Brand Activations and User Experience at SXSW

SMU Advertising Seniors: Hallie Noland and Bella Pinera

Event marketing is valuable for creating buzz, gaining brand awareness, and building relationships between brands and consumers. This past weekend, various brands took the initiative to capitalize on this at SXSW by hosting brand activations. At many of these activations, brands gave away merchandise, provided photo opportunities, drinks, food, samples and more. These events are uniquely valuable as consumers get to see the brand come to life by experiencing all their interactive offerings, fostering a true connection with the brand. Because attendees can easily connect with the brand on a personal level, they find it easy and almost organic to post their experiences on social media promoting the brand maximizing their reach to not just SXSW but to all attendees’ followers as well.

Throughout the weekend, we attended events hosted by Lush, Paramount +, Dolby, Roku, UT Austin, and more. The most exciting event that we attended was Roku. The purple logo up and coming TV brand rented a multi-story building and turned the space into “Roku City.” Each room had a different theme, making us feel like we were experiencing Roku City in a modern, magical version of real time. The actors in each room were highly animated and unbelievably engaging, never breaking character. Overall, the event was incredibly captivating and has even remained a topic of conversation throughout the weekend because of how unexpected and whimsical the experience was.


Although the Roku event was exciting and unique, the user experience before the event could have been better. The bouncers outside the venue were aggressive, creating negative energy while waiting to attend the event. Additionally, the event only allowed four people in at once to make the experience feel personal. While the intimate numbered group received lots of one one attention inside, it created a long waiting time for people outside in the middle of the street causing traffic, ultimately taking away from the user experience.

This weekend we saw first-hand that in advertising sometimes wait times are unavoidable due to the personable connection we are trying to build with the consumer, however failing to provide an enjoyable captivating experience from start to finish is avoidable. The sound software system Dolby also struggled with this issue of extreme wait times however by the second day the brand had developed a quicker line system showing the importance of editing and being flexible with events in order to satisfy the consumer. Apart from making real time event changes, the Dolby event allowed attendees to sit inside a luxury car inviting them to sit back, relax, and imagine themselves driving with the surreal surround sound. Representatives from the Dolby team were in the vehicle to explain the engineering and technology behind the system to groups of threes. This was a very unique, personal, and exciting experience for both the brand and the consumer. Despite the wait times, Dolby welcomed consumers into various other rooms and even had a chicken and waffle car while consumers were waiting. Dolby provided a seamless, engaging experience start to finish as they interacted with the consumer before, during, and even after the event completing the entire consumer journey positively. The way to truly captivate the consumer is to establish a level of connection from the very first minute you reach them to the very end.

Finally, Paramount + hosted a fantastic event throughout the weekend. Paramount + rented a large venue with multiple floors and various activities. This event was the best because there were many options of things to do, thus creating a more manageable flow throughout the experience. Each section of the event promoted a different show or movie on Paramount +. There were many photo opportunities, and fabulous specialty cocktails that matched the themes of the promoted films. Also, the Paramount experience was outstanding as they had fun activities that were not strictly related to any movie or show in specific as well. These activities included basketball, painting vinyl records, henna tattoos, and more. This created a fun and uplifting atmosphere and encouraged attendees to stay at the Paramount event for a long time.

Overall, this weekend was filled with fun and exciting brand activations. It was great to participate in these activations and see how event marketing can be utilized. We thoroughly enjoyed learning about these brands, bonding with one another, and learning more about the world of advertising and brand activations.

A UNITED FORCE FOR GROWTH AND GOOD: THE ANA GLOBAL CMO GROWTH SUMMIT RECAP

The week of October 24, 2022, over 150 CMOs and business leaders joined together in Orlando, Florida, as a force for growth and good. This is the first time the entire council has met in person in three years.

Dr. Carrie La Ferle of the Temerlin Advertising Institute (sitting first row 2nd from right) and an expert in Culture & Ethics was in attendance helping to shape initiatives for the year ahead.

Below are the actions agreed to be taken in 2023 by the ANA’s Global CMO Growth Council.

SUSTAINABILITY: When we focus on driving growth in ways that are good for the environment, consumers will reward us, which will drive the economy.

TALENT: Our goal is to affect 50,000 marketers and 50,000 students in 2023.

Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DEIB): Multicultural market growth represents the single most significant opportunity for business growth today.

Humanized Brand Growth: A shift from referencing B2C or B2B with a preference for B4H (Brands for Humans). Growth comes from brands acting in a human-centric way – creating real value to address human needs in innovative ways for the people they serve.

These initiatives will help the industry work together to change habits and systems that limit market growth, including those damaging our planet. As many on the council believe, advertisers and marketers have the power to reach a lot of people, but with power comes responsibility. As La Ferle sums it up “we have a responsibility to use our tools over the people we serve and the environment we live in for growth and good, resulting in a win for all.”

SMU Advertising Welcomes New Chair and Director

By: Sarah Jane Eckelkamp

Professor Dr. Joe Phua appointed as Endowed Distinguished Chair and Director of the nationally ranked Temerlin Advertising Institute at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas.

