December 2012
19 posts
2 tags
If you're confused & reading this blog...
…Just a quick note. Since this blog is for class grades, I wanted to make sure that it was known that two classes’ blog posts are populating this blog. Advertising posts & Healthy Kids Campaign posts are mixed together into one continuous blog roll dating back to September of this year. I don’t want to confuse anyone, but I realize it may be difficult to distinguish which...
1 tag
Our last Healthy Kids meeting & HKC wrap-up
Finally… the last journal…
It finally happened. Today Yasmin and I had our final meeting with Melanie. We presented her our survey questions, which she liked, and agreed to get back to her with some edits from the great and almighty Lauren Prociv. Melanie also asked us to keep updating the Facebook regularly until the end of semester.
It was a bittersweet moment because I’ve...
1 tag
HKC survey
Another shorter journal entry about a day in the life of a Healthy Kids Campaign intern…
Melanie apologized today for her lack of tact when informing us about our new roles as interns. It was appreciated, though I’m still disappointed this experience hasn’t turned out to be a positive one.
With that said, Melanie today asked us to create a survey that will be delivered to her...
1 tag
#6 - Into November
At this point in the game, we’re at the end of October and about to start the craziness that is November. Yasmin and I have still yet to produce anything of value for Melanie or the HKC. We really started asking Melanie what she wanted out of us and how she wanted us to use our abilities and knowledge to help her situation.We continued to offer suggestions of community outreach and better...
1 tag
HKC Journal #5
Journal #5 -
So we’re over 6 weeks into our internship with the HKC and we’re starting to be a little more aggressive with Melanie. We want to help her and the fact remains that we’re only here for another month and a half or so. Personally, I’m not exactly clear on what Melanie wants done. I don’t know what the purpose of her organization is. We were told this week...
1 tag
HKC - a month in
Another journal entry for my time spent at the HKC:
It’s October now, and Melanie is away in New Zealand anxiously awaiting the birth of her grandson! Congrats, Melanie!
Things are starting to get a little rough for Yasmin and me…we’re not really doing anything productive for the HKC. Rather, we’re just given small tasks that don’t really amount to anything. I know...
1 tag
1 tag
HKC - starting slow
Here’s a journal entry about the 2nd and 3rd weeks with the HKC.
So it’s been a couple weeks in our internship and so far things are moving a little slower than I anticipated. Melanie has us doing various research tasks, like finding out about school diets and various “nuggets” of information relating to childhood obesity in the New River Valley. Yasmin and I are trying...
1 tag
HKC - the beginning
My time spent working with the Healthy Kids Campaign can be summed up by dividing the weeks of the semester. So, the next few posts will be reviewing just what I did for the organization based on the various weeks.
The internship started in August. For the first couple weeks I worked diligently on making sure Melanie’s business cards were perfectly designed and ready to be sent to the...
2 tags
Portion Control & the HKC
Bryan Wansink’s book Mindless Eating was definitely an interesting read. It tied beautifully to my work this semester with the Healthy Kids Campaign. The book reinforced the idea of when to stop eating and why we keep eating even when our bodies tell us we’re full and don’t need anymore food or nourishment.
The book was especially helpful because I was able to take...
3 tags
Outside my comfort zone: an advertising wrap-up
It’s hard to believe that it’s been 15 weeks. Hard to believe that 15 weeks ago I began this advertising class - no, let’s call it journey - that has been more educating and fulfilling than most of the classes i’ve taken during my collegiate career. First, Jane Machin is a wonderful instructor and educator, and I’m so excited that I got the opportunity to work with...
5 tags
Red Bull is out of this world
Ad Age revealed it’s top 10 viral videos of 2012 and it’s a pretty interesting mix. The one I want to focus on though, is the number 2 pick: Red Bull’s insanely epic Stratos Jump. If you remember, a skydiver jumped from space back into Earth’s atmosphere and landed safely in New Mexico. CRAZY stuff. Here’s a video if you need a refresher.
This was such an INSANE...
6 tags
The future of advertising in social media
This semester, we learned a lot about where the industry of advertising has been and where it’s at today. So that begs the question… where is it headed?
Print and TV advertisement is always going to be around…I don’t think that’s going away anytime soon. However, the way it’s utilized could definitely be progressing in the near future. I think the biggest development of advertising is going to be...
