WE ARE BOELTER + LINCOLN.

A FULL SERVICE ADVERTISING AGENCY IN
MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN. WE KEEP OUR FEET
ON THE GROUND, OUR SLEEVES ROLLED UP,
AND OUR EYES ON WHAT’S NEXT.

expertise

Tourism
Tourism, travel, hospitality – we’ve seen it all, and lots of it. This is an industry dependent on the precious free time and disposable income of its customers, and it calls for an emotional appeal. We are, after all, selling an emotional experience. Our goal is to position our clients in a very specific spot in a consumer’s mind. When we connect with the right emotions, we make the sale.
Health Care
Most health care marketing takes one of two positions, either “fear monger” or “over-the-top friendly supermarket.” Ours is neither. Our approach zeros in on patients and what matters to them, not just in the doctors office, but in the context of their world. It’s not just about quality of care, it’s about quality of life.
Education
We have a long history with education and we know this: application numbers often run parallel with sweatshirt sales. Education is highly self-expressive, and if your brand image doesn’t sell stuff in the bookstore, it’s probably not going to drive enrollment either. Our goal is to uncover strengths, translate them into relevant messaging, and ultimately cultivate a sense of pride.
beverage
Marketers far too often neglect one of the most important elements in packaged goods – the package. But packaging is just the tip of the iceberg. Whether we’re working on packaging, branding, event promotion or in the social networking sphere, we keep it clean, simple and direct.
Financial
The two most important things we’ve discovered in working with financial institutions are: (1) for consumers, banking is a means to an end, not the end itself, (2) most banks have nearly identical functional benefits. Our attention, then, is on the self-expressive and emotional aspects of banking. We focus on the end and sell the bank as a means to get to it.
Water Tech
It’s been said that Milwaukee is poised to be the “Silicon Valley of water technology.” Having clients who work on the cutting edge, we continually search for ways to communicate their messaging that reflect their level of innovation. In other words, we find cool new ways to talk about cool new things.

THE WORK

Wisconsin Dells
For 30 years B+L has worked with Wisconsin Dells, helping maintain it’s status as the Midwest’s #1 family vacation destination. In the process we have established its brand identity as “The Waterpark Capital of the World!®”, focusing water as a symbol of family fun. Through our work together we’ve cemented Wisconsin Dells as an icon in the vacation industry.
Lakefront Brewery
In 2008, B+L began working with Lakefront Brewery, one of Wisconsin’s oldest microbreweries. We have since seen them through several new beer launches, an entire package redesign, and their rise to #1 craft brewer in Milwaukee. Our work has been aimed at highlighting Lakefront’s working-class ideals and deeply rooted Milwaukee identity.
Ministry Health Care
When Ministry Health Care began working with B+L, they had a pretty clear idea of who they were, but needed help conveying it to the public. By focusing on individual stories and personal interests, we were able to get across Ministry’s patient-centered philosophy while avoiding health care clichés. The end result was a more focused, attention-getting brand image.
Milwaukee Journal Sentinal
Milwaukee’s daily paper was losing contact with its audience. They came to B+L for help reconnecting the community with its paper. We employed the use of the Journal Sentinel’s fantastic photo library and created a campaign that made that connection. Dramatic, funny and unifying, these photos paired with a simple line were impactful.
Stump's Hot Olives
Stump and his wife own an olive company. They cook in a borrowed church kitchen and sell product at local liquor stores, farmer’s markets and events. This true Mom & Pop shop is down-to-Earth, hard-working and very sweet – unlike their wicked, little hot olives which will boil any Bloody Mary nicely.
Wisconsin Education Association Council
As we began our relationship with them, one of the central issues facing WEAC, Wisconsin’s largest teacher’s union, was the lack of a clear brand identity. Without a strong foundation, they were unable to clearly communicate who they are and what they do. After taking them through B+Ls Brand ALIVE process, we were able to create messaging underscoring the teacher/student relationship that reflected who they are, while illustrating what they do.
Pentair
After developing a revolutionary piece of water technology equipment, Pentair needed to make a splash at the international Aquatech Amsterdam trade show. B+L developed an augmented reality app that showed the inner workings of the product and brought it to life. What resulted was a demo that got attention, reflected the cutting edge nature of the product, and helped explain the new technology to industry insiders.
Wisconsin Tourism
In 1999, Wisconsin State Tourism tapped B+L for some fresh ideas. For 10 years we grew the Wisconsin tourism industry to record high numbers. Several campaigns and many department secretaries later, we are proud of our state and our hard work to promote its unique brand.
Breakaway
These guys are at the epicenter of service, fixed gear culture and pure Milwaukee guts. To get them some press/attention/love, we developed a poster series featuring some of the coolest dudes available. We are clients and fans of their fantastic service.

