PRSA Recognizes Agency with Ten Mercury Awards

Adams & Knight, Inc. was honored with ten Mercury Awards at the Southern Connecticut Chapter of the Public Relations Society of America’s (PRSA) 2011 Mercury Award Ceremony, which was held June 23 in North Haven, Conn.

“We’re thrilled to be recognized in so many different categories — everything from interactive and social media to media relations and crisis communications,” said Gary Griffin, director of public relations for Adams & Knight. “More and more clients truly understand the value of an integrated communications program.”

Adams & Knight received Gold Mercury Awards for its integrated campaign for CHET (Connecticut’s 529 program), its special events management for the CHET Dream Big! Award Ceremony and its marketing campaign for Hartford Stage’s Antony & Cleopatra.

The agency was presented with another seven Silver Mercury Awards for a wide array of programs and clients, including media relations for the Sun & Ski Sports’ Bike Samaritan Program, a customizable brochure for Symmetry Partners, a webinar for the Council for Disability Awareness (CDA), a by-lined article for Sun Life Financial’s Employee Benefits division, research/promotion of the CDA’s consumer attitudes survey, crisis communications for Shiloh Church and a social media campaign for Hartford Stage’s Antony & Cleopatra.

About the Southern Connecticut Chapter of the PRSA

The Southern Connecticut Chapter of the Public Relations Society of America was formed to advance the public relations profession and the PR professional. The chapter represents a diverse group of mid- to senior-level professionals who are committed to enhancing the practice of public relations in Southern Connecticut. Professionals in the chapter represent advertising agencies, independent consultants, business and industry, government, hospitals and healthcare organizations, professional associations, and education and nonprofit organizations. http://www.prsact.org

Publicity Club of New England Honors Agency With Three Awards

Adams & Knight, Inc. was honored with two Gold Bell Awards during the 42nd Annual Publicity Club of New England Ceremony. The 2011 Bell Ringer Awards Ceremony, which recognizes and honors excellence and achievement in the communications and public relations profession, was held at The Westin Waltham Boston on June 7.

“We strive to deliver effective, results-focused public relation strategies for all of our clients,” said Gary Griffin, director of public relations for Adams & Knight. “It’s an honor to have our efforts recognized by such an established organization.”

The two Gold Bell awards were presented for the agency’s crisis communications campaign for  Shiloh Christian Church and for its local television news placement for Sun & Ski Sports. The agency also received a Merit award for its response to breaking news for KBE Building Corporation.

About the Publicity Club of New England

Founded in 1949, The Publicity Club of New England is the region’s oldest not-for-profit public relations trade organization. The Publicity Club strives to promote and encourage involvement in the communications industry and specifically the professions of public relations, promotions and marketing. Additional information can be found on the Club’s website at www.pubclub.org.

Advertising Club of Connecticut Honors Agency With 24 Awards

Adams & Knight, Inc. was honored with three Best of Industry Awards at the 57th Annual Advertising Club of Connecticut Awards Show, held May 10 at the Crowne Plaza in Cromwell, Connecticut. The prestigious awards were presented to the agency for its work with Hartford Hospital, NewAlliance Bank and Mystic Seaport in the categories of healthcare, financial and retail marketing. The agency was honored with a total of 24 awards.

“It’s an honor to be acknowledged by the Advertising Club of Connecticut,” said Jill Adams, principal of Adams & Knight. “We’re proud of the results that we generate for our clients and to be recognized for our creative work in the agency’s specialty areas of healthcare, financial and non-profit services.”

More than 70 awards were given out over 47 categories. Adams & Knight’s award-winning work spanned a wide range of advertising categories, including consumer outdoor signage and transit, consumer posters, consumer interactive, B2B magazine, radio, public service, television, and public service posters and logo design.

Adams & Knight was also recognized for its work for Seven J’s Farm, Diversified, Masonicare, Bike Walk CT and Canton Raptor Care.

About the Advertising Club of Connecticut
The Advertising Club of Connecticut, founded in 1913, is the largest professional association in the state, serving advertising and marketing professionals. More than 500 members belong to the Advertising Club of Connecticut. For more information, visit www.adclubct.org.

Agency wins nine of the eleven Mark of Excellence Awards

Adams & Knight, Inc. was recognized by the Connecticut Chapter of the American Marketing Association (AMA) with top accolades for nine of the eleven 2011 Mark of Excellence Awards. The Mark of Excellence Awards are judged by a panel of AMA marketing professionals from across the country and are evaluated based on overall campaign strategy, creative and results.

The Avon-based integrated marketing communications agency was awarded top honors in six categories: Business to Business Campaign, Consumer Marketing Campaign, Event Marketing Campaign, Marketing Research Project, Not for Profit Marketing Campaign and Public Relations Campaign.

