The Mosaic Company and broadhead produced a winning “Celebration” of The Next Generation of Fertilizer

(MINNEAPOLIS, Minn.)-May 16, 2012 — A commercial produced for The Mosaic Company by broadhead has been selected as a 2012 Telly Award winner, earning a Bronze award in the long-form online category for its television commercial, “Celebrations.” The spot marks the broadcast debut for Mosaic’s premium fertilizer brand, MicroEssentials®, The Next Generation of Fertilizer.

Founded in 1979, the Telly Awards honor outstanding local, regional, and cable TV commercials and programs, the finest video and film productions, and online commercials, video and films. For its 33rd season, the Telly Awards joined forces with YouTube to give the public the power to view and rate videos, and fielded 11,000 entries from all 50 states and five continents. Winners represent the best work of the most respected advertising agencies, production companies, television stations, cable operators and corporate video departments in the world.

“We’re thrilled to have such an impactful commercial, and we’ve certainly seen an increase in web traffic and brand recognition as a result of its success,” says Kevin Kimm, director of marketing, The Mosaic Company. “This award is a testament to the hard work of our marketing department in conjunction with the team at broadhead.”

“Celebrations” ties the evolution of fertilizer to the growth of a family farm over three generations. Acknowledging a lack of fanfare and flashy milestones in the fertilizer technology industry until now, the spot culminates with its portrayal of a modern family reaping the rewards of a successful farming operation, thanks to advanced crop nutrition. Viewers are invited to meet the next generation of fertilizer, MicroEssentials.

“Mosaic has a great vision for the MicroEssentials brand, and we’ve really enjoyed bringing that vision to life in this spot,” says Dean Broadhead, president and CEO of broadhead. “Having great broadcast assets like this ad will help advance Mosaic’s brand with its publics.”

The 30 second version of the spot is set to run again in the fall of 2012 on the Big Ten Network, RFD-TV cable network and regional local networks, while the long-form version can continue to be seen at www.MicroEssentials.com.

“The Telly Awards has a mission to honor the very best in film and video,” said Linda Day, executive director of the Telly Awards. “The Mosaic Company’s accomplishment illustrates its creativity, skill and dedication to its craft and serves as a testament to great film and video production.”

To view “Celebrations” in its entirety, click here.

Broadhead, a Minneapolis-based marketing agency, was named one of Minnesota Business magazine’s “100 Best Companies to Work for.” The companies were chosen based on their standards in leadership, benefits, work environment, innovative training programs and employee happiness.

Alex and Jeff keeping it interesting.

In February, independent research firm Gilmore Group gathered information from the hundreds of nominated companies by surveying over 5,769 individuals.

“We’re amongst good company on this list. It’s an honor to be recognized for our efforts,” says CEO/President Dean Broadhead. “Creating a positive work environment has always been a focus because we believe it translates into better ideas and results for our clients.”

The winners will be celebrated this June in Minneapolis.

You think you know…but you have no idea.

This entry is a documentation of what I personally experienced at a day-long photo shoot on a dairy farm in Little Falls, Minnesota. We went in praying that a cow would give birth to a calf, so we could film that moment of extreme pride for the cow and the dairy farmer when the calf arrived. We hoped that this emotion would translate into a visual campaign sharing the pride of agriculture with all.

Tuesday, April 10, 2012

6:32 a.m. – Alarm doesn’t go off. I’m late.

7:00 a.m. – After applying mascara at stop lights, arrive at office.

7:15 a.m. – Meet co-worker, Lori Maude and pick up client at hotel to head to Little Falls, Minn. An hour and 50 minute drive.

9:20 a.m. – Arrive at photo shoot location. It’s way too cold for just a fleece jacket.

9:25 a.m. – Associate Creative Director, Jon Montgomery runs to Wal-Mart and returns with all remaining winter merchandise. Fleeces, blaze orange caps and camouflage hunting gloves.

9:57 a.m. – Associate Creative Director, Jon Montgomery preps and fluffs set straw for first model heifer.

Associate Creative Director, Jon Montgomery

10:48 a.m. – First pregnant cow is brought forward to the set and is ready to give birth. Cameras and crew are ready to document this occasion in an attempt to capture the emotion dairy farmers experience when a new calf is born.

10:49 a.m. – Mama cow is angry and goes bowling for people. Cameras and crew flee the birthing pen. All equipment and people are safe.

10:50 a.m. – Angry mama cow is sent to a private area to calm down. There’s a diva on every set.

11:55 a.m. – Second cow is ready to give birth. This one is calmer and a pleasure to work with.

12:20 p.m. – Waiting. This is her first calf so the birthing process can take more than an hour.

12:50 p.m. – The baby calf is making its way out. First the front hooves and legs followed by its large head. It’s a boy!

12:52 p.m. – Our dairy farmer model, Brooke wipes the slime off of the calf while the photographer captures the first precious moments of his new life. Mama cow is tired, but proudly looks back to make sure her new baby is doing well. He is a healthy and hungry boy.

1:02 p.m. – Baby calf is rolled away in a wheel barrow to be bottle fed his first meal, while mama cow is put into a stanchion. Brooke attaches a portable milk tank and proceeds to gather the first milk, or the colostrum. Colostrum is thick and full of antibodies and nutrients– the perfect meal for newborn calves. In about a week, this mama cow will provide regular milk for this dairy farm to profit from.

1:24 p.m. – Lunch break.

2:04 p.m. – The crazy mama cow is back and she’s ready to give birth. This time, we’re shooting from behind a gate and at a safe distance. Even though we’re not crowding her, she knows we’re here and isn’t happy. Because we don’t want the baby to suffer from any birthing complications, the crew leaves the area and within 5 minutes, mama cow delivers a beautiful baby girl!

2:10 p.m. – The crew is back to capture Brooke, the new calf and her mama together, but the mama soon gets upset and stands up.

2:15 p.m. – The birthing pen is cleared and mama is kicking up hay and stomping the ground, just missing her newborn’s head.

2:25 p.m. – Hector, Brooke’s assistant, carefully ushers angry mama cow into the stanchion. Mama gets locked away while Brooke is shot cleaning off and feeding the new calf. Even though she’s locked up, mama cow keeps a close eye on her baby while the crew attempts to capture the pride of a dairy farmer on film.

2:50 p.m. Lori, the client and I begin our long trip back to Minneapolis. I sit exhausted and amazed by what I have just seen.

Beginning Tuesday, March 13, 2012, and continuing the 2^nd Tuesday of each month, we will be hosting monthly information sessions to give juniors, seniors, and interested alumni information on our agency and culture.  We will run the sessions from 9:00am to 10:00 am in our offices.

Each month we’ll provide an overview of our agency and culture, and discuss one of the following topics*:

Tuesday, 3/13 The Importance of Internships to Your First Job

Tuesday, 4/10 My First Creative Job

Tuesday, 5/8 My First Marketing/Communications Job

Please pass along to those who may be interested.  If you’d like to attend, RSVP to us c/o Sue Tincher, stincher@broadheadco.com. Hope to see you there!

*We’ll update our topic schedule as we move forward.