Four Public Relations students won the Direct Effect Innovation Challenge at the University of South Florida on November 8. The team– Allison James, Paige Peterson, Victoria Pires, and Mitchell Krueger– was presented with the challenge of attracting attention from food enthusiasts to Tampa Bay’s emerging food scene by designing a campaign with a United States Postal Service direct mail piece and a presentation in less than 3.5 hours. 

“This experience taught me a lot about collaboration and working under pressure. I learned that it’s best to get all the ideas on the table early and then from there, narrow them down based on different factors like feasibility, creativity, and application,” said Peterson.

The marketing competition was hosted by the School of Hospitality and Management in the Muma College of Business. However, they were the only team from a school of communication competing against students from Business, Hospitality, and Marketing programs.  

Dr. Richard Waters accompanied the team for the competition and expressed his excitement for the team’s impressive achievement. “I’m proud to say that our team won the competition with a well-thought-out campaign and delivered one of the best presentations of the day.”   

Without knowing what to expect walking into the competition, the team reviewed what other teams in the past had been tasked with. Peterson said the biggest challenge occurred at the beginning of the competition when deciding how to choose one idea, “We started brainstorming and going many different directions to look at the challenge through different lenses. Ultimately, we decided to go with the option that would best appeal to our target audience and would be the most realistic option.”

Krueger emphasized the importance of teamwork saying, “Together, we were able to come up with creative and innovative ideas. That’s what PR and marketing are. They aren’t one-person jobs; they’re a team sport.”