21
Simon Hicks Named Managing Director of China Office
Simon Hicks has joined the company as Managing Director of LarsonO'Brien/Dashi, with offices in Beijing and Shanghai.
Hicks leaves his post as general manager of McCann Worldgroups's MRM Worldwide in Beijing, a multi-national digital marketing communications agency. There, he was responsible for the agency's day-to-day operation, including supervision of a blue chip account list including Intel, Microsoft and MasterCard. Hicks, a British citizen, whose father was a Saatchi & Saatchi executive, was the founding principal of Hicks Advertising and Marketing in Manchester, England, and previously served as executive head of marketing for Blackpool Pleasure Beach, the UK's largest tourist attraction.
"LarsonO'Brien fills an important niche in China," commented Hicks. "Most of the agencies that predominate here are large bureaucracies, cumbersome and expensive; structured to best serve very large multi-national clients. Nevertheless, there are a greater number of mid-sized companies entering the China market which benefit from the more agile, more competitive and more partnered approach we offer. In that niche, our competition is almost nonexistent," Hicks concluded.
"Simon has the perfect combination of entrepreneurial experience and China marketing experience that our clients and prospects are looking for. He knows the culture, he knows the media, he knows how to get it done," says Jack O'Brien, principal of LarsonO'Brien. "Our goal is to provide service from a core of such exceptionally creative marketing professionals who will work directly with clients. This one-on-one approach will meet our target clients' need for right-sized, high-value strategic marketing communication services."
Posted by: Garrett Andrae
15
Growing PR Department Hires Two
Nicole Oslosky and Christen Stroh have joined LO as Public Relations Account Executives to meet growing PR department needs. Their responsibilities include copywriting, editorial relations and producing public relations campaigns on behalf of agency clients. LO is excited to welcome them both to the PR team.
Posted by: Lauren Ban
10
LO Expands Interactive, Art Departments
LarsonO'Brien recently expanded its interactive and art departments to meet increased interactive, advertising, continuing education and printed collateral needs. Dan Brettholle joined LO as Art Director while Jesse Wisinski was named Interactive Designer. Collectively, their responsibilities include the design and direction of electronic and print media along with the design and maintenance of client websites. LO looks forward to the creative expertise and unique designs that each department continues to produce.
Posted by: Ron Larson
21
LO Selected as Strategic Partner for CENTRIA Services Group
LarsonO'Brien has been selected to provide a variety of marketing communications services to CENTRIA Services Group, a division of CENTRIA, an international company and the country's premier supplier of architectural metal wall and roofing systems used in commercial/industrial projects.
LarsonO'Brien will be responsible for the development of marketing strategy, as well as advertising campaigns, new product launches, search engine optimization and the creation of collateral materials, including print and electronic communication for CENTRIA Services Group's EnergyPeak™ brand.
"LarsonO'Brien's complete range of services and extensive knowledge of the architectural building products industry makes them an ideal strategic partner," explains Rick Mowrey, director of marketing and business development, CENTRIA Services Group. "LarsonO'Brien has already established the editorial contacts necessary to secure the media coverage the EnergyPeak system deserves, and the industry experience and technical skills needed to immediately write and produce our sales support materials."
LarsonO'Brien serves many clients in the architectural building products sector, including – Lutron Electronics, Coopersburg, PA; Follansbee Steel, Follansbee, WV; Birdair, Buffalo, NY; Cambridge Architectural, Cambridge, MD; and Contrarian Metal Resources, Cranberry Township, PA.
Posted by: Lauren Ban
28
LO Continues to Expand Public Relations Department
LarsonO'Brien recently expanded its public relations department in order to meet growing client needs. Nick Murosky was hired as Public Relations Account Executive, while Mark Wanczak was promoted from Assistant Account Executive to full-fledged PR Account Executive. In addition, Dan Tambellini was named Director of PR Strategy, while Lauren Ban was promoted to Manager of Public Relations. The LO PR team continues to produce superior public relations materials and results for its array of clients.
Posted by: Lisa Pierce
9
LarsonO'Brien Attends Annual GreenBuild Expo
Over 850 vendors and 20,000 attendees crowded the West building of McCormick Place for the 2007 United States Green Building Council's annual GreenBuild International Conference and Expo.
Lisa Pierce, our Continuing Education Account Executive, attended the show on Thursday, November 8. "The show was amazing," Pierce said, "I didn't know what to expect before I walked in and everything about it was impressive."
"The show was not just about 'green' building materials, it was about raising awareness of a green community," said Pierce. Vendors interacted with architects, contractors, developers, educators, engineers, students, among others. Paper use was kept to a minimum; attendees were given plastic cards with bar codes to be swiped at a vendors' booth if they were interested in learning more about a product.
