Cataldi Public Relations Credentials & Case Studies January, 2015

cataldi public relations

Agency Credentials,Revised January 2015

Quick Facts… Founded in 1988 by ex-Weber Shandwick exec Sal Cataldi Mix of blue chip & entrepreneurial clients including leading

names in media, entertainment, not-for-profit and consumer brands…

lncludes AMC Networks (AMC, IFC, Sundance, WEtv, etc.), Comcast, TNT, TBS, WWE, 1-800 Flowers, WNYC, Entenmanns, Sony Picture Digital, National Audubon Society, Tanqueray, Dewar’s, Molson, Screenvision, etc.

Specialists in cable & digital media – Programming and trade publicity, guerilla marketing & social media and viral video promotions and building brand partnerships.

Award-winning, mega-media generating, out-of-the-box thinking – 2x Adweek Guerilla Marketers of the Year, PRSA Bronze Anvil, CableFax 100, PR Week and Beacon Awards, etc.

A-Z execution & VERY LONG TERM relationships with clients!

Our Philosophy? KILL RUN-OF-THE-MILL THINKING!There is nothing more hopelessly endangered than the fresh idea. Fresh ideas should be…

Strategic enough to crystallize and communicate the soul of a brand in an instant.

Able to instantly ignite the imagination, emotion and allegiance of the message-battered consumer.

Spark not only the grudging but involved interest of the jaded media to produce a blitz of spirited coverage of your brand.

Make consumers rise with open wallets and positive word-of-mouth to further your commercial crusade for the fun and personality it projects about the brand and people behind it.

Very kind to the bottom line – the biggest bang for the minimum investment of time, resources and $$$.

Media Branding Experience

AMC Networks, Since 1993 AMC “A. Zombie for President” – A cheeky national

campaign to raise awareness of AMC’s battle with DISH Networks

Mad Men & Breaking Bad Event Concepting – Lincoln Center, Museum of Moving Image Screenings

AMC MonsterFest – Program publicity, street stunts and promotions including the “AMC House of Horror Sweepstakes”

AMC 1-800-U-BE-DUKE Sweepstakes AMC Tarzanmania – Cheeta’s Apestract Art AMC Marilyn Monroe Treasure Trunk with Planet

Hollywood And much more…

The proof is in the publicity…

Other AMC Networks… FUSE – “Declaring the Music Video an Endangered

Species…” Mag Rack VOD – “Guitar Face Search” and “Most

Outrageous Bird Video Contest” IFC – “Rhett & Link: Commercial Kings,” “Whisker

Wars” and “The Whitest Kids U Know” WETV –“Project Hollywood: Society for the

Prevention of Celebrity Divorce” and “Ropin’ Men Roundup in Union Square”

Sundance Channel – “Red Road” and “Push Girls” AMC Yeah – Launch and promotions for new

streaming film service Bravo – “Arts for Change” VOOM HD – VOOM Portraits with Robert Wilson,

Artland USA, Equator HD, Rave HE Metro Channels Launch

Men – how we like them…

Getting “fuse-i-fied”...

More media… Comcast Select On-Demand World Wrestling Entertainment/WWE – 7 years

business and trade press and Wrestlemania stunts TBS & TNT– “My Boys,” “The Closer” and “Rizzoli &

Isles” HBO & Cinemax CNN - Anderson Cooper 360 WNYC “#SmartBinge” YES Network Cablevision – Optimum Launch Events Sony Pictures Digital – “SoapCity Games” USA Networks Lionsgate Television (Epix, fearNET) Screenvision/National CineMedia Karmaloop TV (with partner Pharrell Williams)

They’re not Media… But They Were Offbeat & EffectiveCase Study Quickies…

The Dewar’s Bagpipe Festival @ the Knitting Factory

CPR created hipster cache in step with tradition for Dewar’s by creating an eclectic, two-day long charity bagpipe music fest at NYC’s Knitting Factory

Bands from trad folks to the avant garde, all introduced by media spokesperson James “Scotty” Doohan

Proceeds from sales of tickets and a live CD on Knitting Factory works label benefited the Scottish National Trust

Mega-media results, from NY Times to The Today Show, led to launch of a five-city concert tour and downtown spike in sales.

