Bullet Advertising: Texas Tech’s Award-Winning Ad Team

Room 151 in the College of Media and Communication appears unassuming at first, blending in well with the other similar rooms in the building. However, what goes on in that room from September to April of each school year is far from mundane and boring.

Meet the Texas Tech Ad Team, officially named Bullet Advertising. Founded 12 years ago by Advertising Department Chairperson Shannon Bichard, PhD., Bullet Advertising partakes in the American Advertising Federation’s ADMERICA! National Student Advertising Competition.

The American Advertising Federation’s yearly event, recently held in Boca Raton, Florida, features advertising teams from various universities developing and presenting cases depending on the year’s client. This past year, Bullet Advertising placed third at the national competition.

“The students were just in heaven,” Bichard said. “They were all so excited.”

The journey to the national competition started last September, Bichard said, and she analyzed applications from more than 80 students interested in joining the team. The top applicants underwent group interviews, and Bichard chose a few students to represent the team for the year.

“I’ve had as many as 24 students and as few as 15,” Bichard said. “18 is usually the perfect number.”

Nick Kidd, a senior advertising major from Flower Mound, Texas, said he remembers the group interview process and the application process overall.

“It was kind of nerve-wracking actually,” Kidd said. “They all want the same thing you do, and everybody is an equal or better than you.”

Kidd said he noticed the selection committee was looking for students to take leadership. His group was tasked with thinking of creative ways real companies should use ads, and he decided to lead his group.

The advertising major said he was pumped to hear his name called to make the final team. It solidified his sense of belonging among the other finalists, and he knew he had found his calling in that moment.

The client for the year’s competition was Mary Kay, a beauty products company. The choice of client was a hit among the female team members.

Christina Gutierrez, a senior advertising major from El Paso, Texas, said she worked in the tactical demonstration group and helped out with the creative process of the plan. She said Mary Kary was right up her alley as a client she was familiar with.

“Last year was amazing,” Gutierrez said. “As a team, we were able to truly explore the dynamics of working as an advertiser.”

Gutierrez said the team learned the different aspects of what goes into a plan. She learned a good idea on paper does not necessarily translate to a good campaign.

“The pitch, the brief, the visuals and the mood were just the surface of what real-world advertising entails,” Gutierrez said. “I learned that truly great work is a process, and a tough one at that.”

Bichard, head adviser to Bullet Advertising, said she gives her team freedom during the fall semester to come up with their own ideas and plans. The students learn better with a hands-off approach at first, and Bichard integrates herself into the development of the project as the school year goes on.

Bullet Advertising is made up of more than advertising majors, Bichard said. She likes to have a core of advertising students with a variety of different majors to fill out the rest of the team.

“One of the reasons we did so well last year was that we pulled from all different kinds of place,” Bichard said. “Most are ad majors, but we always have some PR, electronic media, media strategies, political science, and some other majors.”

The team is not made up exclusively with seniors, Bichard said. The team is composed of all four classifications to bring new ideas to the development of the project and to build continuity in the program.

Gutierrez, the advertising major from El Paso, said she joined the team as a junior and looks forward to this year’s team and client.

“Because we did so well this past year, I believe we have a standard of excellence to uphold, and with a team full of go-getters, anything is possible,” Gutierrez said. “The goals are to bring home the bacon, take nationals and win the pitch.”

Kidd, the advertising major from Flower Mound, said he will not be on the team this year because he is graduating in December. However, the skills he learned with Bullet Advertising transferred over to his summer internship at i.d.e.a, an advertising agency in San Diego, California.

“To me, that’s the greatest way to learn – hands-on,” Kidd said. “You’re doing exactly what an agency would do, and when I got into an agency setting, it didn’t feel so different.”

Bichard said running the Ad Team requires a lot of hard work and time, but she always finds the motivation to keep doing it once a new school year comes around. She does not change the formula and structure of Ad Team. This year’s client, Pizza Hut, will be handled much like all previous clients.

Previous clients include Yahoo!, Nissan, Coca-Cola and State Farm, Bichard said. Although some clients were more memorable than others, the goal is to win consistently.

“Almost every year, I leave here going to competition and thinking we’re gonna win this. We got this in the bag.”

The students make the team special and are the reason the team has been successful, Bichard said. The students make sacrifices to make the team, but the experience is rewarding and gives them perspective of daily life at an advertising agency.

“It’s been interesting to be involved for this amount of years and seeing the progression and seeing people get it,” Bichard said. “I love it when they figure it out and they’re so excited and passionate about it.”