Category Archives: ADwërks

ADwërks Acquires Advanced Intern Technology

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To assist with our summer workload, ADwërks has acquired the coolest, most cutting-edge and advanced intern technology of modern times – a human, named Catherine Schuller.

Catherine Schuller

Catherine Schuller

Catherine will be spending her summer at ADwërks, where she’ll be interning under our McDonald’s Account Supervisor Leigh Anglin. Her duties will include working on market research, consumer insights and anything else Leigh puts her up to.

The Sibley, Iowa native is a Senior Advertising Major and Classical Studies Minor at Iowa State University. As a student she has already gained some great advertising experience as an Ad Director for her college’s student-run publication, Trend Magazine, where she delegated cold calling and ad sales. Completion of her internship at ADwërks will not only provide her with even more experience before entering the job world, it will also fulfill a school requirement and allow her to graduate upon completing the fall 2013 semester.

Just days before starting her internship, Catherine returned from a three-week long expedition in Greece, where she traveled the country and attended a global seminar as a part of her Classical Studies Minor.

Outside of school and advertising, Catherine enjoys golfing, watching television (specifically the drama genre), making Andrew jealous by having a black belt in Taekwondo, and collecting salt and pepper shakers. And no it’s not because she has a weird passion for condiments, it’s more about appreciating and collecting the most interesting and creative shakers she can find. So far she has over 70 pairs in her collection, including a replica set from Alcatraz.

We’re excited to have Catherine hear for the summer. If you want to welcome her or give her some career advice, leave a comment below!

-          Andrew

ADwërks Helps Engineering Firm Rebrand Itself

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Over the past year ADwërks has worked with its client DGR Engineering to help redefine and modernize its brand.

The firm has been around for more than 60 years, and as their business grew, their number of clients, employees and locations grew as well (branches in Rock Rapids, IA, Sioux City, IA and Sioux Falls, SD). And you don’t grow as large and successful as they have without running into a few snags along the way. So they turned to ADwërks for help.

DeWild, Grant… Who?

The new logo and name, brought to you by ADwërks.

The new logo and name, brought to you by ADwërks.

Part of the rebranding process involved revisiting their company name. Since 1952 they had been known as DeWild, Grant, Reckert and Associates, named after the original founding partners. The problem was that today it’s an employee-owned firm, and the founders’ connection and relevance to the company has ceased, making it hard for clients and employees to relate to. Not to mention the name was a bit of a mouthful and a little confusing, spawning many different variations, from DeWild, Grant and Reckert to DGR Consulting Engineers.

So we suggested they officially change their name to DGR Engineering – concise, memorable and descriptive, without deviating too much from their roots. And this way the name remains consistent across the board.

Who Am I? Why Am I Here?

A crucial part of the rebranding process involved brand discovery. We helped the company discover and define who they truly are as a brand. We did this by meeting with a few employees at each location and subjecting them to rigorous interviews and tortuous self-realization; but it was ok because we brought them food. In reality, we only helped these employees have a great open dialogue; we just took notes. We asked them questions that got them thinking and talking about the company and brand, who they are and what they stand for – discussions you don’t normally have with your co-workers day-to-day.

The interviews helped us create a brand manifesto that solidified what everyone was thinking. The manifesto established and redefined their brand, producing a mutual understanding of their brand identity by every employee and creating brand unity across the company as a whole.

New Look, Same Great Brand!

With the interviews finished and the new name established, we went to work, creating a bunch of new materials including a brand new logo, website (desktop and mobile using responsive design), brochure, brand standards manual, the aforementioned brand manifesto, marketing materials, the photography that was used in these materials, plenty of new stationery and business documents, and finally a press release announcing the newly rebranded company and its new logo.

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The brochure.

DGR-Ipad

The new website with responsive design, complete with desktop and mobile versions.

All in all we had a great time helping a great company. The entire experience was rewarding for us and we are proud of the work that came out of it.

Check out DGR Engineering’s new website here, and for more examples of our work check out our website and YouTube channel.

- Andrew

ADwërks Intentionally Confuses The Public With Big Blue Xs

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Ok, maybe the word “confuses” is not entirely accurate, but I don’t feel comfortable putting blogx3the word “titillates” in a headline. Anyway, you may have noticed a bunch of blue metal Xs lining the streets of downtown Sioux Falls. And if they left you wondering, “What the heck is with all these Xs?” then we did our job.

