Crossman served two years on the board as treasurer. Corey brought incredible passion to everything he did for the club, including ensuring the club’s financial success, overseeing the communications committee and leading our efforts in this past year’s Club Achievement Awards.

Sarah DiPofi and Christie Witt Berardi both served two years on the board and took on the difficult role as American Advertising Awards chairs not once, but twice. Their hard work paid off with two successful celebrations of our great industry, setting record attendance each year.

The club is in a great place because of these dedicated individuals and we thank them for their contributions.

Newbies

Our executive board welcomes two second-year board members into new roles, Tim Bouchard as vice president and Kyle Rogers as our new treasurer.

We also welcome five new board members that bring a wide range of experience and skill to the board.

Andrew Bevevino – Martin Davison PR
Erin Collins – BlueCross BlueShield of WNY
Erin Haskell – Crowley Webb
Matt LaSota – Outer Harbor Development Corporation
Tess Alberts – EMA

Thank You

All of this work would never be possible without a strong team to run the club. I continue to be impressed more and more each year at the talent that makes up our board of directors and volunteers. They put in countless hours and have fun doing it. I thank each one of you for your continued dedication to making the club a huge success.

What’s next?

We are excited about 2016-17 as we take the Ad Club to the next level beginning this August. Join us at The Big Tip-Off on August 25 at Soho Burger Bar to find out more and help support our scholarship fund!

-Scott Bartels, Advertising Club of Buffalo President

ADDYS Blog

2016 Addys Recap: Married to Your Work

March 10, 2016October 28, 2016Scott Bartels

Summary by Scott Bartels

The 2016 WNY American Advertising Awards was truly a special night. Over 420 people from our local industry gathered on Friday, March 4 at Statler City in Downtown Buffalo for this year’s celebration. The theme presented by FARM was “Married to Your Work” which pays homage to the labor of love in advertising.

There are so many people to thank for putting another great show. It all starts with the chairs, April Brown (FARM), Sarah Dipofi (The Martin Group) and Christie Berardi (The Martin Group). They did a phenomenal job, planning the show since September and executing an event that everyone can be proud of! Well done and thank you once again.

Their supporting cast really helped bring the show to life. FARM’s own Greg Bauch was a huge hit kicking off the show with his catchy versions of popular songs such as ADDY (Happy), Route (Shout) and Sweet Headline (Sweet Caroline). Jon Koziol was the man behind the scenes, running the flawless production of the event. Lauren Cius and team compiled a beautiful hard cover show book. The entire team at FARM deserves a lot of credit and thanks for their dedication and work to bring this year’s show theme to life.

Of course you can’t have an awards show without winners. And here are the great achievements of the night:

Professional Winners

Gelia was the big winner of the night, taking home the most ADDYs with 35 awards (17 Gold and 18 Silver). Crowley Webb received a total of 29 awards (4 Gold and 25 Sliver), Block Club was honored with 19 awards (7 Gold and 12 Silver), 15 Fingers took away 12 awards (5 Gold and 7 Silver), and dPost secured 10 awards (2 Gold and 8 Silver). Other award winners include:

The Martin Group (1 Gold and 7 Silver)
White Bicycle (5 Gold and 2 Silver)
Quinlan (5 Gold and 1 Silver)

Best of Show

The whole night built up to the final award of the night, the Best of Show. This year’s winner was Block Club, picking up for their UNYTS, “Save Warren” TV spot.

Special Awards

Some very talented individuals were also honored with Special Awards. The 2016 recipients were:

Edward J. Healy, Vice President of Marketing, Visit Buffalo Niagara – David I. Levy Communicator of the Year Award
This award was created to recognize outstanding achievement and service in the communications industry.

John Paget, Paget Films – Alex Osborn Award for Creativity
Named in honor of Alex Osborn of Batten, Barton, Durstine & Osborn fame, this award recognizes individuals who, through outstanding creative achievements, have left an indelible mark on the Western New York creative community.

