Kony 2012. It’s swept the interwebs for at least the last 24-hours. If you haven’t taken the 29 minutes to watch, I’ll give you a link at the end of this post because I want you to watch it with the grain of salt I’m about to hand you.

It’s a powerful piece. It should be no surprise to those of us who have studied and worked in advertising though, right? How a thoughtfully written script, skilled editing and the right positioning can tug on our poor little heart strings.

If you watched this video already, did you have a voice in your head saying,

“Wow, it took nine years to get here?” or

“There sure is a lot of strategy behind this charity video.”

I did. I left the video open in my browser as reminder to look into the MANY organizations affiliated with the video, and make a decision later. I had to go and research it. Thanks to the internet though, the research found me. This article, though I have no idea how credible the source, cites dozens of articles contradicting, and in some cases completely eliminating the credibility of the video.

It really doesn’t matter who is right. Share the video if you feel compelled.. Raise awareness, by all means! But please just do your research before picking an organization to promote and financially support . Remember, we work in advertising. It’s our jobs and our livelihood to make materials that move people to action.

You scrolled down, didn’t you? Ok fine. Watch it now, but please come back and finish reading, mmk?

It’s time to get thinking about your most creative advertising efforts from 2011 and enter the annual northern Nevada ADDY® awards hosted by the American Advertising Federation of Reno (AAF Reno). Entries are due by Friday, January 27 at www.aafreno.com.

The ADDY® awards are our industry’s largest and most representative competition, recognizing and rewarding creative excellence in the art of advertising. Every year approximately 60,000 entries are submitted in local ADDY® competitions.

The northern Nevada ADDY® awards are the first of a three-tiered national competition – local winners will compete against other winners within their district and those winners move on to the national ADDY® awards competition.

Entries for the northern Nevada ADDY® awards must be made online at www.aafreno.com, and hard copies must also be submitted at the drop-off party held at Jeff Dow Photography on Friday, Jan. 27 starting at 4:30 p.m. Jeff Dow Photography is located at 8543 White Fir St., unit D3. Complete entering instructions can be found online. For more information about entering, please contact Amber Howland at (775) 527-6121.

Themed “The Golden Age of Advertising,” this year’s northern Nevada ADDY® awards show is being presented by Peppermill Reno. The event will take place Friday, March 2 from 6 to 9 p.m. at the EDGE Nightclub inside the Peppermill.

Tickets to the northern Nevada ADDY® awards show are $55 by February 28, $65 at the door. Ticket price includes awards party, appetizers, entertainment and an ADDY® award book For more information or to purchase tickets, please visit www.aafreno.com or call (775) 852.0881.

Hey students! Enter your work in the student ADDY category!

Nothing like a boost to the resume like award-winning creative! Enter your real or theoretical student work for a chance to win, and go to the National Competition!

Best of all: your pals at Ad2 Reno are hosting the after party

The fun doesn’t stop there. Stay at EDGE Nightclub immediately following the awards show to continue your celebration with Ad2 Reno.

The American Advertising Federation of Reno (Formerly A2N2) is Reno’s official advertising club, a professional organization dedicated to serving as the ultimate resource for education, networking, and recognition within the marketing and advertising industries. AAF-Reno is an affiliate of the American Advertising Federation. For more information, please visit www.aafreno.com.

Ad2 Reno is the young professionals chapter of the American Advertising Federation.

I know I’m one of the lucky ones. I graduated before our economy tanked in 2008. The job market has changed, but the techniques have not.

1. GET INVOLVED.
   If you’re a student, get involved in Ad Club. If you’ve graduated, um, hi. Networking. Build your network. Blah, blah blah. Yes, these are all true. You need to do it. But networking has become a buzzword and a Big Scary Thing. And to be perfectly honest with you, it sounds fake. So instead, just get involved. Join a club. Meet people. Make friends. Sign up for as many things as you can while still maintaining at least a little bit of sanity. I joined UNR Ad Club in my senior year of college (students! Don’t wait this long!).
2. DO STUFF.
   We’ve all been there. Put a club on our resume that we only paid dues for. You get out of it what you put in. It’s common sense, but we all need to be reminded. All you have to do is partake in the activities provided, and volunteer for something every once in a while. Don’t know what you like, or are good at? Volunteer anyway. Knowing what you don’t like to do is just as important as knowing what you do like to do. After I finally realized I needed some kind of career path and joined Ad Club, I signed up for the job shadow program they were running, and took anything that was available. I job shadowed twice before I learned of an internship. I interviewed and got the job.
3. BE EAGER TO LEARN.
   It doesn’t matter if you want to be a creative director and the only mentor available works in PR. Or social media. Or account management. It also doesn’t matter if you know what any of those things are. Learn as much as you can about the industry from everyone that you can. Be a sponge. Act like everyone is your mentor (they are) and they know about job opportunities (they probably do). This is not only how you show initiative and that you’re a quick learner, but this is also “How to keep your first job.”