SERVICES

Branding
Strategic Development
BrandALIVE™ Identity System

Creative
Traditional
Package Design & Collateral

Digital
App, Mobile, and Site Development
CMS
SEO, SEM, and E-Mail Campaigns
Augmented Reality

Media
Planning & Buying
Traditional, Direct and Digital
Local, Regional and National
Public Relations
Strategy and Planning
Media Relations
Content Development
Crisis Communications

Social Media
Strategic Development
Content Development
Monitoring, Tracking and Analysis

Video Production / MOTEL Edit™
Full Video Production Services
Pre and Post

About Us

Philosophy
History
Leadership
 
Creative Pragmatism™
Look, we could sit here and bore you all day with line after line about our capabilities, but the bottom line is, we are problem solvers. More specifically, we are creative problem solvers interested in results. For us, creativity is not the goal, it’s part of the journey. Our aim is more than just creating an emotional response, it’s turning that response into action and ultimately devotion. In short, we put creativity to work.
Philosophy
History
Leadership
 
The B+L Story
On April Fools day 1975, B+L was opened by John Lincoln, a distant relative of our 16th U.S. president. John has since retired, but the agency he left still embraces the values of his famous ancestor. Through hard work, honesty, and dependability, we do our best to honor his name.
Philosophy
History
Leadership
Jill Brzeski
President/CEO
Michael Stodola
Creative Director
Dawn Agacki
VP/Chief Operating Officer
Andy Larsen
VP/Director of Public Relations
Lisa Huebner
Media Director
Shannon Novotny
Account Supervisor
Mike Shank
Interactive Manager
Katie Klein
Social Media Strategist
Michael De Boer
Strategic Marketing Director
Wendy Applebaum
Director of Financial Services
Leadership
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Jill Brzeski - President/CEO
Jill is equal parts tactical, strategic, visionary and creative in her thinking and execution. With over 26 years in the industry, we put our trust in Jill; and we’re proud to say there’s a little bit of her passion in everything we do.

EDUCATION: B.A. in Marketing – University of Wisconsin-Whitewater
Leadership
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Michael Stodola - Creative Director
Over his 22 year career, Michael’s creative approach has always been rooted in strategy. In his own words, “Work is not creative unless it sells," and that remains his guiding light. Outside of design and conceptual development, his passion is crafting unique brand identities.

EDUCATION: B.J. in Advertising – University of Nebraska at Lincoln
Leadership
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Dawn Agacki - VP/Chief Operating Officer
You can kid yourself about a lot of things in business, but ultimately it comes down to the quality of your people. That’s where Dawn comes in. With nearly 25 years of industry experience, she’s not only a guide for our creative team, she’s a guru for finding B+L the best and brightest.

EDUCATION: B.A. in Liberal Arts – University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.
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Andy Larsen - VP/Director of Public Relations
Andy started his career as a journalist and it has served him well in his nearly 25 years in PR. His aim has always been to hit the intersection between client message and news relevance, building awareness and credibility with stakeholders, gatekeepers and customers.

EDUCATION: B.S. in English – Lawrence.
M.S. in corporate public relations – Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism.
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Lisa Huebner - Media Director
Lisa leads our media department with the understanding that, without strategy, tactics mean nothing. In her nearly 20 year career she has followed this basic premise, watching client plans blossom into successful campaigns.

EDUCATION: B.A. in Business Administration, Marketing – University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh
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Shannon Novotny - Account Supervisor
Shannon believes in relationships. In her eyes, maintaining a great working relationship is about enthusiasm, communication, and an undying commitment to reaching a common goal.

EDUCATION: B.A. – St. Norbert College
Leadership
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Mike Shank - Interactive Manager
Mike has spent nearly his entire life programming and pushing the limits of technology. He is a problem solver who believes that imagination is the key to engagement, and innovation comes from taking new paths toward the answer.

EDUCATION: B.A. in Art – University of Minnesota
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Katie Klein Social - Media Strategist
In her words, Katie “strategizes social media, then socializes the strategy.” Over the last 11 years in the industry, she has fine-tuned the art of social media, connecting branding, PR and interactive into a well-oiled machine, always staying ahead of the next big thing.

EDUCATION: B.A. in Political science, B.A. in International Relations – UW-Milwaukee.
Leadership
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Michael De Boer - Strategic Marketing Director
Having held senior leadership positions at several agencies over the years, Michael has cultivated a “Lead. Don’t follow.” mentality that drives innovation in each new partnership. It’s this mindset that builds brand value and drives sales.

EDUCATION: B.A. – North Central College
Leadership
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Wendy Applebaum - Director of Financial Services
As our director of financial service, Wendy oversees both accounting and benefits. Her 20 years of experience have taught her to stay ahead of the curve, anticipating problems before they ever occur.

EDUCATION: Accounting – Milwaukee Area Technical College

OUR CITY

We’re a part of Milwaukee.
More importantly, Milwaukee is a part of us.

TALK TO US

Boelter + Lincoln
222 East Erie, Suite 400
Milwaukee, WI 53202

p 414.271.0101
f 414.271.1436

CEO
jbrzeski@boelterlincoln.com Business Development
mdeboer@boelterlincoln.com
Careers
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