We invite you to stop by and view the Children's Home Society "Off the Fridge" art exhibit. All masterworks will be on display in the second floor lobby until September 28.

Off the Fridge is a collection of work created by the children at Sioux Falls Children's Home. Grades 3-7 worked side-by-side with visual artists Bob Miller and Cheryl Peterson-Hasley during several Artist-in-School & Community residencies to create this body of work.

Funding for the Artist-in School & Community residencies came in big part from monies raised by SDAF Chair-ity event. The Children's Home Society wishes to thank SDAF, the South Dakota Arts Council and Very Special Arts for providing funding for the Artist-in-School Residencies.

For more information about this program or the Creative Arts Endowment program, contact Tammy Roberts at 275-0304.

Inc. magazine has selected BKG to appear on the 2007 Inc. 5,000 list of the fastest-growing private companies in the United States.

The Inc. 5,000 competition is an extension for the first time this year of Inc. magazine's long-standing and influential Inc. 500 competition. BKG competed for its rank among the top 5,000 companies nationwide and is profiled on Inc.com, the publication's Web site.

"It is an honor to be named to the Inc. 5,000 list and truly a testament to the market- and thought-leadership of BKG's employees," said Tim Kubista, chief executive officer and brand strategist. "More and more, companies want to work with more than just an ad agency. BKG's successful growth is the result of our ability to work from a platform of pure business strategy and development, giving us the edge to produce successful brands and satisfied clients."

A ceremony honoring all honorees will be held during the Inc. 500 conference and Awards Ceremony Sept. 6-8 in Chicago. To be eligible for the Inc. 5,000 companies must be U.S.-based, privately held and provide four years of revenue figures.

Inc., the only major business magazine edited exclusively for CEOs of fast-growing private companies, delivers real solutions for today's innovative company builders. It provides hands-on resources and market-tested strategies for managing people, finances, sales, marketing and technology. Inc. looks beyond work to address the entrepreneurial lifestyle. Inc. inspires and informs, with cutting-edge coverage that reflects the readers' energy, brashness and imagination.

Based in Sioux Falls, BKG is a brand communications firm providing strategic planning, brand development, advertising, public relations, interactive communications, promotion, direct marketing and design.

Jack Gregg has been promoted to local sales account manager at KELO. Jack's new responsibilities include supervising new business initiatives; and recruiting and training account executives.

Karen Dumdie has been promoted to agency account manager at KELO. In her new position, Karen will concentrate on strengthening relationships with local and regional agencies and coordinating national sales efforts.

South Dakota Advertising Federation is proud to announce that Insight Marketing Design has won a National Silver ADDY Award. They received their award at the AAF National Awards Show in June.
The ADDY entries were judged by a distinguished panel of top creative professionals, including:

Archie Bell, Art Director, Arnold Worldwide
Rick Carpenter, President, DDB Los Angeles
Brett Elliott, Senior Copywriter, Lopez Negrete Communications
Gary Fox-Robertson, Vice President/Creative Director, Leo Burnett
Ari Halper, Vice President/Creative Director, Grey Worldwide
Patrick Hardy, EVP, Executive Creative Director, Tierney Communications
Raj Kamble, Creative Director, Lowe Worldwide
Javier Osorio, Creative Director, Lápiz
Gene Suliga, Creative Director, Performance Creative

AAF New Web Site Design Features Streamlined Content and Accessibility
 
WASHINGTON, D.C.—At the culmination of a year of creative teamwork, the American Advertising Federation (AAF) and Xtential Corporation launched today the newly redesigned Web site AAF.org . The overall enhanced design of the site promotes AAF's role as a national grassroots organization that unifies the diverse voices of the advertising community. The AAF previously worked with Xtential in 2000 to recreate the original AAF.org. Xtential also designed and developed Advertisinghalloffame.org, the virtual museum for the Advertising Hall of Fame.

In addition to modernizing the site's look, the primary goal in reinventing AAF.org was to create technical solutions that would streamline the function and structure of the site. Using Google Analytics' performance reports, Xtential was able to identify the site's top content sections and pages and top entry and exit points to analyze what visitors were looking for. The ADDY®  Awards, along with membership and student/education programs were most visited. To reflect this, Xtential attempted to condense, clarify and focus the site architecture to facilitate quick access to major topics and interests.
           

"The fruit of our collaboration is a site that is extremely robust, adaptable and scalable," said Daniel Chaparro, creative director, Xtential LLC, of joint redesign efforts with the AAF. "It strikes the perfect balance of utilizing best practices in Web design, visual appeal and communication for the user base and site functionality. It meets the current needs of the AAF and will continue to do so for years to come."

