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The Living Proof Gospel Tour
Client: GlaxoSmithKline
HIV/Aids disproportionately affects African Americans. In 1999, 57% of all new HIV cases in the US were African Americans although they represent just 13% of the US population. HIV/Aids is the number one killer of African Americans age 25-44. And to make matters worse, it was a subject not talked about in the black church, the one institution with the most power to mobilize, educate and change the dire statistics. I dreamed up the Living Proof Tour. We took the hottest gospel acts to the 10 cities most heavily populated by African Americans and connected with national organizations, community –based organizations and most importantly local churches to attack head-on the issue and start a dialogue in the heart of the community. Today, the black church is one of the strongest institutions in the war against HIV/Aids and I am proud of the ground-breaking, back breaking work we did to help bring about this change.
Three Musketeers Repositioning
Client: Mars Incorporated
The Nutrition Labeling and Education Act of 1990 struck fear into the hearts of trans-fat snack food makers all over the country but set the stage for a marketing coup for Mars Incorporated’s 3 Musketeers Bar. Having to put the nutrition facts on the label of every food product in America revealed that 3 Musketeers naturally has less fat than all other candy bars. A clever positioning Big On Chocolate, Not On Fat! Enabled 3 Musketeers to become a favorite choice for Moms for their kids and moms for their love of chocolate, lifting 3 Musketeers from the middle of the candy bar pack into the top 10. It remains, 15 years after this positioning, the number one candy bar for Halloween and a strong performer against women and their small children. I’m happy to have played a role in positioning and growing this great brand.
Pontiac G6 Introduction
Client: General Motors
How do you take a car brand that has a rich history as a muscle car (Trans Am, Firebird, GTO) loved by men everywhere and introduce a model designed by and targeting women? Well, if you had 250 million dollars and four years you could probably make some inroads…or you could just ask Oprah and t would take her a day! In The Pontiac Car Giveaway, Oprah gave a car to everyone in her audience for the season premier. This blockbuster giveaway garnered tens of millions of dollars of publicity, captivated the world and took Pontiac to its goal in one year, selling 50% of all Pontiac G6’s to women. I was able to leverage a chance meeting with Oprah’s friend Gayle into a full-fledged pitch of the idea and help sell the idea to GM. It was for this idea that a writer for the Gannett Newspapers coined my nickname: The Idea Machine.