Pipes & Scotch in the paper of record

Tanqueray Rock & Roll Trivia Tours CPR created awareness among

young adult music lovers with a celebrity hosted bus tour to the offbeat sites where rock history happened in LA and NYC

Partnered with rock industry charity TJ Martell to garner celeb hosts for tours

Standalone guidebook/map was distributed in bars and clubs and used as advertorial in much-read city magazines

Generated incredible national media, including front page story in NY Times

Paper of record… again

The SoapCity Games Create a buzz for just-launched

SoapCity during Emmy Week by inviting daytime stars to participate in an offbeat athletic event

Partnered with the Humane Society

Soap divas competed in photo op ready events like arm wrestling and wrestling script reading judged by wrestlers

Involved consumer by offering dog bowls hand-painted by the stars via online charity auction

Great press, including Newsweek and NY Times, built awareness with the stars and consumers for SoapCity.com

PR Week focus…

1800FLOWERS Lotsa Love Bears for Save The Children

Created a partnership between online retailer and leading charity to promote sales of 1800FLOWERS plush line

12 A-list celebrities including Kate Winslet, Kenneth Cole and Maria Bello created one-of-a-kind Lotsa Love bears for online charity auction

Royalty on holiday sales insured charity $20k

Mario Bello acted as media spokesperson for gratis, in national SMT and appearances on shows including TODAY and Fox & Friends

Campaign helped 1800FLOWERS have its biggest season ever in plush sales

Alize Operation Red Head Female-targeted concept to

introduce new cranberry flavored line-extension of popular cognac/fruit beverage

National sweepstakes where 500 won red head transformations from their hair dressers or at mass events

A-list red head celebs like B-52 Kate Pierson, Cyndi Lauper, Tina Louise, Traci Lords were spokespersons in media and extensive in-market events

Teamed with Manic Panic to create Alize Red Passion hair color

Year 3 proposal included mobile army truck/beauty salon

Earned Cataldi PR “Brandweek Guerilla Marketer of the Year” honors

Transformations & bold-faced names

Paper of record again…

JUMP Free Phone for Your Teens

HUGE sounding prize that cost little – free phone & service for a girl for her entire teen years

Promoted via publicity, ads in magazine and partnership with MCI, include presence in bill stuffers and at 10 mall events

Grand prize included phone calls from teen stars Joshua Jackson and Jimmy Ray

Generated extensive media from MTV to USA TODAY and 45,000 new subscriptions

Executions: Fave Media Projects

AMC Battles Dish Networks…By Running A. Zombie for President

As the 2012 Presidential Election heated up so to did a battle over carriage between AMC Networks and satellite service Dish Networks…

How to draw attention to this, when the world was focused on hard news, the Presidential contest?

By becoming a part of it – by getting our platform heard by running a zombie, a figure synonymous with AMC’s biggest hit, “The Walking Dead,” for President!

A. Zombie on a faux coast-to-coast, cross-platform Presidential campaign including…

A 7-city bus tour with stops including both National Conventions and a Zombie March in D.C. on World Zombie Day!

A full-fledged marketing blitz worthy of a real candidate: including website, TV spots and generous swag, from buttons and bumper stickers to posters and t-shirts.

A multi-tiered social media campaign designed to apply direct consumer pressure to Dish Networks.

And, of course, massive national and local market press.

Scenes from a campaign…

Mega Press=Mega PressureOur spirited campaign generated a huge wave of press which put a boardroom battle between two companies into the public arena…

Leading national outlets like The New York Times, USA Today, The Washington Post, AP, Entertainment Tonight, the Today Show, Huffington Post, Slate and many more.Major features in dailies, culture blogs and the major broadcast outlets in the 7 markets the campaign traveled to.Think pieces in many political outlets like The Hill and Drudge Report and marketing-centric press like Adweek and Advertising Age.

In the end, A. Zombie didn’t win the Presidency, but he did create a PR groundswell that helped bring AMC Networks back to DISH

WE tv’s Society for the Prevention of Celebrity Divorce

Going “faux” social… How do you get attention for another

reality series featuring C-list stars confronting their personal problems?

CPR did it by creating an LA-based billboard blitz for a fake pro-social organization dedicated to the issue at the heart of the show, The Society for the Prevention of Celebrity Divorce.

Its mission - to demand “role model” stars to take their vows seriously, so their fans would too!

Naturally the campaign was covert, with no mention of connection to WE tv, until a “reveal” after the prank got national attention, right before the series premiere!

Taking Hollywood and America by storm with giant billboards

Our fake society announced its arrival in a dramatic way, with four huge billboards at high-traffic locations, right where the stars live, work and dine.

Complemented by two buses which traversed LA, from Kardashian Land in Encino to Malibu to Beverly Hills.