Jim Mathis – ADwërks President, Certified Advertologitst™ and Sweater Vest Aficionado® – is also the President of the SculptureWalk board, so ADwërks donates our services for its marketing. Jim went to bed one unseasonably cold March night, only to awake after dreaming of Xs (as in the letter, not the ex’s that George Strait sings about). His revelation was that the X is the perfect motif for the 2013 SculptureWalk season, and so the titillating campaign was born.

So, what the heck is with all these Xs? Well there are three answers to that question. First, by placing the Xs on the empty sculpture stands, they promote the 2013 sculpture lineup with the tagline “X Marks The Art,” which we included in the window posters we put up in downtown shop windows and ads in area publications. Secondly, X represents SculptureWalk’s 10th anniversary this year. And finally, the signs promote the SculptureWalk eXpo, an event this weekend in celebration of SculptureWalk’s decade milestone. It will be the single largest free indoor sculpture exhibit in the upper Midwest, featuring 250 sculptures on display and on sale along with free sculpture-making seminars.

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With this campaign we hoped to create an intriguing spectacle by placing these Xs on Phillips Avenue, Main Street and 8th Street. The enigmatic nature of the simple X is just mysterious enough to spark curiosity in passersby, motivating them to find out more, which is why we put stickers on the Xs that explain their purpose.

If you still haven’t seen the Xs, head downtown today (Phillips Avenue has the most signs) and have a gander before they’re replaced with new sculptures early tomorrow morning. And if you’re looking for something titillating to do this weekend visit the SculptureWalk eXpo at the Washington Pavilion, Saturday 12pm-10pm and Sunday 12pm-4pm, and check out the new sculptures downtown.

- Andrew

How To Survive An Ice Apocalypse At ADwërks

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1. When you come to work in the morning, park in a neighboring parking lot so they can signremove the snow in the ADwërks lot. To avoid soggy sock syndrome, follow the foot tracks in the snow made by the brave explorer Michael Hay.

2. Check and send as many emails as possible before the internet goes out. Of course no internet means no Facebook or Twitter, but the most important thing is to not panic. Write your witty updates on a post-it note and post them later. You wouldn’t want to deprive your loving fans of every bit of minutia or every single thought you’ve had throughout the day now would you?

3. Be prepared to endure a fickle loss of electricity. During a no-power period, make sure you carefully ration the coffee that’s left in the pot and evenly divide it with all coffee-drinking ADwërkers. We’re all in this together. If the power suddenly comes back on, make another pot with haste; you never know when it will shut off again. If you find yourself in the situation of no power and no coffee, you might have a mutiny on your hands.

4. Over the course of the day you may experience momentary periods of power loss. officeEvery time the power shuts off, the lights will go out and many inexplicable alarms and beepings will resonate throughout the office. Be assured that they are not bombs preparing to detonate, however the source of the sounds will still remain a mystery. ADwërkers will attempt to put an end to the incessant beepings by peeking into unoccupied cubicles, picking up various electronics with a baffled look on their faces, and blankly staring into the printer/electrical room searching for the culprits, but they will soon give up only to check their phones and riffle through magazines.

5. If the lights go out when nature calls, it’s ok for men to use the window-lighted lady’s photorestroom. After all, it’s much better than the alternative of guys relieving themselves with the door open in the window-less men’s bathroom; no one wants to see that…

6. Snack mix and treats from media reps can only last so long, so it’s important to discuss what to do in the event of a food famine. The worst-case scenario is you’ll have to resort to the same fate as the Donner party. Establish who will have to go first. The consensus here is to go from youngest to oldest to ensure the highest quality of sustenance, sorry Andrew. When it’s Hay’s turn to be dinner, be prepared to experience a strong beer buzz upon consumption.

- Rod Bender           3854345f559002b6bbfff11ed8ae0eca

 

ADwërks Media Team Gets More Experty

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Our team of expert media professionals has gotten even more experty with a brand new ADwërker!

Kristi Cornette, our new Pilot of the Airwaves, will work as a traditional media buyer for our 0_2013-03-14_Kristi-Cornette_018_SaraCam_Fix_Flat_Croppedlargest account CarHop, handling mostly TV and print. She’ll work alongside Monique Lupkes, our OTHER traditional buyer for CarHop, and together they’ll conquer the many CarHop markets across the country, riding the airwaves to true media glory.