Posted by: Lauren Ban
20
LarsonO'Brien Receives China Business Certification;
Acquires Chinese Design Firm
LarsonO'Brien/Dashi Shanghai, LLC, a subsidiary of LarsonO'Brien Advertising-PR, Inc. of Pittsburgh, has received its business certification from the Chinese government to operate as a wholly owned foreign entity. LarsonO'Brien is the first locally-owned advertising/pr/interactive firm to create and operate a wholly-owned and certified marketing communications service in the People's Republic of China.
In addition, the company has agreed to acquire Dashi Design, a Chinese advertising and graphic design service with headquarters in Beijing and offices in Shanghai. The acquisition was finalized in an agreement signed by the parties on September 16, 2007. Jack O'Brien and Garrett Andrae, principals of the US company, represented LarsonO'Brien in Beijing for the signing.
Dashi Design was established by Mr. Lu Yi of Beijing to serve customers of its parent company, Viewstock photo services, a provider of photo illustrations for advertising, literature and the Internet. Dashi Design employs a creative and account service staff of twelve and produces literature, advertising materials and Internet sites for clients in the recreation, real estate development, and consumer products markets. Mr. Lu is famous throughout Asia for his spectacular golf course photography, and has been Jack Nicklaus' primary Asian golf course photographer for many years.
The certification process involved a detailed and multi-layered approval that began at the local municipality, proceeded through the state level, and ultimately involved validation of the submission by the US Department of State. Financial stability and creditworthiness also were scrutinized, as were the personal resumes of the company's principals. Legal counsel in both the US and China proved invaluable to achieving certification which allows LarsonO'Brien to provide the same services as a Chinese-owned company without requiring a joint venture arrangement.
In announcing the accomplishment, O'Brien explained the agency's China business strategy. "Our business model supports the marketing efforts of a large segment of Western companies looking to sell their products and services into China. That particular segment includes the mid-sized company that simply can't budget for a top-5 agency, as well as the larger company looking for better value and better insights.
"Before LarsonO'Brien, if you were a company looking for marketing communications counsel in China, you had two choices. You could pay top dollar for a giant worldwide agency with a China office, or select an all-Chinese agency and get ad production but no marketing strategy.
"Our position as a nimble, mid-sized American agency with strategic China insights is a niche we own today in China. LarsonO'Brien/Dashi will provide customers with access to extraordinary strategic and creative services – which, though more common in the States, is quite unusual in China. Plus, our customers will avoid the excessive costs associated with the large multi-national agencies that currently dominate China.
"This is only the latest step in a process that started 17 years ago when we recognized China's emergence as a major global economic force. We saw a business opportunity for our pr and communications skills as we observed a large influx of Chinese delegations arriving in the US. It became clear that their American hosts were terribly unprepared to greet them properly. They had no after-hours activities planned, they hadn't prepared proper greeting gifts, they even failed to identify bathroom facilities with Chinese characters. They were unwittingly committing one faux pas after another. In response, we (LarsonO'Brien) formed a company to provide support to host companies with the help of a former media buyer at Leo Burnett-Hong Kong, and a senior financial services manager at HSBC. The Tiananmen Square incident in 1989 derailed our efforts until about three years ago when we began searching for an acquisition and renewing our network of marketing professionals within China," continued O'Brien.
"Our goal is to continue to assemble a core of exceptional, creative marketing professionals to provide right-sized, high-value strategic marketing communication services to companies committed to taking part in the economic opportunity offered by the new China," he concluded.
Posted by: Lisa Pierce
12
LO Hires Two
LarsonO'Brien recently added two new members to its team. Raymond Steinbacher was named Creative Interactive Director while Lisa Pierce joined as an Account Executive. The talent, creativity and expertise that these individuals bring to the table will ensure that LO continues to grow and evolve in many new ways.
Posted by: Lauren Ban
09
San Antonio AIA Convention 2007 Big Event for LO Clients
Our contingent was busy and productive at the AIA Expo. Lauren Ban, Chris Weber and Jack O'Brien spent much of last week supporting our clients' show activities. 14 editorial interviews were coordinated by LO and conducted during the two key days of the show. Additionally, LO benefitted from meeting with architects and other exhibitors, working hands-on with the displays we helped design and create, and having extended periods of time to review plans and progress to date.
Posted by: Jack O'Brien
08
Follansbee Selected as a Top Project of the Year
We just received a letter from the Publisher of Commercial Building Products. One of the Follansbee project stories that we placed in the magazine was selected by the readers as one of the top projects of the year. Only ten projects were chosen and Follansbee's Thompson Park project was among them!
Excerpt from the Publisher's letter: ...Congratulations, Follansbee Steel Roofing's article was selected by the readers of Commercial Building Products as one of their top projects of the year. Your case history article will be re-published in a special January issue called "Projects of the Year"...as one of the ten winners...
