Advertising Executive Shares Art of Storytelling With Marketing Class

Patrick Bennett Tells BSU Students Advertising Requires Listening

 

MEDIA CONTACT: David Thompson, dlthompson@bowiestate.edu, 301-860-4311

(BOWIE, Md.) – With a well told story, anything is possible. That was the key message that Patrick Bennett, Executive Creative Director at Momentum Worldwide, brought to Dr. Ella Carter’s marketing class to provide students with a better understanding of how they should approach the advertising industry to carve out careers after graduation.

Bennett’s presentation provided students with a simple set of tools to enable the crafting of stories that will cause listeners, viewers, or readers to take action and do something whether it is buying a car or voting.

“Creatives need to listen more to their clients,” said Bennett. “You have to know what to ask in order to solve their problems, and that only happens after listening to them talk through their concerns and dilemmas.  This industry is built on passion and students need to understand that people don’t buy products or services.  What they’re really buying are the visions that advertisers create.”

Luchas Wright, a rising junior majoring in marketing, says his take-away from Bennett’s talk is that borrowing ideas from others goes with the business.

“Mr. Bennett stressed that advertisers frequently take concepts from other creatives and that it goes with the turf,” said Wright.  “I believe inspiration is not finite, it’s not limited.  People in the advertising industry who borrow from others will many times provide the most value to their clients. That’s how I see it.”

Dr. Ella Carter, associate professor of marketing in the College of Business, says having students hear Bennett speak was important.

“Traditionally there has been a scarcity of Black executives in the upper echelons of the advertising industry,” said Dr. Carter. “Patrick Bennett is one of only a handful of African American Executive Creative Directors in the nation. His impressive career as well as his passion and commitment to mentoring students are just a few of the reasons why I felt it was necessary for our students to hear his thoughts about advertising.” 

“You have to be intentional and know how you want people to respond to your advertisement,” said Bennett. “To be successful in this industry you have to push the boundaries of creativity and be as innovative as possible.”

“Patrick inspires students and encourages them to believe that anything is possible,” said Dr. Carter. “I believe it is important to cultivate a spirit of excellence and innovation and remind students of the possibilities.  He is an example of the many amazing possibilities that exist when we don’t give up.”

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