Kristi has been in advertising for 22 years, and she’s been buying media for 16 years. Her agency experience is bountiful, including employment at Barkley in Kansas City, MO, where she bought for Sonic (not the hedgehog), Valentine Radford, also in Kansas City, where she bought for Pizza Hut, and closer to home, Nichols Media, where she bought for various clients in the auto industry.

When she’s not piloting the airwaves, Kristi enjoys spending time with her family, which is comprised of her husband Michael, 10-year-old son Cooper, and their dog Scout. Together they enjoy having movie nights, watching TV and just hanging out as a family. The Cornettes have recently returned to Sioux Falls after temporarily living in Missoula, MT and Kansas City, MO, but they’re glad to be back.

Although this is the first time she has worked at ADwërks, it’s not her first encounter with the Mathi. Kristi has known Jim and Kara for about 18 years, and she and her husband actually used to live five doors down from the Mathis household. Is that why you moved away Kristi? Nonetheless, we’re happy you came back.

Based on her mad media skills, good experience and great personality, we know Kristi will make an excellent addition to our team. Please feel free to help us welcome her aboard!

Announcing The Newest ADwërker

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Every office has one. You know, one of those types… an office manager, and ADwërks has a brand new one!

Jane Spreacker (pronounced sprecker) has joined ADwërks as Zen Mother. In her new role she will seek office enlightenment by handling duties like expense reports, filing, payroll, billing, answering phones etc. That may seem like a lot, but as Zen Mother, Jane understands that one must manage the office, rather than be managed by the office.

Along with her friendly personality and awesome sense of humor, Jane brings a ton of work experience to ADwërks as well, including six years as administrative assistant at the Sioux Falls School District, and more appropriately 10 years as office manager at Lawrence & Schiller, where she first worked with fellow ADwërker Kara Mathis.

Jane has two daughters that are out of the house, and one husband in the house, and together they reside right here in Sioux Falls. When she’s not at work Jane spends her free-time engaged in her favorite past-times, reading and gardening.

Jane fits in well with the ADwërks culture, and we’re happy to have her on the team. Apparently she feels the same way. She said, “I’m so excited to be back in advertising that I’m giddy; I could just dance!” And we’re excited to have you here Jane. We’d dance too, but you probably don’t want to see that.

Feel free to help us welcome her aboard!

The Lost Lesson Plan: Stuff They Don’t Teach You In Ad School Part I

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School can only prepare you for so much in advertising. Some things you just can’t teach, lessons better learned in the school of hard knocks. Since I graduated and entered the ad world, I’ve picked up on a lot of things they don’t tell you about in school, or things I wish I had known. Here are those observations.

1. The Creative Department Is Nothing Like Don Draper’s – Going into the creative side of advertising may seem like the most fun and glamorous choice. You stumble into work at 8:30 or 9 in the morning wearing jeans and a wrinkled t-shirt because you’re creative like that. Then you effortlessly spout out a few genius ideas with a Starbucks in one hand and an iPad in the other, clear a spot on your desk for your future ADDY awards, then spend the rest of the day tweeting and palling around with your fellow creatives, right?

Wrong. You come in on time, appropriately dressed, and you work hard. You have to. In fact, if you’re anything like me, you never stop working. The creative process is fickle. You can’t limit your thinking to Monday through Friday 8 to 5. And chances are you’ll have to weed through 100 ideas before finding one halfway worth presenting to your creative director. It’s a very rewarding and enjoyable career path indeed, but it’s not Mad Men.

2. Media Buying Is Totally Killer – You may be under the impression that media buying is the stuffy, quiet side of advertising, (“It’s something to do with numbers right?”), and it doesn’t offer the kind of glory that creative offers – couldn’t be farther from the truth.

First of all, elements of creativity definitely go into buying and planning. It would be hard to deliver higher GRPs on a smaller budget than the previous year without using a little creativity. Also, deciding on what mediums to place the advertising takes plenty of ingenuity.

Secondly, media buying is a HUGE part of an agency’s services. In school I didn’t realize how important it really is, not only to the agency but to the client. There is a substantial demand for media buying services too. We have 11 employees and three are media buyers.

Also, buyers get majorly brown-nosed by their media reps. I’m talking lunches, gift baskets, snacks galore (especially during the Holidays), sometimes even free vacations. Lucky for us, our media buyers share their bounty. Well, just the goodies. It’d be weird if I went to lunch with Carol and one of her media reps, chomping away as they discuss business. “(Smack Smack) Can you pass the ketchup?”

