With their first workshop completed, SMU’s NSAC Ad Team has begun their work toward creating a campaign for Tai Pei Frozen Asian Foods. SMU’s Ad Team is broken up into four smaller teams: Creative, Strategy/Planning, Media & Research, and Account. Each team is headed by a team leader, who was chosen by Ad Team manager Professor Amber Benson. With Ad Team beginning, the four team leaders shared their expectations for what this semester will hold for them.
Laura Walsh, Executive Creative Director – Creative Team
“I am extremely optimistic for Ad Team this year. There’s so much talent in each area of the team. It won’t always be easy, but I am confident that we can use one another’s strengths and talents as well as Professor Benson’s experience to really succeed in April. As far as creative, I’m excited to see what we can do and how far we can push the envelope with Tai Pei as a client.”
Nicholas McCall, Strategy & Planning Director – Strategy & Planning Team
“I’m really looking forward to working with the members of the Ad Team. We’ve got an incredibly talented group of people with majors ranging from Digital Advertising to Marketing. Everyone has their own unique abilities that they are bringing to the table. It will be awesome to see how we are able to leverage those skills to develop the best possible advertising campaign for Tai Pei!”
Gifford Mellick, Research & Media Director – Research & Media Team
“I’m really excited to be a part of Ad Team this year, there are so many smart and talented people participating! We all want to do really well and I know all of the discipline leaders are super excited to work with our teams. Our client this year is very interesting and in a category that doesn’t get talked about that much. I can’t wait to see what our team comes up with in terms of research, strategy and creative. We have a pretty big group so I know a ton of great ideas are going to come out of this project. I really want to make it to nationals, getting out of our district will be tough but I believe our team and resources that we have at TAI and SMU will be a big advantage.”
Lex Pedraza, Group Account Director – Account Team
“I’m extremely excited to be a part of the Ad Team experience. With the new organizational structure put in place by Professor Benson this year you can definitely feel a renewed sense of excitement from the entire team. I truly believe this year we have the smartest, most creative and most dedicated students on our team and I’m looking forward to winning it all this year!”
From a leadership perspective, everyone has a positive outlook going into this semester. Ad Team will present their integrated marketing communications plan at the AAF District 10 Convention, ADVENTION, on Wednesday, April 5 in Fort Worth, Texas. The winning team(s) from each district will advance to the semi-finals competition in early May. Eight finalists will then compete for the national title at the annual ADMERICA conference, which will take place in New Orleans, Louisiana in early June. TAI is confident in Ad Team’s abilities and cannot wait to see what they come up with.