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Grape & Grain Small Business Seminar June AdBites Luncheon 
Please welcome our Umit Diril, Christin Goetz, Kurt Labenz, Kelly Medwick, 
May Birthdays 1 Sheri Johnson 4 Sol Yaffe 5 Kerry Heinrich 6 Erin Marr 6 Lori Meier 7 Scott Bargenquast 9 Jeff Reiner 9 Lisa Obermeyer 9 Theresa Dowlingn 10 Emily Epstein 15 Richard Schuessler 16 Anne Maguire 16 Jennifer Powell 17 Brenda Marr 17 Sarah Legg 18 Michaela Krug 18 Tricia Rausch 19 Sheryl Okash 20 Kristin Petrick 21 Robert Mucciaccio 22 Jenny Nash 23 Tyler Miller 24 Stewart David Whitsett 26 Charles Wilson 26 Stephany Snyder 28 Alex Sok 29 Zach Origitano 
OFA membership, what’s in it for me? What You Get And with a membership in the only professional association dedicated to the advertising and marketing community in Omaha and Council Bluffs, you’ll have the opportunity to meet others who share your career interests, get involved in public service projects and give your talents to industry-related events. What’s more, your membership earns you great benefits:
How To Get It Teri Hamburger Make checks payable to Omaha Federation of Advertising. For questions or more information, contact Teri Hamburger at 561-6625 or teri@novia.net. Rates Why We’re Here Above all, we come together to make advertising a positive force in our economy and culture. We strive to be advocates for advertisers’ rights and to help educate policymakers, the news media and the public on the benefits of responsible, well-crafted advertising. |
OFA Membership Profile Mark Carpenter, Partner/Writer/Producer SKAR Advertising 
How many years have you been a member of OFA? What interested you in OFA? What interested you in OFA? What is the greatest accomplishment in your life so far (professional or personal—you choose)? What is your favorite thing about working for SKAR? Favorite website? What is your favorite smell? If someone’s underwear was showing, would you tell them? If you could travel back in time, where would you go? If you discovered a new island, what would you name it and why? If you could stop a bad habit that you have, what would you stop? If only one book existed, which book would you like it to be? If you were a candy, what candy would you be? If you were asked to speak to a graduating class, what would you say? If you could have any one supernatural power (flying, being invisible), which would you choose and why? What if your cell phone fell in the toilet, what would you do? .............................................................................................................................................. Grape & Grain 
Grape and Grain will take place May 15 from 6 to 8 p.m. at Spirit World at 7517 Pacific Street. The event offers wine and beer paired with appetizers and a silent auction including media from the Omaha market. Reservations are $25 per person or 2 for $45. If you are interested in making a donation or helping with the event please call Carrie Kentch at 680.0697. .............................................................................................................................................. OFA Scholarships Omaha Advertising Federation is awarding six $1,000 scholarships to the following students for the 2008-2009 school year:
Each of these students sent a letter to the Omaha Federation of Advertising Board of Directors including the following information:
All scholarship recipients have been invited to the June AdBites luncheon where the scholarships will be presented .............................................................................................................................................. OFA Offers Small Business Seminar Who: OFA in cooperation with the Greater Omaha Chamber of Commerce is inviting all small business owners. What: Smart Spending. Big Profits—A morning of roundtable presentations and discussions by local marketing experts. Participants choose the topics to attend based on their own business needs. Afterwards, they can browse a media trade show to speak one-on-one with media experts who will help gather information and set actionable goals. When: Friday, June 6, 2008 7:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. 7:30 – 8:00 Registration & Continental Breakfast Where: Omaha Chamber of Commerce, 1301 Harney Street Why: The goal for this event is to provide small businesses with the information that they need to increase the overall return on their marketing investments. This will be the second year for the Smart Spending. Big Profits. seminar. Despite a low attendance at last year’s event, it was a success and very valuable for those who attended. The business owners who attended last year found valuable information that they could use to promote their businesses in a smart and savvy way. Cost: $35 for small business owners and $300 for media vendors Roundtable Topics: OFA members who are interested in being a roundtable leader can contact Jayson Schmolke, Bozell, at 965.4373 or jschmolke@bozell.com
Contact Info: Media professionals who are interested in participating in the media tradeshow can contact Christin Goetz at 402.965.4369 or cgoetz@bozell.com. Web site: www.aafomaha.org/BigProfits. .............................................................................................................................................. June AdBites Luncheon  Hybrids—Not Just Trendy for Automobiles Newspaper Web sites are helping newspapers grow audiences online and the newspaper industry is evolving into a hybrid print and digital content provider. Gary Meo, Scarborough’s Senior Vice President, Print and Digital Media Services, is responsible for the sales and service of Scarborough’s products to over 261 major metropolitan daily newspapers, alternative newsweeklies, magazines and dot.com companies nationwide. Before joining Scarborough in 1995, Gary held marketing and research positions at Time Inc., People Weekly, LA WEEKLY, the Los Angeles Times and Hispanic Magazine. Gary earned a BA degree from the State University of New York at Binghamton and is a graduate of the Executive Program in Management at UCLA’s John E. Anderson Graduate School of Business. Gary lives in Austin, Texas with his wife, Meg, and children Emily, 17 and Eric, 16. .............................................................................................................................................. AdNight  OFA members and guests enjoyed AdNight at Urban Wine Company on April 10. The event, sponsored by Printco Graphics, introduced newcomers to Urban Wine’s full wine cellar and bar, as well as appetizer selections. Urban Wine is located in the historic Old Market at 1037 Jones Street. 
