As Barnhart’s new account executive Luu brings six years of experience to the firm and will service various Barnhart clients including: Wyoming Suicide Prevention, History Colorado and Wyoming Tourism. He most recently served as a Senior Accounts Manager at Moxie Sozo in Boulder, working with clients such as the Aspen Music Festival, Bonzini, CatEye Electronics, PROBAR and Colorado Ski Country USA. He also has extensive graphic design knowledge having taught visual communication at Arizona State University, and as the founder and head designer at Luu Fu Creative.

A gradate of Arizona State University in Tempe, Ariz., Luu lives in Boulder, Colo.

“We’re pleased to officially welcome Phil, Adam and Lynda to the team to help us meet growing client demands,” said Bill Schumacher, President and CEO of Barnhart. “Their collective talent and experience supports our mission to be the most vital marketing partner for our clients and to create great work that works.”

Account Director Phil Metz also serves as Barnhart’s Director of Digital Services with more than 10 years of experience creating and managing innovative marketing campaigns in the real estate, resort, hospitality and marine industries. He recently returned to Denver after spending six and a half years in Tampa, Fla. as Vice President and Interactive Department Manager at United Landmark Associates.

Adam Nelson is an award-winning art director who also returned to his native home of Colorado after spending six years at GSD&M in Austin, Texas; David and Goliath in El Segundo, Calif.; and Abend and Moore in Atlanta, Ga. His credits include work for AARP, Ace Hardware, Horseshoe Casino, Kia Motors, Mammoth Mountain and Zales, among others.

Lynda Pfaff brings more than 25 years of experience in marketing and media to Barnhart, having most recently led marketing efforts for Papa Murphy’s central region, spanning 360 stores across 23 markets. Prior to Papa Murphy’s, she held media director positions at Modern Media, Inline Media and Kelley/Dexter Advertising & Marketing. Over the years, she has been responsible for media planning for ski resorts, homebuilders, restaurants, banks and HMOs, among many more agency accounts.

It is my second major, history, that launched me into the world of public relations. I applied for an internship at History Colorado last summer in their PR department, thinking I could mesh my two majors into one.

I haven’t looked back.

After several months there I was introduced to Barnhart, and accepted as an intern. Here I have been assigned to work with (yes, you guessed it) History Colorado! With a newly built museum scheduled to open in Spring 2012, and as a place close to my heart, I am excited to promote the story to local and national news outlets, and even more excited to learn about the process.

Barnhart has taught me a lot of new skills; I have a very different perspective to bring to the table, but also a lot to learn about the public relations world. One instance is the QR Code trend happening in PR and marketing right now. QR codes allow businesses to send consumers directly to a URL, potentially increasing sales, increasing awareness of a product, or even offering special promotions.

And those are just the basic ideas. Can you imagine what a little creativity could do for such a new idea?

And I think it is my history major that makes me look around at the office with glee. Barhnart’s office is located in an old bank building. The space is open, artsy, and has charms only old banks could offer including beautiful railing on the second floor, spacious view to the area below, and a bank vault.

Great work atmosphere, great people and a great learning experience- this is Barnhart to me.

-Ashley Lauwereins

Produced by Barnhart Communications, the agency of record for the Wyoming Office of Tourism since 1998, the “Roam Free” effort is an expansion of the award-winning “Forever West” brand positioning and platform launched in 2006 with the “Reflections” campaign.

“The authentic western adventure message that we have been delivering over the past few years has resonated extremely well with consumers,” said Darren Brickel, associate creative director for Barnhart. “We’ve discovered that people have a deep emotional connection with what Wyoming has to offer as a vacation destination.”

Set against a backdrop of Wyoming’s awesome, untamed, rugged and wide-open spaces, the commercials show a place that hasn’t been compromised by the craziness of everyday living. Combining the majesty and beauty of the place itself with the solitude and peace of mind sought by many, the campaign sets out to harness a basic human truth about personal discovery, adventure and individual freedom.

“There’s still part of all of us that aches to roam free and the new campaign gives people permission to do just that, in a place that encourages it – Wyoming,” Brickel added.

The spots – “Anthem” and “Boundaries” – will run through the 2011 season in 13 markets, including Chicago; Denver; Kansas City; Madison; Milwaukee; Minneapolis; Oklahoma City; Omaha; Portland, Ore.; Salt Lake City; St. Louis; Tulsa and Wichita.

