In the first week of the semester, you will be given the opportunity to indicate your preferences for your position in your agency. As much as possible, position assignments will be made according to students’ top choices. The positions are:

• Research Director/Account Planner: Responsible for the situation analysis, which traces client background and historical trends, brand analysis, consumer analysis, media usage analysis, category creative analysis, and public opinion/stakeholder analysis. Note: Other group members will provide some sections for the situation analysis to the Research Director, as specified in the syllabus. Research Directors will integrate these elements into the document, synthesize the collected information into a SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats) analysis, and use this to generate key insights to guide the campaign. They are also responsible for conducting primary research to support the agency’s campaign strategy, creative, media, public relations, and promotional efforts. Research Directors should be analytical, open-minded, and detail-oriented.
  

 

• Account Director: Responsible for the campaign strategy, which includes specifying the objectives, targeting strategies, competitive advantage, geographical strategies, timing and duration strategies, current and desired brand positioning and personality, all of which drive the message strategy and branding. They will work to distill these elements into the message strategy and creative brief. The Account Director is responsible for team coordination and serving as the point of contact with the client (instructor and TA). Account Directors should excel at time management, be motivational, and be able to see the “big” picture.

 

• Creative Director: Responsible for the creative plan, which includes refining the positioning, messaging, and branding strategies and honing the creative brief in consultation with the account director. Creative Directors are also responsible for detailing the creative platform, specifically, aligning messaging strategies with key campaign objectives, defining the selling premise and unique selling proposition, and proposing the campaign theme (logo, slogan, tagline, mascot, etc.). Each creative director must create at least five executions, such as broadcast (storyboards), print (layouts), digital (executions), or influencer (examples) messages.  This job may be split into copywriter and art director roles, depending on class size. Creative Directors should have an eye for design, excellent writing skills, and novel ways of seeing the world, avoiding clichés.

 

• Media and Interactive Director: Responsible for the media and interactive plan, which includes defining media objectives and apertures: (a) timing (start/launch data of key efforts), (b) reach (how many) and frequency (how often) of media exposure, (c) duration of the paid media (how long will the campaign run), (d) scope of campaign (market selection – national or regional), (e) the selection of print and broadcast vehicles, (f) and creation of a media flowchart and the budget spreadsheet. This group member is also responsible for interactive, social media, and non-traditional media placements. They will work closely with creative directors to refine these digital and non-traditional placements. Media Directors should be knowledgeable about digital and traditional media options, have basic numeracy skills, and approach strategic tasks with an attention to detail.

 

• Public Relations and Promotions Director: Responsible for the PR and promotions plan, which advances stakeholder engagement, opinion management, and media relations strategies. Must discuss the status and stewardship of public opinion, with attention to issue management, image and reputation management, and relationship management with key stakeholder groups (e.g., government, employees, financial, and press relations).  Provide examples of (a) Public Relations Tactics (e.g., Publicity Programs, Events, Support, etc.), (b) Targeted Media for PR Efforts, (c) Proposed Promotional Activities (d) Buzz/Viral Marketing Activities, and (e) Estimates of PR & Promotional Costs. PR and Promotions Directors should be good writers, event planners, and promotion conceivers, and should be able to craft messages for many different types of audiences.

 

To get a sense of how the campaign project looks in its final form, you can find examples on the class website and the class CANVAS page. Once agencies have been formed, your first decisions will be to decide on a name and structure for your agency.