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Sixty-Year Milestone Marks New Era
Swanson Russell—Nebraska’s largest advertising agency—celebrated its 60th anniversary by unveiling a new brand identity and hosting an open house in its new and larger Omaha office located in Aksarben Village. These events cap off five years of accelerated success as the agency grew revenue 34%, built a 12,000-square-foot addition to its Lincoln office, won five straight Nebraska Ad Federation’s Best of Show Awards and was named AMA 2022 Corporate Marketer of the Year.
Swanson Russell’s long-term success was propelled by a foundation laid decades ago by Gus Swanson and Steve Russell. As an avid outdoorsman, Swanson pursued hunting and fishing brands as clients. Russell later implemented industry specialization as a strategy to differentiate the agency, allowing Swanson Russell to not only serve premier brands in Nebraska, but also attract national clients. Following Swanson and Russell’s lead, Dave Hansen and Brian Boesche nurtured and expanded the business model that is now in full force under today’s leadership team. The agency is now recognized as a national leader in outdoor recreation, agriculture, healthcare, construction and the landscape/turf industry.
Even with the industry notoriety, the agency is passionate about supporting and growing local brands. Longtime local clients include Union Bank and Trust, Bryan Health, Runza, Dorothy Lynch, Cornerstone Bank, AGP, Hoegemeyer, Nebraska Game & Parks Commission, LINPEPCO, NEST 529 and Visit Omaha. Local clients added in the past year include the Omaha Airport Authority, Madonna Rehabilitation Hospitals, OrthoNebraska and NMC CAT.
“This is a great time to celebrate our past and reflect on what has contributed to 60 years of steady growth,” said President Brent Schott. “Some things about our business will never change: our core values, putting our people first and nurturing an inclusive culture that is focused on teamwork and relationships.”
“At the same time,” Schott continued, “we have unveiled a new logo to symbolize how aggressively we are evolving the work we do for the brands we represent. Building belief in brands today requires deeper market and audience insights, bolder creative ideas and the ability to engage audiences authentically across an expanding spectrum of channels. We have never been better positioned to achieve that.”
While the agency will continue as Swanson Russell, a new, aggressively styled S and R logomark is the centerpiece of the agency’s new brand identity.
“The S and R are intertwined to symbolize the importance of building trusting relationships with each other, with our clients and with our clients’ audiences,” said Greg Wiley, Executive Creative Director. “The intentional, angular lines give the logo a boldness that mirrors our approach to the work we do for our clients.”
The new branding is seen throughout the new agency website, SwansonRussell.com, that was built in-house using the most advanced UX, development and design principles.
