Our Team

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  Dan Alton

  A founding partner in Bluegill Creative, Dan has been in the design and marketing field for more than 25 years. He served as Director of Creative Services at the University of Tennessee for 10 years where he oversaw the university’s statewide visual brand and his staff produced 400 communications projects annually–including the university’s website. Prior to joining UT, Dan was an exhibit designer with the U.S. Department of Energy, developing permanent and traveling interactive science exhibits. He spent several years with ad agencies and design studios, prefaced by four years in the U.S. Army in military intelligence.

  The winner of numerous design and communication awards, he holds an M.S. degree in public relations and a B.F.A. in graphic design from the University of Tennessee. He serves on the board of the East Tennessee Chapter of the Entrepreneur’s Organization and has had leadership roles in regional organizations involving celiac disease.

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  Billy Rivet

  Billy, a founding partner in Bluegill Creative, has more than 13 years experience in graphic design and integrated marketing. In 2001, he joined the University of Tennessee, developing the university’s Web presence, the President’s and Chancellor’s sites, and the templates university departments use for their Web pages. He has helped create and build brands for dozens of healthcare providers and organizations. After receiving a B.F.A. from the University of Louisiana, Lafayette, Billy worked with ad agencies and marketing firms in his hometown of New Orleans. While at UT, he earned an M.S. degree in instructional technology.

  He served on the board of the American Marketing Association’s Knoxville Chapter and was the recipient, in successive years, of its two major awards, Volunteer of the Year Award in 2007 and the Locander Extraordinary Service Award in 2008. Billy was also selected for the 2009 Greater Knoxville Business Journal's “40 Under 40” award and was a finalist for the Knoxville Chamber’s 2010 Pinnacle Business Young Entrepreneur Award. His work has won numerous industry awards, including a national winner for best overall Internet medical practice-clinic site as chosen by eHealthcare Strategy & Trends. Billy is a proud participant of Leadership Knoxville’s Class of 2010.

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  John Clark

  John was at the University of Tennessee for three decades, serving as public relations director of the flagship campus at Knoxville and as executive director of media relations for the UT statewide system. He co-directed a project that won the Public Relations Society of America’s Silver Anvil award and submitted the nomination of Dr. William Bass, who was selected National Professor of the Year by the Council for Advancement and Support of Education. John also served as office and communications manager for The Wellness Community of East Tennessee. He earned a B.S. in journalism and a master’s in communications at UT Knoxville.

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  Eric Cook

  A self-described code monkey, Eric is really a software engineer with more than seven years experience in web product development and database driven applications. And he does those and other things at Bluegill.

  Eric likes working in a team environment on big projects that involve communication, analytical and creative skills and that make clients happy. One such experience came when he was a core team member for a software engineering startup company. During the firm’s early days and its acquisition by a public company, Eric had a key role in the development, testing and scaling of media broadcast and advertising technologies.

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  Jeremy Floyd

  Jeremy Floyd joined Bluegill through a merger with his company, Eluminare. Jeremy specializes in designing and implementing holistic digital marketing strategies including social media policy, internet marketing, search engine optimization, pay per click advertising, analytics and reporting, mobile marketing, and custom application architecture. In addition, Jeremy's lead generation techniques are valuable in the areas of telephone center and customer relationship management (“CRM”) software setup and administration.

  Jeremy works with clients to explore out-of-the-box ideas and problem solving strategies across the enterprise with a unique perspective on how technology can be used to better achieve business objectives.

  Before launching Eluminare, Jeremy was Vice President of Marketing and Technology for Holrob Commercial Realty, LLC He also developed and implemented the marketing strategy for Holrob Communities, which uses the Internet as a lead generator for people migrating to East Tennessee.

  Jeremy is licensed to practice law in the State of Tennessee and holds a law degree from the University of Tennessee College of Law and a Bachelor of Arts degree from MTSU in English and Philosophy. He is a volunteer with United Way of Greater Knoxville, a volunteer strategic planner with the Girl Scouts Council of the Southern Appalachians, and serves on the Board of Entrepreneurs of Knoxville.

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  Donna McClure

  Donna has more than 20 years of experience as a creative design professional and extensive knowledge of traditional and electronic printing procedures. With Bluegill Creative, she provides design and marketing services to clients in healthcare, the food industry, real estate, finance and non-profit agencies, creating and executing advertising media campaigns, billboards, logos and supporting marketing materials. Her previous experience includes serving as art director for Saks Department Store Group and as a graphic designer for Goody’s Family Clothing and the University of Tennessee. Her work has won several Knoxville Advertising Federation “Addy” awards. Donna earned a B.S. degree in mass communications, with minors in graphic design and English, from Middle Tennessee State University.

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  Whitney Newman

  Whitney came to Bluegill in 2011 from PYA, bringing with her a treasure trove of accounting skills — none more important than making sure invoices go out so money flows in. When she’s not handling billing and other office tasks, she’s cajoling an office of “right brain creatives” to enter their hours into the job tracking system.

  A Knoxville native, Whitney is a graduate of Christian Academy of Knoxville and she attended UT-Chattanooga and Pellissippi State Community College. Away from the office, Whitney enjoys “hanging with her nephew,” and she and her husband, Grant, enjoy outdoor activities.

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  Kelli Shell

  Kelli has more than 17 years of experience in graphic design and project management, working with Fortune 500 companies that include Johnson & Johnson, Dow Chemical Co., Philips Electronics and Thompson Healthcare. She also has extensive non-profit experience, providing creative services to agencies that include The Wellness Community of East Tennessee, the Knoxville Chapter of the American Red Cross, The Love Kitchen, and Concord Adult Day Enrichment Services. Prior to joining Bluegill Creative, Kelli was with Asen Strategic Advertising and Marketing in Knoxville. She earned a B.S. in communications from the University of Tennessee, majoring in advertising. Kelli also has studied brand marketing at Emory University’s Goizueta Business School.

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  Ryan White

  Ryan handles web, content management and design projects at Bluegill Creative. His expertise in CSS, HTML, Flash and Javascript are instrumental in solving client challenges through appropriate and intuitive technology. Ryan earned a B.S. in multimedia from East Tennessee State University, and has seven years experience as a graphic and web designer. He came to Bluegill from Red Clay Interactive in Gainesville, Ga., and he worked as a graphic and web designer for Knox County government.