The American Advertising Federation (AAF) is known on several prime fronts–for one, its ADDY Awards competition which earlier this month bestowed its national best-of-show honor on Microsoft Xbox 360’s “Jump Rope” directed by Frank Budgen of Gorgeous, London, and bicoastal Anonymous Content for McCann Erickson, San Francisco, and 72 and Sunny, El Segundo, Calif. The spot then made AAF history as the first best-of-show winner to garner the ADDY Mosaic Award for multicultural advertising.
The AAF also enjoys high-profile status for its national network of 200 ad clubs located in communities across the U.S. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the AAF trade association represents some 50,000 advertising industry professionals.
But somewhat lost in the shadows are two other AAF attributes–one being another awards competition, the other residing in a lesser known network of artisans that the organization maintains.
The latter is embodied in the AAF’s 215 college chapters. Through this college group, the AAF provides 6,500 advertising students with real-world case studies and recruitment connections.
The latest case study was for Postal Vault, a postal security company, which challenged those 6,500 students on 215 campuses to develop a creatively engaging campaign for its identity theft prevention product line. The best entries gained recognition at the AAF’s 2006 National Student Advertising Competition (NSAC).
For several months, students worked in teams conducted primary research to study Postal Vault’s target market, including its media habits, and the client’s competition. Getty Images provided use of images for the teams, and its materials were featured in the winning campaign.
Judges from Postal Vault and leading advertising companies assessed the field, declaring the winning entry as that from a team at the University of Virginia. Webster University, the University of Minnesota (Twin Cities) and the Art Center Design College (Albuquerque) took second, third and fourth place, respectively.
The University of Virginia won for its “The Think Campaign.” The campaign mission was to motivate consumers to think about their mailboxes and the need to secure mail with a Postal Vault product. Utilizing traditional, nontraditional and business-to-business marketing tactics, the University of Virginia team presented an emotional appeal to prospective consumers with the tagline, “Postal Vault. Now You’ve Thought of Everything.”
Making the presentation to NSAC judges for the University of Virginia were team members Jennie Averbrook, Zoe Chen, Erin Fromherz, Karen Land and Cathy Sposato. Faculty advisor is Jack Lindgren.
The NSAC judges included Postal Vault Systems’ VP of sales and marketing Chuck Hosier, Adweek publisher Wright Ferguson Jr., BBDO West associate creative director Neil Levy, and The D-Group’s president/owner Danny G. Smith.
The first place team received $3,500; second place prize was $2,500, third place, $2,000, and fourth place, $1,000.
The NSAC is regarded as a leading student advertising competition. It has been a proving ground for some 80,000 student participants over the years. Just as, if not more importantly, the NSAC is a showcase which ad industry recruiters scrutinize for new talent. The bottom line is that through the NSAC, the AAF mentors and opens up career doors for up-and-coming artisans.
By Robert Goldrich
AD&Co. Launches Studio A; Davida Hall To Head New Venture As Sr. Director of Creative Content
Female-founded and led creative marketing agency AD&Co. has opened Studio A. The new venture will serve as AD&Co.’s in-house social brand content division, focused on developing and producing digital programming for advertising, social media, and influencer marketing campaigns designed to reach today’s audiences on the most popular and pivotal platforms. Davida Hall has been named to head Studio A as sr. director of creative content. She shifts over from AD&Co. where she held the same title since December 2023. Hall’s affiliations prior to AD&Co. include PopSugar and Studio71.
Amy Demas, founder and chief creative officer of AD&Co., said, “We understand content is king-—or queen—and that our clients need to engage their customer communities where they live. That inspired the logical expansion of AD&Co with Studio A, which is committed to producing only the most engaging and authentic brand stories.”
Studio A will harness both AD&Co’s and Hall’s deep expertise in the lifestyle sector, as content creators and avid consumers. Specializing in reaching audiences where they spend their time, the studio is immersed in social media, pop culture, and current trends, expertly crafting visuals, language, and storytelling to reinforce client brand identities and cut through the noise.
Studio A debuts with the “This Is Me” campaign for Love + Craft + Beauty, a brand dedicated to embracing and promoting diversity within the beauty space. “This Is Me” highlights Gen Z’s affinity for radical self-expression that allows individuals to tell their own stories, free from labels, using beauty and fashion as tools of authenticity. The campaign showcases models celebrating their unique qualities to present... Read More