3 tags
Big Idea?... Piece of cake!
Generating a big idea for creative is a lot harder than it sounds. Trust me. My group struggled for weeks trying to decide what direction we wanted to take the Cuties brand’s creative. Our brief listed some awesome objectives and other tidbits, notably the following:
Objective – spread awareness that the brand is back in season
Audience – moms & “fruit for the whole family”
SMP – enjoy the...
3 tags
The Daily goes dormant
I haven’t had an article review in a while, so I figured now would be just as good of a time to have one. Plus, this is a pretty cool and interesting story from the always fabulous Ad Age.
The underachieving news source exclusive for the iPad, The Daily, finally went kaput and it wasn’t really unexpected, unfortunately. But why did it seem to fail, especially when most things...
2 tags
Creativity in a nutshell
Before this semester and my Advertising class, I would have argued with you that my creative instincts were nothing more than a luck of the draw; that every now and then a small spark may cause a fire. But for the most part, I would’ve said that my creative juices were always low and said that I’m not the best person for those off-the-wall, cool, creative ideas.
Well, now i’d...
6 tags
Obama moves forward with a great big idea
So it’s been a month since the crazy, billion dollar 2012 Presidential Election. We all know the outcome: President Obama was reelected for another 4 years in a popular and electoral victory. With that being said, was Obama the same winner in the political advertising war? I think that answer is again, yes; Obama had a strategy and stuck to his guns to carry it out throughout the election,...
4 tags
Beyonce & Pepsi...good or bad combination?
In a really cool and interesting move today, Pepsi announced a partnership with music legend and icon Beyonce to generate
“new content and innovative ways to engage fans, consumers and retailers to benefit both brands.”
Now, one of the biggest things to keep in mind in the advertising, marketing, PR, etc. worlds is whether or not your collaborations, spokespeople, partnerships -...
3 tags
November 2012
0 posts
2 tags
Doing what you love and believe
One of the things i’ve really learned and grasped this semester is how important it is to really do something you love, something you are passionate about, something in which you’re a firm believer.
Sure, you may say that a statement like this is obvious and everyone knows that. But think about it: How many people on this 300 billion person earth are actually following a career in...
October 2012
11 posts
4 tags
Challenge 2 for the HKC
As promised, here’s another challenge post for the HKC. This problem is actually probably it’s BIGGEST road block and challenge. It’s two words:
Steering Committee
My oh my how steering committees can deter an organization’s purpose, focus, and overall effectiveness. That’s at least the case for the HKC’s steering committee. This group meets once a month on a...
2 tags
The first challenge for the HKC
The next few blog posts are going to be dedicated to some of the challenges working for the Healthy Kids Campaign.
This post is dedicated to a problem most nonprofits face: lack of motivation and incentive to actually get work done. The Healthy Kids Campaign is indeed a nonprofit, and - unfortunately - one with very, very little funds for doing outreach. Melanie, the coordinator, is so passionate...
3 tags
Prepping for Julie Talbot
Tomorrow in my Advertising class, Julie Talbot is coming to speak to us! She’s a VT grad (2003) and a marketing force to be reckoned with. Pamplin magazine did a great piece on Ms. Talbot that spoke to her credentials and motivations for pursuing employment with various companies. Her first “big” job was marketing manager for Godiva Chocolate in NYC. However, she left the company...
1 tag
2 tags
Single-Minded Proposition = Single-Minded Pain
It’s almost time for my Advertising “agency” (a.k.a. class group) to present our creative brief for our client, UNIQLO. On Thursday we present to the class, and let me tell you, i’m more than a little nervous. Until this afternoon, we were lost somewhere between the dark and gray areas of deciphering out a single-minded proposition, the MOST IMPORTANT part of a creative...
3 tags
A little bit about Chris Shumaker
Today in marketing, Publicis Worldwide Chief Marketing Officer & Executive Vice President Chris Shumaker is coming to speak with us. After doing a bit of research, I learned that Chris has had a stellar career in the marketing field.
Publicis is a HUGE multinational marketing & public relations firm based out of Paris, France. Chris is based in the North American region and is in charge...