.............................................................................................................................................. AdWars 2008  AdWars Recap 9 teams participated including teams from Bozell, Clear Channel, Ervin & Smith Advertising, Orajen Group, Inc., Redstone Communications, SKAR Army, Swanson Russell Associates, Turnpost Creative Group and Woodmen of the World. The Emcee and host of the 2008 AdWars was Mark Carpenter from SKAR Advertising. Last year’s winner was the team from Ervin & Smith who were denied a back-to-back championship by the team from Turnpost. Over 100 OFA members, guests and spectators took part in this year’s AdWars. 
.............................................................................................................................................. Ad World News Bailey Lauerman Announces Staff Promotions Bailey Lauerman recently announced several staff promotions in Lincoln. The Lincoln office has promoted Gayle Adams, production manager, Tracy Bowers, account executive, Katie Hassler, assistant account executive, Zeljka Hassler, interactive designer, Valerie Jones, associate director/contact strategy, Christy Puev, associate director/activation and Tara West, account executive. Gayle Adams was promoted from production specialist to production manager. Since joining the agency in 2005, Adams has touched nearly all of the agency’s accounts in some capacity and will continue to provide his production expertise to all clients. Tracy Bowers previously served as a senior project manager before being promoted to account executive. Bowers, who joined the agency in 1999, will provide support to the Allstate account team while also managing agency work for ConAgra Foods. Katie Hassler joined the agency in 2005 as a project manager and was promoted to assistant account executive. Hassler is a graduate of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. She has helped spearhead the agency’s guerilla marketing efforts for Allstate by activating dozens of ‘street teams’ throughout the country, which promote safe driving and Allstate insurance. Currently, Hassler is an active member of Lincoln’s Young Professionals Group. Zeljka Hassler was promoted from interactive developer to interactive designer. Hassler is a graduate of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and works on several of the agency’s interactive accounts including Honeywell, Cargill, Allstate, Exmark, Disney and the Lincoln Children’s Zoo. Valerie Jones was promoted to associate director/contact strategy for the agency. Prior to joining the agency, Jones was an account manager at Fox Interactive, based in Chicago. She serves several of the agency’s leading accounts including Allstate, TierOne Bank, Union Pacific, the University of Nebraska and the Omaha Community Foundation. Currently, Jones is the chair of the public service committee for the Advertising Federation of Lincoln and teaches media strategy as an adjunct professor at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Christy Puev began her career in media with the agency in 2000 and previously served as an activation supervisor before her promotion to associate director/activation. Presently, Puev serves as the president of the Advertising Federation of Lincoln and spends a majority of her time working on the Allstate account. Tara West joined the agency in 2000 and was promoted from senior project manager to account executive. She will continue to handle the agency relationship with Honeywell Aerospace and Crete Carrier. Currently, West serves as a board member for the Lincoln Children’s Museum. Bailey Lauerman, founded in 1970, is one of the Midwest’s most recognized marketing communications firms for creative and strategic solutions. From offices in Lincoln and Omaha, Neb., the agency builds brands for national, regional and local clients. More information about the agency is available at www.baileylauerman.com. .......................................................................... Renze Display Moves into New Corporate Headquarters Renze Display will be in our new corporate headquarters at 6847 N. 16th St. (NE corner of 16th & Pershing Drive). Our fully-renovated 90,000 sq. ft. facility will house our graphics production, custom fabrication, warehouse, offices and a large showroom. According to President Doug Buchanan, “by replacing our three existing facilities with one larger dock-high building, all on one floor with high ceilings, we will be much more efficient in our workflow. This new space gives us the ability to continue to grow our business and better serve our clients.” Founded in 1895, Renze Display, with headquarters in Omaha, NE and a satellite sales office in Kansas City, is one of the Midwest’s oldest exhibit, environment, and event solutions providers. .......................................................................... FTC Proposed Behavioral Advertising Principles As you may know, the Federal Trade Commission recently proposed self-regulatory principles for online behavioral advertising. The American Advertising Federation supports self-regulation as the most effective way to protect consumers while insuring that innovation is not stifled in this dynamic and rapidly changing area. Unfortunately, we believe the FTC’s principles have a number of serious flaws. For example, in arguing for the implementation of the principles, the commission has not articulated any concerns that consumers are harmed by behavioral advertising. We do not believe the principles strike an appropriate balance between restrictions on the use of information and the benefits to consumers through the use of that information. And of course, true self-regulation is developed by the affected industries, not the government. The AAF has joined with a number of industry allies to submit comments to the commission. In them we make a number of important points:
