For Immediate Release

Contact:
Rebecca Sullivan
for Allen & Gerritsen
781-326-1996
rebecca@rsullivanpr.com

Graff’s Platform: Increased Professional Development and Strengthening Ties to Boston’s Business Community

BOSTON (February 23, 2009) — Kathy Kiely, President of the Ad Club announced today that Andrew Graff, CEO of Allen & Gerritsen (a&g) has been appointed Chairman of the Board at the Ad Club. Kiely also announced the newest Board members, which include executives from Google, Ocean Spray and Welch’s, who will work with Graff to govern the Ad Club.

“Andrew’s perspective, thanks to his strong connections to the business, nonprofit, education and government sectors of Boston and New England will make the Ad Club more relevant and vital,” said Kathy Kiely, President of the Ad Club. “His leadership combined with our impressive new Board members’ expertise will be incredibly valuable, as the Ad Club experiences a resurgence in interest due to the economy and the changing face of marketing.”

Allen & Gerritsen is ranked by Advertising Age as one of the Top 50 Independent advertising agencies in the US and has been in business since 1985. Graff has spent his entire career in advertising, moving from intern to CEO at several agencies, including Arnold, working his way to the top as CEO at a&g. Always focused on what’s next, Graff has evolved the agency to focus on strategically combining technology, creativity, media and analytics to develop digital, experiential and traditional branding experiences.

The newest members of the Ad Club Board include:
Tim Castelli, Managing Director, East Region, Google
Larry Martin, VP of Marketing, Ocean Spray Cranberries, Inc.
Heath Rudduck, Executive Creative Director, DIGITAS
Tim Davies, Client Service Account Director, Blitz Media
Tom Fiedler, Dean, BU College of Communication
Randy Hano, President, Boston Magazine
Christopher Heye, CMO, Welch’s
Bill Fox, Senior Vice President, Fidelity Investments

Graff is dedicated to community involvement, realizing that his job is to use his leadership and expertise out of the office as well as in. He serves as an advisor to many nonprofit organizations, including The Albert Schweitzer Fellowship, Boys and Girls Club of Dorchester, Arsenal Center for the Arts and serves on the Board of the Room to Dream Foundation. He is an active member of the Boston Chamber of Commerce, serving on the Workforce Development Task Force committee, created to attract and retain skilled workers in the area. He is a member of MITX and the Marketing Committee for the Boston Public Library (a&g recently updated the BPL’s brand and marketing strategy). In addition, he is the Chairman of the New England Regional Board of the American Association of Advertising Agencies (AAAA). Passionate about giving back and fostering talent, Graff frequently speaks on business and marketing topics at colleges including Boston College, Boston University, Emerson College and Northeastern University.

“Whether you’ve been in the advertising business for decades or days or somewhere in between, the Ad Club is your resource for learning, recognition, connections and career development,” said Andrew Graff, Chairman of the Ad Club and CEO at Allen & Gerritsen. “There are a number of opportunities for the Ad Club to help the marketing and business community throughout New England and I can’t think of a better time to make a difference.”

About the Ad Club
The Ad Club is the trade organization for marketing, advertising and communications in New England. Founded in 1904, the club serves as a community connector. Events steeped in tradition such as the Hatch Awards, the Rosoff Awards and the Gala Auction are the backbone of the club for the recognition and networking opportunities they provide to the community around New England.

Twitter is a news source, an early alert system, a social network, a geo tracking tool, an education necessity, a reputation monitoring system, a political campaign tool, a rumor mill, a PR platform, a brand personifier, a help desk, a product review source, a polling system, a direct marketing tool, a classified ad, a sports discussion platform, a tv guide, a celebrity information and communication tool, an addiction, open Instant Messenger, a recipe box, a bookmarking tool, a soapbox, the driving force for social media, an amazingly simple innovation with an [until recently] flimsy revenue model, a virtual place… [your turn]

For Immediate Release

Contact:

Rebecca Sullivan
for Allen & Gerritsen
781-326-1996
rebecca@rsullivanpr.com

Watertown, MA (February 11, 2009) –In approaching the opportunity to work with Salem Five Savings Bank, Watertown based Allen & Gerritsen (a&g) focused on truly understanding the needs of banking customers and their expectations of the banking experience. The agency was awarded the business as a result of its deep audience intelligence experience, strategic insight and the ability to activate its experiential and digital practices.

“We asked a&g to come up with a creative strategy to get banking customers to consider Salem Five and simply come in to our branches or visit us online,” said Martha Acworth, Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer at Salem Five Bank. “a&g set itself apart by demonstrating fluency in a number of competencies including guerilla, viral, online and retail marketing, but especially for its non-traditional approach to bank marketing.”

Allen & Gerritsen’s Audience Intelligence uncovered key insights that would influence and encourage customers to try out a new bank. In a weak economy, the fact that Salem Five is a mutual bank adds to the appeal of considering a switch. Once customers are comfortable with a new banking environment, selling more services, such as checking and loans becomes more successful.

“Our pitch was essentially a new brand platform for Salem Five, one that is relevant for today but not so “in the moment” that it becomes irrelevant as soon as market conditions improve,” said Andrew Graff, President and CEO of Allen & Gerritsen. “Clearly, we think a lot like Salem Five, a business that has built a foundation of listening to customers and evolving in order to remain relevant.”

The bank’s new campaign is expected to break in early 2009.

The Salem Five account was awarded after a formal review conducted by Pile & Company. Billings were undisclosed.

