EnviroNews
For Immediate Release:
For information contact:
Kelli Johnson, EnviroMedia, 512-476-4368, ext. 310
512-784-8507 (cell)
Big Wins for Don’t Mess with Texas and EnviroMedia
TxDOT’s slogan voted “America’s favorite;” PR-advertising agency lands account for another three years
(AUSTIN, Texas)—Don’t Mess with Texas is being honored today as America’s favorite slogan with a parade down New York City’s Madison Avenue ending in Times Square.
Thanks to the support of Texans and others who love the Lone Star State, the Texas Department of Transportation’s Don’t Mess with Texas litter prevention slogan won Advertising Week’s 2006 Walk of Fame contest. Don’t Mess with Texas surpassed 25 other great advertising mantras like Nike’s “JUST DO IT” and Burger King’s “Have it your way” to become America’s Favorite Slogan.
TxDOT's litter prevention slogan won in a landslide, with more than 400,000 votes. The Don't Mess with Texas votes are the result of a viral marketing campaign spearheaded by EnviroMedia, TxDOT’s agency of record for the litter prevention program. The e-mail campaign leveraged Texas pride and piggybacked the campaign's 20th anniversary promotions. From June through September, people were encouraged to cast a vote at www.VoteDMWT.com and select Don’t Mess with Texas as their favorite slogan. Viral e-mails circulated around the country to thousands of people, rallying friends, families and colleagues to vote online. Also, several companies were recruited to encourage their employees to vote.
America’s Favorite Slogan
The national contest is part of the third annual Advertising Week Walk of Fame. Advertising Week is North America’s largest annual gathering of advertising and media industry decision makers. Don’t Mess with Texas victory banners will line New York’s Madison Avenue between 49th and 50th Streets, and the slogan will receive permanent recognition in the Advertising Icon Museum in Kansas City, which opens spring 2008.
EnviroMedia Continues the Legacy
Austin-based public relations and advertising agency Tuerff-Davis EnviroMedia Inc. has even more reason to celebrate Don’t Mess with Texas after winning the TxDOT contract for the third consecutive time.
“It’s an honor to retain and work on the Don’t Mess with Texas account,” said Valerie Davis, EnviroMedia CEO and principal. “For the past eight years, we’ve been passionate about bringing new elements to the campaign such as conducting cutting-edge research on litter and adding new celebrity spokespersons. To renew the contract, we asked ourselves how we could take the campaign to the next level, and we can’t wait to begin work and implement new ideas.”
EnviroMedia and TxDOT
EnviroMedia provides media relations, public relations, advertising, experiential “outreach” marketing and Web services for the Don’t Mess with Texas campaign. The agency won its first Don’t Mess with Texas contract in 1998 after advertising agency GSD&M relinquished the account. TxDOT awarded the contract in a competitive bid process to EnviroMedia again in 2002 and then again in September 2006. EnviroMedia has worked with TxDOT to achieve a number of highlights and milestones over the years:
- Exceeded litter-reduction goals, with a 33 percent drop in roadside trash since 2001
- Secured celebrities to appear in new 20th anniversary TV spots, including Matthew McConaughey, Lance Armstrong, Erykah Badu, Owen Wilson, Chuck Norris, Lee Ann Womack and Jennifer Love Hewitt
- Conducted new market research to determine what types of litter occur on Texas rights-of-way and who litters, which resulted in a new younger target audience of males and females age 16 to 24 — “Gen L” or “Generation Litterer”
- Established the Don't Mess with Texas Partners program, which has leveraged the support of many corporations including Southwest Airlines, McDonald's and Coca-Cola
- Introduced the Don’t Mess with Texas scholarship for Texas college-bound students
- Created experiential “outreach” marketing events such as campus cleanups and the first ever Don’t Mess with Texas Road Tour
- Refreshed the Don’t Mess with Texas logo and assisted TxDOT in registering the mark for the first time with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office
“This campaign is one of the most recognized public service campaigns in the country and one of EnviroMedia’s most treasured accounts,” said Kevin Tuerff, EnviroMedia president and principal. “We are too passionate about litter prevention and Don’t Mess with Texas to let any agency win it instead of us.”
The contract lasts for a three-year term, with two two-year options for renewal. Written proposals were due to TxDOT in late July, and oral presentations for select firms occurred in ate August.
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