Get out there and do awesome shit. People will notice it.

One lucky northern Nevada non-profit will receive a free, year-long marketing campaign donated by the local advertising professionals of Ad2 Reno.  Non-profits must turn in their applications to Ad2 Reno online by Friday, June 10 to be eligible.

Ad2 Reno, a non-profit organization dedicated to public service and growing the skills of young advertisers and marketers, is looking to create a year-long partnership with one local non-profit to produce a comprehensive marketing campaign complete with advertising, production, media and public relations to help the organization reach their marketing goals.

Local advertising professionals will donate their time, skills and connections to produce a campaign that can include, but is not limited to: traditional and nontraditional advertising, collateral pieces, website design, social media, and public relations. To be eligible for the donation, non-profits must fill out a questionnaire specifying the services the non-profit provides, background information about the organization and the specific projects for which the non-profit needs help.

Past clients include Nevada Project Heartbeat, Reno Sparks Gospel Mission, Court Appointed Special Advocates, and Northern Nevada HIV Outpatient Program, Education and Services. In national competitions, Ad2 Reno’s work took first place in 2009 and 2008 for public service club achievement in the American Advertising Federation (AAF) National Conference. Examples of previous campaigns may be viewed here.

Apply now.

Itching to get to work and build your portfolio?

Get involved!

Nicole Dion!

Big thanks to Reno-Tahoe WordCamp for helping us give awesome prizes away to our members! If you would like to attend WordCamp, tickets are available here!

Thanks so much to all who entered, and stay tuned for future giveaways! Remember, they’re available to members only, so if you haven’t already, join now!

R&R Partners is seeking a well-rounded and ambitious designer to work in our Reno office. Will be responsible for all aspects of brand design and day-to-day production. Must demonstrate ninja-like skills in Illustrator, InDesign & Photoshop.

Please submit resume and work samples to hr@rrpartners.com or to:
Studio Manager
615 Riverside Dr.
Reno, NV 89503

You’re stoke to get involved, we know that. So check out one (or all!) of these upcoming committee meetings!

Public Service

Our first public service committee meeting Tuesday, May 10 at 6 p.m. inside the GoodStanding/M3 Planning offices, 465 Court Street. This will be a meet and greet for committee members (there might be wine). We will discuss the 501c3 application process and look at some past Ad2 campaigns. Why join the public service committee? Get real-world experience while making a difference right here in our community!

Communications

The communications committee meeting is also Tuesday, May 10, and will take place at 7 p.m. at Starbucks on Kietzke and Virginia Street. Twitter. Facebook. WordPress. Mail Chimp. If social media is your calling, you want on this committee. We love to keep our members update on what’s happening with Ad2 Reno, local agency news and the advertising industry as a whole.

Events

The event committee is meeting on Wednesday, May 11 at 7 p.m. at Arroyo Mexican Grill.  We’re excited to hear some fresh ideas over a margarita and a molcajete. Ad2 has a busy social schedule and we want you to help plan it all. From happy hours to speed networking, the event committee could use your ideas for our upcoming events!

image credit

By now, you’ve certainly learned how important blogging is to the world of communications. WordPress is a designer and developer favorite because of it’s incredible capabilities. This website (and countless other local business sites) is in WordPress. So, on to the good stuff, shall we?

On Saturday, June 4, a day of learning will take place at the UNR Joe Crowley Student Union. Designers, developers, businesspeople, non-profits and others will gather to learn from each other about all things WordPress. The best part? One lucky Ad2 Reno member gets to attend Reno-Tahoe WordCamp this year for free!

WIN IT.

You must be a paid member of Ad2 Reno or UNR Ad Club to win this incredible prize, valued at $30. If you’re not a member yet, what exactly are you waiting for?

