Saluki AdLab Wins district for Indeed advertising campaign

Saluki AdLab outshone its competition at the National Student Advertising Competition (NSAC) in South Bend, Indiana, achieving first place in the 2,500-plus student district level, which spans the states of Illinois, Indiana and Michigan. This marks the fifth time that AdLab has placed in the top three of 11 schools at district level (including Michigan State University, Ball State, University of Illinois and University of Michigan) and the second time the student-run ad agency has been recognized with first prize.

Based out of a single room, 1205 of the Communications building, AdLab shows more than it tells at the intersection of the school’s wittiest and most aesthetically inclined online presence.

AdLab’s website positively exhorts students to get in on the fun, stocked with lines like, “If you’re ‘struggling to draw a stick figure,’ we have a team of artists that are ready to make new things, and to fix all the cringey things you’ve already made,” and “No one wants to see you struggling to write something that sounds like a 9-year-old wrote. Let us do that for you so you sound like the professional that you actually are.”

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Without naming names, if anyone does find themselves in need of professional help, they can look to the winning team that pitched the five month project to judges from the field of advertising, communications and marketing. The team consisted of Ryley Bisaillon, Ryan Edwards, Ashleigh Spence and Jada Plummer. Other students on the trip, who helped with the Q and A section and created the advertising campaign, included Monse Munoz, Allison McDevitt, Emily Sinnett, Parker Siner, Ryan Palmer and Dawson Boys. The Saluki AdLab was advised by Bridget Lecselius, a 30 year veteran of the field, who established AAF-Southern Illinois, the first professional chapter of the American Advertising Federation in the area.

According to the NSAC’s website, students are approached by a corporate client, which outlines their need for advertising with a case study or an overview of the history of their product. Students are then tasked with further researching the product and its competition, designing a campaign which suits the unique circumstances of each client.

“Based on the client brief they start with market research,” said Lecselius. “[it takes] digging into the target audience, defining a strategy, then lots of brainstorming to come up with the big idea, [then] building a media plan, and executing different creative assets, from video to social media…or whatever platforms they choose that reaches the target audience.”

This year, Adlab created a campaign sponsored by the job site Indeed but must continue to keep the details of their strategy to themselves in order to stay competitive, as districts won’t be the furthest their achievement takes them.

The team will be continuing on to the semi-finals, where their 20 minute presentation will be forwarded to another panel of judges, who will cross examine the team in a 10 minute video conference. Should they win one of eight finalist spots, they will travel to St. Louis in the first week of June to compete against teams from all over the country.

“They’ve been fortunate to have 4 winning teams of students that came before them,” Lecselius said. “Our alumni offer a lot of guidance. And this year they had a lot of grit, and worked long hours to make a really solid campaign.”

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