Peter Burakowski, Director of Marketing, 43 North – The Odysseus Award
The Odysseus Award was established in 2011 by the Advertising Club of Buffalo to honor a client in the Western New York market (individual or group/department) who has used the discipline of strategic marketing and advertising in an extraordinary way.

Charlie Fashana, Client Strategy Director, FARM Buffalo– Joe Crowley Award for Service
This award recognizes not only hard work, but also outstanding achievement in furthering the activities and interests of the club.

Jillian Minderler, Graphic Designer, Quinlan & Company – Advertising Club of Buffalo Future Star Award
This award honors an outstanding young professional in the marketing and advertising field who has demonstrated great potential in his or her early years in the industry.

The Veritiv Creative Use of Paper Award

This year it was awarded once again to White Bicycle for their Charles A. Burchfield, “A Resounding Roar” LP Package for the Burchfield Penny Art Center and Righteous Babe Records. A special thanks to Jean Clemens from Veritiv for her continued support of the Ad Club and this award.

Best Show Book Ad Award

This year had a tie between BlueCross BlueShield of Western New York and Charles Waldorf Photography. Congrats to both!

Student Winners

College students were also included in the action. Taking home the Student Best of Show was Jessica Puskar of Villa Maria College for No. 2 Pencil Box. Megan Sweeney from Buffalo State College received 5 awards, 2 Gold and 3 silver. Students each taking home one Gold award include:

Chelsea Turton, Damen College
Grace Gruarin, Villa Maria College

Student Silver award winners include:

Chad Hornberger, Buffalo State College
Eric Hostetter, St. Bonaventure University
Grace Gruarin, Villa Maria College
Lucy Norton, Villa Maria College
Rachel Surdi, St. Bonaveture Universtiy
Samantha Lonczak, Villa Maria College

Thank You to Our Sponsors

The 2016 WNY American Advertising Award Show was sponsored by: Buffalo Limousine, Comfort Suites Downtown, WNED TV, Charles Waldorf Photography, Gateway Printing & Graphics, Inc., KC Kratt photography, Big Ditch Brewing Company, IMG_INK, Veritiv, Cohber Press, Inc., Hodgins Engraving, Propellerhead Media, CJ Sound, Premier Sound, TOPS Friendly Markets, Orchard Fresh, Santoras Catering.

On to a bigger stage…

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 Anaheim in June.

Congratulations to all the winners and another successful year of work in WNY!

ADDYS Blog

2016 Addys Judges’ Choice: Love at First Sight

March 10, 2016October 28, 2016April Chmurzynski

Our American Advertising Awards judges spent Saturday, January 16 carefully looking at more than 500 professional entries and nearly 50 student entries submitted this year, and while they had great things to say about all the work, there were a few that made them say “That’s the one.”

Katherine O’Brien:

Mighty Taco Siri-Us Radio, McCandless Marketing & Media

I chose the Siri-Us spot for Mighty Taco because it’s simply great radio. It did everything right, from featuring a unique audio technique to focusing on a simple, relatable problem to solving it with the product in a way that feels authentic. This spot was funny, catchy and resulted in all of the judges hitting Might Taco on Saturday night.

Bill Starkey:

Andrew Bird “Sonic Arboretum” Poster, White Bicycle

Sometimes something just reaches from the page, or the screen, or the wall, and grabs you and won’t let you go. Looking back at this judging experience, this poster was that piece for me. As soon as I saw it, I absolutely knew I wouldn’t forget it.

I had no idea what this exhibition was, but I instantly wanted to know.

(And I found out right after we finished judging—thanks Google). Moreover, I wanted to go. And that is the whole point, right?

The beauty of this poster is it did its job without words, without a joke, without a strong call to action or any of those other “advertising” things. It does it simply with how stunning it is. It stopped me with craftsmanship in the illustration, and with the exceptional detail in the printing, which both combined quietly speak volumes about this exhibition. Every detail right down to the selection of the stock made me feel what the designer intended me to feel. It starts to transcend just a piece of communication – it starts to get into the world of art promoting art.

