Boston MA- National Apartment Association Educational Exposition and Conference.  Talk about aspect ratio.  There’s Panavision and then there’s this – a one hundred sixty feet long by 12 feet tall video screen at the Boston Convention Center welcoming attendees to this year’s show.  It’s easily the widest, if not the biggest video we’ve ever produced for a client.

As a Diamond Sponsor of this year’s exposition, Time Warner Cable was given access to this massive, attention-getting medium at the entrance to the exposition hall.   In fact, special instructions were given to our producer to keep the motion of the cuts “a little slower than usual” to avoid sending folks into a seizure.

We believe we would make even Martin Scorsese proud.

April 1, 2012, Road Town, Tortola- Atlanta-based Bigelow Advertising celebrated its 27th consecutive year of business with a week long sailing tour of the British Virgin Islands.  Staff members and their significant others were invited to attend the all-expense paid celebration.  With temperatures in the mid-80s, and the occasional light rain so common to the area, the creative staff took the helm sailing between Virgin Gorda and Tortola.  As the senior member of the staff, copy chief Mike Selph served as Captain.  “An amazing experience.  Especially considering that I can’t even swim!” said Selph, “And this is my first time in a boat of any kind.”

Between manning the jib and gaff, and despite the rum-soaked, light-hearted atmosphere, Senior Account Executive Erin Tollison made sure that the staff kept all deadlines for all client deliverables.  “The Internet connection was spotty, especially between Little Thatch and Frenchman’s Cay, but Sheila (Rogers-Carle, Associate Creative Director) was able to upload all files to our FTP after some assistance from the BVI Marine police,” said Erin.

“I really wish that Sheila had left her cats at home,” sniffled agency President Tom Bigelow, who was relegated below decks as the blender operator for most the trip, “She knows about my allergies.  And their damned litter boxes are spilling all over everywhere!”

“Sheila clearly misunderstood the office announcement of the free Cat trip in the B.V.I.,” quipped Controller and Chief Financial Officer Kim Bigelow.  Kim kept everyone well oiled with sun-block and daquiris, and even managed to give the entire group snorkle lessons utilizing cocktail straws in the shallow waters off Jost Van Dyke – after Selph mistakenly beached the vessel near the island’s reknown Foxy’s Bar.  “It appeared to be an accident,” said Art Director Cody Rogers, “but I really think Mike wanted to take in some land-based sights.”

Shortly after Selph unsnagged the key hole trapeze buckle, the foremast was again upright and the vessel set sail for Spanish Town, Virgin Gorda where the group boarded a water taxi back to the Cyril E. King airport in St. Thomas for a non-stop, first class flight back to the U.S.

February 17, 2012, ATLANTA – Bigelow Advertising picked up a Silver Spike at this year’s 2012 ADDY Awards- most appropriately billed as a “celebration of mindbending genius and ingenious mindbenders.”  The winning entry was Ivy Mountain Apple Brandy packaging work for Ivy Mountain Distillery of Mt. Airy, Georgia.

A distinguished panel of advertising executives judged more than 250 entries and awarded 23 Gold ADDY Awards and 77 Silver ADDY Awards.  The ADDY Award consists of three levels of judging: local, regional and national. Winners from the Atlanta ADDY Awards will progress to the next level for judging.

About Atlanta Ad Club
The Atlanta Ad Club (formerly Creativity Atlanta), the premier creative resource for Atlanta’s advertising and creative professionals, serves the professional creative community as a resource for idea exchange, inspiration, professional development and fostering excellence throughout the Southeastern region. Visit www.atlantaadclub.org for more information.

February 1, 2012 – Mayor Kasim Reed and U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood kicked off construction of the new Atlanta Streetcar this morning in downtown Atlanta. The new Streetcar will connect Atlanta’s civil rights corridor from the King Center to Centennial Olympic Park. “It’s all about creating jobs,” said Secretary LaHood. The project is expected to revitalize downtown, bringing jobs, tourism and new businesses along its route.

Bigelow Advertising, along with partner Jones Worley, is the Agency of Record for the branding and marketing of the new Atlanta Streetcar.

The new brand I.D. and Streetcar design will unveiled here, soon. Stayed posted.

New Mini wines are hitting wine shop shelves.  And just in time for the holiday season.  With just 11% alcohol the wines naturally have 25% fewer calories than the typical glass of vino.  Which looking at my ever expanding holiday social calendar might help contain my ever expanding holiday waistline.