Please join the Temerlin Advertising Institute in welcoming Dr. Joe Phua to the Meadows School of the Arts leadership team. 

Dr. Joe Phua’s past experiences include work in the advertising industry and academia. Before earning his Ph.D. from the University of Southern California (2011), where years earlier he earned his undergraduate degree in Cinema-Television, he worked for several major media companies, including MTV Networks, Viacom, IPG, and Paramount Pictures. He said this experience in Hollywood and Los Angeles gave him a “strong understanding of the international media industries and the role of marketing communications within the global economy and in major multinational corporations.”

After earning his Ph.D., Dr. Phua entered the world of academia. He spent over a decade at the University of Georgia Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication, where he taught classes in digital advertising, strategic planning, social media branding, and others. He simultaneously conducted research focused on using digital media technologies for effective persuasive interventions in health contexts, such as obesity, healthy eating, vaccines, and e-cigarettes, with major externally-funded grants in these areas.

Dr. Phua said he plans to use his past experiences to “help TAI continue to build its stellar reputation as a major center in the United States and internationally for advertising education and research.” As well as to “give SMU advertising students a strong and well-rounded education, so they have the necessary tools and knowledge to become future leaders in advertising.”

He believes that “in order to create great advertising, we need to first experience and know the world around us.” One of the tools the new Director plans to utilize for TAI is Dallas’ status as a major media and arts hub. The strong and emerging tech and innovation scenes increase the attractiveness of the metroplex in which SMU is located, and Dr. Phua “sees many opportunities for TAI moving forward in terms of jobs and internships for advertising students, corporate partnerships for undergrad and graduate programs, and harnessing the location to play a leadership role in nurturing and educating the next generation of advertising and marketing professionals, leaders and innovators.”

His ultimate goals include “making the Temerlin Advertising Institute an International hub for world-class advertising education and research” and he desires to “shape the next generation of leaders in the field” through “training and educating the best students who will go on to change the world through their work.” All while “nurturing research that can exert a positive impact in the world,” as Dr. Phua’s priorities for research include “more varied research opportunities for students and faculty, such as in the areas of data science and artificial intelligence.”

Temerlin’s motto “Better Advertising. Better World” embodies, for Dr. Phua, how “advertisements tell stories and reflect the world around us.” He believes “ads are pieces of art that educate and inform us, while also serving as “mirrors” reflecting who we are as a culture, a country, a world. Advertisements have the ability to persuade and change how people perceive brands, products, and companies. Additionally, advertisements can shape how people think about important social, political, and environmental issues.” Dr. Phua believes “that we can create a better world with better advertising. We can use advertising to create awareness for, advocate, shape ideas, tell stories, and seed conversations around issues of concern in our world, thereby helping to change the world, a little at a time.” SMU’s motto “World changers shaped here” is also meaningful to TAI’s new Chair as he believes “that is exactly what we do at Temerlin. We educate advertising students who will go on to create better advertising and thus change the world. Our responsibility as educators at Temerlin is, therefore, to shape future leaders in advertising who are creative, curious, tenacious, and passionate about the world around them, and who will go on to become world changers.” says Dr. Phua.

We are thrilled to have Dr. Joe Phua joining the Meadows leadership team as Professor and Endowed Distinguished Director and Chair. Please give him a warm Mustang welcome!

A Word From the Director and Chair…

“I would like to tell current, future, and past students to always remember to think big and dream big. Believe in yourself. You have the power and ability to change the world.” -Dr. Joe Phua

SMU Temerlin Advertising Institute Nationally Ranked After Successful Awards Season

Another record-breaking year for SMU Advertising!

Written By: Sarah Jane Eckelkamp

We are only halfway through 2022, and TAI students have already doubled the accomplishments of the previous year. Throughout the semester, Temerlin Advertising Institute students enter their campaigns into various local and national competitions. TAI is celebrating several students who have been recognized by prestigious advertising competitions like Graphis, the American Advertising Federation Student Competition, the National Student Advertising Competition, Young Ones, and more. Even though the past two years were characterized by irregularity due to COVID, this awards season was inspiring and unprecedented. Creative Program Director and Senior Lecturer Mark Allen believes that this year’s success was “built on a long tradition of artistic and strategic excellence within Temerlin’s creative program, resulting in the most successful year we’ve ever had when it comes to student competitions.”

The Student One Show:

Young Ones, aka the Student One Show, is organized by The One Club for Creativity and is the world’s premier creative competition for advertising students. 

Last month, our Young Ones winners took home 24 Shortlists, 3 Merit Awards, and 4 ADC Cubes (2 Gold, 1 Silver, 1 Bronze), earning SMU Temerlin Advertising Institute a Top 5 ranking in the United States and Top 10 in the world.