Most of all it stopped me with calm and beauty. What a relief from our world of digital bombardment – moving images and clickbait and photoshopped everything with a life expectancy of about 6 seconds. I would gladly frame this and hang it. Hint hint.

John Howard:

Queen City Roller Girls Travel Team Posters, Gelia

I chose the Queen City Roller Girls Lake Effect poster campaign as my Judge’s pick. An incredible well-crafted movie style poster series, it talks smack perfectly—with clever twists along the way. Individually each is fantastic, however together they sing like a perfectly conducted chorus. From the DC’s roller girls-themed American flag or Pittsburgh’s opposing faces in steel, the designer brought a unique eye and depth to his design. These four posters reflect a creative who started with a good idea and morphed it into an exceptional campaign. And, clearly, he had a blast doing it.

Kelly Butler:

Queen City Roller Girls War Posters, Gelia

I loved the idea behind this campaign. The visuals were also very well-done and stopped me in my tracks. In short, I asked the chapter if they’d send a copy to me so I could hang it on my wall. That’s how much I liked it!

ADDYS Blog Events

Everyone loves the previews

February 24, 2016October 28, 2016Ad Club Of Buffalo

By Matt Low

You know you’ve done it. You’ve sat in the theater as the lights went down and the familiar green screen with wonderfully calming Gotham type appears, followed by an incredibly enticing two-minute highlight reel of what’s probably the 120-minute mental equivalent of rug burn has you wetting your pants with jealousy and scorn over the full-length picture you just paid $12 to see.

“WHY AREN’T I SEEING THAT MOVIE? RIGHT NOW!” you say to yourself.

That right there’s the power of the preview. And ADDY Preview Night proved to be no less enthralling.

For those of you who weren’t there (Wait, what? What’s wrong with you? It was FREE with your ADDY ticket. FREE. Free camaraderie. You are coming to the ADDYs, right? Oh. Okay. You were just busy that night. See you at the ADDYs.), take a stab at what you missed:

A stellar evening filled with light banter among colleagues
A closer look at the best work the Western New York advertising community produced in 2015
Zebras
Amazing apps and beers courtesy of Big Ditch Brewing Company
Ad Club President Scott Bartels’ new haircut
None of the above
Some of the above
Most of the above
All of the above, except zebras

Well, you weren’t there, so you’ll never truly know. You blew it.

For those of you who were there (You’re awesome and we love you with every ounce of our collective beings. Kisses and hugs to you for days.) you know just how great it was. You know all about the lovely laughs and conversations had as the Western New York ad heavyweights put down the pens and closed the laptops for an entire evening to catch up over beers. And how about those beers? Big Ditch continues to demonstrate why it’s one of the region’s craft beer giants. Plus the food. This place isn’t just about the hops – the meatballs were heavenly. You also know how excellent the work was that this community churned out last year, as the best of the best was in front of your eyes just as it was for the ADDY judges a few weeks earlier.

You know it was a great night. You were there. And for that, we love you to pieces.

Blog

Uber Bowl VI 2016 Recap

February 12, 2016October 28, 2016Marcia Rich

By Marcia Rich:

Monday night we celebrated the sixth annual Uber Bowl. Thankfully, unlike last year, the weather held out and all were able to attend. This annual event is meant to be a review of commercials from the Super Bowl, held the previous night. This year, we decided to put a spin on things and change to a debate-style format.

We had four teams all competing for the coveted Uber Bowl rings (and some extra swag too). The teams raced the clock to choose their favorite, and least favorite ads, and then quickly and succinctly explain to the judges why they chose that ad taking into account creativity and originality, branding, the target audience, and the budget.

