Three Martech executives have partnered to launch “Madison Avenue Social,” a full-service social media agency with an expertise in helping both B2B and B2C brands with various social challenges and opportunities.
Created in partnership by Deirdre Catucci (President); Mike Gentile (Executive Creative Director); and Tim McHale (Chief Media Officer), the agency was founded on the shared belief that Social Media should ignite a brand conversation that engages, educates and inspires people to take action.
“The days of having an intern manage all of your social media are long gone,” Deidre Catucci told DIVERGE. “Well done and effective social media takes a strategy, planning, execution, measurement tools, etc.”
“That does not even consider the need for fresh, relevant and engaging content. That is a tall order for most businesses without external expertise,” she added.
The name derives from Tim McHale who since 2003, has founded four companies that all allude to “Madison Ave” in their title: Madison Avenue Consulting-2003, (2) Madison Avenue Journal-2005, (3) Mad Ave Mobile-2010 and now (4) Madison Avenue Social-2017.
“Ad agency creative departments refer to Madison Avenue as the “street of dreams” despite the fact that only a few agencies still call that home. In fact, when Wall Street reports on the top 6 holding companies’ earnings every quarter, they call them “Madison Avenue stocks,” Mchale explained. “We believe that kind of image branding, of the ever-changing world of communications, otherwise still referred to as “Madison Avenue,” will last forever.”
“We trademarked it because we wanted to “own” that promise, that we would “evoke emotion” among key prospects that are targeted by our clients with our social solutions,” Catucci added.
The company has also trademarked “We Evoke Emotion” as not only a tagline but a promise to their clients, based on the belief that people are only inspired to take action when something touches them emotionally.
“We spent a lot of time analyzing social media messaging for various businesses, as well as the competitive set of social agencies already servicing clients. Following this SWOT analysis, (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities & Threats), a careful reading showed an obvious void or presence in either bad or great social messaging, respectively,” Catucci explained.
“It was the absence or presence of an emotional appeal that separated the weak from the strong,” she added.
The agency has already taking on social media responsibilities for several brands, including Cross Pens and Sheaffer Pen Co.
Commenting on the agency’s results, Cross Pens CEO Robert Baird stated, “Madison Avenue Social put Cross and Sheaffer brands on the fast track – their strategic approach has extended to our licensing partners – Marvel, Lucasfilm, Fonderie 47 & Liberty United.”
“The team delivers on their commitment, daily, to develop an emotional connection with our consumers, he added. With 1,000+ posts, articles and interviews to-date, they are one of the most dynamic and emotion-provoking social agencies on the horizon.”
In addition, Madison Avenue Social is also announcing a strategic partnership with Mediasmith, a leading collaborative media agency.
“Mediasmith is delighted to be the media partner to Madison Avenue Social,” said Mediasmith CEO, David L. Smith. “I have known this team for a very long time and continue to be impressed with their knowledge of mobile media, their thought-leadership and creative talent, which specializes in emotion-based social media campaigns that break through the increasing clutter we see every day. We are very excited about adding Mad Ave Social to our list of creative resources.”
