Zeno Group
Company: Zeno Group, Chicago, IL
Company Description: Zeno Group is a full service marketing and communications agency with three primary practices, Corporate & Public Affairs, Brand Marketing and Healthcare, and two specialty practices, Speaking Female and Digital Lifestyle. Zeno Group works with clients to achieve competitive advantage through stronger brands, increased sales, favorable issue outcomes and enhanced reputations.
Nomination Category: Corporate Communications, Investor Relations, & Public Relations Categories
Nomination Sub Category: Communications or PR Campaign of the Year - Issues Management
Nomination Title: Tell a Gal P.A.L. Campaign for The Allstate Foundation
1. Tell the story about this nominated campaign since January 1 2009 (up to 500 words). Focus on specific accomplishments, and relate these accomplishments to past performance or industry norms. Be sure to mention obstacles overcome, innovations or discoveries made, and outcomes:
Domestic violence touches millions—nearly seven out of 10 Americans—but few talk
about it. Additionally, there is a perception that victims of abuse can simply
walk away from an abusive relationship, but an often overlooked aspect of
domestic violence – economic abuse – largely impacts a victim’s decision to
leave. Economic abuse is a tactic commonly used by abusers to prevent their
victims from leaving harmful situations by blocking access to money or other
financial resources.
In fall 2008, Zeno Group and The Allstate Foundation (TAF) launched the Tell a
Gal P.A.L.® campaign to raise awareness of domestic violence and economic abuse.
For year two, TAF looked to Zeno to build on the success of the 2008 campaign to
further raise public awareness and help survivors on their path to economic
self-sufficiency.
EXECUTION
The Tell a Gal P.A.L. 2009 campaign was launched at the end of September to help
kick off October’s National Domestic Violence Awareness Month and featured the
following core elements:
Pass it On, Act & Learn (P.A.L.) – The P.A.L. acronym provided three simple ways
for the public to engage in the cause.
National Donation Drive – A suit drive provided an easy call-to-action for the
general public and Allstate employees to get involved. From September 28 to
October 9, consumers and employees were encouraged to donate women’s suits at
more than 400 Allstate agency and corporate locations nationwide. The collected
suites were given to local domestic violence programs and Dress for Success
affiliates to help outfit survivors.
Celebrity Spokesperson & Media Relations – To generate awareness to a mass
consumer market, Academy-Award winning actress and social activist Mira Sorvino
served as the face of the 2009 campaign. During the launch week, Mira
participated in a satellite media tour, and a multimedia news release (MNR) was
distributed to provide media with the campaign details, videos, graphics and
online resources. Outreach to women’s, fashion and celebrity bloggers and a MAT
release targeting local publications built further awareness. Additionally,
template media materials were provided to field-based Allstate Regional Chairs
to leverage their existing relationships with local media.
ClickToEmpower.org & Social Media – ClickToEmpower.org housed comprehensive
information on the Tell a Gal P.A.L. program; including a directory of Allstate
donation locations and a PSA-style video of Mira Sorvino encouraging people join
the cause. The site also featured inspirational video testimonials from
real-life survivors, advocates and “gal pals” as well as a forum for survivors
to share their own personal stories of overcoming abuse.
Facebook, Twitter and YouTube were used to raise awareness through the online
community throughout October and provide campaign updates and topics to keep the
online conversation going.
RESULTS
•More than 246 million media impressions and 839 media placements
•12,434 total visits, including 7,611 unique visitors, to ClickToEmpower.org
during the campaign
•65 personal and inspiring domestic violence stories shared, some for the first
time, on ClickToEmpower.org
•More than 400 Allstate agency and corporate locations collected over 11,500
suits to directly benefit survivors at 247 domestic violence and women’s
assistance programs
2. List hyperlinks to any online work samples, news stories, press releases, or other documents that support the claims made in the section above. IMPORTANT: Begin each link with http://, and enclose each link in square brackets; for example, [http://www.youraddress.com]:
Campaign Web site: http://www.clicktoempower.org
Sample National Coverage
MultiVu Release: http://www2.prnewswire.com/mnr/allstate/40285/
Wall Street Journal Blog: Heard on the Runway
http://blogs.wsj.com/runway/2009/10/01/mira-sorvino-heads-clothing-drive-for-battered-women/
NJ.com
http://www.nj.com/reporter/index.ssf/2009/10/suit_drop_off_being_held_in_br.html
You Tube
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rVTtMVcTU1k
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=euFwI_u8bsc
Additional supporting documents, including a media tracker and other program
materials can be found at http://tellagalpal2009.keepandshare.com under the
“Document” tab. (Keep and Share account name: tellagalpal2009, password: stevies09).
3. Provide a brief (up to 100 words) biography about the leader(s) of the team that carried out this campaign:
Anne Marie Carver, Vice President of Zeno Washington D.C., has over 15 years of
marketing communications experience and has worked with high-profile brands
including Whirlpool, KitchenAid, EBay, Lending Tree and Realestate.com.
Leilani Sweeney, Vice President of Zeno Chicago, has developed award-winning
public relations campaigns for Whirlpool, Glad and Skil Power Tools and also
worked as Communications Director for McCormick Foundation.
Jennifer Kuhn is the Economics Against Abuse (EAA) Program Manager at The
Allstate Foundation. The EAA program provides financial resources and direct
services to domestic violence survivors and advocates to help survivors overcome