This is very satisfying to us because we love to see our client's work showcased in the leading publications. Follansbee completes some amazing projects and it is our job to share them with the world. It is also satisfying personally to see all of our PR efforts pay off in the form of feature articles that the readers really respond to.
You just never know which project stories are really going to impact the readers and it is always great to get feedback from the publications.
Congratulations to Follansbee on yet another beautiful roofing project!
Posted by: Jack O'Brien
07
All 8-page-plus LO Literature to be Saddle Stitched
Ron Larson and Jack O'Brien announced today that owing to competitive pressures, the agency will commit to saddle-stitching all literature containing 8 or more pages. "We might also perfect bind." added Larson. "After all, it's perfect for a reason. No staples."
"Saddle stitching is still the best way to enhance sales efforts," confirmed O'Brien, "but there's endless debate over English or Western saddle stitching."
In fact, a lot of discussion has focused on where that pesky staple goes. Many advertising people have personally examined the centerfold of countless magazines just to see the point of penetration. It's a big deal in the magazine business and it cannot be overlooked when it comes to any engagement to help an established firm enhance its efforts.
Posted by: Jack O'Brien
05
Speaking From Experience
A diverse group of people, with unique backgrounds and interesting personal and professional experiences makes the LarsonO'Brien team a truly well-rounded group of individuals. Our team includes experts in product marketing, continuing education programs, audio and video production, media relations, and search engine optimization just to name a few. One of the characteristics that I love about LarsonO'Brien is that no matter what aspect of marketing or communications is needed, someone here has the experience.
And, in addition to having experience, we love the experiences we've had and the knowledge we've gained. Once you get us talking about it, we may never stop. That's why you need to give us a time frame - in the form of a speaking engagement. LarsonO'Brien can speak to corporate marketing teams, at tradeshows and networking events about a variety of topics.
Some of LarsonO'Brien's speakers and their expertise:
Jack O'Brien - President and Creative Director
- Creative direction
- Audio/video production
- Strategic planning
- US-based companies conducting business in China
Garrett Andrae - Vice President of Account Service
- Architectural product marketing
- Continuing education
- New product launches
- Campaign planning
The media looks to LarsonO'Brien as an expert source...maybe you should, too.
Shoppers greet change with sadness, hope
Expansion & Renovation Doubles Capacity at Palo Alto Ronald McDonald House
Nightclub and Bar Media Buying Article
Posted by: Jack O'Brien
05
LO Makes Milk Move in Schools
When Turner Dairy Farms asked LO to redesign their school milk cartons we thought it would be a fun project and we knew they would love the new packaging. But neither us nor Turner expected the huge success that resulted from LO Art Director Steve Slesinski's colorful cartoon cows.
The first of the new packaging hit the school coolers in early 2006 and the students couldn't get enough. The schools reported an immediate increase in demand for white milk, the first flavor in the new packaging, and sales increased 20%. The entire line was gradually rolled out and was completely in place for the start of the Fall 2006 semester.
In a recent article in Midwest Food Network, Chuck Turner, Jr., referred to LO as the dream team behind the project!
In addition to the new packaging, LO also designed signage for the school milk coolers and wrote a press release about the packaging's success.
Posted by: Jack O'Brien
30
Collaboration Tool is NOT for the birds
Pardon me as I steal a thought from a recent Ask.com campaign, "If it weren't for tools, we would just be animals in pants." LarsonO'Brien's collaboration tool helps avoid the inevitable. By keeping projects on time, notes in a central location, update notices emailed to team members automatically, the LO collaboration tool is a great timesaver. With all of the busy, even hectic, days at the office our collaboration tool will help you keep it together. Besides, who wants to eat puppy chow? Not me.
Posted by: Jack O'Brien
22
Lutron lights up our lives...and probably yours, too
Flip a light switch in your office, it was probably made by Lutron, the world's leading manufacturer of lighting controls and LarsonO'Brien's newest client. As of October 2006, we began providing public relations, web site development and search engine optimization, sales presentation and promotional video production services for their new EcoSystem product line.
EcoSystem is a lighting control system that uses occupancy and daylight sensors or remote control to adjust interior lighting. It can be easily pre-programmed and reconfigured for the ultimate in lighting design flexibility. EcoSystem conserves energy - turning on when you're in the room, off when you leave, and adjusting according to the flow of daylight or the time of day.
The people at Lutron are great and we're looking forward to a bright future with them.
Posted by: Jack O'Brien
17
Top Search Engine Rankings for Client
In October 2005 Larson O'Brien began working on a search engine marketing strategy for Reclamere to improve keyword rankings and conversion rates for visitors to their website. Since then, their website has gained over 150 page one rankings within the major search engines.
We're excited about expanding into the areas of SEO (Search Engine Optimization) and Email Marketing and hope that this is just the beginning of a successful relationship.
Posted by: Jack O'Brien