ATU-Ozark Photoshoot

We are excited to begin sharing with you a new campaign for Arkansas Tech University’s Ozark campus.

Arkansas Valley Technical Institute became part of the Tech system in 2006, and we have been marketing their brand across the River Valley since then. They have experienced tremendous growth in that time and recently came to us for a new branding campaign.

The new campaign features graduates from the Ozark campus in two of their most in-demand programs – allied health and technology. Jason Masters was the photographer for this project.

We will share the whole campaign soon, but in the meantime, here is a peak at some production stills from our recent photoshoot!

Good News at Arkansas Governor's Conference on Tourism

Last week several of our associates had the pleasure of attending the 38th Annual Arkansas Governor’s Conference on Tourism. The conference is held in different Arkansas cities each year, and 2012’s conference took place in West Memphis.

We attended interesting sessions about topics ranging from social media, the impact of the 150th Civil War anniversary on Arkansas tourism, digital marketing and culinary tourism in Arkansas.

One of the most interesting topics covered was the economic recovery in Arkansas in 2012. We all know that the financial crisis of recent years has taken its toll on almost every industry - tourism included. University of Arkansas economist Kathy Deck gave a wonderful presentation on where the tourism industry in Arkansas is heading, and we are happy to report that the future looks bright!

Also, we’d like to offer a special congratulations to the Reed’s Bridge Battlefield Preservation Society, which received the Arkansas Heritage Henry Award for making a significant contribution towards the preservation of Arkansas’ legacy. They have done a great job maintaining the Reed’s Bridge historic site and educating Arkansans about the history of the battlefield in Jacksonville. For more information on Reed’s Bridge and the work of the Preservation Society in Jacksonville click here.

PRSA Unveils New Definition of Public Relations

In January we told you about the Public Relations Society of America’s international campaign to modernize the definition of public relations. The “PR Defined” campaign allowed everyone, from public relations professionals to the clients that hire them, to voice their opinion on what the evolving definition of public relations should be.

The previous definition of public relations, which had been held since 1982 was:

“Public relations helps an organization and its publics adapt mutually to each other.”

Following a public vote last month, here is the new definition of public relations by PRSA:

"Public relations is a strategic communication process that builds mutually beneficial relationships between organizations and their publics."

The public vote took place over two weeks in February and drew 1,447 votes, with the winning definition receiving 46.4 percent of the vote. PRSA CEO Gerard Corbett expressed his thoughts on the new definition in a blog post on the organization’s website, "Simple and straightforward, this definition focuses on the basic concept of public relations—as a communication process, one that is strategic in nature and emphasizing mutually beneficial relationships.“

Undoubtedly, the final definition will have its share of critics, and PRSA says that this is just the beginning, not the end of the debate. The PR Defined blog will stay open for discussion on the new definition, so check it out here and leave your feedback.

The Pull of Pinterest

We know we aren’t the first people to write about the Pinterest trend. Communications consultant Shel Holtz recently confirmed there are now more than 50 million blog posts referencing or featuring the social media site. Clearly Pinterest is doing something right. Because these days, a new form of social media isn’t groundbreaking news, but what about a social media outlet that sucks you in and has you asking yourself: Why am I so addicted to Pinterest?

Pinterest is a site that allows members to create digital boards as a way to organize and catalog images they find on the internet, and anything is game - from recipes, to a pair of shoes, to something they find on an interesting blog. Virtually anything can be “pinned” to different boards the user creates. With over 10 million users, the content on Pinterest is almost endless.

Pinterest has been around since 2008, so why are we just now hearing so much about it? As social media, particularly Facebook and Twitter, continue to evolve, people find themselves overwhelmed with status updates and comments. There are those of us who can’t make dinner without creating a Facebook album of our meal, or risk depriving followers of our opinions on the big game.

In a recent article by Fast Company, Dr. Christopher Long, a professor at Ouachita Baptist University, explains how Pinterest serves as a much-needed escape from the day-to-day content sharing of other social media sites.

“It’s not a place where I have to worry about being bombarded by other people’s over-sharing of uninteresting or annoying daily experiences or about accidentally revealing intimate details of my day-to-day life,” Long said.

So how can Pinterest be a useful tool in the world of marketing? Like all tactics, Pinterest makes a lot of sense for some businesses and no sense at all for others. When it does make sense, Pinterest can provide a fun way for consumers to discover brand values and company culture. Here are a few examples of a few brands that are using Pinterest well to build awareness:

Kate Spade

Chobani

Whole Foods

The Travel Channel

2012 ADDY Awards

This past weekend the Sells Agency attended the ADDY awards – presented by the American Advertising Federation–Little Rock (AAF-LR) – which honor a high standard of creativity and excellence in advertising. We are excited to announce that the agency received five awards for work we created on behalf of Sheltair and Arkansas Tech University.

We won a gold ADDY award for our Choose Tech campaign, produced for Arkansas Tech University. This campaign received the only gold award for a television campaign outside of the PSA category. The Choose Tech campaign also received a bronze in the regional/national TV, single spot, consumer services category.

In addition, our Arkansas Tech Accelerated Degree TV was awarded bronze in the local television, :60 second category.

We also won bronze ADDY awards for Sheltair photography in both the campaign and color photography categories.

Special thanks go to Sheltair and Arkansas Tech University for working with us to create these successful, now award-winning campaigns. It’s our honor to work with such great clients on a daily basis and to be a part of a wonderful organization like AAF-LR.

WE WANT YOU!

Are you a college student or recent graduate interested in marketing, advertising, graphic design or art? Do you want to spend your summer doing more than babysitting or running to get coffee and making copies? We are looking for one account services intern and one graphic design intern for our 2012 Career Clarity program.

Past interns have completed various projects and campaigns for local non-profits and new agency clients that included website planning and design, brochures and other printed pieces, statewide research and public relations efforts. No matter what the project is, we promise you will be busy, have fun and learn a lot about our industry.

If you are interested in finding out more about the 2012 Career Clarity program, get more information here, and click here to get the application. Applications are due March 30. Please email questions to sarah@sellsagency.com.

Interns will be compensated for their work.

Sells Agency Welcomes New Associates

The Sells Agency is excited to welcome two new members to our team team. Elizabeth Luttrell and Lauren Thompson have joined the agency as art director and account executive, respectively.

Elizabeth is a Little Rock native and comes to us from Dillard’s where she worked as a graphic and packaging designer. She has been hard at work bringing client campaigns to life with her creative eye, and we are slowly but surely getting over the fact that she is an LSU Tiger.

Lauren has been working as an account executive for Moroch Partners for the past four years and will be heading up client accounts on both the digital and traditional side for the agency. She has an impressive background both in her work experience and as a member of the Fulbright College of Arts & Sciences at the University of Arkansas.

We are excited to add these two women and their diverse talents to our team. Welcome, Elizabeth and Lauren!