TAI students represented and were recognized across over a dozen categories, including art direction, copywriting, integrated campaigns, animation, sound design, narrative, film craft, and advertising/design for good. Our creatives cleaned up! Despite only competing in the ADC category, which recognizes campaigns created as coursework during the school year, SMU still obtained extraordinary rankings—which speaks highly of the level and quality of work produced by students through their mentorship from professors in the classroom. Because this category does not assign a particular client or brief, students are able to showcase the exemplary work they produce in the ordinary course of each semester within the Temerlin Advertising Institute. Professor Allen noted that “while it’s fun to win trophies as a reward for all our hard work, awards are really more about verifying (externally) what we already know about our program (internally) through an independent, internationally-renowned group of creative professionals—namely, that TAI  is one of the best advertising programs in the country.” The Student One Show truly recognizes the dedication of our students and faculty to positively shaping the future of the advertising industry. 

Congratulations to those identified below and all who mentored them along the way! And thank you to The One Club for Creativity for supporting students worldwide. 

2022 YOUNG ONES // WINNERS + SHORTLIST

See the winning work here. 

CUBE / LEGO: When did you stop building? > Film Craft: Animation / Elizabeth Skrmetta and Ethan Rios

CUBE / LEGO: When did you stop building? > Film Craft: Narrative / Elizabeth Skrmetta and Ethan Rios 

CUBE / LEGO: When did you stop building? > Television / Film / Online Video / Elizabeth Skrmetta and Ethan Rios 

CUBE / LEGO: When did you stop building? > Advertising: Craft in Video – Visual / Elizabeth Skrmetta and Ethan Rios 

MERIT / Half Price Books > Integrated Campaign / Sarah Scambray, Palmer Beldy and Sam Zimmerman 

MERIT / Band-Aid > Advertising: Television / Film / Online Video / Tessa Conti and Avery Levoyer 

MERIT / Band-Aid > Advertising: Direct / Tessa Conti and Avery Levoyer

SHORTLIST / Inkbox Temporary Tattoos > Magazine Advertising / Anika Crouser and Sophie Heidenreich

SHORTLIST / Rent the Runway: In Every Season > Out of Home / Sophie Heidenreich

SHORTLIST / The One Club: Pay Your Interns >Design for Good: Advertising / Grace Peek and Palmer Beldy

SHORTLIST / The One Club: Pay Your Interns > TV / Film / Online Video / Grace Peek and Palmer Beldy

SHORTLIST / Ring Video Doorbell > Integrated Campaign / Ra Kazadi

SHORTLIST / Temerlin Advertising Institute > Out-Of-Home / Posters / Tessa Conti

SHORTLIST / Lodge Cast-Iron Skillets > Integrated Campaign / Caroline Soja and Ceci Luther

SHORTLIST / Gabb Wireless Phones for Kids > Copywriting / Helen Cheever

SHORTLIST / Dad Grass: Low Dose Hemp Joints > Integrated Campaign / Sarah Scambray and Sam Zimmerman

SHORTLIST / Waffle House > Out-of-Home Poster / Megan Ferm and Brooke Betik

SHORTLIST / Story Corps / NPR Podcast > Out-Of-Home / Brittany Cooksey and Grace Peek 

SHORTLIST / Band-Aid > Motion / Film Craft: Short Video / Tessa Conti and Avery Levoyer

SHORTLIST / Band-Aid > Advertising: Craft in Video / Audio: Sound / Tessa Conti and Avery Levoyer 

SHORTLIST / Dungeons & Dragons > Out of Home Poster / Siena Marek and Olivia Porsch

SHORTLIST / US Postal Service > Out of Home Print / Ethan Rios and Palmer Beldy

SHORTLIST / US Postal Service > Copywriting / Ethan Rios and Palmer Beldy

SHORTLIST / Netflix > Design for Good: Advertising / Mariana Midolo

Graphis New Talent Annual: 

It doesn’t stop there…The Graphis New Talent Annual is a competition that showcases some of the most talented industry newcomers. Since 1944, Graphis has awarded some of the most influential work in the communication arts and, through the New Talent Annual, recognizes “rising stars.” The recognized students come from around the world, and the awarded work is published in a printed hardback volume each spring. 

One of TAI’s rising stars was Sarah Scambray (’22), now Junior Art Director at Slingshot agency, who had five campaigns recognized in the Graphis competition. Scambray said, “It was a huge honor to have work selected from such a wide pool of talented people – especially considering the fact that the judging for these competitions can feel so subjective, and each project is so unique.” Students Ethan Rios, Grace Peek, Palmer Beldy, Sam Zimmerman, Meriel Upton, Helen Cheever, and Elizabeth Skrmetta also placed in several divisions or with more than one campaign. They were alongside Scambray, who said, “Sometimes pieces that win gold in one competition won’t even place in another, so it was encouraging to see work do well across the board.”

SMU Advertising won in multiple categories across both Advertising and Graphic Design this year, taking home 25 awards in the 2022 Graphis New Talent Annual: 7 Golds, 10 Silvers, and 8 Honorable Mentions — the awardees are listed below. Congratulations to all the rising stars! A title which, according to Scambray, “encourages students not to become complacent, but to keep pushing to create better and better work.” Thank you, Graphis!

2022 GRAPHIS NEW TALENT ANNUAL WINNERS

See the winning work here.

