Experiential Marketing Agencies
in the world, as selected by the magazine's expert staff. Long
Island-based Moderne Communications, riding the momentum of a corporate
makeover in 2008, finds itself on the elite list again, giving the
agency its fourth appearance in five years.
"We're honored and privileged," commented President Joe Mastrocovi,
"but more than anything else, it's gratifying that we've been able to
maintain our excellence during a year that saw many changes." In
September of 2008, Moderne Communications
became the new name of its two previous entities: Moderne Promotions
and TheSLAgency. The Moderne Promotions name lives on as one of the
agency's three divisions, handling all of the nightlife and event
marketing programs that Moderne runs for clients like Budweiser Select
and McDonald's. TheSLAgency, originally focused solely on virtual
marketing in Second Life, has been incorporated into the Moderne
Interactive division, which now handles all online, virtual, social
media and mobile phone-related marketing efforts. The third of the
three divisions is Moderne Mosaic, which specializes in multicultural
and specific audience-based media and initiatives.
Chief Strategist Leigh Rowan notes that "the changes in 2008 have
been good for us. Our rebranding allowed us to officially grow our
service offerings of non-traditional marketing programs without sacrificing any of element of our excellent client
service record. The Top 100 Listing validates that we made the right
choices, and reinforces the high level of quality that Moderne boasts."
Moderne finds itself in good company on the It List, a position it sees
as more of an opportunity than anything else. "The other 99 agencies
could be seen as competitors, but many are agencies we have worked with
and/or are strategically collaborating with for our mutual success,"
Mastrocovi explains. Agency partnerships, especially in a time when
supply outweighs demand so heavily, support Moderne's unofficial motto
of supporting, not supplanting other agencies - a practice that has
obviously worked thus far.
2009 looks to be a big year for Moderne, as the company plans on
growing its New York offices with new account staff and service leads.
Additionally, Moderne is pursuing unique non-traditional marketing
programs with current clients (such as Adobe Systems, Gilead
Pharmaceuticals and Kozy Shack and McDonald's), and adding select new
clients to its roster. They note that their main objective for the year
is to introduce new programs that show the power of integrating a
variety of services for their clients' initiatives, helping them to see
great results while working with a limited marketing budget.
For more information on the agency, see www.ModerneCommunications.com or speak to Joe Mastrocovi or Leigh Rowan at 516-594-1100.
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Facebook is growing as a way for companies to market their brands. Many companies are creating Facebook pages for consumers to become fans of their brands. They are also creating applications for the consumers to interact with the brand in an environment that is fun and comfortable for them. Some of the companies are adding an incentive to using their application....coupons for their product. Starbucks has an application on Facebook in which users can send a coupon for Starbucks ice cream to themselves or their friends. However there is a catch, there are only 800 coupons per hour and with more than 250 million users on Facebook they tend to go fast. Other companies such as Papa John's have participated in similar programs to distribute coupons on Facebook. Maybelline has a Facebook application for a different purpose...kissing. It may sound a little strange (kissing someone on Facebook) but Maybelline made an application called Kiss and Tell which leaves your kiss print on your friends profiles and keeps track of your sent and received kisses. This is creating an experience with Maybelline for the consumers. When Facebook users become fans of a company it gives the company the opportunity to engage the consumers every time they log onto Facebook, because the company's new posts then comes up their feed. Moderne Communications believes in these new strategies to create an experience with consumers on social networking sites, such as Facebook. ]]>
AJS, a non-profit organization with no budget to work with, set out to create awareness and gain media coverage for the 144 kids living in Hamburg, Germany that are infected with HIV. The result was 114 statues placed in Hamburg's main square to symbolize the children who are infected with HIV. Each of the statues had a quote from a child, such as "Mom says: In our home country we would've died already" or "Dad says: If Max finds out about our secret, he'll never play with me again."The statues gained the attention of many of those passing in the square, resulting in people stopping to read the statues and taking pictures. The whole goal of this campaign was to receive donations for the organization. It was very successful, with people symbollically adopting the statues and local newspapers printing the story. This campaign made people stop and think. It made people start to feel a connection with the children who were infected with HIV.
Billboards usually involve minimal words and an eye-catching image. The billboards that Garcia's Irish Pub created went against the billboard mold when they launched a nine week campaign to maintain their traffic as a waterfront club was being built nearby them. The billboard created a story about William and Angel. As seen in the image above William wanted to meet Angel after seeing her at Garcia's. Each week there was a new message on the billboard until Angel finally agreed to meet William at the pub. This however was not the only aspect of the campaign. They had 'radio ads' in which William called in desperate to find Angel, classified ads, and fliers that were passed out near Garcia's. The most unique part of the campaign, however, were the actors who played William and Angel in Garcia's on the Friday she agreed to meet him. A huge crowd gathered to witness the meeting of William and Angel and were all pleased when they left the pub together. The billboard after they met said that William was in heaven. While this campaign was done a while ago, it still remains very unique from any other campaign done on billboards.
It can be very difficult for creative directors to come up with an idea that would break though the clutter at times. This is where stealourideas.com can step in...a blog filled with creative ideas that the founders conceptualize and allow for any viewer to steal. While we do admit some of their ideas are a bit outlandish, others have the ability to be unique and engaging in the world of advertising, such as the Batman idea, where it is imperative to stand out. The site allows for advertising agencies to send in creative briefs for the stealourideas.com thinkers to create an innovative campaign for them. StealOurIdeas has out of the box thinking that is characteristic of the services that we at Moderne Communications offer our clients. 
When a company opens a new location, they need a little help to drive traffic to the new store. For Adidas this help came in the form of ducks---that is rubber ducks. This campaign was done a few years ago during Fashion Week in Copenhagen. Rubber ducks were placed in a fountain with the lines "I've swum too far - help me get back home!" and "Reward for my return at Adidas Original store" were written on the bottom of each duck. When those who found the ducks brought them back 'home' they received a free T-shirt and were able to keep the rubber duck. This marketing technique combines a unique idea with a free gift which always pleases consumers. The consumers who participated in this guerrilla tactic had an experience with the brand, which is exactly what Moderne Communications does for all our clients everytime. We want the consumers to remember the brand after the experience, which is what the rubber Adidas ducks achieved. 