The wines all come from the South of France near Provence, and come in three varietals:  Mini Red, a merlot, Mini White, a blend of 50% viognier and 50% sauvignon blanc and Mini Rose´, a cinsault.  Bigelow Advertising created the name, packaging and p.o.s. for Prism Wine who is currently in the process of expanding the brand outside of Georgia.

Keep an eye out and a glass handy.

I’ve always enjoyed the drive into the North Georgia mountains.  The Chattahoochee National Forest is beautiful and rural Habersham County rich in history.  In fact, history was part of the reason for this visit.  Bigelow Advertising had done the original branding and product I.D. for former client Blue Ridge Mountain Waters, a bottler and distributor of natural mountain spring water sourced from an early 19th century spring house that had been built by slaves.

This spring house was the catalyst for the invitation to present our agency’s capabilities.

After nearly 25 years of business Blue Ridge Mountain Waters was sold to competitor Crystal Springs, who promptly shut down operations.  The sales contract specified that the spring house could no longer be used to commercially source bottled spring water.  Undeterred, the original owners, the Lovell family reacquired the property and promptly put the spring house back to work as their family had for nearly 150 years.  As the water source for their family distillery.

Of course, the original operations weren’t exactly, as they say, legit.  That being said, the products that were made were the best in their class.  The way master distiller Carlos Lovell tells it, they were shipping nearly a quarter million bottles of spirits across the South before operations were placed on hold in the mid-sixties.  And after sampling some of the 1964 batch of the barrel-aged sour mash whiskey I’d have to say the Lovell’s are extraordinary distillers.

They say the water is the secret.  I’d say that after practicing the art for over 150 years the family knows what they’re doing.  Our packaging design attempts to project that heritage while hinting at the good old fashioned craftsmanship that’s to be found inside.

November 2011. New York City – “Communications Technology” magazine has unveiled the 2011 CT Platinum Award winners, revealing Knology Business Services as the winner of the Integrated Marketing Platinum Award.  Recognizing and honoring the broadband industry’s most innovative hardware, software, service and marketing initiatives, the Platinum Awards are judged by a panel of industry experts.

Knology’s NextStep integrated marketing campaign launched in April of 2011, targeting small businesses – offering a higher level of productivity with super-speed DOCSIS 3.0 Internet and feature-rich phone and cable TV services.  Encompassing both traditional and digital marketing tactics, the campaign demonstrated that Knology “lives” and communicates in the same digital space as its target customers (online, e-mail, and other digital media) in the communities it serves.

Using a variety of marketing tactics, Knology launched an impactful, full-court campaign in each of its DOCSIS 3 Divisions (Augusta, Huntsville, Panama City, Columbus, Knoxville and Montgomery) with a localized message announcing “We’re here.  And we’ve got what you need today.”

Bigelow Advertising provided creative direction, design and production with media placement and buys by Stealth (St. Louis).  Public relations was handled by Bigelow next-door neighbor and strategic partner Duffey Communications.  For a complete list of the winners, visit http://www.cable360.net/ct/ctplatinumawards/breakfast

News Release

May 5, 2011 – Atlanta, GA – Kudzu.com, a website that helps homeowners plan projects, solve problems and choose highly rated contractors, and Atlanta-based Bigelow Advertising have won two Silver Telly Awards, the highest honor of the Silver Telly Council.

Kudzu.com and Bigelow won for their two :30 TV spots which were part of the “Before You Hire” campaign. The campaign launched in August 2010 and was created to build brand awareness of Kudzu.com as the place to choose the best home contractors by reading reviews from neighbors. The campaign also helped support the new partnership with HGTV.com.

“Winning a Silver Telly is quite an achievement,” said agency President and Executive Creative Director, Tom Bigelow, “so you can image we’re thrilled to have received two this year.”

The 32nd Annual Telly Awards received over 13,000 entries from all 50 states and 5 continents. The Telly Awards are presented in over 40 categories and honor excellence in local, regional and national television commercials; video and editing; and production and work created for the web.

“At Kudzu.com, we primarily serve the ‘don’t-do-it-yourselfer’ and understand that homeowners often don’t know where to start or who to call to help solve their home-related problems,” said Rhonda Hills, Kudzu.com vice president and chief marketing officer. “Bigelow did a phenomenal job of capturing the essence of our brand, and the campaign has really resonated with consumers. Since launching the campaign, we’ve become the fastest growing website in the home and garden category.”

