Congratulations from AgWired to the CEO of the National Corn Growers Association, who received the Agribusiness Leader of the Year award at the National Agri-Marketing Association conference in Kansas City on Thursday.
Rick Tolman has been in charge of NCGA for almost eight years, during a time of dramatic changes, new challenges and the highest prices in history for corn growers. He told me that he was fortunate to be able to lead the industry as it began to benefit from some of the decisions that were made more than a decade ago.
Listen to a short interview with Rick here.
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Speaking of rock. We were speaking of rock weren’t we?
Colle + McVoy held the 6th Annual Agri-Rock Fest this evening. Here’s some of the band. There were a lot of body piercings and tattoos and specialty rock legend beverages.
It’s now getting too late even for an agriblogger so you’ll have to check the photo album for some new ones and wait for more NAMA excitement in the morning.
2008 Agri-Marketing Conference Photo Album
I don’t know about you but Deron is one of those people that just always makes me smile when I talk to him. If you see him this week at the NAMA Convention then you need to congratulate him.
Rhea + Kaiser Marketing Communications announces the promotion of Deron Johnson to Vice President, Public Relations Director.
Johnson, who joined Rhea + Kaiser in 2005 as director, public relations, manages an 18-person team while overseeing the development of PR strategy and programs for all Rhea + Kaiser clients, including Athenix Corporation, Bayer CropScience, Pfizer Animal Health, Sandvik Mining and Construction, Underwriters Laboratories and Valley Irrigation.
“Deron brings invaluable leadership to Rhea + Kaiser, and our clients benefit every day from his unique insight into their needs,” said Steve Rhea, president and CEO of Rhea + Kaiser Marketing Communications. “This promotion recognizes his accomplishments and the importance of public relations as a part of the fully integrated communications services we offer our clients.”
NAMA invites are coming in.
This one’s from Colle+McVoy promoting their 6th Annual Agri-Rock Fest called Phenamanon.
There’s a game involved along with some animal sounds and some rock and roll of course. I’ve got the t-shirt, tats and ear ring and have put it on the calendar.
Want your NAMA event promoted here on AgWired?
You know who to call (or email).
You can expect to get one from ZimmComm in the near future too.
In today’s digital online world everyone’s got to have someone to help them out with digital solutions.
Bader Rutter, a Brookfield, Wis.-based integrated marketing services agency, has added two associates to its Digital Solutions Group.
Damon Sanchez joins the agency as senior interactive media specialist. He comes from Charleston|Orwig where he was senior interactive director. A native of McFarland, Wis., Sanchez earned his bachelor’s degree from the Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design. He is also an instructor at the Madison Media Institute.
Tara Hammond joins the agency as a web programmer/analyst. Her previous experience includes positions as a software engineer at TEKSystems and most recently, as a technical business analyst at James Tower. Originally from Mequon, Wis., Hammond holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee.
Everyone’s bragging about their “greenness” today it seems like. “We’re now carbon neutral,” “We’ve gone green,” etc. Here at ZimmComm I think we’re making a very tiny carbon dent in the universe. We don’t print anything on a regular basis. We’re mainly sending out bytes of data in various ways. We are breathing however and I don’t intend to quit doing that any time soon. I get tired of it. It just doesn’t impress me.
But, I seriously like the Geile/Leon Marketing Communications approach. They’re advocating an hour of darkness tomorrow by flipping off St. Louis. It’s the Geileon.com/powerhour. If you’re in St. Louis tomorrow then they want you to flip off your lights and head to J.Buck’s Restaurant from 7-10pm. They’ve even got a special drink prepared called the “Planetini.” It’s an earthy blend of apples and social activism.
The Hondo Group is getting ready to have a grand opening for their Darlington, WI office. They’re also added Peter Wernecke to the team as an Account Supervisor.
“We are excited by the addition of Peter to the Hondo team,” said Kim Jones, vice president and management supervisor of The Hondo Group. “His vast marketing experience will undoubtedly provide added value to our clients.”