GOLD (7)

Sarah Scambray / Divorced Beheaded / Publication

Sharese Rivait / Milkbone Minty Brushing Chews / Integrated 

Sarah Scambray / Rod the Father / Poster

Ethan Rios and Elizabeth Skrmetta / LEGO / Commercial

Sarah Scambray / Huggies / Logo

Grace Peek and Palmer Beldy / Pay Your Interns / Social Video

Sarah Scambray and Sam Zimmerman / Dad Grass / Integrated

SILVER (10)

Emily Elhilow / Krylon High Heat / Integrated

Grace Peek / All Terrain Poison Ivy Cream / Out-of-Home    

Ra Kazadi / Ring Video Doorbell / Integrated   

Ethan Rios / Nair for Men / Out-of-Home

Palmer Beldy, Sarah Scambray & Sam Zimmerman / Half-Priced Books Integrated

Megan Ferm and Brooke Betik / Waffle House / Integrated

Natalie Castillo / Quadpay / Integrated 

Meriel Upton / Fight the New Drug/ Integrated 

Lodge Cast-Iron Skillets / Caroline Soda & Ceci Luther / Out-of-Home

Meriel Upton and Olivia Hernandez / Girl Scouts /  Print

HONORABLE MENTION (8)

Elizabeth Skrmetta and Charlotte Jernigan / Trust & Will / Integrated

Scarborough Renaissance Festival // Elizabeth Skrmetta / Out-of-Home

Wolffe Bonewell and Maggie Daly / Apartments.com / Out-of-Home

Helen Cheever and Palmer Beldy / Genesis Women’s Shelter / Poster

The Beard / Sarah Scambray / Publication

Gabb Wireless / Helen Cheever / Integrated

Meredith Welborn and Luke Lockwood / 23andMe / Commercial Campaign

Thida Sok / Purple Mattress / Logo

American Advertising Federation Student Competition (ADDYs):

The New Talent Annual wasn’t the final stage our students shined on. After winning 30 awards, more than any school in the history of the Dallas ADDY competition in February, dozens of our student campaigns moved onto the District and National levels. SMU competes in District 10, comprised of powerhouse schools from Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Louisiana – including UT, Texas A&M, TCU, UNT, and LSU. 

Despite being significantly smaller than many competing schools, TAI brought home 21 awards from the District 10 competition: This includes the Overall Student Best of Show Award! The District level performance resulted in a dozen entries, Gold and Silver, qualifying to advance and represent SMU at the National level in Nashville.

At the beginning of June, several students journeyed to Nashville to accept 8National ADDYs – 3 Gold and 5 Silver! Setting a new Temerlin record and winning more than any other university in the country. Elizabeth Skrmetta was one of several students whose work made it to the final stage and said, “It has been beyond humbling to have had a campaign recognized by so many industry leaders across the competition circuit.” She and classmate Ethan Rios crafted a LEGO campaign that received a plethora of attention, ultimately receiving Gold at every level of the ADDYs and many other accolades. Skrmetta graduated in May and said she is “so grateful to the faculty and staff of Temerlin, and would not be the creative [she] is today without each and every one of them.” She feels the “When did you stop building?” campaign is a true culmination of all of the knowledge and skills learned from everyone in TAI, but especially Professor Mark Allen, who was a guiding light throughout the creation of this campaign.” 

Temerlin is grateful for the American Advertising Federation and its continued support for the next generation of advertising professionals. Listed below are the District and National ADDY Award Winners! Congratulations to all! 

National ADDY Winners List: 

GOLD / LEGO: Ethan Rios and Elizabeth Skrmetta

GOLD / Obsessed with the Beard Feature: Sarah Scambray

GOLD / Sooty Corps NPR Podcast: Grace Peek and Brittany Cooksey

SILVER / Lodge Cast-Iron Skillet: Caroline Soja and Ceci Luther 

SILVER / The One Club: Pay Your Interns PSA: Palmer Beldy and Grace Peek

SILVER / LEGO: When did you stop building?: Ethan Rios and Elizabeth Skrmetta 

SILVER / Angi’s List: Alexa May

AAF DISTRICT 10 WINNERS LIST: 

Watch the Best of Show Winner here.

Best of Show // LEGO: When did you stop building? / Ethan Rios & Elizabeth Skrmetta 

Student Special Judges Award // LEGO: When did you stop building? / Ethan Rios & Elizabeth Skrmetta

Gold / The One Club: Pay Your Interns PSA / Integrated Campaign / Palmer Beldy & Grace Peek

Gold / Temerlin Advertising Institute / Art Direction / Campaign Tessa Conti

Gold / LEGO: When did you stop building? / Animation or Special Effects / Ethan Rios & Elizabeth Skrmetta

Gold / Obsessed with the Beard / Publication Design / Sarah Scambray

Gold / LEGO: When did you stop building? / Art Direction / Ethan Rios & Elizabeth Skrmetta

Gold / Lodge Cast-Iron Skillets / Integrated Campaign / Caroline Soja & Ceci Luther

Silver / Your House Away From Home / Integrated Campaign / Megan Ferm & Brooke Betik

Silver / LEGO: When did you stop building? / Television Advertising / Ethan Rios & Elizabeth Skrmetta