A website and faux founder to message the mission

To make the prank credible, and give reporters plenty of backstory to craft features, we helped create an info-rich but decidedly lo-fi website, helmed by our faux founder, J. Robert Butler.

PreventCelebrityDivorce.Org included details and images of the billboard campaign, an FAQ on the organization, facts on divorce and celebrity divorce, and a video message from our founder.

PR from behind the screen… To insure that the media didn’t discover

the connection to WEtv, CPR worked anonymously to tip off the press, via fake gmail and Twitter accounts, directly via Reddit, Facebook and more.

These anonymous tips got the ball rolling on a mountain of local and national press which tried to get to the bottom of the story including ABC News, Fox News, LAist/Gothamist, Cosmopolitan Magazine, Slate, LA Times, etc.

What also came was interest from shows like Today and GMA who wanted to talk to the founder (which the client declined.)

The Big Reveal

Within 10 days, the campaign generated worldwide attention, with more than 250 million media impressions and millions more via social media.

Then we announced via the Society’s website and with swipes on the billboards that we were folding the Society…

Why? Because its good work was being carried on by WE tv in its new series, Marriage Boot Camp: Reality Stars!

Culmination of Kitschy Prank Campaign Applauded in Biz Media…

IFC’s LoCo Awards

Honoring the Best & Bizarre in Low-Budget Local Commercials

A viral-ready, local focused promotion for new IFC series, Rhett & Link: Commercial Kings

Encourages consumers to upload and vote for their town’s wacky kings of local commercials in 9 categories, from Best Jingle and Tagline to Hammiest Performance and Golden Turkey

Great national and local media hooks, inspiring media to get towns to vote for their own heroes

Ideal for social media, viral dissemination (Twitter, FB)

Prizes for business and the advert uploader

Launch Generates National Print and Broadcast Coverage

& A Flurry of In-Market Press for Local Advertising Legends

New York Times again

Mag Rack’s Guitar Face Search

What the heck is Guitar Face???

A new term CPR coined for a forward thinking interactivity/user-generated content driven contest and guerilla promotion to generate broad consumer awareness of the new Mag Rack VOD service via its Guitar Xpress offering…

It’s the bizarre facial condition generated by the agony and the ecstasy of guitar playing, real or air…

Promo particulars… A national search for the best

amateur guitar face in America, from mail and online entries and those captured at Guitar Face “picture booth” events around the nation

To add media appeal, entries were judged by a panel of 25 top guitarists like Dick Dale, JJ “Twisted Sister” French, Roger McGuinn, Earl “David Bowie” Slick, rock photogs like Henry Diltz and Mark Weiss, record producers/managers like Ted Templeman (Santana, Clapton, Van Halen) and Danny Fields (Iggy Pop and the Ramones)

Partner and viral punch

Partnership with Gibson/Epiphone Guitar provided prizes and extra promotion via music stores

Celeb and consumer poll about Guitar Face (the best pros and most popular variety) resulted in the creation of the first-ever Guitar Face Hall of Fame

Guitar Face Photo Booth..

Provided consumers with a choice of guitars and rocker costumes in which to pose for contest entry photos

Utilized both as affiliate events and national and local market TV segments which enable spokespeople to tell Mag Rack’s benefit of VOD story…

Live in New York and across America…

Oddball story angle that generates meaty results…

Front Page… NY Times Arts…

Finalist generate big local news…

And the winner is…

WNYC #SMARTBINGE

Co-opt a TV Trend: The Binge WNYC is one of America’s premiere

public radio stations, producers of many top-rated iTunes podcasts like Radiolab and Freakonomics.

That station came to Cataldi PR seeking a cross-platform branding idea that would further drive its on-demand digital listenership, in tandem with the launch of its new Discover Mobile App.

Our concept? To co-opt the TV trend of the year, the concept for binge watching, to highlight the quality content listeners could take anywhere with WNYC.

#smartbinge: hashtag driven cross-platform buzz

Smartbinge landing page at WNYC.com introduces listeners to the concept and wide on-demand offerings

#smartbinge Twitter driven by use by popular show hosts.

Supported with aggressive social media and mobile advertising, on Facebook, social discovery and narrow casting, paid search, advertising on affinity podcasts like WTF with Marc Maron.

Traditional publicity targeted to mobile, media and ad/marketing press.

Phase 2: Playful Videos from Comic Eugene Mirman

CPR worked to increase awareness in a series of playful “how-to” videos from comedian Eugene Mirman.

