Advertising Campaigns

Advertising Campaigns – APR 424
University of Alabama

Fall 2001

Instructor: Dr. Tom Reichert

Phone: 348-2652

Office: 414B Phifer Hall

e-mail: reichert@apr.ua.edu

Office Hours: 10–11 a.m. (T&R),

4–5 p.m. (T); and by appt.

“You can tell the ideals of a nation by its advertisements.”

– Norman Douglas

Course Description

This is your capstone course. This means that you will use all the skills you’ve learned so far in the advertising program to create a complete campaign. The course is comprehensive in that its emphasis is on the application of skills, methods, activities, theories, and strategies covered in previous advertising courses. As an applied course, you will develop a complete advertising campaign for a specified client. To the extent possible in an academic setting, the professor and selected client will attempt to make this experience similar to one you would experience in the real world.

Reading Materials

Parente, D., Vanden Bergh, B., Barban, A., & Marra, J. (1999). Advertising campaign strategy: A guide to marketing communication plans. Fort Worth, TX: Dryden Press.

Additional readings will be assigned. The research phase of this campaign also necessitates reading of articles and research reports. You will find that textbooks used in previous classes are extremely helpful.

Prerequisites

APR 322 (copy), APR (media) with grades of at least C, and senior standing. Students enrolled in this course must have earned a “C” or better in all required and elective courses in the major. A “C” or better is required in all external courses required by the major whether they serve as a prerequisite to a major course or are simply required by the major. The College of Communication also requires that all students enrolled in upper division courses (300/400 level) have a 2.0 GPA overall. Students who do not have the 2.0 GPA or who have not satisfactorily completed all course and grade prerequisites will be administratively disenrolled on or before the first day of classes. Additionally, students who do not attend classes during the first week of the semester will be administratively dropped from this course.

Course Implementation

When you enrolled in this course, you were hired to develop an advertising campaign. You will be assigned to an agency group of three to five people, and you and your fellow workers will develop a campaign for a client. You will employ theory and techniques learned in your advertising course work. The salary you earn for your efforts in this course will consist of:

1. The grade you receive at the end of the course, and

2. The knowledge and experience you’ve gained working on a campaign.

Agency Function

Each agency will develop a comprehensive campaign for the client. Four identical copies of the written plan (two for me, two for the client) will be delivered at the announced time. In addition to producing the written plan, each agency will make a 20-minute presentation of its campaign to the client. A professional presentation, which should include well developed, persuasive content and correct use of visual aids is expected. All visual components of the advertising campaign (i.e., print ads, out-of-home ads, direct mail pieces, storyboards) should be presented in a professional manner. The exact date and time for your agency will be decided before the presentation.

Account Executive

One person in each agency will be assigned the responsibility of serving as account executive of that agency. He or she will lead and coordinate the work of the agency. Specific duties of the manager include the following: keeping up with all materials (the agency folder), keeping up with accurate attendance records, keeping the agency on schedule, calling meetings of the agency, consulting with the instructor regularly about the agency’s progress and the work of each member, and making decisions as needed by the agency.

Most advertising campaigns classes include several students who possess the talents to serve as effective AEs. You will be asked to indicate on a form providing background information on yourself, including whether you wish to serve as agency manager. The demands are high, but the salary—as in a professional setting—can be highly rewarding.

Individual Responsibilities

Each person is expected to work on every major section of his or her agency’s campaign and to assume leadership responsibilities for at least on section. Attendance and group cooperation are vital to the success of the agency. Also, you will be given a form (Individual Activity Record) on which you will be asked to record all of the individual work/time/effort you contribute to your agency’s campaign. You may be asked at any time during the semester to show this record to your instructor, so keep it up-to-date. The record is due at the end of the semester and will contribute toward the “Professor Evaluation” and the “Peer Evaluation” portions of your grade.

Attendance and Participation

When you take a job in the advertising business, you will miss work under only the most extreme circumstances. Even then you will let your employer know (1) of any emergency that has interfered with your responsibilities, (2) when you will return, and (3) arrangements you have made for completion of your work in your absence. The same is expected of you in this course. Failure to observe this as a professional employee can result in job loss. In this course, the components of your salary—particularly your grade—will suffer.

A student with a pattern of absences from—or tardiness for—agency meetings and/or fails to make significant contributions to his or her agency may be fired by the agency, but only after consultation with the professor. The professor will require a review of the performance of the student before approving removal. A student who is dismissed will be required to develop a campaign by himself or herself and may not use any idea or materials of the dismissing agency except for research. The student becomes, in effect, a one-person agency and must meet the requirements and standards expected of all other agencies.

Evaluation

Professional entry-level standards and scholarly accomplishment will be the criteria applied throughout the course. Final grades will be earned as follows:

· Peer Evaluation (30%): Each person in the group will be evaluated two or three times during the semester by his/her group. The more effort, ideas, and work you contribute to your group’s campaign, the higher the evaluation should be.