A huge thank you goes out to our moderator and referee, Rich “The Bull” Gaenzler from 97 Rock. Rich donned a ref uniform and led our teams through various categories of ads while our three judges (Erin Haskell from Crowley Webb, Ben Barnhardt from dPost, and Frank Conjerti from Quinlan) scored the teams as they presented their case for the best and worst ads. There were arguments and challenges and, of course, many laughs.

The ad categories were:

Most Memorable
Funniest
Most Annoying
Best Car Commercial
Biggest Let Down
Most Kick Ass, and
Weirdest

Thank you to all who attended, and thank you Shea’s Smith Theater crew who did a great job with the sound and visuals. We even got some great media coverage from 97 Rock and Channel 4. So, in conclusion, puppymonkeybaby, puppymonkeybaby, puppymonkeybaby, puppymonkeybaby, puppymonkeybaby, puppymonkeybaby, puppymonkeybaby, puppymonkeybaby, puppymonkeybaby, puppymonkeybaby, puppymonkeybaby, puppymonkeybaby, puppymonkeybaby, puppymonkeybaby. Puppy. Monkey. Baby.

Screen Shot 2016-02-12 at 1.42.56 PM Screen Shot 2016-02-12 at 1.45.17 PM

AdLab Blog Events Students

At BrandHack Some Strangers Got Really Creative Really Fast!

January 25, 2016October 28, 2016Tim Bouchard

I was fortunate enough to be accepted to the Ad Club Board of Directors this past summer of 2015. Prior to that, I was only a member of the club for one year. Both years, I’ve thoroughly enjoyed the people I’ve met and the events I’ve attended. One of my goals when I joined the board was to try and help explore how to make events more interactive and fun. Being from the tech side of the creative world, I decided I would try and borrow from my friends in the tech industry and see if I couldn’t take the idea of an all day “hack-a-thon” and marry it with the design world’s creativity.

I enlisted the help of some wildly talented and highly regarded creative talent from the Buffalo area. Julie Zack (Designer: BrandEven), Mike LaDuca (Partner: LUMINUS), Monish Bhattacharyya (Creative Director: FourthIdea), and Michael Downey (Art Director: FARM). This crew would serve two very important purposes of helping shape and guide each rapidly compiled campaign idea as well as judge the final products and declare the winning Brand Hack campaign.

We had three main goals for this event:

Encourage team members to get to know each other. The teams were randomly assigned with an even distribution of talent types.
Bring students together with professionals so they can see and participate in the work flow process of a professional.
Make it challenging, but allow for creativity with no limitations other than theme and required deliverables.

Of course we had to make it worthwhile as well. Chelsea Turton, the board’s student liaison, created an amazing graphic of a rocket “idea” breaking through an alarm clock. We decided to build off that and after a few minutes of brainstorming, we googled “Rocket Trophies” and the rest was history.

We had 6 hours to fit in a creative briefing, production, presentations, and judging. The pressure was almost on me as much as the teams attending. We broke the day like this; 30 minutes for team introductions & creative brief, 4.5 hours for production, 45 minutes for 5 minute presentations (everyone went a few minutes over but it was ok), and 15 minutes for judging. Surprisingly, it actually worked really well!

The fluctuations in the day were amazing to observe. Early on before the briefing it was as loud as a high school lunch room. Everyone was chatting up a storm getting to know each other. Then after a moment of silence for the creative briefing, came the flurry of conversations as the teams started talking out concept ideas. Then, after Michael proclaimed around noon “You should definitely be into designing by now, 3 hours left!” the room went silent, like a good Thanksgiving dinner when everyone starts eating. It was pretty entertaining to watch as an outsider. Everyone gave great presentations and each team was very supportive of the others while they presented.

The challenge was to develop an awareness campaign that would help the fictional “Urban Food Bank” solicit donations year-round, rather than just the popular November & December Holiday months. A bonus would be to create an urgency for donating or funding toiletries which are an often overlooked aspect of the care provided by the bank.

I’m biased, but I think the event was awesome. Nobody seemed bored, everyone was engaged, and there was some really great work that came out of this.

