Addy Awards given out at River Campus

The annual Addy Awards showcase the best in regional advertising talent and provide an example of how the marketing game has changed -- many of the winning entries rewarded work done for companies and cities far from the area.

The Wright Group, Red Letter Communications, KFVS12 and the Southeast Missouri State University advertising campaign class for fall 2007 each took a best in show award in their categories Friday at the 13th annual awards banquet. The banquet, held at the River Campus in Cape Girardeau, was sponsored by the Tri State Area Marketing Professionals, the advertising club for Southern Illinois, Southeast Missouri and western Kentucky.

Along with the winning entries, Southeast Missouri State marketing professor Dr. Judith Wiles and her husband, retired professor Dr. Charles Wiles, won the silver medal award presented for contributions to the advertising industry, the community and the organization.

The couple almost missed the event -- their home off Highway 177 north of Cape Girardeau suffered severe damage in a fire earlier this week. But Judith Wiles said family members insisted and she and her husband were in good spirits.

The top awards focused on advertising for companies or events in the region. For example, the KFVS12 best of show in electronic media award was granted for its campaign for a blood drive to benefit the American Red Cross that featured, in one ad, a buzzing insect and the words "Starve a mosquito. Give blood."

Dr. Judith Wiles, left, and her husband, Dr. Charles Wiles, received the Silver Medal Award Friday during the Tri State Area Marketing Professionals annual Addy Awards banquet. (Rudi Keller ~ rkeller@semissourian.com)

But other winners showed the impact digital communication has had on the industry. Red Letter Communications won a gold Addy for its audiovisual presentation produced for Stihl Inc. that promoted the company as a leading producer of power tools.

Craig Williams Creative won a silver Addy for his Theater, Music and Arts spread for the Brownsville, Texas, Chamber of Commerce.

"Today you can work almost anywhere," Judith Wiles said.

Marketing firms can attract talent looking for challenging work by presenting their community as a quality place to live, she said. And top talent that can attract national attention for marketing firms means better presentations for regional advertisers.

The Tri State Advertising and Marketing Professionals has helped raise standards, said James Riley of Red Letter Communications. "Our industry as a group is very much about professional work. This group is about raising the bar and focusing on professionalism."

Friendly competition like the Addy awards, he said, pushes advertsing firms to increase their output of top work. "The businesses of this market take us far more seriously than they did even a decade ago," Riley said.

The Addy awards are the only awards program administered by the industry to recognize the industry, said Mike Tenholder, president of Tri State Area Marketing Professionals.

Other best of show winners:

• The Walden Park press kit in the sales promotion category, prepared by the Wright Group for RiverWest Partners LC that included an antique-style box, a small pair of binoculars, a DVD presentation and color brochures.
• The Chateau Girardeau brochure in the print media category, produced by Red Letter Communications to promote the upscale retirement community.
• The Mississippi River Hills Association mixed media campaign in the student category, developed by the Southeast Missouri State fall 2007 advertising campaign class.

rkeller@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 126