For a complete list of the 2011 Silver Telly winners visit http://www.tellyawards.com/winners/list/?event=12&category=2&award=S

About Kudzu
Kudzu.com helps homeowners plan projects, solve problems and choose highly rated contractors in their area. Kudzu.com features expert video, contractor profiles, consumer reviews and 30,500 money-saving deals for homeowners in every major U.S. city. Kudzu is distributed on more than 100 major media websites including HGTV.com and DIYnetwork.com. Kudzu is owned by Cox Search Inc., a subsidiary of Cox Enterprises, a leading communications, media and automotive services company. Cox’s businesses include Cox Communications, Manheim, AutoTrader.com and Cox Media Group. For more information, please visit Kudzu.com.

Bigelow Advertising
Bigelow Advertising has built a reputation as a leader in strategically focused business communications that people notice, remember and talk about. Our simple approach called “the four i’s” serves as the cornerstones of all our creative output:

• Innovate: It must be built on a fresh idea and executed with vision.
• Interrupt: It must stand out from all the other messages bombarding consumers.
• Interact: As the adage goes: “Tell me, I forget; show me, I remember; involve me, I understand.”
• Incent: It must inspire consumers to act.

And our results have been dramatic. The Time Warner Cable Digital Phone launch resulted in 4 million new customers. Mass transit authority MARTA’s Breeze Card introduction was 22% over goal. Doosan Heavy Construction Equipment exceeded yearend goals by 13% and attributed 10% of all sales to our “Demo a Doosan” direct response campaign. For more information contact Tom Bigelow at tom@bigelow.co or call 770-216-2162.

About the Telly Awards
Founded in 1979, the Telly Awards is the premier award honoring outstanding local, regional, and cable TV commercials and programs, the finest video and film productions, and web commercials, videos and films. Winners represent the best work of the most respected advertising agencies, production companies, television stations, cable operators, and corporate video departments in the world. For more information about the Telly Awards, email http://www.tellyawards.com/contact_us

Corporate Office:

Telly Awards
19 West 21st Street
Suite 602
New York, NY 10010

News Release

April 11, 2011 – Atlanta GA – An online video designed to create awareness of how restaurant operators can benefit from Coca-Cola Foodservice’s innovation in the iced tea category has won a Telly Award for Atlanta-based Bigelow Advertising and client Coca-Cola Foodservice.

The long form online video, which features a fully animated “spokesperson”, targeted foodservice operators with high volume iced tea business. The message focus was on operators who make or influence a beverage purchasing decision. Online banner ads appearing on NationsRestaurantNews.com linked prospects to the video presentation and ultimately to CokeSolutions.com for more information.

Coca-Cola’s Gold Peak, Fuze and Nestea Iced Tea brands were all featured in the video. The message was that Coca-Cola offers a total solution to maximize iced tea sales. This includes bringing experts and insights on opportunity, world-class brands with the flavor and variety guests want, proven merchandising, and the same quality equipment and service network restaurants have come to trust in the soft drink category.

“Overall, we were happy with the final production,” said agency President and Executive Creative Director, Tom Bigelow, “but it’s always thrilling when your industry peers consider your work worthy of recognition.”

For the complete list of the 32nd Telly Award Bronze winners visit http://www.tellyawards.com/winners/list/?l=Bigelow+Advertising&event=12&category=3&award=B

The Telly Awards honor the very best local, regional, and cable television commercials and programs, as well as the finest video and film productions, and work created for the Web. The 31st Annual Telly Awards received over 13,000 entries from all 50 states and 5 continents. Since 1978, the Telly Award’s mission has been to strengthen the visual arts community by inspiring, promoting, and supporting creativity.

For more information about the Telly Awards, email http://www.tellyawards.com/contact_us

Corporate Office:
Telly Awards
19 West 21st Street
Suite 602
New York, NY 10010

News Release

January 27, 2011, Atlanta GA- Bigelow Advertising was recognized at the 2011 ADDY Awards sponsored by the American Advertising Federation and the Atlanta Ad Club. AAF – Atlanta will host a special awards presentation on February 17, 2011 at the 755 Club, Turner Field to distribute the coveted statuettes.

Packaging for the full suite of Mile Marker Wines by B&L Brands, Atlanta- marketers of fine wine, beer and spirits- was the ADDY Award winning entry. “The name and label designs were inspired by the vineyards that run along State Route 99 as it winds it way through Oregon’s Williamette Valley,” said Creative Director Tom Bigelow.

Later that day the ad agency opened several of the client’s samples in celebration.

For more information contact Tom Bigelow at 770-216-2162 or email attbigelow@bigelowadvertising.com.