Videos aired on WNYC and smartbinge websites and also as on-air spot, on WNYC and affinity podcast like WTF with Marc Maron.

A binge of smart coverage…

Results… A 60% increase in mobile listening A 25% increase in social activity Doubling of unique monthly visitors to WNYC.org High-profile press coverage in traditional hard to

target outlets for the station, including mobile and tech outlets and The New York Times’ Advertising Column

AMC’s “House of Horror Sweepstakes”

Program Particulars… An offbeat two-tiered

national promotion to build buzz for AMC’s MonsterFest.

National winner had their home and Halloween costumes bumped up to big screen standards by Academy Award-winning set designers and make-up artists behind Nightmare on Elm Street…

& A STAR FOR A DAY…

And Linda Blair for Halloween Day… to host a party for 25 friends and open the door to greet their Trick-Or-Treaters

150+ affiliates participate in local promotions providing pro make-over and limo for Halloween Trick-or-Treating

Aggressive Multilayered Support…

National and affiliate TV spots

Dedicated sub-site at amc.tv

Partnership/presence at Loew’s Theater chain

Coast-to-coast radio promos

Multiple waves of PR – launch, finalists & …

5-Day publicity blitz

CPR turned the $150k, 5-day “ranch home to monster mansion” into an on-going local and national news story

Daily coverage by traffic helicopters picked up by network affiliates

On-going print and radio 5,000 on-site visitors

National press…

VNR & SMT with Linda Blair including time-lapse video of transformation of home & winners.

Interviews & live satellite appearance of TODAY, CBS Morning News, ET, etc.

National print reach via AP and other syndicates

Front page news…

Monster Success…

Became AMC’s most-watched MonsterFest to date…

Central to making MonsterFest the tentpole annual promotion for the network

AMC MonsterFest Zombie Invasion of NYC

Quick Stunt = Big National Press A photo-op spectacular staged on the streets of

NYC to support broadcast press campaign for AMC MonsterFest 2005

50 professional actors dressed as zombies “march across” the Brooklyn Bridge to “invade” NYC

Also hit other high-visibility NYC venues, Times Square and Penn Station

Big Frights…

And more good pics…

Equals Big Press! Print coverage including AP Photo, Newsday,

AM NY, NY Daily News and many more… Live broadcast coverage by news helicopters of

local morning shows Good Day NY, WB 11 Morning News, along with national coverage via CNN, ABC Network, Fox News and more…

Appearance on two installments of NBC TODAY!

Monsters on TV

TBS Daisy Does America…

Flower Power Promotion… A four-part promo blitz utilizing “daisies” as an

icon to build awareness for this new TBS reality- comedy series

To limit cost, expand scope and ease execution, CPR brought TBS together with another of our client, 1 800 FLOWERS

Step 1 – Petal Pushers Take NYC

An offbeat campaign that put roving brand ambassadors on pedal bikes to hype the show

Hand-out of free daisies wrapped packaged with tune-in card and off-priced daisy offer from 1 800 Flowers

Week-long campaign targeted consumers, media buyers and press

Step 2 – Daisy Window In Soho

Create buzz and press coverage with “art advertising” in a shop window in Soho during the busy holiday season

Alterna-marketing tactic generate media in much-read ad and cable trades and local consumer press

More bikes and window shopping…

Step 3 & 4 – Door Drops & Online Daisy On Your Doorstep put fresh daisies and a

tune-in on the doorknobs of 200,000+ likely viewers in seven cities…

Daisy Online Sweepstakes gave viewers the chance to win daily bouquets and a grand prize of “A Year of Free Flowers” from 1 800 FLOWERS

Mag Rack TV “America’s Most Outrageous

Bird Contest”

Freaky Flyers Give Wings to Kitschy Network Promo…

An offbeat contest designed to create traditional and viral publicity to promote this network’s series, “The Pet Shop with Mark Morrone”

Inspired bird owners to cast the media spotlight on their favorite flyer by uploading “outrageous” videos of them speaking, singing, performing tricks etc. to be judged by 13 celebs and web surfers in “American Idol” elimination style

Promoted via a dedicated contest website which web surfers would return to weekly to cast votes for their favorites

Offered two $1,000 first prizes for Celebrities’ and Viewers’ Choice

Star-Powered Judges…

Participate to support their favorite environmental charities

Contest Creates YouTube & National TV Sensation – AJ The Golf and Basketball Playing Parakeet

