An organization’s brand can’t be developed overnight, but a group of St. Bonaventure’s American Advertising Federation (AAF) students tried to do it in a day.

The four-person team from St. Bonaventure’s AAF club joined other area college students at BrandHack, which was sponsored by the Buffalo chapter of the American Advertising Federation and held at Hilbert College Jan. 26.

>The students had the opportunity to join in with pros from the advertising and design community to build a branded campaign from scratch for a local non-profit. Teams had five hours to develop their branded campaign for this year’s non-profit organization, Diamonds in the Ruff Animal Rescue.

Representing St. Bonaventure were AAF President Tierney McGilvray and three members from the club’s creative team, Ramya Sreeramoju, Andy Gonzales, and Ivan Gomez. The students are all seniors.

Each team was paired with a professional graphic designer for the competition. The St. Bonaventure team, which earned second place, was joined by graphic designer Sam Lonczak from Agency FIFTEEN. Among the branding materials they developed for Diamonds in the Ruff were a new logo, sell sheet, and Instagram social media strategy.

The campaigns were judged by members of the American Advertising Federation of Buffalo.

Gomez and Gonzalez are art directors and Sreeramoju is a copywriter. McGilvray served as the account executive for the group.

Tierney said the SBU team was proud to have earned second place and credits the club’s faculty advisers, Michael Jones-Kelley, a lecturer in the Jandoli School of Communication, and Kristen Ryan, a marketing lecturer in the School of Business, with boosting their skills and confidence.

“You never can be afraid to speak up – that’s how to get to the best solution to whatever problem we’re tackling,” said McGilvray.

Other projects on tap this semester for AAF St. Bonaventure is campaign work for the national student advertising competition and assisting with recruitment for the university’s Oxford study abroad program.

______________

About the University: The nation’s first Franciscan university, we believe in the goodness of every person and in the ability of every person to do extraordinary things. St. Bonaventure University cultivates graduates who are confident and creative communicators, collaborative leaders and team members, and innovative problem solvers who are respectful of themselves, others, and the diverse world around them. Named the #1 regional university value in New York and #2 in the North by U.S. News and World Report, we are establishing pathways to internships, graduate schools and careers in the context of our renowned liberal arts tradition.