Manifesto

We all compete everyday. But why do we compete? To be ahead.

To be ahead is both a state of mind and a course of action, working in unison to separate us from the competitors - to win and continue to win by going beyond the conventional by sprinting the last leg when all others are merely running. By exploding through barriers and blazing new paths.

At Brandon Advertising & Public Relations, we are wired to win. To be ahead at every turn. To hold nothing back until the result has been achieved. At Brandon... be ahead... or be left behind.

History

Brandon Advertising owes its start to a bank. Well, a bank and spare time. Nearly fifty years ago, Cecil Brandon came to Myrtle Beach to begin a career in banking. However, he arrived a few months early, so with time on his hands, he decided to take photographs around the beach and sell them as advertising postcards out of the trunk of his car. Had Cecil arrived a few months later, Brandon Advertising might very well be Brandon Banking today, but, thanks to some spare time, an advertising agency was born. Cecil never looked back.

Since then, Brandon Advertising has flourished into a full-service agency with national clients and over 60 full-time employees. Still though, we approach each day ­ and each client - with that entrepreneurial drive. It¹s just who we are.

In 2004, Brandon Advertising proudly announced the opening of an office in Charleston, S.C., in order to serve our ever-growing client base in the Charleston and Hilton Head areas. With work from The Beach Company and the addition of Colleton River in Hilton Head, it was a natural expansion for the agency. And with new clients in New York, Atlanta and Florida, we might just be opening an office near you.

Overview

Brandon Advertising is a dynamic, full-service advertising agency with offices in Myrtle Beach and Charleston, S.C. Our key to success is simple. We focus on one thing: generating powerful ideas. Powerful marketing ideas. Powerful creative ideas. Powerful media ideas. Powerful P.R. ideas. Simply put, ideas that get noticed. Because if you're not getting noticed, you're wasting money. That¹s why we created Be Ahead. It¹s an idea and a process that promotes teamwork between our clients and us. From the earliest stages, we define the brand and identify the marketing opportunities from both a short and long-term perspective. It¹s that kind of planning that enables us to find unexpected solutions that inspire, entice and create shifts in thinking about a product or service.

In the ever changing world of communications, Brandon Public Relations remains on the cutting edge of technology, ensuring that our clients are properly presented in all channels of publicity. From researching editorial opportunities to proactively contacting the media with newsworthy topics, our department delivers a strategic plan that ensures successful placement and recognition for our clients on the local, regional and national levels, including Fox News, CNN, The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Inc. and The Robb Report. Brandon Public Relations professionally executes press conferences, media tours, new business launchings, crisis management and media training, which provide our clients with the proper vehicles to promote their message.

Account Planning

Account Planning delves deeper into the wants, needs, perceptions and characteristsics of the target audience through research and discussion. Gaining this depth of research and insight ensures more effective strategy, messaging, creative and media executions, thus ensuring the cliet's marketing communications program heads in the correct direction and has the edge to break through the clutter for the intended audience.

Account Management

The Account Management team at Brandon Advertising is results driven. We work closely with our clients to understand the issues, identify the opportunities and develop programs that generate measurable results. We have access to a wealth of marketing resources and collaborate with other team members to determine the proper combination of tools and strategies to accomplish predetermined goals. From planning to implementation, once a program is set in motion, we lead the team to assure budgets, timetables and target goals are attained, keeping the client informed every step of the way.

Creative

This is typically the section where we tell you our creative approach, but if we did that, we’d constantly be changing this section of the website, and I don’t think Interactive would be very happy with us. You see, our creative approach is never the same. It depends on the client, depends on what we are selling, depends who we are trying to reach. It even depends on which team we have working on it. So, there’s no way we could paraphrase what we do. The one thing we can say is that everything that comes out of the Creative Department is truly unique. Well, I guess we can paraphrase what we do.

Interactive

Be ahead with Brandon Advertising on the forefront of technology. Our integrated approach weaves web marketing applications throughout your entire campaign. Generate leads with pay-per-click (PPC) and search engine optimization (SEO) campaigns, convert more visitors with effective web design and cultivate relationships with email marketing and CRM solutions. Our Interactive Department is streaming video, syndicating RSS content, podcasting, blogging and more every day. Interactive is an essential component of your Brandon Advertising marketing program, so no matter how quickly the web changes, you’re sure to be ahead.

Media

The media world is evolving every day, and the media team at Brandon Advertising can help you chart your course through this ever changing landscape. We know the new media channels, the legacy media channels and maybe a few emerging media vehicles you’re never heard of! And, we don’t work alone. We partner with Account Management, Creative and P.R. to make sure we give you an integrated plan. We’ve got the research, knowledge and expertise to help you reach the right people in the right place at the right time. Oh, and we do it all cost effectively, too. Now, isn’t that what you want your guide to do?

Direct

Brandon Direct provides a broad range of direct marketing disciplines. In practically every business, the best source of new business is current customers. We examine current customer data to develop a thorough understanding of who your “best” customers are, and then develop strategies and tools to strengthen those relationships and increase future sales. Additionally, we search in all of the right places for prospective new customers who also fit that profile.

Travel

Last year our clients sold more than $400 million in room nights with an average occupancy percentage exceeding 80 percent. This did not happen by running ads and building sharp websites. It came from an integrated approach that created new and lasting guests for our clients.

Clients: Endless Fun Hotels & Resorts, Myrtle Beach Hotels.com, Sea Island Resort, Vegas Hotels.com, Miami Hotels.com, Litchfield Beach & Golf Resort, Breakers Resort, Caravelle Golf Resort, Atlantic Coast Resorts, Ocean Blue

Golf

Our clients hosted over 4 million golfers on their courses and in their hotels in 2005. No other agency touches and understands the core golfer quite like we do.