As account supervisor, Wernecke will be responsible for the development and execution of communications campaigns for agribusiness clients such as StollerUSA. Prior to joining The Hondo Group, Wernecke worked for a boutique advertising agency that specialized in brand, integrated and Web marketing. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Wisconsin in Madison, Wisconsin.
“It’s great to join a team that is known for their level of creativity when developing strategy for business sectors such as agribusiness,” said Wernecke. “It’s our creative process that will help us push our clients to the forefront of their industry.”
The grand opening is on May 1 and sounds like a fun party.
. . . we are a group of imaginative experts who provide innovative advertising, marketing and public relations services. So just imagine what type of party we can host!
I know I just did a post about Charleston Orwig but since they’ve already updated their blog, Field Assignment, with an Ag Day message then I’ve got to bring it to your attention. C’mon. More of you have recognized today haven’t you?
I had a very hearty breakfast and lunch so far today. Thank you to our farmers.
Advertising agency blogs are a fantastic opportunity to showcase your talent. I mean, if you’re going to say you’re creative then show it. Here’s one way Charleston Orwig has done so on Field Assignment.
Every year we give our creative team entry forms for the Hoard’s Dairyman Cow Judging Contest and very limited advice on making picks.
Josh Hushon has joined Filament Marketing as a marketing executive. He’ll be working on strategic marketing plan implementation.
Hushon most recently spent four and a half years at Hoard’s Dairyman as associate editor. In this role, he coordinated coverage of manure handling, environmental regulations, cow comfort, buildings and equipment, animal welfare and content for the Young Dairymen page. He also led development of the magazine’s annual World Dairy Expo supplement.
Prior to his editor role, Hushon completed internships with Monsanto Dairy Business and ABS Global, and he has worked as a freelance writer for Farmshine Newspaper. Hushon serves the dairy industry as a member of the National Advisory Committee of Dairyfarmingtoday.org and the National 4-H Dairy Conference Planning Committee. He continues to be involved with Brothers Three Brown Swiss, his family’s cattle operation in Quarryville, Pa., which has bred or developed multiple All Americans and National Bell Ringers.
The Hondo Group has added two people to their team, Traffic Manager Van Artiaga and Public Relations Director René Smith.
As traffic manager, Artiaga will be responsible for project management and maintaining the flow of jobs for all clients. As public relations director, Smith will be responsible for raising the level of awareness of their clients and The Hondo Group.
“I’m enjoying the work and the people,” said Artiaga. “Everyone here is very creative so our work product is absolutely a result of outside-the-box thinking.”
Artiaga started her career as an account director for Lowe Worldwide in Vietnam, working on clients including Coca-Cola and Unilever. After moving to the United States, Artiaga continued her career as an account executive and project manager for two local companies before joining The Hondo Group. She holds a bachelor of arts in English from the University of Sciences and Humanities in Vietnam and a bachelor of arts in business administration from the University of Economics in Vietnam. In addition, Artiaga has extensive training in specific disciplines including e-mail marketing, campaign planning, brand communication and direct marketing through various workshops and seminars.
Prior to joining The Hondo Group, Smith was a senior account executive at a communications firm in Houston, Texas where her responsibilities included the development and execution of public relations campaigns. She specializes in industries such as technology, healthcare, real estate, transportation and consumer goods. Smith holds a bachelor of arts in public relations and journalism from Texas State University in San Marcos, Texas.
“I’m excited to be here,” said Smith. “With so much growth and opportunity at The Hondo Group, this is a great time for me to be tasked with increasing our visibility.”
In conjunction with expanding the team, the company is planning a celebration for its newest office located in Darlington, Wisconsin. The office helps to better serve The Hondo Group’s many clients in the agricultural industry. The opening celebration for the Darlington office is planned for May 1, 2008.
Here at ZimmComm, it is very true that our clients are our friends and we hate to see them move on. So, it is with mixed emotions and fond memories that we say goodbye to our friend Dan Muys with Quarry and wish him the very best as he moves across the country of Canada for personal reasons. I found out Dan was leaving Quarry during last week’s Commodity Classic from his good friend and client Pat Morrow of BASF. My response was “That sucks!” She was much more eloquent. Here is her farewell message to Dan:
Today we bid best wishes to Dan Muys, soon to be formerly of Quarry Integrated Communications, who is headed west to pursue new opportunities in Calgary, Alberta. In addition to pursuing new opportunities, he will undoubtedly cheer for the Calgary Flames NHL team — the only Stanley Cup for the Flames was won 1989! Perhaps the odds are in their favor in 2008……..