“We’re proud of the number of awards that we received on behalf of so many clients and across so many disciplines,” said Jill Adams, president of Adams & Knight. “Most importantly, we’re honored that the American Marketing Association recognized our continued focus on delivering measurable results.”

The AMA panel presented awards for NewAlliance Bank, Sun Life Employee Benefits Group, SPARTA Insurance, Mystic Seaport, the Connecticut Higher Education Trust (CHET) Dream Big! Competition Awards Ceremony, the Council for Disability Awareness (CDA), Hartford Stage’s “Anthony & Cleopatra” Campaign and Shiloh Church.

“The campaigns submitted this year returned impressive results, making the judges’ job harder,” said Aimee Furness, AMA-CT President. “The final scores were very high, setting new benchmarks and, we believe, representative of the great marketing produced by our local marketers.”

ADAMS & KNIGHT GENERATES IDEAS THAT SPARK RESULTS

Jill Adams has built her business by helping others build theirs. So ask this CEO of her own integrated marketing communications firm what she’s most proud of, and she rattles off the results Adams & Knight has helped others generate. Like a 31 percent increase in checking accounts. Or a rise in patient volumes seven times the national average. Or a 340 percent boost in Web traffic.

Making things work has always been Adams’s passion…even back when she and her partner Bill Knight were running Adams & Knight out of a cramped attic studio. Both were industry veterans, with experience in successful ad agencies and corporate marketing departments. That was after Adams’s initial stint in one of the most high-stress, high-stakes environments, a congressman’s office on Capitol Hill.

When the team went out on their own in 1988, their dream was to create a silo-free culture where savvy strategies inspired creative solutions. In 2007, they even built their own “hothouse” for these ideas — an environment that’s been featured in CNN.com, the Saturday Evening Post and Fast Company.

Adams & Knight now attracts talented staffers as well as national clients, many of whom are leaders in financial services and health care. Adams & Knight has also gained the attention of numerous industry associations, including the American Marketing Association, whose Connecticut chapter has named the agency Marketer of the Year for five of the last six years.

Key Principles Drive Marketing Success

At Adams & Knight, the strategies are as creative as the work. “Creativity is so much more than clever slogans, eye-popping graphics or cool technology,” says Adams, whose “no fluff” philosophy sets her apart in an industry that often sacrifices results for style.

“We believe there are key principles that are absolutely essential to marketing success,” she says. The firm runs SparkStorm workshops to help C-suite execs agree on a shared vision of success and how it will be measured. That leads to a clear prioritization of audiences and strategic insights into how to turn their emotion into motion. From there, the firm develops a 360-degree engagement plan, which can encompass everything from advertising and public relations to all kinds of Internet and social media connections. Then it produces relevant yet unexpected creative that stands out by standing for something that truly matters to the target audiences.

“What we really specialize in are big ideas that are reinforced at every touchpoint,” explains Adams. “Our specialists get together as a team to develop and implement a cohesive plan for our clients. As a result, their audiences get a consistent message — and they get measurable results.”

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New Hire Continues Recent Growth

Adams & Knight, Inc., an integrated marketing communications agency, announces the addition of Chief Business Development Officer Felicia Lindau. Lindau will focus on continuing the agency’s rapid growth, particularly in the financial services, healthcare and consumer services sectors.

Lindau’s appointment to the executive team comes at a time of increasing demand for the agency’s strengths in driving measurable results through a strategic blend of advertising, public relations, and digital and social marketing initiatives. Over the past five years, the East Coast-based marketing agency has increased its staff by 50 percent and recently expanded its creative offices, which have been featured in the Saturday Evening Post and Fast Company and on CNN.com (http://www.adamsknight.com/tour.html).

“Felicia knows how to help emerging leaders grow their business. That experience will be extremely valuable not only to our agency, but to our clients,” said Jill Adams, CEO of Adams & Knight. At Adams & Knight, Lindau is charged with bringing on mid-market clients who are looking for a strategic marketing partner to help them take their organizations to the next level.

Prior to joining Adams & Knight, Lindau held leadership roles on the agency teams that helped launch Amazon.com, Excite.com and MSN and that fueled momentum for MasterCard and Compaq. Her career has taken her from Dallas to San Francisco and New York City, where she worked with such leading agencies as FCB, Ammirati & Puris, Inc., Anderson & Lembke, Inc. and TracyLocke. She also founded and eventually sold Sparks.com, a highly successful e-commerce company.

Throughout her career, Lindau has been quoted in Forbes, Entrepreneur, U.S. News & World Report, The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal on brand-building and e-commerce. She has also appeared on The Today Show, CNN and NPR, and has been a guest lecturer at Stanford Business School.