And now I’m happy to share the campaigns that were dreamt up in 4.5 hours on a random Saturday in January by complete strangers. Starting with the winning campaign, the runner up, and the other great campaigns in no particular order. It really was amazing was great work came out of just 4.5 hours.

WINNER: “Roll Reversal”

Team Two’s campaign, “Roll Reversal”, is focused on increasing donations of toilet paper to the Urban Food Bank. This campaign is designed to target people when they are in a position to empathize with those in need of toilet paper, and usually have a mobile device in-hand.

We created vinyl wraps for use inside of public bathroom stalls to cover the full toilet paper rolls, making them appear empty, hopefully giving people that “Oh Shit” feeling of being out of toilet paper.

The ultimate goal of this campaign is to drive people to a landing page for the Urban Food Bank that is optimized for mobile conversions and provides an quick button to donate an amount of money equivalent to one roll of toilet paper.

Runner Up: “One More”

By giving just “one more”, you can change lives. “One more” is easy and is something everyone can do, but it makes a big impact. You’re filling a gap in your community by giving “one more” dollar or donation. Really show WHO the donations are going to by telling the stories of the people in need. Guarantee donations are doing good for your friends and neighbors. Make it fun, and something people want to do over and over. We would provide free bags that can be filled with donations and conveniently emptied at numerous drop off locations. We would utilize a number of tactics including a mobile app.

“Feed The Hunger Monster”

The goal of the “Feed the Hunger Monster” campaign is to increase food, toiletry, and monetary donations specifically in the spring to prepare for school being out in summer.

It’s tough to focus when you’re hungry or don’t feel your best. The monster is a physical representation of those feelings. “Feed the Hunger Monster” aims to show parents what kids can accomplish when they’re not worried where their next meal will come from, or if their classmates will mock them for their clothes or hygiene.

“Treats to Meals”

While you enjoy the delights of the season the Anderson family needs your help. Turn your extra money into meals for them by donating to the Urban Food Bank.Visit treatstomeals.com to help and donate.

“Metro Market”

MetroMarket makes it easier than ever to grow your community.

The MetroMarket truck stops by your home once a month to exchange food and toiletries for fresh fruits and vegetables grown in Buffalo’s own urban gardens.

We donate an equal shipment of fresh foods to Urban Food Bank.

It really is that simple.

AdLab AdWeek Blog Stuff

We Got Cultured at Adtoberfest.

November 2, 2015October 28, 2016Dan Nesselbush

Workplace culture is incredibly important. It’s the difference between having a team full of Gary Go-Getters or a team full of Debbie Downers. That’s why we brought in Aaron McBride and Mark McKenzie from Brokaw, a Cleveland-based ad agency, to speak during Adtoberfest, our 2015 Buffalo Ad Week. Brokaw was named Ad Age Small Agency of the Year for Culture in 2013 and they also lay claim to being the world’s greatest ad agency, a title attributed to their sense of humor and SEO capabilities.

So what’s the secret to a small ad agency in Cleveland (practically Buffalo, just with LeBron James) getting recognized for their culture? According to Mark and Aaron it’s a simple two step approach.

Hire talented, self-motivated people who happen to be nice.

Let them create the culture.

Seems simple enough, doesn’t it? The beauty of that approach is that it isn’t complex and everyone has the opportunity to create a rockin’ culture. You want to be part of a team that wakes up every morning forgetting there is a snooze button on the alarm, don’t you?

The crutches

Of course their trip to Buffalo was more than dropping a two-sentence nugget of wisdom and a stop at their favorite rest area on the New York State Thruway (highlight video below).

Their story illustrated a simplified approach that arrived after the agency overcomplicated things and they caught themselves relying on some crutches many companies rely on such as:

FPAs (fancy-pants acronyms)
Gobbledygook phrases
Razzmatazz numbers (that video that got 4 million views from eastern Europe with no likes or comments – not truly a viral campaign!)

