Lakeland, Fla. (January 26, 2010 – Florida Dept of Citrus) — The Florida Citrus Commission (FCC) conducted a comprehensive six-month agency review to ensure that Florida citrus growers have the most qualified advertising agency to help drive future advertising efforts. The review process was designed to increase industry participation by including Florida growers and holding public meetings to allow the citrus industry to fully participate in the discussion and selection of the agency. Following public presentations by finalists, the FCC named BBDO, Atlanta, Ga., as the advertising agency of record for the Florida Department of Citrus (FDOC) and Florida citrus industry.
“We designed the agency review process to ensure openness and transparency and to create a fair, unbiased scoring mechanism,” explained Ken Keck, FDOC executive director. “The review yielded three highly qualified agencies, each capable of executing the FDOC advertising program, which made the final decision very difficult. We believe that BBDO is poised the help the Florida citrus industry motivate consumer behavior in an era of rapid change.”
A division of Omnicom Group Inc., BBDO Atlanta has been in the advertising business for 58 years. Their national clients include AT&T, HP, ING and REI.
The exhaustive agency review was conducted by an Evaluation Committee appointed by Chairman Benny Albritton, Jr. and led by Commissioner Virginia Pena. The committee was comprised of commissioners, an independent grower and FDOC staff. The committee reviewed 15 agency proposals, selected three semifinalists, conducted site visits to the semifinalists, selected three finalists then evaluated and ranked those finalists. Finally, the committee presented a ranking recommendation to the FCC. All committee meetings were publicly noticed and citrus growers were strongly encouraged to attend and participate.
“We look forward to the insight and expertise that BBDO will bring to our extended marketing team,” Keck commented. “FDOC will continue to implement a highly effective marketing program that delivers a strong return on grower investment to help ensure the future sustainability of the Florida citrus industry.”
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