U-Idaho Advertising Team Wins District Competition

JAMM students praised for concept, presentation for ad campaign

A team from the School of Journalism and Mass Media won first place in the American Advertising Federation’s District XI student advertising Competition April 19. The UI team will advance to the national competition June 5-8 in Phoenix.

“The students deserve all the credit for our success – they never wavered throughout the entire process,” said UI team advisor Justin Barnes, assistant professor in the School of Journalism and Mass Media (JAMM). “This is a talented group that is prepared to make some noise on the national stage.”

The competition was judged by regional advertising professionals and representatives from Glidden Paints, the corporate sponsor for this year’s competition. The case study focused on increasing customer awareness of the Glidden brand in Walmart stores. Eight teams from Idaho, Washington, Oregon and Montana participated.

The competition required student teams to develop a 23-page marketing campaign and a 20-minute presentation. The UI’s 14-member team has been working since January on the campaign, each student assuming a role modeled on positions in an advertising agency.

Lana Schwartz, a senior advertising major, is the team’s account executive. Other team members are: Amanda Blenden, Jesi Carroll, James Clark, Michael Cullen, Elyse Delaney, Meghan Eaton, Paul Forester, Will Knecht, Ashly MacCoy, Sophia Miller, Kari Rucker, Emma Willett and Taylor Williams.

“I am not surprised that the Idaho team won,” said Chuck Christopher, president of Advantage Advertising of Lewiston, who attended the competition. “Their strategy was strong, their creative approach was fresh and they delivered it all in a crisp presentation.” Christopher, a member of the Journalism and Mass Media Advisory Board, was a member of the school’s Advertising Competition Team as a student in 1984.

For this year’s competition, the UI team chose “Reflect Life’s Colors” as its theme. The campaign focused on do-it-yourself projects favored by Walmart customers and allowed customers to match the colors of favorite objects to paint for home interiors and exteriors.

Barnes said the judges praised the theme. “Often, campaigns on the professional level never find it; however you, found it, and nailed it with your graphics, content, and presentation,” the judges wrote. “You also never lost sight of your theme throughout your entire campaign.”

This was the first District XI victory for an Idaho team since 1999. UI teams also won district competitions in 1995 and 1996. Those three teams were advised by Prof. Mark Secrist, who developed the school’s advertising curriculum. Barnes, a UI alumnus, joined the JAMM faculty in 2012. This was his first year as advisor for the Ad Team.

In this year’s Northwest district competition, Montana State University finished second, the University of Oregon placed third, and Portland State was fourth. Other teams represented Washington State University, Boise State University, Idaho State University and Brigham Young University.