Known as a creative agency first and foremost, the overcomplicated approach wasn’t good for business. They took a step back and decided they needed to get back to the basics of what they knew and were good at. They focused on their creative approach rather than gimmicky pitches, fancy terminology, and a futuristic logo.

Build around the work

A fresh approach where they didn’t try to be all things to all people, which is something we’ve all done at some point, helped them create a culture that draws like-minded people looking to create great work and clients that want the kind of work they do. You know, probably the reason we all got into this field in the first place. By defining their strength and drawing a line in the sand of what they stand for, they turned things around. They got an award from Ad Age. They got great clients. They got projects they wanted to work on. They got a free trip to Buffalo. See, being true to yourself pays off!

A ping pong table and pictures of office dogs will only get you so far with your employees and customers. At the end of the day it’s about the work and the people creating the work. You know, the culture.

Bonus Materials

Missed the presentation and the post-talk shirt toss from the guys?

You can read more about Brokaw’s approach by downloading the handy guide they created to keep themselves in-check called How To Brokaw, or follow them on social media (Twitter, Facebook, Instagram).

Also, Mark and Aaron make up 50% of the sketch comedy group Last Call Cleveland – check out some of their work on YouTube.

AdLab AdWeek Blog

The Branding of the Bulls

October 21, 2015October 28, 2016Ad Club Of Buffalo 2 Comments

Blog post by Kyle Rogers

“Who do we want to be?”

That is a question UB’s Athletic Director Danny White has been trying to answer in his three years with our region’s largest university and a question he addressed in front of dozens of advertising pros at our Adtoberfest kick-off event.

You’ve likely heard about Danny’s strategic vision for the University at Buffalo, coined the “New York Bulls Initiative.” The vision, as explained by the AD, is to become the premier athletic department for the state of New York and bring big-time college athletics to the WNY community and the state at large.

Sure, some may see this as an attempt to rip UB’s deep roots from our community (a few joined us last night). But this is no deterrent for an innovative and progressive athletics director like Danny, who saw the potential in telling UB’s story on a national scale.

But what is UB’s story? What’s there to get recruits, fans, and donors excited?

How about:

Member of AAU (alongside big-time programs like UCLA, Michigan, Florida, Ohio State)
Largest/highest rated public university in the Northeast
Law, medical, dental, business and engineering schools all ranked Top 100 nationally
Over 220,000 alumni nationwide
$1.7 billion economic impact
Large market size with a regional population (WNY) over 2.5 million people

Danny White presents to Ad Club of Buffalo guests

Okay, that is pretty impressive. But how are you going to communicate that? And what are you trying to accomplish?

As White explained, “That’s the easy part. It took over 150 years to establish the University as a nationally-recognized research university and AAU member. Getting the word out? I’d say that’s a lot easier.”

White’s first moves were to establish a strategic vision including 4 pillars: Image, Partnerships, Resources and Facilities. Working with an impressive board of advisors and New Era Cap, the department developed a marketing and branding platform that included a new mark, a temporary signal of where the program is heading.

Content, Content, Content

UB’s creative department, built like a Big Ten school, ran with it and developed a brand that was exciting and sexy. The department developed professional level production facilities so the school can create its own video and web content to help tell the stories of UB student athletes while forming strategic partnerships with ESPN3 and media outlets across New York. A fully integrated approach that included paid, owned, earned and social media made waves across the region and across the alumni base.

Some of the early successes include shattering attendance records, record-breaking fundraising, 9,306 media mentions (ad value of $25.7 million), and three NCAA tournament appearances (UB had one before. Ever.) One of White’s proudest accomplishments? “We were the only school to go to Columbus for the NCAA regional and have the alumni pre-game party shutdown,” due to capacity attendance from excited fans that made the trip. Way to go Buffalo!

