Category: Professional Development

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AWARDS: 2019 SMU Advertising Awards Luncheon Winners

The annual TAI Student Awards Luncheon on Friday, April 26 was a huge success! We always enjoy honoring our distinguished students for their dedication and accomplishments in the industry. Continue reading to view the award recipients.

President
Dalya Romaner

Vice President
Alissa Llort

Treasurer
Anna Grace Godoy

Events
Hunter Jackson

Outreach
Allie Hartman

 

 

 

Equestrian
Mary Elizabeth Cordia
Sherese Rivait

Volleyball
Meryn Kennedy

 

 

 

SILVER Medal* // Art Direction & Copy
COSTCO / “Prepared for anything.”
Gaelle Gachelin, AD/CW
Anna Rose Corell, AD/CW

HomeAdvisor / “Bridging the gap between you and home repair.”
Anna Rose Corell, AD/CW

Anger Room / “Lose your Cool. Keep your security deposit.”
Megan Cruikshank, AD
Graceley Todd, CW

Instacart / “Groceries delivered fast.”
Isaac Cordova, AD/CW

Sun Bum Sunscreen / “Get out there.”
Ellie Pace, AD/CW
Charlie O’Brien, AD/CW

BIC / “Light your way.”
Abby Coon, AD/CW
Madi Castellano, AD/CW

 

National Student Show
Dyala Ashfour
Allie Hartman

Young Ones Art Directors Club
Dyala Ashfour
Allie Hartman
Brie Bernstein

 

Dallas ADDY Award Winners
Dyala Ashfour
Brie Bernstein
Abby Coon
Megan Cruikshank
Kell Klopp

District 10 ADDY Award Winners:
Megan Cruikshank
Kell Klopp

 

 

 

This Honor Society at SMU recognizes academic excellence and promotes scholarship in journalism and mass communication. Membership must be earned by excellence in academic work and is awarded to the top 10% of seniors graduating with degrees in communication disciplines.

Undergraduate
Ellie King
Avery Lewis
Dalya Romaner
Alegra Volpe

Graduate
Cat Scholl

 

AAF Multicultural Advertising Internship Program (MAIP)
Kayla Griffis

Dallas Area Alliance for Women in Media Foundation Scholarship
Kayla Griffis

Vance and Betty Lee Stickell Student Internship
Kayla Griffis

Washington Media Scholars Foundation Scholarship
Kayla Griffis

Most Promising Multicultural Student (MPMS)
Gabby Grubb
Alissa Llort

Dallas Fort Worth Interactive Marketing Association (DFWIMA) Scholarship
Lizzie Venditti

Advertising Education Foundation (AEFH) of Houston iHeart Media Scholarship
Kaleb Mulugeta

AAF Tenth District awarded a Scholarship
Brenda Rivera Franco

Vance and Betty Lee Stickell Student Internship
Kayla Griffis
Cassidy Najarian

Institute Graduate Scholars
Pepper Barker
Joel Garza
Alex Gurasich
Reilly Horsak
Hammond Lake
Cat Scholl

Morris Hite Memorial Scholarship
Hannah Belsinger
Allie Hartman
Isaac Cordova

Roger and Rosemary Enrico Scholarship
Emma Doyle
Katherine Menchaca
Kaleb Mulugeta
Andrew White

TAI Donald John Carty Leadership Award
Dalya Romaner

 

 

 

TAI Anchor Award
Gabby Grubb 

TAI Optimizer Award
Maddy Paul

TAI Social Impact Award
Hillery Lemon

TAI Resilience Award
Allie Hartman

TAI Service Award
Alex Gurasich

 TAI Team Player Award
Wyatt Welch

Face of TAI Award
Kayla Griffis

Graduate Reader
Cat Scholl

Undergraduate Reader
Dalya Romaner

Marshal
Avery Lewis

SMU Advertising Outstanding Senior In Strategic Brand Management
Dalya Romaner

SMU Advertising Outstanding Senior In Creative
Avery Lewis

SMU Advertising Outstanding Senior In Digital Media Strategy
Hannah Tymochko

TAI Outstanding Graduate Student
Cat Scholl

 

