NEW ORLEANS, Jan. 8 /PRNewswire/ -- Advertising agencies are in business to help other companies succeed, in good times and in bad. But what happens to these agencies when tough times hit their own industry?

Keating Magee is a 28 year old, women-owned communications firm that has survived three recessions, 9/11 and Hurricane Katrina. And now this tenacious agency finds itself in the midst of yet another recession.

Or, as Keating Magee's founder and CEO Jennifer Magee says, "The country is now experiencing our Katrina."

The Louisiana-based agency was in its infancy when the oil bust of the early 1980's strangled the Gulf South, and New Orleans in particular. Businesses that had been spending hundreds of thousands of dollars in advertising were crippled. Keating Magee seized the opportunity to create a PR department, advising clients that they could affordably maintain a market presence while spending substantially fewer dollars.

In addition to PR efforts, we continued to utilize traditional media to help clients find new markets, such as launching an aggressive regional TV campaign for Hotel Inter-Continental in 1984, which helped them establish a much stronger presence in the South than its competitors.

Then other recessions and September 11 ensued, and KM's resilience steered it not only to survival but also to growth.

According to Magee, "In each instance, not only did we recommend to our clients that they increase--or at least maintain--their marketing efforts, but we as an agency did the same."

But perhaps the most devastating blow came not from economic distress but from environmental upheaval. After Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans in 2005, the local advertising world came to a halt. Traditional media outlets were simply not available and technology was unreliable. As the second largest advertising agency in New Orleans, Keating Magee had been heavily tourism-based, and with the city shut down for months, there were no visitors.

In the first weeks after Katrina we had 31 employees scattered in 18 different cities around the country. From all those different cities not only were clients contacted but marketing plans were developed, media was bought in employee's cars using cell phones or blackberries, PR ideas were spawned in employees' homes, websites (including our own emergency site) and ads were created in hotel rooms.

"From a media perspective there were no TV or radio ratings so we had to use other methods of evaluating media. There was an increase in use of interactive media due to traditional outlets being destroyed, damaged or limited due to heavy demand from recovery related companies. In other words, we had to think fast and creatively on our feet and encourage our clients to do the same."

"In order for us to survive, we had to look beyond traditional solutions. We had to look for opportunities that were created because of the storm--the proverbial silver lining," Magee says.

There was an emergence of a new industry called volun-tourism--which brought people to New Orleans for more than just a party, but for a purpose--to help with the recovery efforts. Through a combination of public relations, interactive and traditional media strategies, the agency worked with its tourism clients, such as Starwood Hotels (Sheraton and W in New Orleans), on coordinating and promoting these new initiatives.

Additionally, there were media from across the globe in New Orleans--all looking for unique stories. Public relations was the most effective way to get the word out about recovery efforts, thus strengthening brands.

Magee adds, "Katrina also forced us to invest in ourselves-to look beyond our Louisiana roots not only for clients but also for employees."

The result? Keating Magee had its best year ever after Katrina.

So how can smart companies survive tough times? Keating Magee learned three lessons:

1. When instinct tells you to cut back, have confidence and invest in marketing. 2. Look for new opportunities presented by the environment. 3. Examine your client and employee bases--see what they value and provide it.

For more information about how to survive and even thrive in hard times, visit www.keatingmagee.com or call 504.299.8000.

Keating Magee is a full-service communications firm driven by its creativity. Our job is to connect brands with the consumer on an emotional level to impel them to act - and get businesses the results they need.



SOURCE Keating Magee