Silver / Angi’s List / Magazine Campaign / Alexa May

Silver / Trust & Will Online Estate Planning / Copywriting / Elizabeth Skrmetta & Charlotte Jernigan

Silver / Gabb Wireless Phones for Kids / Copywriting / Helen Cheever

Silver / Story Corps / NPR Podcast / Out-of-Home Poster Campaign / Grace Peek & Brittany Cooksey

Bronze / Dad Grass: Low Dose Hemp Joints / Integrated Campaign / Sarah Scambray & Sam Zimmerman

Bronze / US Postal Service: Through it All / Magazine Campaign / Palmer Beldy & Ethan Rios

Bronze / Dallas Ballet Academy / Out-of-Home Campaign / Thida Sok & Ceci Luther

Bronze / Half Price Books / Integrated Campaign /Sarah Scambray, Sam Zimmerman, & Palmer Beldy

Bronze / QuadPay: Indulge Yourself / Art Direction / Natalie Castillo

Bronze / Apartments.com / Copywriting / Maggie Daly & Wolffe Bonewell

Bronze / Temerlin Advertising Institute / Out-of-Home Poster Campaign / Tessa Conti

National Student Advertising Competition (NSAC): 

The American Advertising Federation also supports the next generation of advertisers through the National Student Advertising Competition (NSAC.) This year, Professor Nicole Haddad mentored a team of students from across all three advertising tracks – digital media strategy, strategic brand management, and creative – Cox School of Business, and Dedman College as they created a campaign for Meta Quest by Facebook. The 2022 SMU team members were Palmer Beldy, Amber Bormann, Rachael Briner, Helen Cheever, Grant De Paoli, Kalena Dorgan, Jackson Ferris, Emme Rothberg, Brendan Shelley, Bailey Sullivan, Meriel Upton, Brooke Weber, and Sophie Yuill.

For the first time since 2019, the competition occurred in person, and the team ventured to Houston, Texas, where they presented their semester of research, insights, and ideas to a panel of judges and the brand. Professor Haddad felt that “The team conducted powerful primary research to uncover unique insights while the creative team members brought it to life through digital advertising and media activations. The special sauce that made this team work so well together was the chemistry and bond that everyone had. So much fun was had together, and those bonds ultimately fueled incredible teamwork.”

This year, SMU won the District 10 Third Place prize and the Judge’s Special Award from Meta for the “Most Uncomfortable Truths.” The Judge’s Special Award was awarded for the boldest idea rooted in an insight that made the client the “most uncomfortable.” Professor Haddad claims the special award “illustrated how successful the team was in identifying and honing in on a key insight, and marrying that insight to create bold, truth-telling content.” 

A job well done…!

The success of Temerlin’s students this year was outstanding. Professor Mark Allen believes, “If we’re fortunate enough to keep this tradition going, it makes SMU a place that new students want to study and galvanizes our alumni base—and this keeps the whole cycle going.” 

Congratulations again to all, and thank you to all who made this year possible.Especially Mark Allen – Senior Lecturer and Creative Program Director, Willie Baronet – Stan Richards Professor in Creative Advertising, Cheryl Mendenhall – Senior Lecturer and Program Director for Graphic Design Minors, Tami Fowler – Senior Program Specialist, and Gordon Law – Executive in Residence and 2021-2022 Interim Chair. What a year!

 

Oh, to be Young!

Written by: Stella Cofoid

Creative Program Director and Senior Lecturer Dr. Mark Allen Named to Young Ones Jury. 

The Young Ones Competition critiques and scores the essentials of Advertising: portfolios, briefs, and art direction. The partnership between One Club and Southern Methodist University dates back to 2005, around the same time as the groundbreaking of the Temerlin Advertising Institute. Dr. Mark Allen, an undergraduate and graduate-level professor, has been selected for the fourth year in a row to be on the Young Ones jury. He has served in several different capacities each time he has been chosen. This year, he is serving in the “Portfolio Competition,” which recognizes the world’s best student portfolios. The portfolios are examined and scored based on the entirety of their content, not just one singular campaign. When asked his thoughts on working alongside some of his former students as a juror, Dr. Mark Allen states that he feels “proud and humbled, as contradictory as that sounds.” Proud and humbled, complementary terms rather than contradictory, serve to prove the eloquence and pour of knowledge that professors at the Temerlin Advertising Institute instill into their students as the students become respected colleagues. Alumni that have also served in this capacity are Greg Peterson, Morgan Hoff, and Tanner Thompson, just to name a few. These students have gone on to lead impeccable careers and are widely respected in their fields. Through moving up in agencies, curating Super Bowl commercials, and more, their success signifies the due diligence of their own internal drive and the professors that showed them how to be passionate about their work. 

 The “Student One Show” is an exclusive exhibition of the top portfolio programs in the country. As Temerlin grew, so did the talent of the students, readily preparing them for a competition of this scale. In 2010, this sentiment proved true as the Temerlin Advertising Institutes students had more than twice as many pieces accepted into the show than a graduate-level program competitor. The competition shifted once it went to an invitation-only, international competition in 2015, to which our students still kept up and shattered undergraduate barriers and were awarded based on their creative and strategic excellence. 