· Instructor’s Evaluation (20%): Based on your attendance and participation in your agency’s efforts, the quality of your work throughout the semester, the extent to which you met deadlines and other requirements, and the instructor’s impression of your willingness to assume responsibility and leadership, your cooperation with others in your agency, and your levels of motivation and enthusiasm.

· Campaign (40%): Each member of the group will receive the same grade on this component. The grade your agency receives will be the average of the client’s and instructor’s scores after the oral presentation.

· Agency Presentations (10%)

Final grades are determined by a percentage scale.

Written Campaign and Oral Presentation to Client

1. Everyone in the agency receives the same grade on the campaign. The client and the professor will evaluate each agency’s campaign, and the agency that receives the highest average grade from the evaluations will automatically receive the entire 40% for this portion of the course grade. Other agency grades will be determined mathematically, based on average evaluation scores from the client and the professor. This component of your grade reflects the team effort necessary in the highly competitive advertising business.

2. The campaign plan should contain a maximum of 40 pages and should be fully developed, following the outline provided. The outline is suggested, but you may use any format that is logical and all-inclusive. You should provide creative executions for all media you use. The written plan should contain a table of contents, and pages should be numbered. To expedite reading, the plan should employ an outline format where possible and appropriate.

3. Four identical copies of the written plan will be delivered to the professor on the due date. The times for the oral presentations to the client will be announced later in the semester. Each agency will have up to 20 minutes for its presentation, and the client will have 10 minutes for questions. All members of the class are expected to be present for all presentations. However, all except the presenting agency will withdraw from the presentation room during the client’s questions.

4. Regarding written plans and the written report: The written plans/reports must be neatly typed and error free. Errors in your plan destroy your credibility. Points will be deducted for sloppy presentation, including but not limited to misspelled words, punctuation and grammar, and factual errors.

Deadlines

Deadlines are a fact of life in the real world, especially advertising. In this class you are expected to turn in assignments on time. The professor will deduct two letter grades for each day the assignment is late. Unless noted otherwise, assignments are due at the beginning of class.

Special Notes about this Class

1. Students are expected to write and develop graphics at the highest level required in copywriting and graphics courses.

2. Advertising plans are expected to be well written, well organized, free of errors, and contain all the components specified by the professor.

3. Much of the work in campaigns must be done out of class. Class time and other group meetings serve best as opportunities to make agency decisions and to coordinate activities within the group.

4. All contacts with the client should be made through the professor.

Student Conduct and Honesty

Your participation in this course comes with my expectation that your work will be completed in full observance of the Academic Misconduct Disciplinary Policy. Any form of academic dishonesty is unacceptable. University policies regarding academic honesty will be strictly enforced.

All acts of dishonesty in any academic work constitute academic misconduct. This includes, but is not limited to the following:

1. Cheating – using or attempting to use unauthorized materials, information, or study aids in any academic exercise.

2. Plagiarism – representing words, ideas, or data of another as one’s own in any academic exercise.

3. Fabrication – unauthorized falsification or invention of any information or citation in an academic exercise.

4. Aiding and abetting academic dishonesty – intentionally or knowingly helping or attempting to help another student commit an act of academic dishonesty.

Academic misconduct cases shall be resolved by the divisional academic misconduct facilitator or the academic dean of the division in which the alleged action took place. Appeals from the academic dean’s decisions may be made to the Vice President for Academic Affairs.

Disability Accommodation

Any student who feels that he or she may need an accommodation for any sort of disability should make an appointment with the Center for Teaching and Learning. The paper work has to come from them before an accommodation can be made.

Note: This syllabus is not a contract and may be changed at any time for any reason by the faculty member.

“A university is a place where the universality of the human experience manifests itself.”

– Albert Einstein

Daily Schedule – Fall 2001

Advertising Campaigns – APR 424; Dr. Reichert

Date	Topic	Session Focus	Reading Assignment
August 28	Introductions
September 4	The Campaign Process	Assign client, assign teams, review previous plans, discuss social marketing and related research.	1
September 11	Client Meeting	Meet with client, have questions prepared.	2
September 18	Research and Situation Analysis	Research	3, 9
September 25	Advertising Goals	Developing advertising goals based on research and analysis.	4
October 2	Media	Determining best way to reach target market.	7
October 9	Creative	Discussion of creative strategy and creative executions.	6
October 16		Group meetings
October 23		Group meetings
October 30		Group meetings
November 6		Group meetings
November 13		Group meetings	10
November 20		Complete plan due	11
November 27	Presentations	Mock Presentations
December 4	Presentation to client	Presentation

Note: Read appropriate chapter in the textbook, as well as other assigned readings, before the corresponding class period.