2018 Scholar of the Year
Carrie La Ferle

Service Exemplar
Mark Allen
Sandi Edgar

Student Support Super Star
Amber Benson

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STUDENT SPOTLIGHT: TAI Student Kayla Griffis Speaks About Her Academic Experiences and Achievements

I am a junior majoring in Advertising with a specialization in Digital Media Strategy with minors in Graphic Design and Spanish. I’m also participating in the 4+1 SMU Advertising program that allows me to take undergraduate and graduate classes simultaneously in order to obtain bachelor’s and master’s advertising degrees in five years. During the 2018-2019 academic year, I received the following honors:

  • 2019 Dallas Area Alliance for Women in Media Irene Runnels-Paula McStay College Scholarship
  • 2019 Washington Media Scholars Foundation Media Fellows Scholarship
  • SMU Pi Beta Phi Foundation Scholarship
  • SMU Decima Chapter of Mortar Board National Honors Society
  • Finalist for 2019 AAF Vance and Betty Lee Stickell Internship
  • Finalist for 4A’s Multicultural Advertising Internship Program

I applied for these scholarships, internships, and honors societies at the end of the fall semester and was extremely nervous during the application processes because of the programs’ prestige and competitiveness. Managing deadlines, requesting letters of recommendation from professors and mentors, staying on top of daily homework assignments, and studying for tests was no easy feat. Nevertheless, I was determined to submit my applications, in case I wasn’t accepted as a junior, to refine my skills and experiences before becoming a senior.

When I was first notified that I received the 2019 Washington Media Scholars Foundation Media Fellows Scholarship, I was shocked! I couldn’t believe it until I spoke with a representative of the foundation who told me that my application was impressive and well-received. And while this was surprising, receiving two other scholarships–the 2019 Dallas Area Alliance for Women in Media Irene Runnels-Paula McStay College Scholarship and Pi Beta Phi Foundation at SMU Scholarship–was even more overwhelming. Additionally, qualifying for the 2019 AAF Vance and Betty Lee Stickell Internship and the 4A’s Multicultural Advertising Internship Program were both amazing opportunities, though I ultimately decided to participate in the 4A’s Multicultural Advertising Internship Program because of its focus to promote inclusion and diversity in the advertising industry. I am very passionate about this. My induction into the SMU Decima Chapter of Mortar Board National Honors Society is a privilege in itself and I am grateful to be a part of this organization that recognizes leadership, community service, and scholarship among students. As a 2019 MAIP Fellow, I will work at Digitas in Boston as a Media Buying and Planning intern this upcoming summer and am extremely excited.

SMU Advertising has provided me with amazing opportunities to network with professionals and connect with my peers as we prepare for future careers in the advertising industry. I hope to help foster a world where minorities are celebrated and accurately represented. I believe that I will make a difference in the industry, as a voice for minorities, and receiving these honors is just the beginning.

Kayla Griffis

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RESOURCE: Replace Your “For Dummies” Collection With THIS Online Learning Resource

SMU Libraries has just started a subscription to O’Reilly’s Learning Platform for Higher Education, which includes e-books, case studies, videos, and Learning Paths.  Topics range from graphic design, software training, leadership, job search, and business strategy.  Here is a sampling of what is available:

UX Design – From Beginner to Professional Learning Path

This learning path is designed to teach you basic and advanced concepts in UX design with the help of real-world use cases on process, design, and techniques.

Careers for Creative People: Design and some real world advice from ridiculously talented individuals doing jobs they love

This book provides a comprehensive list of creative jobs in advertising, career best practices, and advice from experts in their field, helping talented creative people.

The Handbook of International Advertising Research

The handbook’s comprehensive treatment highlights existing knowledge, reports major findings across the subject, and recommends directions and agendas for future research.