The full comments are available here. The FTC’s proposed principles on online behavioral advertising are available here. .......................................................................... FCC Chairman Martin Renews A La Carte Efforts Federal Communications Commission Chairman Kevin Martin has renewed a push to implement á la carte cable television lineup options, resulting in added rebukes of his plan from Congress and industry. During questioning at a House Appropriations Subcommittee on Financial Services and General Government, Chairman Martin indicated a desire to invoke an existing clause in telecommunications law that would allow the FCC new oversight of cable systems in order to ensure an á la carte option. The next day, in a Senate Commerce Committee hearing, Ranking Member Ted Stevens, R-Alaska, told Martin to focus the agency’s attention on ensuring a smooth analog-to-digital television transition, rather than “less time sensitive” efforts such as á la carte, which he described as a “solution looking for a problem.” Chairman Daniel Inouye, D-Hawaii, and John Sununu, R-N.H., were also critical of Martin. In addition, several cable television executives wrote a letter to Chairman Martin, saying that proposals to mandate á la carte channel lineups are anticonsumer and not within the commission’s authority. ESPN President George Bodenheimer, MTV Networks Chairman Judy McGrath, Univision President Jeff Gaspin, Disney Media Networks Co-Chairman Anne Sweeney, Turner Broadcasting System Chairman Phil Kent and Fox Network Group President Tony Vinciquerra argued that an á la carte requirement would raise rates for most consumers and provide fewer options, especially for multicultural, religious and niche programming. .......................................................................... AAF Submites Behavorial Advertising Guidelines Comments to FTC The AAF has joined with a number of industry groups to submit comments on behavioral advertising guidelines proposed by the Federal Trade Commission, arguing that these self-regulatory principles must not limit consumer benefits. In arguing for the implementation of the principles, the commission has not articulated any concerns that behavioral advertising harms consumers. The AAF does not believe their proposal strikes an appropriate balance between restrictions on the use of the information and the benefits to consumers through the use of that information. Additionally, true self-regulation is developed by the affected industries, not the government. The full comments are available here. .......................................................................... Sen. Forgan Introduces FTC Reauthorization Act A bill introduced in the Senate could drastically increase the enforcement powers of the Federal Trade Commission, including increased civil penalties and harsher restrictions on intrastate and interstate telemarketing and the ability to "fast track" rulemaking decisions. The FTC Reauthorization Act of 2008 (S. 2831) was introduced by Sen. Byron Dorgan, D-N.D., who chairs the Interstate Commerce, Trade and Tourism Subcommittee of the Senate Commerce Committee. The bill would allow a majority of the commissioners to waive current rulemaking procedures in favor of a faster one that could result in hasty decisions without sufficient input and consideration by all interested parties. The comprehensive legislation would make it easier for states to expand Do-Not-Call regulations, repeal the telecommunications common carrier exemption and provide the FTC with the authority to litigate any civil action involving the Federal Trade Commission Act. The proposed changes would be funded by a 10 percent increase in the FTC’s appropriations each year over the next seven years. Congress has not passed a FTC reauthorization bill since 1996. .......................................................................... Reps. DeLauro and Schakowsky Call for FDA Side Effects Hotline Reps. Rosa DeLauro, D-Conn., and Jan Schakowsky, D-Ill., have written a letter to the Food and Drug Administration urging the implementation of a proposal that all televised direct-to-consumer prescription drug advertisements include a phone number for consumers to report adverse side effects to the agency. Their letter cites a Consumer Reports survey saying that most respondents were unaware that side effects could be reported to the FDA. Congress already mandates that all print DTC ads contain FDA contact information and has called on the agency to investigate whether a similar requirement is needed for television ads. .......................................................................... Majoras Resigns from FTC; Commissioner Kovacic Named Chairman Following the resignation of Deborah