News
Select Northwest Students Create New Agency and Client Plans
Northwest Missouri State University students are gaining
professional experience running an integrated marketing
communications agency under the guidance of selected faculty
members. Students were selected to participate in this pilot program
from the art, business, communications, computer science and mass
communication departments. The course objective is to research and
develop a marketing communications plan for a 'real world' client,
under the guidance of the faculty team. At the same time, this first
group of students has the opportunity to create the organization
from the ground up, including naming the agency.
The first student project was to create the company and logo. The
name the students created for their organization is Knacktive.
"Knacktive is a name we felt really fit our organization. All of the
students in this organization have a special ability or 'knack' and
when we all work together we can use our talents to create something
great for our client," explained Rob O'Doherty, a Knacktive Account
Executive and senior public relations major.
All students involved in this program will receive three hours of
credit for their work, while developing numerous professional-grade,
portfolio-ready work samples. While working on various parts of the
client's marketing communication plan students are also given weekly
tutorials, instruction, and feedback by the participating faculty
members.
The lead Knacktive faculty advisor, Stephanie Padgett, originally
implemented a similar program at the University of Missouri's school
of journalism in 2005, completing projects for such brands as
Redbox, Hallmark and Purina. The other Knacktive faculty include:
Judy Clark, Chris Graves, David Shadinger and Carol Spradling. The
faculty members are from departments representing the same major
degree concentrations as the students.
The mission of Knacktive is to allow Northwest Missouri State
University students to develop their skills and abilities while
gaining hands-on experience in a technology focused, agency-style
setting.
Knacktive's OnPoint Team Wins Trip to Present Research Report to
Business Executives
One of the student teams in Northwest Missouri State University's
innovative student agency, OnPoint, won the recent research
presentation competition. Chosen by the course faculty from the
agency's three teams, OnPoint presented their research report on the
current state of technology usage by college students to a gathering
of executives and alumni at Stinson Morrison Hecker LLC in Kansas
City, Missouri on Thursday, Feb. 11, 2011.
Knacktive's three student teams engaged in a research and
presentation assignment that analyzed technology gadgets being
utilized by college students nationwide. The research utilized
secondary data sources and ultimately resulted in team generated
"White Papers" and a formal presentation of each team's findings.
The course faculty evaluated each teams' presentation and selected
OnPoint to represent the agency at the Kansas City event. OnPoint's
approach to the presentation touched on the staples of social media,
entertainment, and mobile devices.
Companies in attendance at the student presentation included: . The
executives provided feedback and reactions to the OnPoint team's
report and presentation. Following the presentation Stinson Morrison
Hecker LLC hosted a networking opportunity for both students and the
executives.
Members of Knacktive's OnPoint student team include: Lauren
Atkinson, Dylan Parlor, Ian Stanek, Emily Wilkins, Keri Stoner,
Elise Jones, Brandi Kapfer and Courtney Edwards. Knacktive is
Northwest's student agency focused on research and development of a
marketing communications plan for a 'real world' client, under the
guidance of a faculty team. The mission of Knacktive is to allow
Northwest Missouri State University students to develop their skills
and abilities while gaining hands-on experience in a technology
focused, agency-style setting.
Lasik Plus Vision Chooses Northwest's Knacktive Agency for Project
Knacktive, a newly created student agency based at Northwest
Missouri State University, has confirmed their first client, Lasik
Plus Vision of Cincinnati, OH. After jointly researching the
client's target-market Knacktive's three student teams will
individually develop a marketing communications plan and creative
solutions. All three teams will "pitch" their respective plans and
creative solutions to Lasik Plus executives at the end of the
current semester.
Lasik Plus is a vision correction company based in Cincinnati, OH,
offering state-of-the art laser-based corrective eye surgery to
allow individuals to live their lives in focus without wearing
glasses or contact lenses. Lasik Plus is a publicly traded company
with 54 professional eye correction centers in 39 markets across the
United States. Knacktive's opportunity to work with Lasik Plus was
facilitated by Empower Media Marketing.
Knacktive is Northwest's student agency focused on research and
development of a marketing communications plan for a 'real world'
client, under the guidance of a faculty team. The mission of
Knacktive is to allow Northwest Missouri State University students
to develop their skills and abilities while gaining hands-on
experience in a technology focused, agency-style setting.