The “Celebrities’ Choice” winner was A.J. – a parakeet who could play basketball, sink a putt, bowl, do yoga and much more…

His branded contest entry, placed on YouTube by CPR, became the most popular video on the site for a two week period, attracting more than 10 million views…

Print PR blitz…

Our feathered brand ambassador and contest winner was the subject of 1,000 of print features including Associated Press, USA Today and The New York Times, content syndicated to over 450,000 websites worldwide…

But the best was yet to come…

20 National TV Appearances: GMA (2x), Martha Stewart, Fox & Friends, Inside Edition, ET, CNN, Dateline NBC & More

And, naturally, Letterman’s Stupid Pet Tricks…

AJ says… Good Morning America

Results… Mag Rack TV’s website received a 1,000 % spike

in traffic… Viewership of “The Pet Shop” increased by

400%... A.J. became a motivational ambassador for Mag

Rack making appearances in schools as a part of the company’s “Power to Learn” initiative…

The campaign earned two PRSA Bronze Anvils and The Beacon Award, the top honor in cable TV marketing

The World’s Largest Xmas Tree… Made Out of Cannolis!

An inexpensive offbeat visual stunt, ready made for holiday TV coverage, to promote the early December ’07 premiere of “Steve Schirripa’s Hungry,” a new Italian cooking series on Lifeskool TV…

CPR enlisted the famed Veniero’s Bakery to provide 5,000 cannolis at cost – a budget of less than $5,000 for the total promotion

A sweet and media worthy stunt… CPR created the gambit to

attract crowds to Il Cortile Restaurant in Little Italy to get a sneak peek of the series

Visitors could pose for pics with Steve and get a free mini-cannoli with a tune-in premium

Also served as the visual centerpiece for a launch party attended by Steve’s Sopranos pals

Earned a spot in the upcoming Guinness Book of Records!

Cannolis on “Today”…

Noontime public viewing attracted hundreds of curious food lovers and many NYC TV stations and dailies

Steve and the tree also made an appearance on “NBC Today” to promote his new series

Party Snaps Go National…

Even the NY Times “reluctantly applauds this clever idea…”

TNT “Wanted” Guerilla Campaign

Castles Made of Sand… Created unique beach stunt over July 4 weekend

in NY & LA – crime-themed, branded sandcastles by Guinness World Record Holder

Supported with fly-over advertising, t-shirt distribution & publicity

Offbeat fun was had by all…

Media Buyer Street Blitz

Put the brand in the face of media buyers in NYC with a targeted street poster campaign…

Hot dog & fruit carts, hipster bar rest rooms, phone booths…

Babelgum Metropolis Art Prize

International Art Video Search Powers Global Image and Awareness…

A worldwide search for new video and street art to drive awareness of Babelgum Metropolis, a new broadband network dedicated to emerging artists and urban culture

Press powered by panel of A-list judges with fine art and broad pop culture cache including Isabella Rossellini, Tate Modern street art curator Cedar Lewisohn, Scope Art fair curator Lee Wells, etc

Offered $30K in prizes in 4 categories and the chance to win a trip to NYC to see winning videos premiered on Jumbotrons in Times Square

Inspired buzz among young hipsters in NYC via partnership with Time Out NY

Buzz building via press and Twittersphere

Three-month entry campaign to build worldwide buzz powered by art-centric publicity and tweeting

Included esteemed pubs like Art In America and Art Daily, entertainment trades like Hollywood Reporter, gossip columns including NY Post “Page Six”

Over 700 video art entries from six continents generating 120,000 views and 50,000 votes. More than 200 hours of new content added to Babelgum library

Times Square Becomes Video Art Gallery for An Evening

International Winners Head to Post-Event Press Bash at LeVine Gallery

Winners from Holland, Brazil, Italy & US attend

Post-Screening Bash for 500 at LeVine Gallery with 3D video art/video painting by Sweat Shoppe

Cover story in New York Times Metro

Spiking Traffic with International Press

TNT Rizzoli & Isles Times Square Screening

Advance Screening of What Would Become TNT’s Most Highly Rated Premiere

A massive public screening in New York’s Times Square for TNT’s most anticipated series of 2010

CPR handled all logistic, event design/layout, permitting, premiums, security, simulcasts on other Times Square screens, etc.

Included screening, branded premiums, roving street teams and more

An estimated 100,000 impressions generated in this, America’s most renowned public space

No Budget?Mag Rack – Opportunistic Surveys