Clients: Myrtle Beach Golf Holiday, Caledonia Golf & Fish Club, The Dunes Golf & Beach Club, The Myrtle Beach National Co., Talamore Golf, Classic Golf Group, Monday After the Masters, World Amateur Golf, Golf Shoe Centers of America

Attractions

Understanding the motivations that move customers to become ticket buyers led to our clients selling over 3 million tickets last year to parks around the country.

Clients: NASCAR Speedpark, Myrtle Waves, Myrtle Beach Grand Prix, Coastal Grand Mall, Bulldog Tours, Endless Caverns, Ripken Experience

Real Estate

Our clients generated over $1 billion in sales over the past 12 months using a proven approach that compresses the process from inquiry to tour to sale unlike any other.

Clients: The Litchfield Company Real Estate, The Hoffman Group, The Beach Company, RWO Acquisitions, Stonebridge Development, Colleton River Plantation, Signature Homes, Habersham, Leeward Marina Resort and Spa, Mariner's Pointe, The Silver Companies, Sea Pines Real Estate Co.

Financial

Over the past 12 months, our Banking clients grew their assets by over 50 percent. Are you looking to grow your customer base as well as grow through more effective cross selling to your existing customers? We understand how banks make money and what they need to grow and prosper in the new age of bank marketing.

Clients: Community Alliance Bancshares, Crescent Bank, Carolina Financial Corporation, Anderson Brothers Bank, Horry County State Bank, CommunitySouth Bank

Software

Lead generation, sales support and credibility are all part of successful software marketing. Our integrated approach increased sales for our software clients in 2005 by 100 percent over 2004 and generated over $2 million in Public Relations exposure.

Clients: Greenway Medical Technologies, Sapience 360, GuestDesk, Intellistrand

Healthcare

Build your healthcare brand with a focus on credibility and expertise - the most important attributes in the minds of healthcare consumers in the new millennium.

Clients: Stokes Regional Medical Centers, CareSouth Carolina, Greenway Medical Technologies, Curae Lase

Restaurants

It’s all about creating a trail and new customers. Food franchise marketing has never been so competitive.

Clients: Crew Carolina, The Boathouse Restaurants, Divine Dining Group, Sea Captain’s House

Communications

The competitive landscape has never been so crowded with consumer choices and options. Our communications clients last year had an increase in retention rate, grew their new customer base and increased revenue.

Clients: HTC Communications, Cingular, HTC Digital Cable, Horry Telephone Cooperative, Atlantic Telephone, HTC Horizon Wireless, Hargray Communications

Packaged Goods

In the light of the soaring cost of mass consumer media, packaging and label design are oftentimes the critical link to the consumer. Our ability to build brands while differentiating products through packaged good marketing has resulted in some powerful success stories.

Clients: McCall Farms, Margaret Homes, Ready Recipes, Red Fox Peanuts, Boathouse Products, Wild Rooster

News

See All News Articles

FARMERS TELEPHONE COOPERATIVE SELECTS BRANDON ADVERTISING AND PUBLIC RELATIONS FOR MARKETING AND PUBLIC RELATIONS EFFORTS

Brandon Advertising and Public Relations, one of the leading golf, tourism and real estate agencies in the Southeast, has been tapped to spearhead all marketing efforts for Farmers Telephone Cooperative (FTC).
Founded in 1952, Farmers Telephone Cooperative, Inc. is a local, multifaceted telecommunications company headquartered in Kingstree, S.C. Serving more than 60,000 customers within a coverage area of 3,000 miles, FTC provides cutting-edge technology to businesses and residents in Williamsburg, Lee, Sumter, Clarendon and Florence counties in South Carolina. A veteran in the telephone industry, FTC is the second largest telephone cooperative in the United States. FTC has evolved into a state-of-the-art organization offering local, long-distance, security systems and monitoring, video, digital wireless, and high-speed Internet services. Customers can choose from a wide array of products and services at any of the company’s seven conveniently located full-service business offices.
“Brandon Advertising and Public Relations was our agency of choice due to their history of effective marketing campaigns, as well as their extensive background in the telecommunications industry,” said Robin Coker, chief marketing officer of FTC. “We look forward to our partnership enabling us to expand our services to even more areas of the Pee Dee Region with smart, innovative marketing and public relations.”
“As the second largest telephone cooperative in the country, FTC has a great deal to offer its customers,” said Scott Brandon, president of Brandon Advertising and Public Relations. “With our expertise in telecommunications marketing, combined with our strategic operations and out-of-the-box creative work, our Agency is well-suited to help FTC achieve its business goals, and we are eager to begin our working relationship.”
About Brandon Advertising and Public Relations One of the leading golf, tourism and real estate agencies in the Southeast, Brandon Advertising and Public Relations is headquartered in Myrtle Beach, S.C. with a second office in downtown Charleston, S.C. Founded in 1959 by area tourism pioneer, Cecil Brandon, Brandon Advertising and Public Relations also handles corporate, healthcare and retail accounts. Brandon’s client list includes Myrtle Beach Golf Holiday, Caledonia Golf and Fish Club, True Blue Golf Plantation, Springs Creative Products Group, Greenway Medical Technologies, Coastal Grand Mall, Crescent Bank, Myrtle Beach Campground Association, Litchfield Beach & Golf Resort, Myrtle Beach National Golf Company, Burroughs & Chapin Company, SpiritLine Cruises, Fort Sumter Tours, Broadway at the Beach, Dataw Island, Island Vista Resort, HTC Communications and Southern Tide.
For more information about Brandon Advertising and Public Relations, call (843) 916-2000 or visit brandonadvertising.com.
Client Login