Adobe InDesign CC Classroom in a Book (2019 Release)

The 15 project-based step-by-step lessons in this book show users the key techniques for working in InDesign. Designers will build a strong foundation of typographic, color, page layout, and document-construction skills that will enable them to produce a broad range of print and digital publications.

Need help? Want to know more about research or databases for advertising? Contact Megan.

Rani Vestal

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AWARDS: TAI Student Alissa Llort Selected As One Of AAF’s Most Promising Multicultural Students

Alissa Llort

This year I was selected as one of the 50 Most Promising Multicultural Students in the United States. This program was created by the American Advertising Federation (AAF) to immerse dedicated, multicultural students in the advertising industry before graduation. After being selected, I was invited to attend a 5-day conference in New York City. This was a unique experience for me because I visited the offices of various elite agencies and media companies including Wieden + Kennedy, Turner / CNN, Omnicom Group, Sparks and Honey, 72 and Sunny, McCann, FCB, and FCB Health, and IPG. During the visits, I spoke to advertising professionals and recruiters about agency culture, personal and professional experiences, and advocacy for multicultural talent in the industry.

Because this incredible opportunity unites hardworking students from different backgrounds across the country, I was able to connect with 49 students and learn from their experiences in advertising so far. I value these connections because together we are the future generation of advertisers and may work for the same companies someday. I am extremely grateful to have been selected for this opportunity and I encourage all multicultural students to apply next year.

To end, I wanted to share some of the pearls of wisdom that I collected from this trip:

  • “School is never out, keep reading and learning!”
  • “Fear is the indicator you are ready.”
  • “As you enter the professional career, choose several mentors that are not like you and learn from them.”
  • “Speak up. You will never regret speaking up and saying what you think.”
  • And the quote that struck me the most: “If you are here, you have earned it. It is not a matter of luck. Be proud of that and embrace your achievements.“
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SXSW: A Psychologist and an Ad Guy Walk into a Bar

Palmer McGraw and Hilary Monroe

Dan Monheit, Strategy Director at Hardhat agency, and Dr. Melissa Weinberg, Psychologist with LifePsych, used five famous advertisements from the past twenty years to illustrate the intersection of Psychology and Advertising. Given all of the research done in the field of psychology regarding behavioral economics, Monheit asks strategist to consider, “how can we use all of this information to create better ads?”

Budweiser’s “Wassup” ad that ran at the 2000 Super Bowl utilized the strategy of vernacular jack to attach the brand to a phrase. By repeating the phrase over and over again in the ad, they attached the feeling of wanting a Budweiser beer to that phrase. The popularity, and utter hilariousness, of this iconic add caused the phrase “Wassup?” to be used over one million times a day, making every utterance a subtle add.

P&G’s 2010 U.S. Olympic ad entitled “Thank you Mom” was enormously successful despite the short time frame they had to make it and the extensive sub-brands they needed to incorporate into the spot. However, by creating content that resonated with audiences on an emotional level they perfectly crafted a commercial that evoked what Monheit and Weinberg dub the memory availability bias. This bias essentially means that it is easier to recall content that is both emotional and personal, so ads should work to create advertisements as such to enhance recall.

TAC, an Australian safety initiative, created a campaign to lower car fatalities to zero. This advertisement was successful because they implemented the framing effect. This explains that they way that we interpret information has little to do with the information itself. It is how the information is communicated that makes us engage with it.

In 2006, Apple created a campaign that was enormously successful because they utilized the peak end rule. This strategy explains that judgement of experience is not how we felt during it, but how we felt at the end of it. Monheit and Weinber suggest that strategists pick 2 or 3 key points and place the most important at the end because that is what people will remember.

Finally, in 2007 Unicef created a campaign which drew on the licensing effect. This theory explains how we seek balance with our decisions. It is why once we accomplish something challenging, such as finishing a huge school assignment or meeting another personal goal, we give ourselves permission to indulge or, in other words, “treat yourself!”

