Press Releases

The 2005 Take Me Fishing advertising media plan by the Recreational Boating and Fishing Foundation was recognized this week with a Myers Media Innovation & Creativity Gold Award Honor.  Given by the Jack Myers Media Business Report, a leading advertising trade newsletter, the award honors the most creative, innovative and effective advertising buys.

RBFF’s advertising agency, The Richards Group out of Dallas, TX, created the Take Me Fishing advertising and is also responsible for media planning.  “We believe this award is a testament to the creative and innovative spirit that The Richards Group is well known for, and a primary reason we selected them as our agency,” said Kirk Gillis, director of marketing and public relations, RBFF.  “Creativity extends throughout the agency and is well reflected in their media planning.  We are pleased to see the Take Me Fishing campaign and The Richards group recognized for effectively reaching Americans with the Take Me Fishing family connection message.”    

The Take Me Fishing campaign received the award for its creative approach to media buys targeting the lapsed angler.  Highlights of the 2005 buy include:

·        A series of unique vignettes were created for airing on the Golf Channel. The vignettes appeared to be golf spots, but evolved into a fishing message — “Take Your Foursome Fishing.” 

·        The Weather Channel agreed to have meteorologists encourage viewers to take advantage of great weekend weather in their area by taking their families boating and fishing. 

·        On MSNBC, the Closing Bell was sponsored on Fridays to get businesspeople thinking about taking their families fishing and boating. 

·        On The Hallmark Channel, vignettes tied to family moments — many fishing related — aired in movies such as A River Runs Through It.

“RBFF is thrilled that our advertising campaign and The Richards Group have received this distinguished recognition,” said Bruce Matthews, president, RBFF.  “Our media budget is modest by industry standards, so it’s very important that our advertising break through the clutter. This award and the results we’re seeing tell us we’re on the right track.” 

“We are proud that the RBFF media plan has been recognized for its creativity and effectiveness,” says Jim O’Rourke, group media director, The Richards Group.  “It underscores that media planning should not be treated as a commodity, but rather as an integral part of the marketing communications mix.”

Measurable results are a crucial component of the programs recognized by the Myers Creativity Awards.  Ongoing tracking of the campaign shows that the creative media buys are continuing to raise awareness of the Take Me Fishing message among the target audience.  The 2005 advertising tracking study showed many increases among lapsed anglers, including a 100% increase in brand awareness, a 15% increase in perceptions of fishing as “the best way to spend leisure time,” and a 31% increase in those who were “extremely likely to go fishing” in the next 12 months.  

For more information about the national advertising campaign, visit www.rbff.org, click on “Programs” and “National Consumer Advertising.”

About the Recreational Boating & Fishing Foundation (RBFF)

The RBFF (www.rbff.org) is a nonprofit organization established in 1998 to increase participation in recreational angling and boating, thereby increasing public awareness and appreciation of the need for protecting, conserving and restoring America’s aquatic natural resources. Recreational boating and fishing are America’s favorite sporting activities, with more than 50 million people participating every year — that’s more than play golf and tennis combined.

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