In March we welcomed Rodrick Feggins as the newest member of our video production department. An accomplished motion graphics professional from San Antonio, Texas, Rodrick brings knowledge and skill in 3-D graphics, compositing and motion graphics that bolsters and expands RSA’s capabilities and quality of work.

Another addition to our team includes the Canon 5D mkII HDSLR camera, recently used in two pieces for the South Dakota Lottery and the Downtown Association. Videos shot with the Canon have the cinematic look and feel of Hollywood, and the camera’s depth of field draws the viewer’s attention to the most important images in the production.

Click here to view the embedded video.

On the creative side, we produced outstanding television commercials such as the Black Hills Stock Show’s “2011 Generic“. As you’ll see, this graphics-intensive piece captures the depth and excitement of the Stock Show.

RSA’s production team recently traveled to Gillette to produce a commercial for Casey Peterson and Associates’ new Gillette office called “Trust.” In this commercial, you’ll meet the Gillette staff and hear some of the most common reasons CPA’s clients trust them to help with their businesses and personal finances. You’ll notice here, as well, that when shot with the Canon 5D, the images bring a simple beauty to the commercial not usually seen in local television.

As our video production department takes on new and exciting projects, we invite you to stop by and meet Rodrick or see some of their outstanding work. And maybe while you’re here, you can quiz us on how we can help grow your business with a new video and our other creative services. From television and radio commercials to training and long-form videos to simple web videos, we have the experience and the team to take your current messaging to the next level.

- Jack

Inside RSA Video Production is a post from: RSA Blog

[When asked to write a post for the RSA blog I thought, hey I'm not a writer - and what was I even going to write about? Think Justin....think! Then it happened, my WDT intern Pierre (his name has been changed to protect his innocence) walked in and said "what's goin’ on?" And just like that I had a topic. I tried to get Pierre to write this, but he's lazy and doesn't prioritize very well. You know, he puts school and his job before his internship. Silly intern. Anyway, here's my masterpiece…]

Don't forget my coffee

We love us some interns!

Each year many brave souls apply for various internship positions here at Robert Sharp & Associates, and each year we select a few candidates who show us they want to learn and are excited about what they can do. When they show up for work, we show them what an ad agency is all about: sex, drugs and Facebook!

An internship at RSA starts with you getting me coffee and a Taco John’s breakfast burrito (relax, I’ll pay every third time) and ends with REAL world experience. Rather than just filing and other menial tasks, you’ll attend important meetings and be encouraged to participate in discussions. You’ll be shadowing a professional and actually doing real agency work. Whether it’s brainstorming a creative idea to promote a product or helping to maximize the most out of a budget (or the coffee grounds), you’ll gain valuable experience during your time here.

Internship Opportunities

Is it cheap labor for us? Maybe. Is it a great opportunity for you? Absolutely. We have internships available in account management, graphic design, audio/video production and event management. There is plenty of room for growth, and we like to bond with our interns. Some have even been known to work here after they graduate.

Just like our team here, we like our interns to be a well-rounded bunch. There is no mold to fit into when it comes to our agency – just read our bios. Do you love motorcycles? Are you a bookworm? Obsessed with online gaming? It doesn’t matter. As long as you have a passion for what you do (and a 4.3 GPA), you are welcome here. That’s right, we only accept smart people (insert overly-used acronym here).

It’s a melting-pot

Many unique personalities have come through these doors. A variety in attitude and style is what we want. We like the free-thinking and detail-oriented creative, as well as the OCD project manager with the loud boots. It takes all types of pieces to put this puzzle together, and once you think you have it done, the picture changes and it’s a whole new puzzle.

So be welcome, all applicants, and don’t forget the coffee and tacos.

Shaping the minds of tomorrow is a post from: RSA Blog

In a brilliant and entertaining blend of traditional advertising and social media, Old Spice simply nails it here.  With a traditional TV spot posted on Youtube, they simply monitored comments on the video, as well as on Facebook and Twitter, and then shot and posted video responses to some of them.

Simply amazing. This has got to be the first time in a long time any advertising, by itself, has made me want to purchase a product!

And they’re still doing it. Prepare to waste your afternoon…

Click here to view the embedded video.

Old Spice Does Something New is a post from: RSA Blog

Integrated media; balanced marketing

Lost within the maze of our office, sitting in front of his Mac – probably playing video games – is Justin Mather, one of our graphic design veterans.  Last week we bribed him to sit down and spit out a few notes about traditional advertising. Here’s the dirt:

Traditional advertising has been around a long time, much longer than anyone reading this. Today, it still plays a vital role in the success of any business. The technological aspects of marketing are changing fast, but traditional media is still a great way to consistently reach large numbers of potential customers, particularly for local advertisers.

Your logo, brand and image is just as important as it ever was

Keep your collateral materials fresh and updated. For instance, if you are featuring more services or made upgrades to an existing product, you’ll need an updated brochure/rack-card to make existing and future customers aware of this. You must maintain a strong market presence while effectively reaching your intended audience.