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RESOURCE: Meet Megan Heuer: The Advertising Librarian!

For those of you who have not met me before, I am the librarian for Temerlin.  I always enjoy working with the advertising students on the kinds of critical thinking needed for secondary research.  The students at Temerlin never cease to impress me with the creativity and enthusiasm they bring to the work!  We have so many great services at the SMU Libraries, so here’s a rundown of things you should take advantage of.

  • Advertising Research Guides – Find these attached to advertising courses in Canvas by clicking “Library Help.” I create these online guides to make advertising research easier for you.
  • One-on-One Research Help – Sometimes you just need to talk through your project with a person. I meet with individuals and small groups, either in person or online. I can’t tell you how many times I have had students say that they don’t know why they ever waited so long to take advantage of this service!
  • Chat Help – If you need help immediately, you can chat with one of the library’s research assistants. You can find this anywhere on the library website by clicking the red “Ask Us” flag on the upper right side.
  • Workshops – Adulting 101, Finding Balanced News, Advanced Internet Research, Making Citation Easier, How to Read Scholarly Article – these are some of the topics that are offered through our workshop program. Is there a topic you would like to suggest?  Would you like to schedule a custom session for a group of students?  Let me know!

Contact:
Megan Heuer
mheuer@smu.edu
(214) 768-1856
Make an appointment

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ALUMNI UPDATE: Lucas Crespo ’18

I graduated with degrees in Creative Advertising and Film and Media Arts. Both majors involve conceptual thinking and storytelling. I am thankful that these areas of study are both in the Meadows School of the Arts. I utilized the school’s film equipment and knowledge from my production classes to build my advertising portfolio. Furthermore, my two respective but connected majors allowed me to focus my four years as an undergraduate student on the art and science of storytelling. 
 
During my senior year, I applied to over forty advertising agencies across the United States. Temerlin’s excellent professors, curriculum, and networking opportunities helped me secure a position as the art direction intern at BBDO in New York City. This is the first time that I have worked in a large agency with prominent clients. So far, the experience has been overwhelming but worth every second.

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ALUMNI UPDATE: Jolie Guz ’18

You never know where a single Instagram contest will take you. For me, one little Instagram post allowed me to present an elevator pitch to Scott Belsky, Chief Product Development Officer of Adobe. He basically makes all creative careers possible. That elevator pitch won me a trip to Adobe MAX,  an annual creative conference. During this three-day conference in Los Angeles, four thousand art directors, designers, and typeface enthusiasts join together and dive deeper into the software that makes our jobs possible. We tested out new features, listened to industry leaders, and nabbed a TON of free stuff (my favorite freebie was an ACTUAL type specimen! It’s a little metal piece of a letterpress that came in a tiny labeled test tube. SO COOL!). The conference encouraged me to get outside of my laptop and appreciate all the awesomeness of design and how it brings together incredibly interesting people and projects.

I recently graduated from TAI in May but my SMU experience has given me the warmest welcome into the real world. I work with several former TAI rockstars at BBDO in New York –  several of whom were in my own cohort! I also still bother my professors even though I’m no longer in their classes (Sorry Mark for de-railing your Advanced Portfolio class a couple weeks ago!). My education didn’t stopped when I left the classroom. The foundation of skills that I learned at TAI gave me the confidence to enter the art direction world wholeheartedly. My professors taught me that it’s always okay to ask questions and to seek advice from trusted friends and colleagues to strengthen my work.

Scott said it best in his opening keynote presentation on the first day of MAX: “The best way to learn to create is by seeing how others create.” TAI allowed me to learn from and alongside some of my favorite creative minds and I feel endlessly grateful for that opportunity.

Oh, and I’m grateful for Instagram contests too!

Instagram Submission Graphics
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WPromote: “Profit Driven Marketing with Facebook”

Wpromote is a digital marketing agency headquartered in California has regional offices in Dallas, San Francisco, Chicago, New York, etc. It is also known as the challenger agency and focuses on search marketing, paid & earned social media, and marketing intelligence. This April, Wpromote partnered with Facebook and held its first profit-driven marketing summit. It was an invitation based exclusive event, and two of our TAI faculty, Anna Kim and Hye Jin Yoon were invited. Last year, the agency had a similar event with Google.  