This global creative competition is no walk on the yellow brick road. It is magnificently packed with the world’s most creative talent. Dr. Mark Allen, aware of the talent that this competition attracts, plays on this to get his students ready for the quest. Berghs School of Communication in Stockholm is a strong stand-out competitor year after year. Dr. Allen stated that to rile his students up to go up against the smart and creative work of Berghs in 2008-2010, he made the passwords on all of the creative studio computers “beat_the_swedes.” Witty and passion-driven, the 15 creative students selected each year earn their keep. There is no formulaic trick to the creativity that each cohort of students brings to the table. The reason and difference with the students of Temerlin? Dr. Allen declares it is because of the family atmosphere that the program promotes and maintains between students and faculty. It is the differentiating factor between TAI students and professors’ work and others that enter the competition. 

Please help congratulate Temerlin’s very own Dr. Mark Allen on his contribution to the Young Ones Competition throughout the years, being selected for the fourth time as a juror, and for his continued success in contributing to the passions and creativity of his students. 

Cheers, Dr. Mark Allen! 

Dr. Carrie La Ferle, Temerlin Advertising Institute Professor, Receives National Kim Rotzoll Award for Advertising Ethics and Social Responsibility

Carrie LaFerle

Award presented by the American Academy of Advertising recognizes long-term commitment to ethics in the field 

by Caroline Pritchard 

In March, Temerlin Advertising Institute professor Dr. Carrie La Ferle received the Kim Rotzoll Award for Advertising Ethics and Social Responsibility. 

The award given by the American Academy of Advertising recognizes individuals who have demonstrated an outstanding commitment to advertising ethics and social responsibility throughout their careers. It has only been given eight times since its inception in 2004.

La Ferle has been teaching advertising ethics for over 20 years and also conducts research on how culture impacts advertising effectiveness and consumer behavior. She has more than 50 published articles on culture and a recent book on preaching and advertising. Prior to academia, she worked in the private sector in an advertising agency in Toronto followed by four years in Japan with a licensing and merchandising company.

La Ferle holds a Ph.D. in advertising from The University of Texas at Austin, an M.A. in advertising from Michigan State University and a B.A. in sociology from the University of Western Ontario.

Receiving the Kim Rotzoll Award is especially meaningful to La Ferle because she had a personal connection to the award’s namesake. Rotzoll, who died in 2003 and received the first award posthumously, spearheaded ethics in advertising research. “Kim was a pioneer in the field of advertising ethics,” La Ferle says. “We would frequently discuss ethics at conferences.”

Former recipients are close colleagues of La Ferle’s. “The people who have received the award before me are pretty amazing,” she says. “We use each other’s research or books to further our understanding of advertising ethics and in teaching to impact students entering the field.”

La Ferle was inspired to pursue advertising as a career by her father, who also worked in advertising. But at the time in Canada, advertising degree programs did not exist.

“I had planned on business school — thinking that’s where I would take advertising classes. However, I found two classes in sociology related to advertising,” she recalls, “and this launched my pursuit of advertising and later ethics.”

La Ferle is currently conducting studies in several different areas. A special interest of hers is cultural intelligence.

“The more people know about different cultures — and not just race and ethnicity —the more opportunities there are for messaging that is broader, has a bigger reach and is more effective,” she says.

She’s also studying how consumers respond to religious symbols in advertising, and how both advertising professionals and consumers think about advertising ethics and deception in advertising.

La Ferle came to the Temerlin Advertising Institute in 2007 to help design and grow a master’s program with a focus on social responsibility. She began teaching international advertising and ethics in advertising right away. When the master’s program debuted in 2009 it was one of the first of its kind.

“It just took off and soared,” she says. “People in the industry really appreciated that new perspective — that you can market a product, but do it in a way that is still socially responsible.”

Today, advertising majors at SMU are required to take advertising ethics and minors are encouraged to take it. Some schools have followed suit. The University of Oregon now has a similar program led by fellow Rotzoll Award recipient Dr. Kim Sheehan. However, at many schools advertising ethics is still not offered as a core course.

 

“There are other classes that are thought to be more important to get the students out with the skills they need, like a media class or a campaigns class,” La Ferle says. “But at Temerlin, we feel it should be at the core of everything students learn.”

La Ferle starts her classes by exploring why a person should be ethical. “You can’t expect an ad agency to act ethically if individuals do not understand how ethics impact their lives more broadly,” she says.

Her philosophy is that being ethical has benefits not just for society, but also for the advertising industry, brands — and individuals themselves. “I’m a full believer in the win-win-win,” she says. “Research shows that you are more satisfied with who you are when you follow your own morals and beliefs.

“It’s a win for an individual who behaves ethically and when brought to the profession, brands can then hold their heads high and build stronger relationships with consumers,” she continues. “You don’t want to be friends with someone who’s not honest and truthful. So why would a consumer want to build a relationship with a brand that’s not honest and truthful?”

The same goes for fair representation. “You sell things to people if you’re resonating with them and recognizing what’s important to them,” she says. “Ads selling products for 60-year-olds must understand and then represent the experience of people who are 60 to be most effective.”

