Thursday, April 30, 2009

Wrapping Up The Class

As we come to an end of the school year, please remember that we still have things to do in the class. First, each one of you must sell five t-shirts. If you recall, we had two fund raising proposals. One was to sell ads for a flier, which only Lisa Lane. Greg and I believe Al contributed to this semester. We had about $80 come in. The second was for us to sell the A&I/AMK t-shirts. Each one of you was issued five to try sell at $10 each. If each of you sell those t-shirts, each of you will bring in $50 x 12 and we will make $600. That will pay for some of our printing expenses for the shirts. Remember, the South Texan sold about 25 and we have that money. Please bring in your money as soon as possible. Also, please remember we have our peer and class evaluation next Tuesday, May 5 (Cinco de Mayo). All of you are urged for you to come to this class. After that, if you turn in your money, we are basically over. We would like to have an end-of-year party, but that's entirely up to the class. We will review this on Tuesday. Well, please sell those shirts...we need it to at least pay our bill.

Sunday, April 26, 2009

14th is not last place at AAF

Well, it's over - presentationwise.

After three months (more for some of us who started with Principles of Advertising in the fall semester) of working hard to prepare for our presentation at the National Student Advertising Competition for the 10th District of the American Advertising Federation, we are done.

Our presentation last Thursday was as solid as it could be. We finished 14th out of 14 universities that presented. But, in no way does that mean we were last. There are more than 150 universities and colleges in District 10. Of those, only 21 inquired about participating. Of those, only 17 met the first deadline. Of those, only 14 presented.

Our team had the courage to proceed, persevere and compete against universities with tremendous reputations in this arena. It would have been difficult, at best, for us to finish in the Top 5. Our goal always was to finish in the Top 7 (50%), but even that became an issue when our Plan Book lacked many of the attributes needed to complete solidly in that area. When that happened, both Todd and I knew that our presentation had to be more than solid for us to have a respectable finish. It had to be perfect.

We practiced, edited material, made changes at the last minutes and even had a practice at the actual site. All seemed to work well....and then...the video intro and conclusion that were so crucial to solidify our message fell through. Technology let us down, and with that our fate was sealed.

This in no way takes away from the stellar efforts of the majority of our class. Both Todd and I witnessed a little magic during the last few weeks as we struggled with novice advertising students to reach for greatness. For a few fading moments, it seemed as if we were going to reach for the stars and bring them down to TAMUK where they would shine brightly on us. It actually happened a few times when we were practicing....I even got some goose bumps and chills during one of the presentations when I realized it "could happen." I wiped a tear from my eye and wondered, "Can it become reality?"

Alas, it did not. The final technological failure and slow start by our presenters pretty much denied us that shining moment.

But, there were many more shining moments....we came together as a team. We cared for each other and worked hard to make each other improve. We worried about one another and we (all of us) saw the potential for greatness. I know that most of you felt it...I know that most of you believed....and Todd and I also know that all of you are the better for the experience you had this past week.

Now, we move on. The final lesson is that one never gives up. One works hard to achieve something and when you leave your heart and soul on the field of play, you realize that you did your best and sometimes fate and circumstances take over.

A special thanks to all our presenters - Tania, Jennifer, Savannah and Melinda. Some of you grew up and matured a little during the last week. It was actually "fun" to see you start thinking like scholars and, for some, adults. It was actually gratifying to see you move from that awkward college student toward a confident, self-assured young person ready to take on the world. Some of you understood what academic courage is all about, for the first time.

Our technical team of Dave and Al and others were simply great. The failure at the end had nothing to do with them. It just happened.

Our research team composed of old men JR and Edwin and Joe Hamon simply did a great job. Our inability, however, to transfer that to the Plan Book, hurt.

Other team members like Skye, Lisa and Greg helped in sundry ways, raising funds for our trips, taking pictures or helping with the props. All worked hard. Thanks!

All of you were great and you showed that Javelinas do not quit. You could have, you know. You could have walked off and said "Dr. Flores, Mr. Lucas, we can't do this." I guess the thought never crossed your mind. Right?

I want you to know that we are very proud of you...you did not finish last...you finished, and that's more than most of the universities in District 10 can say.

Congratulations for a job well done...and, see you in class.