Platt Majoras, President George W. Bush has named William E. Kovacic as chairman of the Federal Trade Commission, effective June 1. Kovacic, a Republican, has been a commissioner at the agency since 2006 and as a result, does not need Senate confirmation to become chairman. The other commissioners are J. Thomas Rosch, a Republican, Pamela Jones Harbour, an independent, and Jon Leibowitz, a Democrat. The White House has not indicated whether it will nominate a new commissioner, who would face Senate confirmation. .......................................................................... FTC Publishes Consumer Protection Workshop Staff Report In a staff report on a recent consumer protection workshop, the Federal Trade Commission said it will continue to use four main tools to protect consumers using new technologies: law enforcement, consumer education, fostering industry self-regulation, and research and policy development. The report is a summary of findings from the November 2006 workshop "Protecting Consumers in the Next Tech-Ade." The commission has recently held workshops on unsolicited e-mail and behavioral advertising and is soliciting formal comments for proposed self-regulation guidelines for behavioral advertising. The AAF will submit comments. A workshop on mobile marketing is planned for May. A copy of the staff report is available here. .......................................................................... FCC Embedded Advertising Consideration Delayed Action on a Federal Communications Commission proposal that would require simultaneous disclosure of televised embedded advertising has been delayed again. If the proposal is ultimately approved, broadcasters would be required to alert viewers every time a paid product placement occurs. Like the Federal Trade Commission, the AAF believes there is no evidence that product placement is unfair or deceptive or causes consumer harm. The FCC originally was to consider whether they should open either a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking or a Notice of Proposed Inquiry in December. The AAF, along with other advertising trade associations, sent a letter to FCC commissioners arguing that creating a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking would create a presumption that regulation is necessary. A copy of the letter AAF sent to the FCC is available here (Word document). A copy of the FTC letter indicating the agency’s satisfaction with current product placement rules is available here. .......................................................................... N.Y., Conn. Introduce Online Advertising Bills Legislation introduced in New York and Connecticut would impose restrictions on Web site operators who collect and use personally identifiable and anonymous information for advertising. In New York, Assembly Bill 9275, introduced by Rep. Richard Brodsky, D-Westchester, would penalize Web companies who use personal information about consumers for advertising without their consent. In Connecticut, House Bill 5765 would require third party network advertisers to post a notice on its Web site of its data collection and use practices. The AAF opposes both bills, because absent any demonstrable consumer harm or concern with Internet advertising, additional government regulation is unnecessary. We are joining with other industry groups to send letters to representatives in both states. .......................................................................... FCC to Hold Second Public Net Neutrality Hearing The Federal Communications Commission is holding a second public hearing on network neutrality practices and other Internet-related issues. The commission will hear expert testimony on current practices, emerging technologies and recommendations for policy changes. Network neutrality is a proposal that would require Internet service providers to offer the same broadband access speed to consumers regardless of content. The meeting will be hosted by Stanford Law School’s Center for Internet and Society at Stanford University in Palo Alto, Calif., and follows a similar hearing held in February at Harvard Law School. .......................................................................... Florida Tax Proposal Faces Increased Opposition A proposed constitutional amendment in Florida that would mandate expansion of the sales tax to unspecified services, possibly including advertising, is losing support in the state’s Taxation and Budget Reform Commission. The proposal, spearheaded by Commissioner John McKay, would direct the Florida legislature to review current sales tax exemptions and eventually revise which industries should benefit from tax exemptions. State Sen. Mike Haridopolos, R-Melbourne, has been a vocal opponent of the plan, stating that if enacted, the plan could result in the "single largest tax increase in Florida’s history." Sen. Haridopolos chairs the Senate Finance and Tax Committee and has called for a special hearing on the proposal. The Taxation and Budget Reform Commission must approve the amendment, which would then be put before voters. The AAF and local ad clubs have worked to oppose the changes, because any tax on advertising would immediately harm the industry, raise overall tax costs and cause economic damage. |
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