About Allen & Gerritsen

Always focused on what’s next, Allen & Gerritsen (a&g) strategically combines technology, creativity, media and analytics to develop digital, experiential and traditional branding experiences. Ranked by Advertising Age as one of the Top 50 Independent advertising agencies in the US, a&g creates conversations and builds connections that contribute to the bottom line. Their roster of global, consumer and BtoB clients includes the Berklee College of Music, Bright Horizons Family Solutions, the Boston Public Library, The Boston Bruins, The Boston Celtics, Cybex International, Hannaford Supermarkets, MFS Investment Management, Ninety Nine Restaurants, New England Baptist Hospital, RCN and Waters Corporation.

The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and
expecting different results. ”

-Benjamin Franklin

I know . . . we’ve all heard this quote. Yet in the world of media planning we continue to use  the same  vendor driven methods of allocating resources, when in fact we need to put the consumer at the center of the equation. We’ve let the media dictate the currency and information models of advertising, when in fact there’s little correlation between the way media is bought and the way it’s consumed. Layer  influence and saliency into the equation and you’ve got a situation where most dollars are being allocated to “commodity” or “ubiquity” media. . . places where the consumers kind of expects to see your client’s message, but doesn’t expect to pay much attention to what they’re saying.

So what’s the answer?  Well, we need to identify where and when we have permission to engage the consumer.  And in fact it’s not really that difficut to do. Gleaning audience intelligence from primary and not just syndicated data is the key. In the age of Zoomerang and Survey Monkey this information is within reach of most clients, regardless of their budgets. The other requirement is an open mind. Word of mouth, coupons and inserts may in fact be deemd more influential than TV by your customers. Just ask them.

Another Super Bowl has come and gone, and we at a&g were busy crunching numbers for our 6th Annual Meaningful Messages (TM) advertising survey. Unlike other surveys that measure likeability, we look at other measures that are also measures of success thereby uncovering good ads the other surveys may miss.

This year was unique in many ways - major advertisers we expect to see during the Super Bowl were absent, and in their place were spots from companies we’d never imagine we’d see. We saw a number of spots that were humorous and exactly what we’d expect from the Super Bowl, and others that took a different approach.

So take a look at our brief and let us know what you think. You may be surprised by who led the pack. Get the full skinny here.

Tim Finchem stood in front of a painting of TPC Sawgrass late last year to record a video message for members of the PGA Tour. The catalyst for Finchem’s message was the failing economy and its potential effect on the large number of title sponsorships that expire by the end of 2010.

Among the commissioner’s requests were that players add events this year; it has become a growing trend for top-ranked players to skip the first few events, making this week’s Buick Invitational the unofficial start of the season.

Read more at Sports Business Journal

Frugality is the in thing. The economy is taking a toll on this nations retailers , especially anyone trying to compete with big box stores like Home depot and Lowes. I am amazed at national and regional hardware stores and the lack of vision into this opportunstic time for building awarness and sales.

Many Americans are answering a call to thrift and cost savings measures like home maintenance, gardening, sewing, and even cooking. Retailers all complain about lack of foot traffic and diminished sales. Whole foods offers value tours of their stores. Home depot has been offering do it yourself clinics weekly for years.

Independent hardware stores for example can take a lesson plan from their grandparents. They lived in times when frugality was the norm.  What about educating your customers on how to be more frugal for themselves. In return they may spend more money in your store for parts and supplies. How about offering a weekly course in your store that is more than a clinic. Clinics are fine but often give consumers just a little bit of information which can cause other problems and expense. How about a course in basic plumbing or electrical repairs.? How about a course in small engine tuneup and repair? How about a course on wallpapering and painting techniques? All of the courses would be free.

Neighborhood hardware stores could also become partners with area vocational schools and community groups. This is a different from anything that big box home improvement stores do now. It is a way to distribute coupons and meet consumers one on one. It is a way for a small store to act big while retaining the community charm that we are revisting again as consumers.

Who knows a consumer might even come back to a local store where great customer service was the norm. Frugality is cool but better branding is even cooler…

I have been marketing food products and restaurants for over thirty years. I even worked for Dunkin Donuts for 7 years and never drank a cup of coffee. Just tea! I love tea. Hot tea, iced tea. I love traveling and tasting new teas from around the globe.I drink a lot of hot tea. I use loose leaf tea and bagged tea. I  understand food costs and also franchised and non franchised pro -formas. I also want my clients and favorite local restaurants to make a living.

But a have a gripe. I have a suggestion to get tea drinkers to come back more often.   Do not charge patrons for a second cup of tea if you simply bring more hot water to the table without a new cup and new tea. Sounds simple but it happens to me at least 2-3 times per week.  The same  coffee people at the table get fresh new coffee refills but not the tea drinkers among us.

So , do you want more customers to visit more often? How about leaving a good impression before the check comes..You will be surprised at the simple things that mean a lot to loyal customers.

Resellers beware, Marketers beware for the new children’s product safety requirements to take effect in February, 2009.The consumer product safety commission improvement act (cpsia) was signed into law on august 14, 2008 and many new requirements go into effect on February 10, 2009.

Most people have heard about a lead ban on children’s products. Children’s products cannot be sold in the USA if they contain 600 million parts per million, even if they were manufactured before February 10, 2009. The total lead count will even go lower to 300 ppm on August 14, 2009. This can become a nightmare if you have children’s premiums sitting on the shelf or on the books as escrowed inventory that do not comply with new standards.

But this is just the start! Phthalates has also changed . Certification and testing are now law!  You should pay special attention to children’s premiums such as jewelry, painted toys, metal toys, dolls, stuffed animals, flimsily toys that parts can break off. Toys that lack age warnings are also a big red flag for marketers.

The new statutes carry significant civil and/or criminal penalties. For more detailed information check out the CPSC web site or contact a trusted agency for the most up to date information.