New Hire Makes Quick Impact with Girl Scouts Site

Adams & Knight, Inc., an integrated marketing communications agency, announces the addition of Chris Spada to its interactive team. Spada, a skilled interactive designer with extensive experience in social media, will help address clients’ increasing demand for cohesive strategies that extend across all communication platforms.

“Chris’ expertise in both application development and in high-level user interface design further expands our team’s capabilities,” states Jim Kieffer, VP of Interactive Strategy. “He has a keen ability to make sophisticated functionality easy to use.”

The Avon-based marketing agency has quickly taken advantage of Spada’s skills, applying his talent to the recently launched Cookies for Heroes website for the Girl Scouts of Connecticut. The user-friendly website promotes the donation of Girl Scout cookies to our troops and invites visitors to nominate military or civilian heroes to a virtual Wall of Heroes. Visitors can also post links to their heroes on Twitter and Facebook and send CookiEmail messages to troops at www.cookiesforheroes.com.

“The Cookies for Heroes campaign is a great example of the power of integrating public relations, social media and digital marketing to connect with your target audiences in a more meaningful way,” states Kieffer.

Spada recently completed his first marathon in October and plans to compete in a triathlon in the future. He studied at Pratt Institute in New York and received his Bachelor of Fine Arts in Visual Communications Design at the Hartford Art School.

NewAlliance’s New Look

The research NewAlliance Bank did for its new branding effort showed that people are far more engaged in banking than they ever have been before.

“They’re paying more attention,” both to their personal spending and to the financial industry itself, says Nancy Benben, director of marketing communications for the $8.4 billion-asset bank in New Haven, Conn. “They’re looking more closely at their statements. They’re reading up on how their bank is doing. They’re listening to the media about what’s happening in the industry.”

This all bodes well for NewAlliance, which is highly capitalized and eager to make loans. And with people being so attuned, its advertising campaign, which had a splashy Super Bowl debut in the bank’s home state, is even more likely to get noticed.

Called “Do Your Thing,” the campaign depicts stories from the perspective of people who could be typical customers, all making big changes in their lives. “They are the heroes of the campaign,” Benben says. “Our goal, our promise to ourselves and our customers, is about how we enable them to thrive. These ads are an expression of that.”

The upbeat song that plays throughout its four television spots is an anthem to personal empowerment. Each opens with the lyrics, “Be yourself. No one else. Do your thing. Do your own thing,” as a montage of scenes rolls by.

One spot shows a woman at home, day and night, focused on her computer screen or huddled over a book. In the background, her husband vacuums, folds laundry and brings her coffee.

“Do something you’ve always dreamed of doing,” a male voice-over says. “While you may have to work at it, you don’t have to do it alone. NewAlliance will be right there by your side,” with people ready to help and money to lend, no matter the goal.

Even “important redecorating,” he says, as the woman hangs her diploma on a wall, smiling husband next to her.

Adams & Knight in Avon, Conn., created the campaign, which also includes a Web site redesign, along with print, radio, outdoor and online components. In choosing stories to present, Jill Adams, the agency’s president, says she wanted partly to highlight situations where people need help, but might not think of going to a bank. The intent is to convey that banks are not just for savings accounts, but also advice.

Mike Moyers, creative director at BLF Marketing in Nashville, Tenn., gives the campaign high marks. Though “very polished,” the ads feel fun and down-to-earth, he says. “I think it does a good job of being folksy yet sophisticated.”

The jingle in the television spots is particularly good, and cleverly underscores the ‘do’ theme, Moyers says. “They do a lot of ‘do-do, do-do, do-do.’ I thought that was a really nice touch.”

The print ads also have some distinctive elements. Instead of tucking the disclosures at the bottom, they are at the top. And in an ad for mortgages, the headline-”Doable”-is vertical.

David Hoke, a partner at BLF, says the “Do Your Thing” theme-which is also NewAlliance’s new tag line-is appealing. He likes that NewAlliance even incorporated the concept into its Web site. Visitors to the site get asked “Ready to do your thing?” They can choose from a menu of personal or business goals.

Hoke says the ads also do a good job of engaging people emotionally.

That is exactly what Adams and Benben wanted. “Banks have not been as effective as they need to be in really connecting to the emotional drivers for customers. It isn’t all about this rational analysis of fees,” Adams says. “Ultimately, you really gain customer loyalty when you can connect to the things that matter most to them. I think that’s what this campaign-and this bank-really do well.”

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In response to the devastation caused by the earthquake in Haiti, Adams & Knight has donated $5,000 to aid relief efforts. $2,500 of the donation will go to the American Red Cross and $2,500 to Heifer International, a non-profit organization that is following first-responders into the country and providing tools and resources to rebuild lives.

The agency’s thoughts and prayers go out to everyone who was affected by the disaster.