Consider this…

It’s true that fewer people are reading actual newspapers (as opposed to online), but fewer is not the same as nobody; and even that depends on your demographic. If you’re trying to reach an older demographic, newspapers work great. Coupons are also a good way to increase traffic. A direct mail piece with a good offer is a wonderful way for you to get more “bang for your buck.” Just make sure to routinely change your offer and the look of your mailer to avoid being overlooked by desensitized consumers.

Even though the possibilities offered by interactive media are compelling, and we’re doing more all the time, advertising in print, outdoor, and direct mail will still have a great impact in any balanced, integrated marketing plan.

–

Photo courtesy of aeu04117

Traditional Advertising Is An Oldie But A Goodie is a post from: RSA Blog

Video + Blog = Vlog, to test this theory we enlisted the help of Sean Coyne, our superstar videographer and office comedian.

Sit back….grab your lunch, a snack or maybe that fifth cup of coffee needed to get through your day and enjoy.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Sean says: “Visit our Youtube channel”

Video Confessions: Sean is a post from: RSA Blog

[In this guest post, Tracy Mailloux points out a trend in advertising he noticed while on his Great Education Adventure, and is kind enough to share some insight with us. Thanks, Tracy! ]

Interactive TV ad

Traditional TV isn’t dead… yet. It is, however, on a respirator, and the priest has been called in for last rites.

Digital TV, on the other hand, is very much alive. Although in it’s infancy, it is growing at a rapid pace–its steroid of choice: advertising.

Now I know what you are thinking, “there’s nothing new about advertising on TV.” True, advertising has been around ever since cavemen could sketch on rock walls. But with the digital revolution in TV, advertising is becoming more and more interactive and engaging, which is a new thing for ads.

Invention or Ad-vention?

“It’s about making the TV a more lean-forward medium than a strictly lean-back medium,” said Bob Ivins, vice president of research and data products with Comcast Corp.

Digital Cable and Satellite (DC&S) are employing advertising techniques conceived on the internet through your DVR. It first started about three or four years ago when DC&S started advertising on the menu screen or guide page on your digital service. For example, while searching for your favorite TV show, there is an advertising banner, usually at the bottom of the screen, prompting you to “click here,” for more information about a show, a product, a service, etc. DC&S collects a fee every time a viewer clicks on this feature.

When DC&S started this, many people were not happy with it at all. Many felt that it slowed down their DVR’s response time–just to linger an extra second so you might be captivated by the banner and decide to click on it. For me, that little banner isn’t a problem. I’ve never used it to request any information, but have used it to watch movie trailers. I actually think it’s a great advertising method that is capitalizing on a captive audience.

Ads within ads…

But I was taken back the other day when I noticed advertising within advertising. That’s right, advertising within advertising. Basically DC&S are now able to have “pop-up banners,” during commercial breaks. For example, let’s say you’re watching a commercial about Viagra. As the commercial plays, a pop-up (no pun intended) banner appears prompting you to “click here,” (using your remote) to receive a free trial pack. With that one click, your information–from DC&S–is transmitted instantaneously to a processing center that will fulfill your request.

“It allows us to combine the power of the Internet–with its engagement, targeting and accountability–with the power of the big screen,” said David Kline, Cablevision’s president of ad sales.

Being in the advertising business, all I can say is… wow, that is insane. On one hand, I think that it’s a great idea to be able to request information, coupons, free samples, enter sweepstakes, or have an agent contact me about a product that I am interested in as I sit in my pajamas while watching TV–very cool! This is the ultimate for advertisers: seeing exactly who their audience is, and build databases from that contact.

On the other hand, I do worry about what the next phase will be. Will advertising become too obtrusive while watching TV, as it can tend to be while surfing the internet? In addition, with my information being sent to companies and stored in their databases, who is to say that they won’t sell my information to third parties? Next thing you know, I am receiving more junk mail and spam calls.

So where’s it headed?

To be fair, the survival of DC&S depends on their ability to get creative with the way they execute ads for their advertisers. The reason and culprit for this is the fast-forward button. How many people skip commercials with their DVR’s fast-forward button? I know I do.  Because of this, DC&S must implement interactive advertising channels. Now you can go to this interactive channel, say you see an ad for Walt Disney World, with one click of your remote, you can request for a travel agent contact you. Next thing you know, your telephone is ringing–it can be that fast.

“Using interactive techniques, we can get a targeted consumer to engage with a brand on TV for a much longer period of time than just a 30-second commercial,” said Jacqueline Corbelli, chief executive of media agency BrightLine iTV.

Kevin George, an ad executive at Unilever who oversaw one such campaign, said “the response was great” because it reached its targeted audience “without interrupting them,” in part because Unilever reached the audience “in a place where they’re comfortable, giving them the option to participate without interrupting them.”

In addition, due to the fast-forwarding of TV commercials, there are talks about having TV shows being sponsored again–much like they were back in the 1950′s. Be on the look out for these and more changes in the years to come.

When Digital TV started, they promised better picture and sound. But with the great potential now for much more data to be sent through your television, TV will become more and more interactive. Pretty soon, TV and your computer will be one and the same.

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Digital TV Advertising: is it Invention or Advention? is a post from: RSA Blog