Early in La Ferle’s classes, students must contemplate advertising as an institution and how it originated. “We ask, ‘What use did it have? Why did it come about and what problem did it solve?’” she says. “Because that’s usually how an institution arises.”

La Ferle explains that advertising was first used to deal with greater supply than demand: Mass communication created an opportunity to alert broad swaths of people to products that were available and to raise demand for them.

A lack of demand is no longer an issue, but La Ferle says advertising still solves problems by educating consumers and aligning products with a greater purpose important to those consumers.

“Procter & Gamble does it quite well,” she says. “Advertising for the Always feminine hygiene brand helps girls be confident and stay in school, so they can go on to do amazing things.”

In her career, La Ferle has witnessed plenty of changes to the advertising industry and public perception of it. Today, there is more awareness of the concepts she teaches, like fair representation and unconscious bias. And consumers have started expecting brands to be more socially responsible.

“While we grew our program in social responsibility, brands were jumping on the bandwagon with cause-related marketing,” she says. “Students don’t question the need for a class like this today. But I still don’t think they come in understanding the whole range of topics covered in advertising ethics.”

Although consumers are savvier today and more aware of ads that invade their space — by interrupting a show they’re streaming, for example — La Ferle says they aren’t always aware of how pervasive ads are.

“People don’t generally know how much ads influence them,” she says. “I’ll have some students say, ‘Ads don’t really affect me.’ And meanwhile they’re wearing a Gap T-shirt. I’ll say, ‘Well you’re an ad right now.’”

One of the main things La Ferle hopes to impart to students before they graduate is that advertising can be powerful in it messaging ability, yet it is inherently neutral.

“It’s a tool to communicate information and grab attention — and the outcome of an ad can be good or bad. It really depends on the source that’s using it,” she says. “I tell my students to go out and create ads that have great messages, move market share for your brand and move society in a positive way.”

Executive Internship: TAI Graduate Student Noble Farr Reports after Two Weeks at Firehouse

I arrived at Firehouse bright-eyed and on the wrong floor. After finding the correct lobby, I was given a tour by Steve, an incredibly welcoming gentleman who I knew looked familiar but could not pinpoint exactly who he was. I’ll blame information overload and the absence of caffeine. Only after a 20 minute tour of Firehouse’s incredible office did I finally muster up the courage to ask, “And what is it you do, Steve?” To which he kindly and laughingly responded, “Oh—I’m the CEO.” *insert Homer Simpson backing into the bushes meme.

Now only one more misstep away from throwing myself down the proverbial fire-pole, I sat at my desk and took in the surroundings of my new home for the summer. Bobbleheads of celebrated employees lined a corner wall, countless agency awards were polished and reverberating excellence, and a mural of Lil’ Wayne equally encouraged and unsettled me from his perch as my next-desk neighbor. The agency’s mantra of “work hard, don’t be a dick’ was written on another wall, reminding me of both my favorite and only-known quote by Conan O’Brien: “Work hard, be really kind, and amazing things will happen to you.” Like all good agencies, Firehouse takes this a step further.

Most palpable in that moment, however, was a sense of the agency’s powerful culture. A culture that is made up of so many unique and talented individuals that it has created a sub-culture of its own. All are welcomed and all are accepted, contingent, of course, on one’s willingness to spontaneously pause work for the ever-present (and incredibly competitively) foosball game.

Having been at Firehouse for only two weeks now, I am even more excited to continue working here. As a strategy intern, I’ve already been given so many exciting opportunities to research new clients and help work on creative briefs. Within the first week, I was pulled into

Noble Farr, SMU Graduate Student in Advertising
Noble Farr, SMU Graduate Student in Advertising

meetings where I felt welcomed yet often overwhelmed and undeserving to be in such an unfamiliar and real-stakes environment. I’ve learned that while one can excel in academics and think he knows a lot about the advertising industry, learning to put that knowledge into action can be difficult. Thankfully, that’s what internships are for: to find out what you like and don’t like, learn how to tap into the innate and learned abilities one’s been given, and to conquer (at least attempt to) the imposter syndrome that comes with being surrounded by so many experts in their fields.

I thought it appropriate to write myself a strategy brief to help me through this short summer at Firehouse. After all, writing briefs is my job. It consists of asking questions like, ‘What do I want to learn?’ ‘How can I best accomplish my goals?’ and ‘When I leave, how can I make sure my work has made a lasting and positive impact?’ I hope to find these answers along the way, but until then I’ll just keep bettering my strategy skills, improving my foosball game, and working to make Firehouse a Fire-home (had to drop a dad joke in there somewhere).

My first introduction to Firehouse was during an agency tour with Professor Peter Noble. I’m confident that without his and so many other TAI faculty members’ guidance, this summer would look a lot different. Now putting my degree into action, I’m reminded of all the late night group projects and extensive research papers I’ve worked on, and the professors who challenged us to develop our best, most authentic work. Going back to school to complete a master’s degree when most of your friends and peers are starting their careers is daunting, and I had my fair share of second thoughts. However, I distinctly remember walking out of my first class last fall and thinking to myself, “this is exactly where I’m supposed to be.” And that feeling is even more true today.

