John, Toni Robideaux Ad Couple Redefine Their Multimedia Role With A !

Cut to a rooftop.

A screaming, seemingly deranged man stalks near a ledge. Police cruisers swing into position below.

Onlookers and media gawk.

Tragedy in the making?

Nope. A new television spot for Internet On Ramp prepared by Robideaux!, the current business incarnation of long-time Spokane advertising couple John and Toni Robideaux.

Internet On Ramp, John says, wanted to set itself apart from other providers of Internet service, especially those that don’t have the equipment to handle all the customers trying to log on.

The maniac on the roof is frustrated to the point he tosses his laptop onto the pavement.

Robideaux! created the spot, and a new Internet On Ramp logo as well. John says the eight-person agency can handle everything from letterheads to CDs and Web sites, the frontier of today’s advertising world.

The Robideaux! office suite itself is edgy, yet comfortable. Toni says she wanted the casual ambiance of a restaurant, but the stimulation that comes with fresh design.

Perched two floors above the Fitzbillies Bagel shop on West First, the earth-toned walls are capped by oversized metal planters.

Small halogen fixtures pierce the open-grid ceiling. A fabrication of metal and wire sets off a seasonal poinsettia in the conference room.

A huge three-dimensional exclamation point punctuates the reception area.

“That’s our rallying cry,” Robideaux says of the piece.

Quick turnaround can be critical.

Robideaux! recently had less than a month to prepare brochures and display pieces for Key Tronic Inc.’s exhibit at the all-important Comdex computer trade show in Las Vegas.

John says the Spokane keyboard maker, which had been going with old material, had a change of heart. Despite the short notice, Robideaux! and its outside vendors had everything ready ahead of time, and it fit in the already assembled booth.

Better still, Key Tronic got results.

“They hit some major home runs,” John says, noting that a partner of Key Tronic’s asked if it could use some of the same promotional materials in Europe.

He says the expanded universe of artists, photographers, and sound technicians - to name a few - has greatly enhanced the capabilities of Spokane advertising agencies compared with 20 years ago, when the Robideauxs started in the business.

He likens his role to that of planner and strategist setting the tone and direction that will be captured in the final product.

John says he does not like managing, which consumed too much of his time a few years ago when the agency was twice its current size.

Toni has both missed the contact with clients vital to good business and creative relationships. They decided to cut back.

Although some clients were lost along the way, she says the transition forced the pair to redefine their business identity in the same way they ask clients to define theirs.

The Robideauxs started their first agency, Wordsmith, out of their home in 1979. Toni, an English major out of Gonzaga University, says the name was suggested by a cartoon in New Yorker magazine.

John, advertising director for Spokane Magazine at the time, began introducing her to companies in need of help with publications and other materials.

When those clients started asking for other marketing-related services, John came aboard full time.

The agency became Robideaux & Associates as it grew through the 1980s, adding clients like Washington Trust Bank and Group Health Northwest.

John says a campaign done for Washington Trust that featured a couple of fly-tying buddies musing over changes among banks remains a favorite.

He indulged his love for radio in 1992 with The Deluxe Radio Hour, a live broadcast three years in the making.

“It was a magic evening,” he says.

In 1994 and 1995, the Robideauxs won individual honors as Advertising Professional of the Year from the Spokane Advertising Federation.

Recently, John helped rally the Inland Northwest Food Circle, a group of local producers and brokers, behind an effort to bring a Positive Image Center to Spokane in November.

The centers, under the aegis of The City of Hope, help those undergoing chemotherapy or other disfiguring therapies maintain their appearance during treatment.

John has also been an advocate for the advertising industry before the Legislature, where he has argued against taxation of the industry and the company’s health care clientele.

Toni is working on a capital campaign for Gonzaga Prep.

John says Spokane businesses are more willing today to turn to local resources for advertising than they were years ago.

Even if they don’t land an account, at least they get a chance to show what they can do, he says.

“There’s plenty of work to go around for the professionals in our business.”