On a more serious note, Dan has been a great colleague and friend to many at BASF and in the ag business. He has helped innovate and direct many of the new opportunities for the BASF crop communications these past eighteen-plus months, and has been a joy to work with and know. His legacy will be felt for a long time to come. Dan, we wish you only the best and much success and happiness in your new ventures, and many thanks for your dedication, hard work, and great spirit. Please keep in touch with your friends at BASF and through the U.S. ag industry. We hope to see your smiling face again soon!
La bonne chance et les meilleurs souhaits !
My best memories of Dan are from our BASF Germany/Brussels trip last year. He kept us all organized, didn’t get us lost too often, and spent lots of time looking for ATM machines!
Danke dank, Dan. You better stay in touch or we may just make good on that threat to kidnap you and hold you hostage in Holts Summit! Peace and all good things to you, my friend.
There’s two new Vice Presidents at Bader Rutter & Associates.
Mike Fredrick has been promoted to vice president, associate creative director in the agency’s creative group. Fredrick first joined Bader Rutter in 1997 and later rejoined the agency in 2003 as a senior copywriter. In his new role, he will continue to help lead the creative group and drive the creative direction for GE Healthcare, several divisions of Dow AgroSciences and other clients.
Tom Posta has been promoted to vice president, group leader in the agency’s account management group. Posta joined Bader Rutter in 1996. In his 12 years with the agency, Posta has played a key role in developing lasting client relationships as well as growing the businesses of some of the agency’s largest clients. He will continue to work on the Dow AgroSciences and GE Healthcare accounts.
A new agency will be working in support of producer communications for the Beef Checkoff.
Cattlemen’s Beef Board agency review panel lead by Joint Producer Communications Committee Chair Richard Nielson, cow/calf operator from Ephraim, Utah, met in Denver Monday, Feb. 25, to hear presentations from the three agencies chosen as finalists to support the CBB paid producer communications paid media effort. A panel of CBB and Federation members joined with communications staff to unanimously choose McCormick Company, an Amarillo-based full-service marketing communications firm established in 1926 and the 14th oldest advertising and public relations firm in the United States. McCormick has a long-standing relationship with a number of association and commercial livestock clients and has worked with the checkoff in various roles since its beginning. In fact, McCormick designed the beef check logo in 1986.
“The panel members were impressed by McCormick’s enthusiastic presentation which also demonstrated them to be highly qualified with a deep understanding of our target audience – producers who pay the checkoff,” said Nielson. “McCormick’s problem-solving approach and creative ideas won them the contract.”
I just posted an announcement about Rhea + Kaiser’s new branding initiative and today I had the opportunity to speak with Steve Rhea about it. Steve says that they really wanted to build on their values of honesty, discipline and respect. It’s a complete brand makeover which includes a newly designed website, logo, stationary and everything you’d expect. He says that about 70 percent of their business remains tied to agriculture but they’re expanding outward to related fields in health care and food ingredients.
Take a couple minutes and feel free to listen to my interview with Steve here:
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There’s nothing like freshening up the old brand in the new year. That’s what Rhea + Kaiser has done using just a little bit of “Uncommon Sense.”
On the eve of its 30th anniversary, Rhea + Kaiser is introducing a new brand identity, built around the theme of “Uncommon Sense.”
The agency’s identity rebranding initiative had a two-fold objective: to acknowledge the evolution of Rhea + Kaiser and to better reflect the agency’s value offering to current and prospective clients, said Steve Rhea, president, CEO and co-founder of the independent, integrated agency.
