Disclaimer: This assignment was prepared for the Public Relations program at Conestoga College. It is not intended to represent the views of the College, PR program or faculty.

I had to put together something called a Creative Brief for class about my ‘fictional’ company Atta Girl. It’s not all that fictional and I’ve been testing many of my business concepts though my class assignments. For this one, the business is real, I’m real, but the advertising campaign that’s put together is fictional. If the project gets a good grade, then I’m onto something. If it’s anything less than a B, scrap it or revisit it. Education is a double edged sword. At times, it pains me to see it through and the last thing I want to do is sit there and be ‘in the moment’. But, in hindsight, those moments are making me really concentrate on goals and objectives for the future. I’m being forced to get real and put wheels in motion, instead of shooting my mouth off.

Straight up, for this particular assignment, I stepped out of my comfort zone and had to do something I didn’t quite know anything about. I followed hand-written notes and tried to paint the whole picture. The assignment was to put together information that we would send to a printing company to tell them about our company and give them a plan as to what we would need for our business, in terms of printed advertisements.
I took a stab at it.

Atta Girl Creative Brief
By: Amber Long

Overview:
Atta Girl is an academy, established in 2010, to help creative people reach their dreams with more efficiency and guidance. Organizing press kits, music production, websites, social networking and public relations and promotions, saving them time and frustration, wrapped up in one package for one price. Atta Girl primarily focuses on the younger generation, helping them move forward with their career in music, versus just a moment in music.
Located in the heart of downtown Toronto, Atta Girl promises opportunities for performance and exposure opportunities, not to mention the all-important networking factor. Our job is to train people to be self-sufficient artists, how to get their art/music signed/sold, how to plan, organize and deliver great concerts, even basic computer skills can be taught, such as Photoshop, to help artists create their own basic promotional materials.
Our home is in a church, boasting of an on-site recording studio with unique acoustics. The equipment used is the latest and greatest in technology and specialty services are managed by professionals who work with Atta Girl.
Each individual’s production is sure to be all their heart’s desires as Atta Girl has it all!

Code of Ethics
Invest 100% of yourself, be genuine, express yourself, and be fearless.
Be open to being educated by other musical cultures and musicians, regardless of race, gender or age.
Always pay homage to influences, teachers, and the originators.
Contribute, through performance of music to the public, in promoting the enjoyment and understanding of music, being aware of its privilege and commit to being Ambassadors and Tastemakers of said privilege.
Strive to educate inexperienced musicians, and the community, rather than merely focusing on earning money.
Push the boundaries, not just for art’s sake, but in pursuit of equality, community and imagination.

Amber Long, CEO ~ Biography
“If it were possible to make her a new word in the Urban Dictionary, Amber Long would be defined as such: Amber Long adj: driven, persistent, dreaming. (1) To do something that would inspire someone. (2) To go big or go home. (3) to revitalize…” – Indie Seen, Echo Weekly Magazine

In a relatively short time, Long’s career smashed into over-drive, including 6 Sonic Boom Awards for CKMS Radio 100.3 FM, 2 nominations at the Toronto Independent Music Awards, and performances that have scaled across North America – as far as New York City, Boston and Chicago. With four, full length albums under her belt, as well as being an established Beatport/Traxsource/Juno Download artist, her most recent concept album, XXX, released October 10, 2010, was voted #5 in the Top 10 Albums of 2010, Indie Seen, Echo Weekly Magazine. Amber adds DJ, Producer, Author and Visual Artist, to her extensive resume, constantly honing her craft. She plays regularly throughout the Toronto area, showcasing her own productions, as well as those with whom she works. Her book, ‘The Diary of a Suburban Diva’ , sold out in 2009, and is currently being reedited and is set for its second release in 2012.

Long’s personal passion for the arts has driven her to extend her expertise to others and her company, Atta Girl, specializes in assisting new artists to achieve their creative goals more efficiently. With her years of experience, Amber holds the keys to many networks including Music Production and Distribution, Photography and Video Production, Media Relations, Social Media Management, Public Relations, Strategic Communications and overall Wellness Management. Currently working with an array of artists on the roster, these are reaching their own personal goals such as organizing ‘Showcase Shows’ for their music, releasing professional recordings available for global digital distribution and gathering promotional materials, to help get the artist’s name out, all the while, having constant personal peer support.

Why This Project is Needed?
Since Atta Girl is a relatively new Academy for performers and musicians, as well as the concept being fairly new, we are looking to host a series of Open Houses to introduce the public to our services. This 6 week series will be done in the form of tours, musical performances and an open call for visual artists to submit their work so as to display it for a month in the studio. Art will be changed each month to highlight a new artist. To go along with this, we will be holding a contests on all social media platforms to increase awareness of Atta Girl’s services with product and service prizes to be won.

What Are We Looking To Do?
We are looking to completely ad-bomb all of the Greater Toronto Area. This is a huge area to manage and we will be looking at postcards to be sent out to homes within a 5km radius of Atta Girl, we are looking to have pamphlets printed and placed in gyms, community centers, doctor’s offices, learning centers, outreach centers, anywhere people may want to pick one up. Posters will be posted in places such as grocery stores, trendy bars, lounges and restaurants, gyms, on public transportation and if possible, on a few cabs in the city. Social media sites will be set up with managers to ensure they have engaging information and updates, establishing their brand solidly, online.
Even though Atta Girl is focusing on a younger demographic, we are also trying to reach the parents of these youth, as well as those surrounding them who may be associated in the arts fields. This is why our range for advertising is so great and diverse.

The Message We Want to Communicate
Amber Long has opened her own academy because she did many things so imperfectly within her own artistic career. Had she had someone there, along the way, she may have gotten farther, faster. Now, looking at being almost 40 (not really), she no longer wants to be on a stage any more. The fishnets have gotten old. BUT! This doesn’t change the excitement that comes from helping another realize their artistic dreams. Our message is that it is ALL POSSIBLE, and possibly to do while having a lot of FUN! With focus, proper goals and objectives, all things can be attained with hard work. There are no ‘what ifs’ in any situation once one’s mind is made up.

When is This Project Due?
With all initial growing pains out of the way, Atta Girl is looking to swing into full gear, early in 2012. To line up with New Year’s Resolutions, we are looking to have a huge campaign for the first quarter. The Open House Series will be held from March to mid-April, giving us 8 weeks to advertise the events and company. We are choosing to do it this way and at this time since winter months can be very long in the end and people are looking for creative outlets, into the spring and nicer weather. Also, in having this series before summer, this may incite artists to pursue their own endeavors with local shows and festivals, possibly even giving them product to distribute if they begin working with Atta Girl quickly enough. All final designs and copy are to be approved by Dec 31st and ready to go out the door for January 15th, 2012. The first Open House Series is to be held March 15th, 2012, and for the next 5 Thursdays afterwards.

Included
With this Creative Brief, we are including our logo, business colours, bio, all the copy we’ve written thus far, information about the Open House Series, images of the studio, website information, contact information and a stack of business cards. All other details have been outlined in the preceding paragraphs and our media analyst will be taking care of where to distribute each different form of advertisement.