The site's template files are also compliant with World Wide Consortium (W3C) Web standards to ensure the greatest compatibility with various hardware and software platforms used by visitors. This allows AAF to "future-proof" the site for all potential Web browser updates that adhere to Web standards.

"On behalf of the AAF, I extend my appreciation for the valuable time, effort and resources Xtential has dedicated to this site redesign," said AAF president and CEO, Wally Snyder. "Through the outstanding commitment of the AAF Web team, led by Peter Shih, executive vice president – marketing and communications, and Hilary Woodward, director – communications and Web editor, and the accomplished Web developers from Xtential, the AAF now has a site that indisputably serves all facets of the advertising industry, truly establishing the AAF as the 'Unifying Voice for Advertising.' "

Julie Hoyer has joined Insight Marketing Design as Client Service Executive. In addition to working with Insight clients, Julie is assuming new business responsibilities at the agency. Most recently, Julie was Marketing Manager at PrairieWave Communications in Sioux Falls.  Previously she was at PAM Oil and Trade Media Group, also in Sioux Falls. She is a graduate of Augustana College. Julie is co-chair of fundraising and treasurer for the board of the South Dakota Advertising Federation. She serves on the board of the Public Relations Network and is a member of Business & Professional Women.

In her free time, Julie kicks butt -- literally with a black belt in Tae Kwon Do and as a former kickboxing aerobics instructor. She and her husband are opening a martial arts gym in the coming months, where Julie will continue teaching.

Doug Moss, Partner and Creative Director at Insight Marketing Design, was appointed to the National Design Awards nominating committee of the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum, Smithsonian Institution in New York, NY.

The Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum, Smithsonian Institution is the only museum in the nation devoted exclusively to historic and contemporary design.

It is the mission of Cooper-Hewitt’s staff and Board of Trustees to advance the public understanding of design across the twenty-four centuries of human creativity represented by the Museum’s collection. The Museum also offers a wide variety of educational and curatorial programming.

As part of its mission, Cooper-Hewitt annually sponsors the National Design Awards, a prestigious program which honors innovation and excellence in American design.

The National Design Awards are comprised of six design categories, Architecture, Communications, Fashion, Interiors, Landscape and Product Design.  Additionally there are two Achievement Awards, Corporate, Lifetime and the Design Mind Award.
 
Moss is one of the region’s finest and most award-winning designers. Moss graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Graphic Design and Illustration from Miami University – Ohio. He worked in several Sioux Falls advertising agencies before founding Insight Marketing Design with partner Candy Van Dam.

Insight Marketing Design is an award-winning, full service advertising agency located in Sioux Falls South Dakota. Additional information can be accessed at www.insightmarketingdesign.com.

This fall Paulsen Marketing promoted Alicia DeGeest to account supervisor and hired Mindy Scholz as an account executive.

Alicia began with Paulsen Marketing in May of 2002 as an intern. After graduating from South Dakota State University with a bachelor’s degree in journalism with an emphasis in advertising, she accepted a full-time position with Paulsen as an account coordinator.  Alicia later was named account executive and this fall was appointed to account supervisor. 

Alicia is responsible for the marketing and advertising services for her diverse accounts that including WildBlue Communications, Kubota Credit Corporation, NorthWestern Energy, PrairieWave Communications/Knology, Inc., Ridley Equine Products and South Dakota Housing Development Authority.

Additionally, Alicia plays an active role on both the South Dakota Advertising Federation (SDAF) and National Agri-Marketing Association (NAMA). She serves as the second vice president and communication chair for SDAF and is a Region III NAMA awards committee member.

Mindy Scholz joined the agency in November, coming to Paulsen from the Memphis, Tenn. area.

“We are pleased to add Mindy to the Paulsen team,” Greg Guse, Paulsen Vice President and Director of Client Services, said. “We feel Mindy’s work experience will bring new value to the agency.”

Mindy comes to Paulsen after working for Acher>Malmo, Inc. advertising agency, from March 2004 to October 2007, as an account executive. She helped lead the marketing and advertising efforts for one of their many national accounts, Valent U.S.A. Corp., working primarily on the professional products and specialty segments.

She also worked for Signature Advertising agency, based in Memphis, as an associate account manager, working on the FedEx account.

Born in Memphis, Tenn., Mindy graduated from the University of Memphis with a bachelor’s degree in journalism with a concentration in advertising.

Paulsen Marketing is a full service marketing company with 27 marketing professionals serving a broad range of international, national and regional clients with a full spectrum of marketing communications services. Paulsen has received more awards for creative excellence in agri-marketing than any other agency in South Dakota.