The print campaign launched at the beginning of March with three, four-color ads appearing in national and regional publications including Family Fun, Parenting (School Years Edition), Whole Living, Working Mother, Cooking Light, More, Backpacker, Arthur Frommer’s Budget Travel, Outside, Shape, Condé Nast Traveler, AARP, History Channel, Sunset, Smithsonian (55+ edition), Midwest Living and Audubon.

I’d like to share some observations on how to improve the chances of getting “great” creative work. For purposes of our conversation, “great” advertising is defined as advertising that generates sales results in the present, while building brand equities, imagery and reputation for the future.

These observations are based on my collective experience as both an adman and a client. In fact, quite a lot of the thinking was done at Kraft Foods in the advertising services group, since those of us in the unit were charged with stewarding and advancing the advertising work of the company. So, these observations have the benefit of many good minds and perspectives. And, they have been confirmed many times over by my experience at Barnhart.

The principles are based on several key insights. One is that some clients consistently get better advertising than others, even from the same agency. And, the second point is that those successful clients share a set of principles that maximize the chances for “great” advertising. They essentially are the same principles that can be used with any creative resource or in any creative pursuit.

The following thoughts are primarily directed to clients—or people who manage an agency or external resource towards excellence in some creative form.

1. Believe in the power of advertising. This is critical. You must consistently show the agency you believe it. Don’t assume they know it. You should convey that you expect something significant to happen to your business as a result of achieving superb advertising. You should give advertising or whatever creative area you are focusing on a high priority. Demonstrate an interest in learning more about advertising and an openness to explore new things. And extend that curiosity to better understanding your consumer or customer. This may mean opening up your own life to experiences that keep you in touch.

2. Build a partnership with the agency. Respect their expertise. Value their judgment. As someone once said, “Don’t buy a dog and bark yourself.” Understand the unique role that an agency can play on your business, recognizing they bring a different perspective and different talent to that business. Involve the agency in your business and provide them necessary information. Ensure common purpose. Give clear direction. Supply honest, direct and timely feedback. And, make sure the agency knows what you expect of them.

3. Demand excellence. In advertising or any creative project, your agency generally will reach as high as your expectations. Make sure you set a high standard. Ask for it, demand it, enthusiastically commit your time and budget to it. You have every right to expect your agency team will present only work they passionately believe to be great work. But, this requires creating a positive environment that encourages this excellence—one that nurtures and supports original thinking and creative expression. An important aspect is to keep the creative approval process as simple as possible.

4. Demonstrate courage. There often is an element of uncertainty associated with “great” advertising. It usually is out of the ordinary. It may break rules. And this involves risk. You can’t take risk without demonstrating courage. And, sometimes, it means fighting for work when others may not be in agreement.

5. Let your “humanity” show. Advertising or any other form of creative communications is a very human product—that should make an emotional connection with the intended audience. Infusing some humanity into the development process will help produce “great” work. Get to know your creative resources. Be enthusiastic about them and their craft. React to their work as a person, not as a manager or executive. Smile, frown—even laugh. Treat the creative product with care and respect—but also with honesty. You’re not only nurturing an important creative product, but also a human relationship.

The good news is that most people—client and agency people, alike—want “great” work… and know when they’ve got it. Hopefully, these principles will improve your odds of getting it.

Good luck in your pursuit!

This year was the first year that General Motors ran a Super Bowl ad since 2008. With their recent bailout from the U.S. government, GM has decided to increase ad spending. Teaming up with FOX, Chevy pulled off a Super Bowl spot that left many viewers anticipating what was to come after the game.

FOX announced last year that they would give the time spot following the Super Bowl to Glee. GM immediately saw an opportunity to do something great, as 26.8 million people would be watching. Chevy decided to “Glee-ize” their commercial with the song “See the USA in a Chevrolet.” Goodby, Silverstein & Partners wanted to use “See the USA” in a unique way, so after hearing that Glee would follow the biggest American sporting event of the year, they jumped on the opportunity to utilize the Glee cast members.

This was a unique, attention-grabbing way for Chevy to advertise. The spot was very well-done and likely intrigued a lot of new consumers. Kevin Mayer, director of advertising and sales promotion for Chevy, said “People are online saying that I’m going to consider Chevy now. These are obviously Glee fans, so I think we’ve electrified an entire new buyer base that wouldn’t have considered us in the past.”

In just under three days of shooting, Ryan Murphy and the Glee cast shot a two minute spot. Chevy ran a 30-second spot during the game telling viewers to stay tuned for a special Glee event. Goodby Silverstein and Chevy wanted it to appear as though the spot was for Glee.

Do you think this was a good approach? Could it be the Super Bowl wave of the future?