July 23, 2008

Americus car dealership partners with GSW SIFE, creates ad campaign

AMERICUS—Georgia Southwestern State University (GSW) Students In Free Enterprise (SIFE) recently put its business sense to practical use. In a collaborative effort, the GSW SIFE team worked with Snider Chevrolet to develop a fresh advertising campaign for the Americus car dealership.

“This is a win-win situation,” said Danny Faulkner, Snider Chevrolet manager.  “We wanted to partner with GSW SIFE because we know how talented these students are. The results were incredible. GSW SIFE in collaboration with other SIFE teams around the country produced unique, informative and attractive newspaper advertisements. We are really proud of this partnership and we expect to continue it on an annual basis.”

‘America Marketing Americus’ was the contest theme. Georgia Southwestern SIFE facilitated the contest and requested entries from SIFE teams all over the country. Each team was permitted to submit multiple full-page advertisements, with only one entry per team eligible for a prize. The awards included $1,000 for first place, $750 for second place and $500 for third.  In addition, GSW SIFE received a $1,000 contribution from Snider Chevrolet. 

“We are very grateful to Earl Snider and Danny Faulkner for this partnership and their contribution to GSW SIFE,” said John Kooti, Ph.D., dean and SIFE advisor.  “We will continue to explore this type of partnership with the local community.”

The winning entry was submitted by the University of Houston-Downtown (UHD) with the slogan “Unwrap a Sweet Ride at Snider." The ad features an open box of assorted chocolate candy with tiny versions of Chevrolet vehicles and the company logo. The advertisement and slogan will be used as Snider’s 2008 newspaper ad campaign.

The complete list of winners is as follows:

·        UHD, Houston, Texas 1^st place

·        Bridgewater College, Bridgewater, Virginia, 2^nd place

·        Westminster College, Fulton, Missouri, 3^rd place

A GSW student and SIFE member, A.J. Kooti was the team leader for this project.     “This was a great experience,” said Kooti. “As a leader of this project, I have learned how to develop ideas, create guidelines, develop a brochure and disseminate applications among all SIFE teams in the country.”

“I am very proud of GSW SIFE and the dedication of its members to serve the local community,” said John Kooti. “It is truly a premier team in the nation.” 

Unwrap a sweet ride--The University of Houston-Downtown placed first in the SIFE advertisement contest.

                                                       - GSW -