Tuesday, April 21, 2009

DEPARTURE INFORMATION FOR WEDNESDAY

This is a reminder that we are leaving tomorrow (Wednesday) for Houston. We will meet in the Manning Hall Parking Lot at 10 and hopefully be on the way by 10:30 a.m. You can leave your luggage, if you come early, in my office in Comm-TA or in the Art Building. You will need at least $50 to travel. Everything else should be taken care of. We are taking two vans. One will be used for luggage. Pack light. Presenters, remember to coordinate your dress for our performance. Every one must take the navy blue t-shirt which we will wear Thursday. Okay? Please call Todd or I if you have any questions. We are staying at the JW Marriott Hotel Houston at 5150 Westheimer Road. The phone number there is 713-599-2257.

REMINDER - Practice Run Today

Just a reminder, we are practicing our presentation in MSUB 221A today at 4 p.m. We are doing a "dress rehearsal" going from start to finish with all the presenters "ready to go". I hope we can do this three or four times today. David, please make sure we can set up. We have the room from 330-630...call if you have questions.

Friday, April 17, 2009

Presenters Practice, final PPoint, Radio TV ads

Presenters, please remember that practice is on your own. You must make plans to practice this weekend, and Monday, on your own. We will have a "dress rehearsal" on Tuesday in a room at the Memorial Student Union Building. This "dress rehearsal" will be during class. Juan Carlos Reyes, our Javelina Press Club VP, is securing a room for us today and we will post the information later. We will have the room from 330 to 630 that day to make the practice as realistic as possible. Also joining us on that day wil be Speech Instructor Paul Roberts. He will help evaluate the peformance. In addition, by this time, we should have the final selections on presenters. Attendance in practice this weekend is a big criteria. If a person does not show up to practice, how can that person be ready to perform? Keep that in mind as you schedule your own practices. In addition, please remember that the original vote had Melinda as an alternate (for all of the presenters). Regardless of the final results, she must be ready to perform in case of an emergency. Also, that means that if someone is just not making the cut at our practices, she must be ready to step in and do the job. Well, good luck. Oh, don't forget to contact David Brott about the power point and also Al Andaya about the radio ads. Everything must be ready to go on Tuesday. Every thing!

New judge for competition

Got this message from the Houston AAF person in charge of our competition. We have a new judge. Check it out

Hi, all! Just one exciting, exhausting week away from D10’s NSAC! Because of an unavoidable conflict, Ryan Berman will not be able to judge our competition. Replacing him is the incredibly talented and judging-experienced Bryan Kramer of PureMatter in San Jose. His bio is below. If you have any questions, please let me know.



Best,
B



Bryan Kramer



Bryan is President of PureMatter Brand Marketing + Interactive, an award-winning, full-service agency located in San Jose, California. His background is in advertising, public relations and online marketing with a focus on integrated communications and strategic business planning. Prior to forming PureMatter, he was a managing executive and interactive strategist for top agencies in Silicon Valley. Bryan is past president of the AdPlus of Silicon Valley, an active member of San Jose Rotary and currently serves as the VP of Marketing on the executive board for the Silicon Valley Boy Scouts. Through Bryan’s leadership, PureMatter has won over 100 awards locally, nationally and internationally, including being named one of the 50 fastest privately growing companies in Silicon Valley over the last two years and winning the coveted ADDY level trophy plus eleven more honors. Bryan’s vision for PureMatter is to bring 'serious fun' into all aspects of the creative process, and they do have some serious fun!

Thursday, April 2, 2009

Class Attendance!

Hey all....this is a message from those who were in class today and we decided that it is imperative that everyone shows up for the remaining class days. Obviously, there is not much time left so everyone's input is extremely important. Your grade will be affected drastically if you do not take the initiative to participate (a rough figure is 5 points deducted from your overall average per day missed. By the way today is a free bee...be prepared to work starting Tuesday.

Script ideas

Use this blog to post your ideas on the script. Remember, we need some dramatic element to open up and one main spokesperson at the start. The main speaker set the stage by explaining who we are, introducing our team and then explaining what we are going do...followed by something dramatic. That's one option, being professionals. You all will also have business card to hand out.....Second option, hit them with a surprise element..show them a video that is dramatic, poignant and provocative....then do the explanation.......

thanks
Dr. Flores