Advertising Team Places Third at National Competition

The next time the television shows a new cover-up or eye liner from Mary Kay Cosmetics, the idea for the advertising campaign may have come from a group of talented Texas Tech University students.

Texas Tech’s student advertising team, Bullet Advertising, recently took third place among 140 teams from universities all across the country at the 2014 American Advertising Federation’s National Student Advertising Competition (NSAC) in Boca Raton, Florida. The competition was hosted by the American Advertising Federation.

“It was a great year, and I’m super excited for the students that got an opportunity to shine on a national level,” said Shannon Bichard, an associate professor in the College of Media and Communication and the group’s advisor.

Bullet Advertising qualified for the national competition by taking second place in the regional competition in April, which came on the heels of a first-place finish in the district competition.

Each year, a client for the NSAC provides a case study with its current advertising situation. Student teams then research the product, identify problems and create an integrated communication campaign.

This year, with the goal of attracting the 18-to-25-year-old female audience, teams developed a $10 million advertising and marketing campaign for Mary Kay Cosmetics.

“Millennials engage with brands differently than previous generations did,” said Constance Cannon Frazier, chief operating officer of the American Advertising Federation, in a news release. “The NSAC is a unique way for iconic brands like Mary Kay to get fresh insights and creative tactics straight from the target market they are trying to reach.”

Purdue University-Calumet won the competition while the University of Miami took second.

The 2013-14 team members include:

• Megan Anderson, a senior from Houston
• Bailey Baethge, a sophomore from Doss
• Stephany Bradford, a senior from Wolfforth
• Conner Drew, a senior from Dallas
• Ryan Dunavant, a senior from Mount Pleasant
• Brady Gorman, a senior from Lubbock
• Christina Gutierrez, a junior from El Paso
• Camille Haider, a senior from Frisco
• Katelyn Hogan, a senior from Corpus Christi
• Brittany Long, a senior from Frisco
• Haley Ostrander, a junior from Houston
• Molly Jacobs, a senior from Bulverde
• Nicholas Kidd, a senior from Flower Mound
• Steven Pence, a senior from Plano
• Morgan Priddy, a senior from Austin
• Ryan Russell, a senior from Mansfield
• Jessica Thompson, a senior from Rowlett
• Olivia Utley, a senior from Plano
• Eddie Vargas, a senior from Midland