3. Your Time Card Is Always Watching – Before going into advertising I had no idea that there was this thing called a time card. It keeps track of the billable hours you spend working on projects so your agency can make money so YOU can get paid, but indirectly it’s kind of a babysitter that makes sure you’re not misbehaving.

Every single day, by minimum increments of 15 minutes, you have to record the projects you worked on (using job numbers) along with the specific task you were performing with that project (copywriting, research, etc.) known as a function code. Since I work on a lot of different projects, I am constantly updating my time card throughout the day. And in a way, this ensures that I stay on task. I’m pretty sure there’s not a function code for “Fartin’ around on YouTube.”

By no means did these revelations affect my attitude about going into advertising; in fact, they’ve probably enhanced it. But they contribute to what I think is one of the most important lessons of all, and that is that you should never have expectations or pre-conceived notions in advertising. Chances are you’ll be disappointed. If advertising is anything, it’s unpredictable, and that’s what makes it so exciting.

- Andrew

My High School Failure

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When I was in high school way back in the turbulent 1980s, like most teenage boys I knew everything. Or at least I thought I did. That doesn’t mean I wasn’t a good student, it just means I was smart enough to know what I needed to study, and what I thought I could coast through.

Math, grammar, history and science all fell into my “I should learn that” category. Music, art, speech, French and theater fell into the “I want to know that” group. Then there were the things I thought “I don’t need to know that.” At the top of that list was typing class.

Here was my thinking, and I know it was chauvinist and misogynistic, but I was 15, so give me a little slack. I knew I was going to grow up and become an important business man; well-respected, highly paid, and most importantly, I would have a lovely secretary sitting just outside my office, ready to type up any letters I might need. Why would I need to know how to operate an IBM Selectric with a piece of paper over my hands? That was clearly a skill I would not need. Right there on the list with square-dancing and small engine repair, I would not need these skills later in life.

Jump ahead a few years and I found myself in college hunting and pecking my way through philosophy essays. Jump again to my first job out of college, I was writing letters and memos and client call reports with the hunt and peck method on, you guessed it, an IBM Selectric.

Within a few years I had a personal computer on my desk. Then add a laptop, a smartphone and an iPad and I spend eight, ten, maybe fourteen hours a day with some form of keyboard in front of me. I guess I should have listened to Mrs. Kincheloe and learned proper posture, where all of the keys are at and what a QWERTY is, but I didn’t. Damn hindsight!

Now I see these young people who can type without looking at their fingers and I am filled with envy. By the way, this post took me twenty minutes to write, but three and half hours to type. Thank God for spell check or I wouldn’t be done yet.

- Jim

134 Minutes as Jim Mathis

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Not often you can justify spending several hours on a Saturday staring listlessly at the SyFy channel watching alien movie marathons, but all that time watching Invasion of the Body Snatchers proved its worth in 134 minutes. My 134 minutes as Jim Mathis.

I headed off to the South Dakota AdFed Chili Cook Off Contest last Thursday. With my bald cap in place (I couldn’t summon the courage to Britney Spears it and just bic my hair), vogue sweater vest (several sizes too big, stolen from the bottom of my husband’s closet, but still as sartorial as Ric Santorum or Ryan Tysdal) and big bowl of chili, the pot brimming with pork perfection, I set out to be Jim’s culinary copy, his sarcastic sous chef stand-in sans several inches. And in that two and almost a quarter hours, I realized pitching Three LIttle Pigs chili should be served with the same zest you pitch a client. Not everyone likes pork, just like not every client likes the creative we may pitch. But sometimes it’s just a bad taste from a mom who over-peppered pork chops, so a nibble or new presentation, makes it palatable.

When it comes to the recipe, remember the rules but add your own spice. The chili I dished up took a twist on the traditional, not just using so much pork you needed to do some extra push ups to pull the spoon up, but putting in that little extra (and no, not love… in this case, bacon, which is probably about the same thing). When working on projects, time-tested ideas can always work, but when we remember to make it just a little different, those ideas stand out from the others.

Did we win? No, tied for second. But the biggest lesson is, in the end you just need to be you. So while I spent 134 minutes as Jim Mathis, that time quickly came to an end when I ran into the gas station, bald cap burgeoning from the top of my head, and scared a small child. Probably best to stick to being a blonde with mediocre kitchen skills.

- Jolene