It was another excellent and fun ADDY awards ceremony in Topeka Saturday night! We were awarded 14 medals and the Best of Show Interactive Media at American Advertising Federation Topeka’s ADDY Awards Saturday, February 5. MB Piland won awards for outstanding work for:

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  Allen Community College
• GO Topeka
• Greater Topeka Chamber of Commerce
• GTRUST
• Healthy to Go
• High Octane Energy
• Wolf Construction

A big thanks to our clients for the great relationships we have. You trust us to give you our best advice and ideas—and treat your objectives like they were our own. Actually, they are!

We work on coming up with Killer Ideas all year long. And the pace can get hectic. So it’s pretty exciting when we can step back to look at the entire body of work and celebrate it all in one place. There's a vast amount of talent in Topeka and the surrounding communities. And it’s a pretty big thrill to get together with our colleagues in the advertising community and honor the work we all do. The gala gives us an opportunity to join together and cheer for the each other.

With more than 60,000 entries annually, the ADDY® Awards are the largest and arguably the toughest advertising competition. The ADDY Awards represent the true spirit of creative excellence by recognizing all forms of advertising from media of all types, creative by all sizes and entrants of all levels. Winners at the local level move on to district competition, which includes entries from Kansas, Missouri, Iowa and Nebraska.

Here's a taste of some of the winners. Stay tuned as we post more work later this week!

MB Piland WIns Prestigious Silver Quill Award

Date: November 18, 2010

MB Piland Advertising was just honored with a Silver Quill Award of Merit at the 2010 International Association of Business Communicators Southern Region Conference for our work on the GO Topeka 29-Second Storybook video series.

Our work was selected from 136 entries, representing 25 IABC chapters. Entries were evaluated on a number of criteria including creativity, effectiveness and work plan. Judges from premier communications organizations came from Ohio, Minnesota, Texas, California, Pennsylvania and Saskatchewan, Canada to review the entries.

“We are honored to be recognized at the prestigious Silver Quill level for our client work, among a very competitive set of much larger corporations and agencies,” said Alex Reilly, vice president and agency principal. “IABC Silver Quill awards are coveted and very competitive because strategy and results are just as important as the creativity of the work.”

The winning entry for GO Topeka was a series of humorous 29-second “storybook” videos, written to attract the attention of specific target industry decision-makers who may locate businesses in Topeka/Shawnee County. “We asked MB Piland to develop a concise, attention-getting promotion piece on our economic targets that would break through a ‘noisy’ communication landscape. The 29 second videos accomplished that in a memorable way, impactful way,” said Steve Jenkins, Senior Vice President - Economic Development for Greater Topeka Chamber of Commerce/GO Topeka.

“Our strategy was to ask the audience for just 29 seconds, give them a few key pieces of information in an entertaining mini-feature, and invite them to learn more,” said Andrea K. Engstrom, Senior Account Manager at MB Piland. The judges agreed with this strategy noting, “Clever concept. Excellent choice of medium for delivering the message, offering maximum flexibility.” Another judge noted, “The work plan was creatively written with a flare towards the whimsy. They did an excellent job in defining their results.”

The winning entries can be viewed on our YouTube channel.

Date: October 21, 2010

MB Piland Advertising Wins Award for Most Creative Display

MB PIland wins award for Most Creative display at the Topeka Chamber Business Expo! Our theme, Killer Ideas, highlighted our expertise in oversized strategic thinking. Really great ideas that get results for a client go way beyond a TV ad or a website. They have to connect with the audience and engage them. Since we like to color outside the lines a bit (a lot, really) we wanted to make our exhibit something really unexpected. We created a giant shark cut-out for people to pose for Facebook photos with—and served shark-a-ritas—for a truly fun, interactive display. We also had a drawing for a Killer Ideas Strategic Brainstorming Session. The winner was Lower Heating, Plumbing & Air. We can't wait to see what unfolds in that meeting!

VIsit us on Facebook to see all the photos!

Date: October 14, 2010

Tammy Thiessen wins Tabor Alumni Medallion Award

Tammy, our newest MB Piland Advertising team member, was just honored at Tabor College as one of its distinguished alumni. The Medallion Award program originated in 1969. It honors alumni annually for exceptional accomplishments and service. Nominations are received from alumni, faculty and friends of Tabor. Award recipients are selected by a panel of faculty members and administrators using the following criteria:

+A significant interest and loyalty to Tabor College.
+A record of outstanding, devoted service to humankind in public and/or church life.
+A record of meritorious achievement and success in his/her profession.
+A position of leadership in a recognized organization or business.

Tammy's husband Brett was the other honoree. What a talented, smart family. We're glad to have Tammy with us.

Date: June 4, 2010

Reilly Named Agency Principal

Alex Reilly, vice president at MB Piland Fat Free Advertising, has been named agency principal.

In this role, Alex sits on the management team, helping guide agency operations and planning. She continues in her role of supervising major accounts and mentoring staff.

“Alex’s dedication to excellence in all areas of the agency business is greatly valued,” said Martha Bartlett Piland, president + CEO. “She’s a strong asset to our clients and our agency.”

About Alex: She's a graduate of the University of Kansas with a B.A. in French. She's a longtime community volunteer and avid supporter of theater and the performing arts. In 2005 she joined MB Piland where she has made an impact with strong strategic planning and client skills. She's a devoted wife and mother of Finn and Bebe, two of the most charming people you'll eve