Tim Riester photographed in Phoenix, Arizona. Phoenix is arguably the sunshine capital of the world.

A note Tim Riester sent to RIESTER staff late last night:

Today, March 10, 2010, marked the 21st anniversary of RIESTER.  As in past years, we were all too busy to notice.  This may sound odd but I am thankful for that.

I probably worked on at least 21 different projects today, and know many of you did as well.  In a healthy marketing firm that should be the norm.  But, that is not how firms in our industry begin.  RIESTER officially opened March 10, 1989 with one client which had a whopping budget of $1,800.  The client was a whitewater rafting company that operated on the upper Salt River with a very short season (the Salt River only has enough flow to create any whitewater during the annual snow melt, when there is snow).  Needless to say, there was tremendous pressure to find more clients and earn projects from them fast!  Bill Robbins will remember all the phone calls I used to make every day, during those early years, politely asking potential clients if they had any projects for us yet.  Enough said yes every month to keep us going, and Tom Ortega’s creative kept us growing.

We quickly realized we were suckers for a good cause and ended up serving on numerous charitable boards and donating ad campaigns to save the earth, children and animals.  But, even our pro bono work was always top notch.  In fact, we became known as the firm that could deliver commercial results for social causes.  RIESTER’s Brand Activism style of advertising started to earn us some pretty large contracts for extremely important social issues.  But, we continued to treat all clients as if they were small and every dollar invested in marketing with RIESTER needed to deliver amazing success.  As a result, we went from managing one project for Motorola to managing all marketing projects for 12 Motorola divisions.  We went from doing a single ad for a cellular phone company to managing all marketing for Metro Mobile (which became Cellular One) in six southwestern states.  We went from promoting water bottles for a single camping store to managing all marketing in 80 DMAs for Culligan Water.  We went from doing a PSA to prevent smokers from littering to achieving the greatest reductions in youth smoking in United States history.  We went from promoting three bank branches for First National to campaigning for America’s second largest, privately-held financial institution – MidFirst.  We went from the flannel shirts of the Flagstaff Visitors Bureau to the interactive slopes of Alta.  And, we went from acquiring a company that had just lost the Hormel business to working for nine Hormel brands today.

With good reason, I am truly convinced RIESTER can accomplish anything we set out to achieve and I look forward to our next 21 years with great anticipation.  However, we must always remember it took us years to earn the clients and relationships we enjoy today.  Treating them like they are all still small and need us to deliver amazing results with every dollar will ensure we all continue to have the privilege of working together.

Thank you all for everything you do for RIESTER, and happy 21st anniversary!!!

RIESTER’s newest campaign for the Arizona Bureau of Tobacco Education & Prevention received its share of recognition. Individual Gold Addys were awarded to all three television commercials and the website, venomocity.com. Addict-A-Friend, the campaign’s texting effort, won Silver. And the entire campaign won another Gold.

A Bronze Addy was awarded to RIESTER for its Arizona Lottery television commercial “Hiding.”

STAND FOR LESS, the nation’s first integrated sustainability campaign for a major city, won Silver. This included the website, standforless.com, and four television commercials.

RIESTER also won 2010 Addy Awards for: The “Buffalo Bill’d Yourself” microsite for the Park County Travel Council in Wyoming; the Alta Ski Area “History” print ad; as well as Pixels Foto & Frame Point-Of-Sale.

San Luis Obispo County is one of California's largest wine producers.

San Luis Obispo-based Verdin Marketing and RIESTER have teamed up to promote tourism in California’s San Luis Obispo County.

Located along the Pacific Ocean in central California, San Luis Obispo County is one of California’s leading wine producing regions.

Small communities, vineyards and wineries are scattered throughout the rural countryside.  Beach communities and dramatic beaches line the coast.

The county offers the best of coastal California without the crowds.

The unique topography, where mountains meet the Pacific Ocean, creates microclimates where temperatures and precipitation can vary dramatically. This has the effect of creating many unique zones offering a wide variety of experiences within a small area.

The new campaign will promote tourism in unincorporated parts of the county.

Mary Verdin, president of Verdin Marketing Ink, spoke to the San Luis Obispo Tribune this past Saturday: “Our initial talks with the (district) board have already started some great conversations for what the essence of the county is that we will be promoting.”

Verdin Marketing and RIESTER are honored to win this new business to promote such a wonderful part of the world.

The world-famous Pacific coastline is San Luis Obispo County's western border.

Experience Buffalo Bill’s Cody, Wyoming. The wildest way in to Yellowstone.

Visit other posts at RIESTER related to Cody, Wyoming/Yellowstone.

We’re thrilled that one of our latest Addy Awards is for Alta.

Alta Ski Area is truly one of our planet’s gems. Located in Utah, land of the Greatest Snow on Earth, Alta consistently receives more snow than most resorts even in Utah.

With terrain for skiers of all levels, Alta is known for powder skiing–something that this ad for skiers highlights.

Here is the winning print ad (with a link to a high res version below it):

View a high resolution version of this ad (in PDF format) by clicking here.

Read the full editorial here.

Experience Buffalo Bill’s Cody, Wyoming. The wildest way in to Yellowstone.

Visit other posts at RIESTER related to Cody, Wyoming/Yellowstone.

Wyoming Governor Dave Freudenthal photographed yesterday in Cheyenne, Wyoming. The governor caught the spirit of Buffalo Bill.

Wyoming Travel & Tourism Director Diane Shober, yesterday in Cheyenne, Wyoming. Director Shober also caught Buffalo Bill's spirit in honor of Cody, Wyoming and Yellowstone Country.

Experience Buffalo Bill’s Cody, Wyoming. The wildest way in to Yellowstone.

Visit other posts at RIESTER related to Cody, Wyoming/Yellowstone.

Watching the Olympics this past weekend reminded me of some interesting contrasts to Super Bowl ads. Super Bowl ads use big, over-the-top humor. The Super Bowl is a time for extreme advertising. If the ads are going to work, there is often just one chance to get it right.

Olympic ads are a different breed. The spots are repeated frequently over the two weeks of the games. Olympic ads are more emotional, patriotic and heartwarming. There is a bigger emphasis on children, the pursuit of dreams and dedication to difficult goals.

The following two Olympic ads stood out to me as a job well done:

Excerpt from an email sent by Toby Banks from Haiti:

Our facilities in Haiti sustained considerable property damage in the devastating earthquake on Jan. 12. None of the staff or orphans in our care were injured but one house was destroyed and the orphanage needs extensive repairs. Our organization has served the people of Haiti for more than 30 years; we were here before the earthquake and we will be here long after the various large crisis organizations are gone.

We have been blessed by so many people through prayer, encouragement and financial support during this crisis. We have also been blessed by a large construction firm in Ohio who will come alongside us with engineering expertise and construction supervision in building a new orphanage facility that will be stronger and meet the evolving needs of the girls in our care. Repairs on the existing orphanage building have started and once completed, the girls will return there temporarily until the new facility is finished.

We have already begun the process of long-term community relief to assist with the needs of our Croix des Bouquets neighbors. We are meeting immediate needs for food, medical care and temporary housing. Our plans for rebuilding focus on encouraging neighbors to help one another and providing economic stimulus to the area by paying a stipend for work completed.

Pa Bliye Ayiti (Don’t forget Haiti).

>>>>>>>>End dispatch from Haiti<<<<<<<<<

We would like to thank Brad DiIorio of Salt Lick Publishing for donating space in Q Salt Lake to run the following ad: