New shop touts no-frills approach, study finds few entry-level P.R. jobs.

After several advertising agencies closed in 1993, it would seem almost suicidal to see a high-profile start-up now. But Venice-based Ground Zero has some of the hottest creative talents in town and has a better-than-even chance of surviving. Prospective clients can expect ideas but shouldn't expect frills from aptly named Ground Zero.

The agency's mantra is succinctly stated in a press release: "Ground Zero aims to be a place for clients who are no longer seduced by a plate of freshly baked muffins in the lobby, or the promise of front row seats at the next Lakers game. Rather it's a place for clients weary of conventional agency formulas and looking for fresh and innovative approaches to their business problems." Court Crandall and Kirk Souder are the 20-something creative team that helped Stein Robaire Helm capture a number of Belding awards and a gold lion at last year's Cannes Film Festival for its Museum of Contemporary Art television campaign. They worked on the Ikea, Lexus, Acura and the Museum of Contemporary Art accounts but got tired of helping make somebody else rich.

They are teaming up with Jim Smith, a 40-year-old Brit, who recently bowed out as general manager of Lord Dentsu & Partners here. Smith considered taking a post in Europe but decided to remain in L.A. and get entrepreneurial. He will handle the account and strategy side of the business and is the managing partner. Crandall and Souder serve as creative partners.

"We don't want to have more than eight great accounts because it's important for us to remain hands-on," Crandall says. "Major clients don't want to see junior account executives on their accounts, but clients also don't need agencies any more who have giant resources where they (the clients) only get to use half of them."

Thus far, the agency has roped one client, The Daily Grill, a Westside restaurant chain that is more a prestige type account than a big paying anchor. Advertising execs say that to launch an agency and to pitch accounts requires at least $100,000 in start-up costs the first year.

Ground Zero is not the only new agency to enter the fray. Paul Keye has opened his own shop in Century City, Paul Keye & Partners, after several years with high-profile agencies here, including keye/donna/pearlstein and Livingston + Keye. Jeff Strobach has opened Creative Images, a Burbank-based full-service agency that is promoting its "boutique" prices.

It used to be that journalism college grads who were frustrated in not being able to break into the news business had to resort to the more lucrative corporate P.R. world. Opportunities in P.R. are shriveling fast as there is now an oversupply of college graduates with degrees in P.R. but fewer openings for them, according to a study conducted by Sue Bohle, president of The Bohle Co. Only about one or two entry-level people are hired annually by P.R. firms, forcing young people to turn to non-profits and the government for jobs. Of the lucky few who find work, 42 percent end up working for non-profits and the government. Starting salaries for the new hires is just as paltry as in journalism, ranging from $16,000 to $20,000 annually, Bohle found in a survey of 1,100 P.R. firms.

Bohle's advice for college grads: "With profit margins tight, the pros want their young employees to pay their dues. Today's hopefuls must forget salary, take risks and volunteer to do tasks at all levels."

Internships are the best way to get hired and Bohle advises grads to take unpaid internships even after they are out of college. She says networking and meeting people is critical if you hope to land a 9-to-5.

"Contacts are more important than they were 20 years when I started out," Bohle says. "We see fewer resumes come over the transom any more. The good resumes we see come from referrals. The best candidates are the ones that think like journalists and not like P.R. professionals."

Low-power broadcast technology is becoming part of the residential real estate marketing game. Ritter Ranch, a 10,000-acre development in the Antelope Valley, will use 30-watt transmitter AM radio broadcasts to not only tout the project to local residents but to keep them abreast of construction delays and snags in the area and suggest detours. Commuters on the Antelope Valley Freeway will be hearing both live and recorded messages after they see billboards advising them to tune in. Land sales there begin later this year. Business Broadcast Systems of Century City has deployed the system while Macy & Associates Inc. is handling advertising and P.R. for Ritter Park Associates, the developer. Chiat/Day has wrested the $17 million Quaker State motor oil account from Grey Advertising (NY) and will add to its Venice staff ... Burson-Marsteller has added Hollywood Park Casino to its gaming client list. The agency will handle the casino's grand opening and ongoing P.R. The agency already handles Hollywood Park race track's P.R ... Barnetson Group was named as Enterprise Solutions Ltd.'s international expansion campaign ... E L Doran Public Relations is handling McCormick & Schmick's restaurants. The chain is opening on Rodeo Drive this spring and has locations in Pasadena and downtown.