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Fueled by one of the nation’s fastest growing populations and a foundation of global
corporate giants, Northwest Arkansas’ advertising trade is wide open. |
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It has lured some of Little Rock’s biggest players to the Ozarks and spawned a
cottage industry of advertising veterans who now work from their homes – sometimes in
tandem. |
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Together, the firms help package everything from Tyson Food’s national
"We’re Chicken" campaign to Eureka Springs’ bid to become
America’s best-known quirky tourist town... |
Virtual GraphX, Inc. (now VGIS DOT NET, Inc.) |
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There’s a lot Will G. Louden doesn’t say about his cyberspace advertising firm,
such as how many employees he has or where they work in Fayetteville. For a 24-year-old
computer science student, the anxiety may be understandable. |
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Through one of Louden’s Virtual GraphX Inc. web sites, local customers can now order
pizza over the Internet from the Pizza Hut on Leverett Avenue in Fayetteville. |
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The site, "http://www.pizzanet.net," went on line at 2:07 p.m. Jan. 27. Louden said
he’s negotiating with Dallas-based Pizza Hut to add more stores in a system that is
unique to the company and may be unique to the fast |
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| food industry.
Pizza Hut confirmed Friday it has launched the experimental program with Louden, which
involves his firm’s taking the orders from the Internet and faxing them to the store
on Leverett. |
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Louden also runs "www.nwahotspots.com", which links
to everything from banking lists to school sites on the Virtual GraphX system and "www.NWALiving.com," which connects
to a site that references the firm’s annual apartment, restaurant, entertainment and
utility publication called "NWA Living Guide." |
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"We’re not a traditional advertising firm in that the brands we promote are
those that are owned by our company," Louden said. |
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Louden said he approached Pizza Hut with the Internet idea and is getting some interest
from around the country. But he said companies watching the exponential but profitless
growth of online retailers such as |
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| Amazon.com are reluctant to jump in. |
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"I was surprised when we first started," he said. "The online is so new and
there are so many companies still losing money on the Internet. I think people are still
waiting to see what the reaction is going to be." |
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Louden said he launched the business on June 10, 1997. He’s founder, president and
chief executive officer. He came from Little Rock to Fayetteville to attend the University
of Arkansas and says he wants to use the Internet sites to create more high-tech jobs in
Northwest Arkansas and promote the area’s "good look."
A promotional section on his hotspots promotes the area as the home to Wal-Mart, Tyson
Foods Inc., J.B. Hunt Transport Inc., and celebrates the area’s natural selling
points. |
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"The outside world looks and says they can’t be doing much in Northwest
Arkansas, when we have so much to offer," he said. "I feel like (UA) Chancellor
John White. We’ve got to stop the brain drain." |
* Portions of this article have been
edited for pictorial, as well as feature editorial content of other firms mentioned in the
original article. This portion of the Virtual GraphX article has been re-published in its
entirety with the full consent and permission of:
Republished with the permission of the Northwest Arkansas
Times. |
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