Jake Mlnarik
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Kiss Me, I'm an Adcat

12/16/2014

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Some of my fellow students at NWMSU may recall seeing mistletoe hung all around campus during the last few weeks of this fall 2014 semester. Well hey, I'm Jake. Guilty as charged. Believe it or not, this whole shebang all started with a post I saw on the popular anonymous message board app, YikYak. 
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This "yak" gave me an idea right off the bat, so I immediately took a screenshot to remember. By the end of the day, this post had over one hundred upvotes, so I brought my idea to AdInk's president. We met the day before Thanksgiving break to discuss the possibility of creating branded mistletoe and holiday decorations to hang around campus. It wasn't long after that mistletoe was ordered on Amazon Prime and we discovered a way to access the campus buildings to hang these decorations before everyone returned from Thanksgiving break. Planning phase complete. Perfect. I had recently ordered a 100-pack of X-Acto blades that were just thirsty for some crafting, so my work was cut out for me (hehehe).
First things first, I created a stencil. I cut out a dozen of these bad boys from a box I bummed from a local fast food joint.
PROCESS. This took forever. Corrugated materials are tricky to make dance with your craft knife.
PROGRESS. Here's an unfinished half of what will become my AdInk mistletoe hangers.
Finally coming together. I finished cutting the last one of these minutes before I answered the doorbell to pick up my faux mistletoe.
Next step: I painted the AdInk halves with white acrylic.
I created a stencil for the other half of the hangers with AdInk's Twitter handle. PRO TIP: If you incorporate an @ symbol in a stencil this small, be prepared for lots of fine tuning...
Finished Twitter halves ready to go!
Rubber cement dries fast. GOGOGOGOGO
Next, I found an old needle and threaded my mistletoe to hang from the bottom of each hanger.
All twelve hangers with mistletoe attached.
@NW_AdInk can hang.
AdInk can hang.
Where's my hole punch?? I was sick the entire time I was making these. I grabbed a thermometer and popped holes in the tops of the hangers.
This hole in my desk helped pop the thermometer through.
Datfeel.jpg
Dollar Tree freaking RULES. I found some cheap ribbon to add to the hangers.
Dollar Tree also had $1 wreathes. I knew what had to be done...
After 10+ hours of work over my own Thanksgiving break, I ended up with a big 'ole box of AdInk holiday spirit. Production complete!
Wreath #1 in Wells Hall.
Wreath #2 in The Station.
Wreath #3 in the Student Union.
Our first stop was Wells Hall. We moved quick, so I wasn't taking lots of pictures of us hanging these things.
Here's an AdInk mistletoe in action. We decked the halls of 7 different NWMSU buildings with these merry fruits of my labor.
#didntgetarrestedswag
So, why do all this? Well...Why not? I would love nothing more than for this kind of thing to become an AdInk tradition. The winter holidays are some of the most advertising message-soaked times of the year. Consumer spending is through the roof, and everyone is fighting to be the talk of the season. Why not make my student organization soak up all that limelight? Talk about brand association: the  warm and tingly feelings of holiday spirit and smooches from the ones you love under an AdInk branded mistletoe. However, let me be clear when I say that this was absolutely a test run. With just a weekend of planning and execution, I am thrilled with the turnout. It was difficult to get the word out about this little guerrilla campaign's contest angle. The original plan was for students to take selfies under the mistletoe kissing whatever means the most to them, (boyfriend/girlfriend/Starbucks/headphones/whatever) and tweet them at @NW_AdInk for a chance to win gift cards or prizes. The plan to take this campaign's discussion to social media outlets was less prominent on Twitter, but moreso on the platform from which the idea was born in the first place, YikYak. Here are just some of the responses our little stunt got out of the anonymous student population.
With any luck, next year's guerrilla campaign will be bigger, better, and on the shoulders of more than just myself and another during just one weekend. The best part is, I have a whole year to come up with ideas to make sure 2015 is the year AdInk blows up over this on Twitter or elsewhere, but this year's conversation wasn't so bad either.

#AdCats are spreading some holiday cheer around @NWMOSTATE campus! I love these guys! @NW_AdInk pic.twitter.com/sJHnnM1avR

— jplamer (@jplamer) December 1, 2014

Careful of spontaneous kisses, Bearcats! @NW_AdInk is spreading love all over @NWMOSTATE campus! pic.twitter.com/yWFcbZwhbx

— jplamer (@jplamer) December 1, 2014

It's the most wonderful time of the year for some @NW_AdInk mistletoe loving! pic.twitter.com/f6sdAOphpr

— Kellen Burgess (@jayhawker93) December 4, 2014

Kissing my love, #ZetaPhiBeta!! @nw_adink pic.twitter.com/T1rRiU8cL3

— Kira Foster (@vanilla_k1tty) December 5, 2014

Thanks to @CCWilcoxson and @NW_AdInk for the Starbucks gift card! Much appreciated, you all are great.

— Kellen Burgess (@jayhawker93) December 10, 2014
I couldn't think of a better way to end 2014 with AdInk. I really felt like everyone in the club was blown away by this little secret campaign that Carlton and I whipped up seemingly overnight. I felt pretty damn jolly at our club's last meeting of the year. Everyone clapped for me! As much as I tried to shrug it off, let me be real. Getting a round of applause from your peers that isn't solicited by some mandatory in-class power point or half-assed group presentation felt really good for once.
It's been real, AdCats. The year 2014 was great, but how about a cheers to 2015?

#ad cats are having a party! @NW_AdInk pic.twitter.com/ufOk5blBnh

— jplamer (@jplamer) December 4, 2014
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