Great advertising agencies are known for their memorable ad campaigns; and the art directors and copywriters who create these funny, moving, heart-warming campaigns are the rock stars of the ad world.

You know we love any opportunity to have fun!

As the public relations agency for Texas Dairy Queen, we partnered with The LOOMIS Agency on a campaign they created to reveal a fresh new sound for DQ restaurants in Texas in celebration of their 75th anniversary in the Lone Star State.

One of the most recognizable jingles in Texas will debut with a fresh new sound June 13, 2022 with a surprise country artist on vocals. The iconic jingle for DQ restaurants in Texas, “That’s What I like about Texas,” brings two icons together for the launch of this unique interpretation. The catchy jingle has captured the hearts of Texans in the Lone Star State for 20 years.

So, who is this Texas country artist? Who is bold enough to take on this memorable tune? Mark your calendars for the big reveal at 9 a.m. CST on June 13th at dqtexas.com. The announcement also will be made at 11 a.m. on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.

Plano-based Aardvark Communications and Colleyville-based Miller Public Relations have merged. The two firms, which will operate as Aardvark Communications, were engaged in merger discussions for several months, Aardvark President David Alvey told D CEO.

“For the past 30 years, Aardvark Communications has been very successful in marketing and public relations,” Alvey said. “With advances in technology, the industry continues to change and evolve. We have been exploring opportunities to add services for our clients. The timing of this opportunity was perfect for both entities. We are excited about the expanded creative services, digital marketing, and social media expertise our new team members bring to our agency.”

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Plano-based Aardvark Communications Inc. and Miller Public Relations of Colleyville have announced the two privately held companies have merged operations and teams. The deal was completed May 31. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. The public relations and marketing firm will operate as Aardvark Communications.

Over the past three decades, Aardvark Communications has built an extraordinary reputation guiding clients through some of the most challenging events in our country’s history including 9-11, the stock market crash of 2008 and, most recently, a world-wide pandemic.

Founded and independently owned by Cyndi Miller, Miller Public Relations is a 27-year-old company that has primarily focused on serving the medical and wellness communities, including Mann Eye Institute (Houston & Austin); Carter Eye Center Dallas; and Collins Vision (Naples-Fort Myers). Miller will serve as a consultant to Aardvark Communications.

With the merger complete, Aardvark Communications has a team of experienced professionals offering clients a full range of strategic public relations and marketing capabilities, including full-service creative services; digital marketing; social media; event management; photo and video production and media services.

“This merger is a great opportunity for both our teams and clients,” said David Alvey, President and Founder of Aardvark Communications. “We have great diversity between our client mix and the services we provide. Our common goals and values and how we manage our relationships with clients, vendors, and the media made this a perfect fit. The team from Miller Public Relations is extremely talented and we’re looking forward to working with them and growing together.”

Founded in 1992, Aardvark Communications’ expertise is in real estate, restaurants, retail, attractions, automotive, consumer products, and non-profits. Aardvark’s clients include Park Place Dealerships; Hawaiian Falls Waterparks; Dee Brown, Inc.; Texas Dairy Queen Operators’ Council; Susser Bank; Urban Oil and Gas, City Center Fort Worth; City of Ennis, and Leukemia Texas among others. More information is available at aardvarktx.com.

Caleb Hernandez with Park Place Dealerships talked to Ben Russell at NBC 5 regarding the North Texas Auto Show as well as Electric Vehicles and how Park Place will take care of every client in this challenging market. Click here to see the full interview.

Originally Featured on The Dallas Morning News on April 21, 2020

Car dealerships in North Texas are reopening their showrooms this week under updated federal guidelines that made vehicle sales an essential service.

Dealers contacted by The Dallas Morning News said they’re also ready to offer staples like customer test drives.

On March 20, a week after shelter-in-place orders went into effect in Dallas County, the National Automobile Dealers Association took up the cause of getting auto sales deemed essential.

“These types of sales are not optional,” said association spokeswoman Juliet Guerra. “They are essential to ensure folks have access to transportation, and goods and supplies keep moving.”

Following successful lobbying efforts by the auto dealership industry, “sales” was added to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s definition of essential transportation and logistics businesses. Manufacturing, distribution, rental, leasing, repair and maintenance all had previously been considered essential.

Many dealerships have remained partially open in North Texas because they provide repairs and rentals. They moved the buying process online, delivered vehicles directly to homes and conducted “virtual test drives.”

But dealerships can’t support their businesses through online sales alone, said Bruce Thompson, owner of Plano-based CarOffer and a serial entrepreneur in the car dealership industry.

“It’s the second largest purchasing decision that a consumer will make outside of their home. So a lot of consumers want to go in and touch and feel. And that’s why we have showrooms today,” he said.

COVID-19 wrecked automakers’ first-quarter sales. Last week, new car sales plunged 57% year over year and used car sales fell 51%, according to Cox Automotive.

Ray Huffines, owner of Plano-based Huffines Auto Dealerships, said he’s had to trim expenses at his eight dealerships, including pay cuts for some employees. His dealerships employ more than 750 people.

“We didn’t lay off anybody and we didn’t furlough anybody because we wanted to keep our team together,” said Huffines, who also received a loan under the federal government’s Payroll Protection Program.

Huffines said customers should feel safe about visiting showrooms again.

“Showrooms are very large. There’s plenty of room for people to keep their distance. It’s not like a grocery store or a Home Depot,” he said.

“We were practicing all of the guidelines, even though we were not allowed to have walk-in showroom traffic.”

At Classic Mazda of Denton, general manager Rick Wick has stocked up on hand sanitizer stations, disinfectant wipes and optional masks for employees. He said cleaning crews come through the dealership every night.

“We’re taking every single tool that’s available to us to keep this as clean as we can,” Wick said.

Classic Mazda of Denton is also wrapping steering wheels and car seats with disposable plastic covers as well as misting the interior of vehicles with a disinfectant in between use and before delivering them to customers.

Park Place Dealerships Chief Operating Officer Tony Carimi said the loosening of restrictions will help customers who aren’t comfortable buying online or over the phone.

“The most important thing is meeting the client where they feel comfortable,” Carimi said.

Park Place locations are following the most restrictive safety measures put in place by Texas counties, Carimi said. That means spreading out seating in waiting areas and at sales representatives’ desks. It’s also following the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s guidelines on social distancing and checking employees’ temperatures at the start of the workday, he said.

“What we’re trying to do is our part in helping our community continue to move forward during these unprecedented times,” he said.