by Kim Kilpatrick
November 22, 2011 8:51 AM
SmartStop ™ Self Storage announced Brent Morgan of Athens, Alabama, as the winner of the "Sing it Smart" video jingle contest. Morgan receives the grand price of $5,000 for getting the most number of votes on Facebook for his catchy guitar solo "Goodbye Clutter, Hello Floors."
"You have no idea how happy this makes me," said Morgan. "I'm getting married in April and just put an offer on a house, so the best time ever to win a contest is right now."
Happy indeed! Five thousand dollars is a lot of money.
Morgan did a lot of work to solicit those Facebook votes. He spent two weeks knocking on doors and handing out flyers asking for votes. He cajoled friends and family members to vote. Impressed with his enthusiasm and drive, a local radio station had him play his jingle on the air and ask the listeners for votes.
Morgan's boss also got in the act of supporting him. On the last day of voting, Morgan's boss told him to take the day off to keep promoting his jingle. All of Morgan's efforts paid off making him the winner of the contest.
Morgan is the 23-year-old Youth Music Leader/Teacher at Good Shepard United Methodist Church in Madison, Alabama.
"All of the entries to our Sing It Smart! contest were so impressive and extremely diverse -- we had gospel choirs, electric guitar and kitchen pots and pans," said H. Michael Schwartz, CEO and Chairman of Strategic Storage Trust, Inc. (SSTI), the publicly registered corporation that brands its properties under the SmartStop(TM) Self Storage brand name. "Not a day went by that I didn't check our Facebook page, and my wife and I watched every video multiple times. Thanks to everyone who participated in the contest, both entrants and voters. We really appreciate the time and effort you put in to make this contest a success."
Second runner up was Jeff Brasher and his finance, from Denton, Texas, who sang about the state of clutter in their home. Third runner up Shirley Franklin, Lexington, Oklahoma, played a catchy tune on the piano and sang about being new in town, low on money, and needing a place to keep things where they would be safe and dry.They will each receive either an Apple(R) iPad(R) 2 or $500 cash.
The finalists were selected by a panel of judges that included professional cyclist Adam Myerson, professional mixed martial arts fighter Joe "The Hybrid" Duarte, and Gustav the German Shepherd (a rescued dog and overnight Facebook sensation).
All three winning tunes are clever and catchy. Go listen to them if you haven't heard them yet. The original videos of all 15 finalists can be viewed on the wall of the SmartStop Facebook page at www.facebook.com/SmartStopSS
Sources Used:
"Music Teacher Wins $5,000 in the SmartStop (TM) "Sing It Smart!" Video Jingle Contest. Market Watch. 21 November 2011.
"National video jingle contest winner is from Athens." AL.com; 21 November 2011.