4 tags
Speaker Prep: Brandon Thornton of W+K
Today in Advertising class, Brandon Thornton of Wieden + Kennedy is coming to speak to us. So naturally, I wanted to learn a little more about him and W+K before he came to speak.
Brandon is a proud Hokie from Richmond, VA (where I graduated high school!) and graduated from VCU’s graduate school with the sole intention of working for W+K. That’s one of the coolest things about...
1 tag
4 tags
1 tag
Healthy Kids Campaign overview
This semester i’m interning with the Healthy Kids Campaign - a nonprofit located here in Blacksburg that’s dedicated to informing the public about healthy lifestyles and fighting childhood obesity. However, it lacks the notice and support from the community as a whole. But before I talk about what i’m doing for the Campaign today, let’s take a step back…
This is the...
September 2012
8 posts
2 tags
Modea comes to speak
Coming to speak to my Advertising class today is Steve Grant, head of strategy at the brilliant and pioneering ad agency Modea, which specializes in digital advertising. Steve Grant is from New Orleans, Louisiana and has a long history in advertising and marketing. He specializes in brand strategy and enjoys filming and anthropology. He’s an Eagle Scout and part of the Cannes Gold Integrated...
4 tags
NFL-Referee lockout doesn't just affect football...
The NFL referee lockout is affecting more than the integrity of professional football. According to an article from Ad Age, the longer games - and poor officiating - is driving people away from watching the games on television, therefore causing marketers and brands to lose money from their advertising.
Sports advertising and marketing is one of the largest money makers known to man. Companies...
4 tags
Music acts who brand themselves
As stated in my bio, I’m a passionate music fan. I like all kinds of music…everything from Kanye West to Katy Perry to The Killers to Lady Gaga to Jason Aldean. Something that’s always intrigued me - and something that’s really cool - is how artists brand themselves, their music, and their “eras” (a period of time when they’re promoting a certain album or...
3 tags
Social media - A buzz chart by Ad Age
For this blog post I go back to Ad Age, one of my favorite resources. Today the site published a brand new chart that compares brands with the biggest increases in Twitter chatter and how much of a television presence those brands have. This week’s “chatter chart” winner was none other than Victoria’s Secret Pink. This hits close to home since just last week we hosted the...
3 tags
3 tags
Product Placement: Big deal or just my pet peeve?
Katie Couric debuted her long-awaited daytime talk show to great numbers, according to Ad Age. Her debut episode scored the best numbers for a daytime talk show debut since 2002 when Dr. Phil hit the silver screen. It’s not Ad Age’s analysis of the numbers and demographics that have me interested, however; it’s the guests Couric featured: Sheryl Crow & Jessica Simpson. The...
1 tag
2 tags
Getting to know Ad 2 and Monica Jones
Monica Jones, the president of Ad 2 Roanoke, is coming to speak to us tomorrow (or today by the time this post goes up) about the advertising world. Based on some research, she’s a graduate of the University of Florida and a project manager for Modea. But what exactly is Ad 2 Roanoke? According to their website, Ad 2 is a non-profit affiliate of AAF (American Advertising Federation) that...
August 2012
1 post
Back Again
After a couple months without touching Tumblr or this blog, I’m back. And i’m actually pretty excited about it. I’m back again blogging for class…this time for an Advertising class and to document my time working with the NRV Healthy Kids Campaign. So for all the new folks reading this, i’m Ross - a senior communication major at Virginia Tech. I enjoy marketing and...
July 2012
4 posts
Ad Age Survey: Marketers Buy Facebook More for... →
Marketers Bow Olympic-Size Pushes →
The Olympics are always an exciting period of time. And the commercials are generally pretty good too. I’m looking forward to Visa & Coke’s the most.
1 tag
This guy is from across the pond and is INSANELY...
June 2012
35 posts
1 tag
1 tag
I know I promised two songs this week, so...
1 tag
Deuces
As I write this blog post, it’s 5:30am and I’m hallucinating from a lack of sleep thanks to insomnia and building an online portfolio. And now that i’ve finally got all of it finished and consistent: my LinkedIn, portfolio, and this blog, it’s dawning on me that today is my last marketing communication class. Crazy. Six weeks have come and gone so quickly it’s like I...
1 tag
This week I have TWO songs of the week. I’ve...
1 tag
1 tag
1 tag