Enter by leaving a comment on this post about what you hope to learn at WordCamp. Earn extra entries by tweeting (be sure to mention @ad2reno!) or commenting on our Facebook page about this giveaway!

We will select a random winner at noon on Monday, May 23!

Again, you must be a paid member to receive this prize. If you’ve been on the fence, now is definitely the time to join! Get on that.

Big, huge thanks to WordCamp for donating this ticket so that one of our members can become even more badass!

Description

Are you connected in your community? RGJ Media’s social commerce team seeks an area manager with a passion for helping consumers find deals from the best local businesses in town. Use your problem-solving skills and love of digital media to manage a local daily deals web site, including responding to the day-to-day challenges of being on the front lines of a digital commerce business. Work in a fun startup-like environment building a new product in a hot digital media space, while also representing one of the most trusted local media brands in Northern Nevada. The successful candidate will be outgoing, customer-focused, proactive and ready to take ownership of the local site and deliver a great experience to  users.

• Be the business owner of a local web site. Take responsibility for making your site a success.
• Know your audience and use that knowledge to select the right deals to keep them engaged.
• Use your knowledge of marketing to come up with innovative ways to promote the site and its deals, including through social media and live events. Work with local and national marketing teams.
• Work with the sales team to help merchants get a great experience from the site.
• Manage inbound sales and occasionally accompany sales executives on calls.
• Use your problem-solving skills to resolve customer questions and complaints. Work with merchants to answer customer questions about deals.
• Work with writers and merchants to best present deals on the site.

Qualifications

• Goal-oriented and results-focused. Ready to take ownership of – and pride in – your local daily deals site.
• Excellent inter-personal skills.
• Flexibility and the ability to take on new responsibilities as the product evolves.
• Must be self-motivated and able to work independently, with minimal supervision.
• Strong knowledge of Reno and its local businesses and entertainment/social scene.
• Marketing or public relations experience a plus.
• Experience in product management or web site management a strong plus.
• Must be familiar with and passionate about the digital world, especially social media.
• Experience with and/or passion for social commerce, daily deals and local businesses/experiences preferred.
• Excellent written, verbal and presentations skills.

To apply

Contact Susan Nugent
775-788-6370

Description

Are you connected in your community? Are you a go-getter who can stay motivated work independently? Be a key part of a new product team and be rewarded for your hard work – that means high compensation potential. RGJ Media’s social commerce team seeks a local account executive with a passion for finding the best local businesses in town and working with them to create great deals for consumers. Use your business connections and your talent for getting to decision-makers to close consultative sales. Work in a fun startup-like environment building a new product in the rapidly growing daily deals space. The successful candidate will be outgoing, persistent, driven and prepared to sell the sort of deals to retailers, entertainment events and restaurants that you’d want to buy yourself.

Requirements

• Drive the full sales cycle, from prospecting for new business to closing a high volume of sales. You will be on the front lines of this product, and its success will depend on you.
• Identify your city’s best local businesses – the hidden gems – and work with them to offer great deals to consumers.
• Present the value of social commerce – with in-person, telephone or written presentations – as a way for local merchants to grow their businesses and attract new customers.
• Establish a consistent pipeline on a daily basis via lead generation.
• Identify clients’ needs and cultivate effective sales strategies in face-to-face meetings.
• Work to meet the needs of both merchants and consumers by sourcing win-win deals.
• Prepare proposals/contracts, and negotiate contract terms/arrangements with client within specified parameters.
• Work intensively with the rest of the social commerce team to launch the product in your city.
• Work with other staff of RGJ Media to get sales prospects and leads.
• Provide consultation and expertise to clients concerning post-deal business management and retention.
• Meet and exceed individual revenue goals.
• Only occasional travel.

Qualifications

• Excellent customer service skills.
• Must be self-motivated and able to work independently, with minimal supervision.
• Strong knowledge of Reno/Sparks and its local businesses.
• Two years sales experience – advertising or related B-to-B sales – required. Digital sales experience preferred.
• Experience canvassing and cold calling, with a documented track record of sales success.
• Proficient at conducting needs analysis.
• Organized and committed to maintaining customer relationship management data.
• Marketing or public relations experience also a plus.
• Must be familiar with and passionate about the digital world, especially social media.
• Experience with and/or passion for social commerce, daily deals and local businesses/experiences preferred.
• Excellent written, verbal and presentations skills.

To apply:
Contact Susan Nugent
775-788-6370