“Over the past 18 months, we took stock of Rhea + Kaiser’s history, evolution and current standing,” Rhea said. “We conducted internal focus groups, debated the sacred, proposed the outrageous and spent time crafting, testing and pressure-testing the identity that will carry us confidently into the future.” (more…)
…is, apparently, in California. The California Travel & Tourism Commission and the Wine Institute are teaming up to promote the ‘Land of Wine and Food’ nationwide.
Building on California’s allure as America’s “Capital of Culinary Travel,” the California Wine Institute and the California Travel and Tourism Commission (CTTC) have entered into an historic partnership to promote the state’s wine and cuisine offerings to the fast-growing travel segment of culinary connoisseurs — and those who aspire to be.
The heart of the campaign focuses on a new LandofWineandFood.com Web site which will debut at wine and food and travel media events in New York. Also to be unveiled at the New York events will be an exciting new national TV campaign featuring Governor Schwarzenegger, First Lady Maria Shriver and wine and culinary celebrities promoting California’s rich bounty of wine and food. The spot is scheduled to begin running on February 4 in major markets across the U.S. Print ads featuring top chefs and winemakers, such as Heidi Barrett, will also run in various wine, food and lifestyle magazines throughout the winter and spring.
Consumers will find a rich and unique Web site that will virtually pull them into California, “The Land of Wine and Food.” Exciting features include: an Interactive Wine Region Explorer, showcasing the best California wine regions for their favorite varietals as well as wine and food itineraries; Travel Tips Video Shorts from California wine and food pioneers, sharing tips such as the best way to find locals’ favorite eateries; blogs featuring wine and food luminaries like Pat Kuleto, Duskie Estes and Andrew Firestone of Curtis Winery; Local Californian’s Point of View Tips, where locals tell visitors their favorite things to do and places to visit; and a chance to win exclusive culinary adventures in California.
California boasts nine of the top 10 U.S. agricultural counties, which grow a diverse assortment of fresh produce that many fine chefs demand in California’s 80,000 restaurants and eateries, says CTTC Executive Director Caroline Beteta. “California is the most visited state in the U.S. for food and wine-related activities, but our research shows there’s still a lot of potential for growth in wine and food travel to our state,” said Beteta.
Lori Hallowell is now a group leader at Bader Rutter. She’ll be in the agency’s account management group.
Hallowell joined the agency in 1994. Her hard work and passion for the business have been instrumental in the growth of Merial, the agency’s animal health client. Originally from Palmyra, Neb., Hallowell earned a bachelor of science degree in agricultural journalism from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. She serves on the board of directors of the National Agri-Marketing Association’s Midlands Chapter.
When I first saw an incoming link to AgWired From Field Assignment I thought it must be a student blog. Probably because I had just read about one teacher’s assignment of having her online journalism class take video cameras out into the field to shoot video for an assignment. By the way, if you’re in journalism and wondering if you should blog you might want to read this post.
Sorry, I got off track there. As it turns out, Field Assignment is the Charleston-Orwig blog. Great name and they’re doing it right. Although I don’t see the rss feed for the blog. If someone could send that to me I’ll add it to my news feeds.
“field assignment” chronicles one agency’s journey through the world of agribusiness. One post might feature a field report from an industry event while another links to useful information elsewhere. Enjoy.
How many more of you (agencies, agribusinesses, commodity groups, media types, farmers) have a blog you haven’t let me know about? C’mon, you can share. I’ll be kind. I didn’t say anything bad about this one did I?
Hey Mike, you look marvelous!
Don’t forget to take the AgWired Survey 2008 and be entered in the giveaway contest. I’m going to keep reminding you about this so go ahead and git ‘er done.
To see what Lyle Orwig looks like today you can visit CongratsNAMA.com. I just happened to stumble across it this morning. NAMA turned 50 in ‘07 and Charleston|Orwig created a special site to commemorate it.
I especially like the comparisons of 1957 to 2007 like the fact that Lyle had to watch the first episode of “Leave It To Beaver” in black and white while dreaming about one day owning an HD Plasma.
The comparison of movies is pretty good to with the speculation that Lyle might have voiced three of the minor characters in “Shrek The Third.”
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Cool Interactive Ideas in new media was the topic of a NAMA Boot Camp presentation by Erin Holte, Martin Williams.