ALUMNI UPDATE: Chelsea Roth

Temerlin alumna (’16) Chelsea Roth is a Senior Consultant focusing on social impact and sustainability at APCO Worldwide‘s New York office. Prior to this role, Chelsea worked at Edelman for five years and supported purpose-driven campaigns for global brands and organizations. Some of the companies Chelsea has partnered with during her career include eBay, Red Bull, The Rockefeller Foundation, T.J.Maxx, Unilever and currently the ACLU.

Chelsea credits her professors in the Temerlin Advertising Institute at SMU with providing the skills and experience to succeed at top communication agencies and navigate the client work that she manages today. She will never forget the hands-on experience during her “Advertising Campaigns” course, where she created an advertising pitch for Mizzen+Main, a company started by two SMU alumnus. Her educational experience in the Temerlin Advertising Institute built the foundation for her to discover her passions and gain life-long expertise that will carry her throughout her career.

INDUSTRY CONNECTIONS: Stone Boutique Partners with Campaigns Students

Stone Boutique is a Dallas-based fine and rare stone showroom that brings cutting-edge slab technology to the interior design consumer. Owners Francisco and Margarita Acosta are dedicated to disrupting the industry by leveraging their patented technology to pioneer a new start-to-finish purchasing experience. They explain:

“For us, discovering a once-in-a-lifetime slab is a magical experience. Over the course of our first 30 years in the industry, we watched in awe as pieces forged by the history of the world’s most intriguing places were unearthed, only to be delivered to the customer through a lifeless, inefficient, and frustrating processes. It wasn’t good enough for the customer or for us.”

The Acosta’s aspire to increase sales, expand offerings globally, and roll out a proprietary process to revolutionize the consumer journey. They have partnered this fall with Professor Peter Noble’s campaigns course seeking a complete integrated marketing and messaging strategy to achieve this goal. “We partnered with Stone Boutique for two reasons. First, they provide our senior advertising students with an unusual challenge — their business spans both business-to-business and business-to-consumer product categories. And second, with their proprietary technology Stone Boutique has the potential to rapidly grow from a relatively recent start-up into a leading global brand. They’re poised to disrupt the entire stone industry. At this stage in their brand development, Stone Boutique was interested in raising and enhancing awareness of their revolutionary stone selection process,” Noble explains. Temerlin students are eagerly working on the campaign; two teams will present a plans book and virtual presentation to the client early next month.

Our students greatly benefit from working with real-world class clients such as Stone Boutique.

INDUSTRY CONNECTIONS: Professor Mark Allen’s Wildly Talented Students

Temerlin Advertising Institute’s Senior Lecturer Mark Allen shares his journey from high school art class to advertising professor on the We Are Next podcast. Allen found his love for advertising early on, established RedCape consultancy working with clients such as Martha Stewart, and currently feeds his passion for teaching wildly talented students at SMU.

In fact, one of Allen’s former wildly talented students, Elizabeth Entenman (B.A. Advertising 2010), introduced him to We Are Next founder Natalie Kim for the sit-down and sharing of advice learned over his varied career in the field of advertising. We Are Next is a resource for students and junior talent entering the advertising and marketing industry. This platform offers mentorships, a robust jobs board, and a variety of career advice-related content.

An interest in art, followed by a design course in high school, led Allen to major in drawing & painting and communication design and minor in advertising while in college. Post-graduation, Allen recounts leaving his creative work with recruiters at many notable agencies. He once found a note from an agency principal inside his book. Allen says, “I was so excited to see the note, but it read Nice book. Can’t tell if you’re an art director or copywriter.

He fondly retells this story to students as a critical moment in the progression of a career in advertising to help prepare them for the ups and downs that come along with building a reputation in the field. In the podcast, Allen recommends making creative portfolios stand out to potential employers by:

    1. Showing your best work.
    2. Making sure big ideas are supported by great craft.
    3. Showing a sense of restraint, whether it is in art direction, writing or the selection of products and clients. It shows a sense of maturity.
    4. Developing a good sense of taste over time by looking at lots of great work in Communication Arts annuals and The One Show, as well as Cannes and Clio award winners, to start. It is one of the most valuable things a student can do.
    5. Showcasing quality work over quantity. Recruiters usually skim portfolios, so make sure to highlight your strengths and capabilities. Also, include class or spec work that you are excited about, as it gives employers a sense for the types of clients that would be a good fit for your skills.
    6. Identifying and articulating problems, not only in a brief, but in brainstorming and day-to-day interactions. It helps to refine your craft and identifies you as somebody who can help other people, setting you up for director-level positions.

In advising students, Allen adds, “Look at ads and ask yourself questions such as, what is the problem? How did they solve it? When you see good work, identify what is compelling and deconstruct it a little bit. What makes it great? How and why did they make that?”

Listen to the full episode of the We Are Next Podcast.

See some of the creative awards won by SMU Advertising students at the 2020 National Student Show and the 2020 AAF Dallas awards show.