Dr. Kim and Dr. Yoon at the Event.

It was an all-day event and well-attended by industry professionals. It is interesting to note that Dr. Yoon and Dr. Kim were the only academic professionals. They said, they really enjoyed the program. “The summit not only offered us an excellent opportunity to meet industry professionals but also informed us many interesting new trends as well as challenges that today’s media industry is facing. Keynote speeches and sessions were organized around the following three themes: leveraging profit-driven marketing & customer lifetime value (LTV), new customers acquisition, and visual storytelling through video.” 

 
Here are some notes from Dr. Yoon and there’s a link in the bottom where you can download some of the presentations from Wpromote. Unfortunately, presentations from Facebook are not provided due to the sensitive nature of some of the content, it is Facebook’s policy not to distribute their presentations.
 
  • Businesses need to adopt mobile first strategies: consumers are increasingly discovering products through mobile, there is 41% faster content consumption on mobile than desktop, and on average, consumers search fewer products on smartphones than desktops before making a purchase.
  • eCommerce goes global: cross-border e-commerce with emerging economies have taken off; businesses need to be there effortlessly across the globe; these countries never had strong desktop culture and have leaped on to mobile, which creates a different set of opportunities.
  • Mobile video content is exploding: video is a primary way to discover and buy products and leverage video as merchandising tool affords highly dynamic immersive experiences.
  • Visual storytelling through video creative that converts: customers want to see themselves in your product; visuals are processed 60K times faster than text by the human brain; visual storytelling can help every stage of the consumer’s journey; great video isn’t about things, it’s about action (verbs before nouns); focus on people, their goals, and how the brand can help accomplish them.

Summit Promote Presentations (click the link for download)
Click here to learn more about Wpromote and its first-ever profit-driven marketing summit.

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Navigating the Waters of Data-Driven Storytelling at SXSW Interactive 2018

Temerlin Advertising Institute graduate students Jessica Phillips and Catherine Scholl

Complexity, Complexity, Complexity

In an enlightening talk about data-driven storytelling, we heard from a panel of professionals about how they combine art and scientific data to execute seamless storytelling in their companies. The panel consisted of Renee Lightner, User Experience Technologist at Viacom, Russell Goldenberg, Editor at Polygraph / The Pudding, and Alex Simoes, CTO at Datawheel. Each member of the panel provided unique insight into perspectives and paradigms within data-driven storytelling through the lens of each of their respective disciplines.

Lightner opened by explaining the importance of online versus print graphics. Online graphics allow users to see the full picture and interact with the content, allowing for a better experience. A strategy she keyed in on was “complexity,” repeating a visual over and over so the reader grasps the content. Additionally, she said it’s important to allow the opportunity for the reader to explore the data on their own. Graphics should inform the reader while still allowing room for them to explore and take in the information at their own time in their own way.

Goldenberg explained the process that The Pudding goes through when providing content.

  • Start with an idea. Collect data. Analyze. Present.

The first three phases explore, while guidance is the final outcome. Great data does not matter – unless, it can be explained with a great guide. As we enter a world of AI with more data and more accurate data, consumers will be overwhelmed if it is not curated in meaningful ways.

Simoes’ approach to storytelling integrates data, extracts and matches entities and indicators, and builds integrated stories. Entities can be, for example, Los Angeles or coal mining, while the indicators within these categories can be something like exports or employment. Together, this information leads to integrated stories on the economy, education, health, etc. The outcome must be aggregated data that is easy to read, interactive, and entertaining. These three ideas seem to be a central theme to creating rich storytelling.

This panel was just one of so many incredible talks that we have attended this week. The atmosphere is absolutely electric as people immerse themselves in SXSW Interactive and all Austin has to offer.