The Cal of the East

Despite these big wins, the #NYBI is still a work in progress. A great deal of question marks still remain about the long-term sustainability of the current mark, a unique game-day experience, and what the UB Bulls will ultimately be called. One interesting comment was about UB striving to become the “Cal of the East,” as a reference to the Berkeley campus of the University of California which is also the flagship of a comprehensive university system where the brands are essentially separated – academics often referred to as UC Berkeley while athletics are known as Cal.

On behalf of the Ad Club, we’d like to thank Danny for giving our club a peek at what it takes to elevate the brand of a major college athletics program as well as taking part in a great question and answer session!

“Branding the Bulls” was the kick-off to Adtoberfest: 2015 Buffalo Ad Week and continues with events Wednesday and Thursday: Adtoberfest: 2015 Buffalo Ad Week

ADDYS Blog Students

Student Members Shine at National ADDYs

August 11, 2015October 28, 2016Corey Crossman

We’re proud to announce that student members from SUNY Fredonia won a student silver at the American Advertising Awards (aka National ADDY Awards) in Las Vegas for their Efferention magazine design. The members of the group that put the piece together include: Maribel Avila, Alison Dyer, Kayleigh Forger, Lisa Hinterberger, Athena Kolokotronis, Anne Leue, Jon Mc Cray, and Jessica Wilcox. The Fredonia team won a student gold ADDY at the WNY ADDY Awards and a regional student gold at the AAF District 2 competition in order to qualify for the national competition.

The ADDY Awards is the advertising industry’s largest and most representative competition, attracting over 50,000 entries every year in local competitions. The mission of the ADDY competition is to recognize and reward creative excellence in the art of advertising. Conducted annually the American Advertising Federation (AAF) hosts the three-tier competition, beginning with the local ADDY Awards, regional awards and then the national competition, the American Advertising Awards.

Blog Board Stuff

Our Veep is Retiring, Just Like David Letterman

May 28, 2015October 28, 2016Corey Crossman

The Ad Club year is winding down, and that means some board members are leaving us. Before they do, we caught up with these talented individuals to hear about their experience and advice for future board members.

This summer our VP, Katie Briggs, will be among those leaving us. Before she goes, here’s what she had to say:

Four years ago, a colleague and Ad Club board member nominated me for an open spot on the board. While I wasn’t entirely sure of what I was signing up for at the time, I can’t thank her enough for encouraging me to go for it. As my second term is nearing its end, I was asked to share my experience with you. So, in honor of Letterman’s recent retirement I created a Top 10 List about my time on the board. Here it goes…

“Things I was able to do because of the Ad Club”

10. Eat a free dinner once a month

9. Scope out other board member’s offices and report back on cool things we should get in ours

8. Grow my network (and my LinkedIn connections)

7. Earn trust from not one, but two, agencies to represent them on the board

6. Ramp up our academics programming, including: the annual Big Tip Off scholarship fundraiser, Portfolio Review and Career Day

5. Attract PR people to the Ad Club and demonstrate how PR plays a significant role in IMC

4. Serve as Veep, though I would’ve liked access to Julia Louis-Dreyfus’s wardrobe

3. Not only attend the ADDYs (and the after parties!) but see what goes into planning them

2. Host the American Advertising Federation D2 Conference – giving us the opportunity to showcase everything awesome about Buffalo

1. Meet Seth Godin, Peter Shankman, Jesse Reed, Vic Carucci and ad pros from around the region

I credit the Club for helping me advance my career all while growing personally these last few years (new last name, new job, new house, new puppy). While it’s hard to sum up all of my experiences into one post, I can tell you that I wrote, I strategized, I planned, I collaborated, I learned, and I met some of the brightest and hardest-working people in advertising. It was an honor to grow alongside them and even more rewarding to call them friends.

If you’re considering joining the board, do it. Yes, it’s a big time commitment. And yes, you may already have a lot on your plate. But I promise you’ll find a way to make it work and have some of the best experiences of your life along the way.

I’ll be seeing you,
Katie Briggs
Ad Club Vice President, Crowley Webb PR Manager