Pinnacle Living
Branding

Web, Digital & Print Branding

Pinnacle Living is a not-for-profit, faith-inspired organization that operates five senior living communities across the commonwealth, with communities in Arlington, Williamsburg, Roanoke, and two in Richmond. With a person-centered approach to serving their residents, Pinnacle Living and its communities have served more than 70 years with a shared mission: Enriching Life’s Journey.

Founded in 1948 as United Methodist Homes, the organization underwent a rebrand to Pinnacle Living in 2017 in order to make clear they are welcoming of people from all faiths and walks of life. One reason Madison+Main was enlisted was to execute this rebranding across all five communities.

The challenge

Prior to 2020, Pinnacle Living allowed each community to manage the production of their own branded materials. They had brand guidelines, but they weren’t always followed. This often created inconsistencies in the look and feel of the promotional materials pushed out by each community. All five communities were actively promoting the rebrand from United Methodist Homes to Pinnacle Living, but the inconsistencies of the branding produced a challenge. Madison+Main was tasked with overseeing brand consistency across the communities to increase the perception of them all falling under the Pinnacle Living brand in order to increase awareness of the rebrand.

The approach

Madison+Main commenced the relationship by launching a multi-channel campaign centered around the “life’s journey” narrative referenced in Pinnacle Living’s tagline from the rebrand: Enriching Life’s Journey. This campaign was rolled out through a new TV spot, redesign of the community websites, and consistent design elements across print, digital, and social ads. Standards were created for how to utilize the branding in different settings, such as flipping the colors for newspaper print ads in order to improve legibility.

Housing Families First
Bringing Families Home

A Small Investment in PR & Fundraising Support Pays Dividends for A Richmond, VA-Based Non-Profit

Housing Families First is a Richmond, Virginia-based non-profit organization that provides families experiencing homelessness with the tools to achieve housing stability. Formerly established as the Hillard House, Housing Families First recently rebranded with a new name and rapid rehousing mission that is more reflective of the work that they do.

The challenge

Doing good work doesn’t always mean that you are going to get recognition for it or achieve the kind of funding that you need to continue helping people. This is the challenge of many non-profits — creating brand awareness and turning those efforts into solid fundraising. The amount of at-risk families in the Richmond community has been growing, so Madison+Main stepped in to help this worthwhile organization build its profile in the community, and more importantly, to secure funds to help more families, and sustain its mission for years to come.

The approach

In addition to helping with branding, marketing, and public relations work, Madison+Main has helped Housing Families First with a capital campaign (Opening Doors For Families) designed to raise $4.4 million for facility upgrades. We’ve also assisted Housing Families First staffers by taking their grant proposal process to the next level by creating custom templates and producing a special video appeal specifically for the Robins Foundation.

Virginia Department of Health COVIDWISE Campaign

Virginia Department of Health: Dedicated to protecting and promoting the health of Virginians, VDH works to promote healthy lifestyle choices to combat chronic disease, educate the public about emergency preparedness and threats to their health, and track disease outbreaks in Virginia. Their work during the COVID-19 pandemic was vital. VDH sought out Madison+Main to create, implement, and manage the advertising, marketing, and PR launch of COVIDWISE, the first-in-the-nation Exposure Notifications app using Google and Apple’s Bluetooth Low Energy technology.

The challenge

Madison+Main’s overall goal was to gain as many app downloads as possible from August 5, 2020 through December 30, 2020. Our agency worked to communicate an awareness of the app across the Commonwealth of Virginia, and most importantly, ensure widespread adoption of the application so it could be effective in the COVID-19 fight and stopping the spread through exposure notifications. Our challenge was to encourage app downloads to an audience that values privacy in the digital age.

The approach

When COVIDWISE was launched in August 2020, our goal was simple yet audacious: encourage as many Virginians as possible to download and use the app in order to help stop the spread of COVID-19. Over the next 22 months, we unleashed an omnipresent awareness campaign that was pervasive, yet always welcoming, informative, and actionable, which effectively reached every corner of the Commonwealth. With strategic messaging that ensured the public that the app did not collect location data or any personally identifiable information, Madison+Main targeted potential COVIDWISE users through all channels — including Digital Media, Printed Materials, Outdoor (Billboard, Bus, and Transit) Partnership, Public Relations, and Traditional Media (Print, TV, Radio) followed by a continued digital presence to promote app downloads and usage.

Trash Fairies
Hiring Campaign

For tenants in household complexes throughout the country, an ongoing frustration is hauling trash to the dumpster. Trash Fairies — a valet trash and recycling company based in Richmond, Virginia — solves the age-old debate of “Whose turn is it?” and provides clean, safe, reliable doorstep trash and recycling pickup for multi-family households. In other words, they specialize in making trash disappear, enabling property managers to attract new residents and improve retention rates.

The challenge

Since Trash Fairies was founded in 2013, they have experienced incredible growth — from servicing 81 units in Virginia to more than 53,000 units across 11 states in the southeast U.S. in 2021. With that success comes the need for additional crew members, or “Trash Fairies,” to service these household complexes. In recent years, hiring and employee retention have been increasing concerns for businesses across the country, and Trash Fairies was no exception. Trash Fairies was searching for a bold solution and that’s where Madison+Main stepped in.

The approach

Madison+Main got the exciting opportunity to work with Trash Fairies on bolstering their hiring efforts in August of 2021. The Trash Fairies team was solely posting job openings on Facebook and sharing them primarily through boosted organic posts. This forced the Trash Fairies leadership team to gather information via Facebook Messenger, phone calls, text messages, emails, and Facebook comments. It was time-consuming and tedious, so Madison+Main saw an opportunity to gather potential employees’ information in a simpler way: Facebook Lead Form advertising.

By using Facebook Lead Form ads and a complex targeting strategy, we served ads to specific audiences based on geographic and demographic criteria. Within two weeks, Madison+Main created an ad set that could be used across multiple locations, built a targeting strategy to optimize campaign results, and launched their campaign. Talk about magic.

A. Smith Bowman Distillery

A. Smith Bowman Distillery is Virginia’s oldest and most award-winning distillery. The historic, family-owned Distillery is located in Fredericksburg, Virginia and balances long-lived traditions, honoring Virginia’s great pioneers. Most notably, in 2016 and 2017, A. Smith Bowman Distillery won the “World’s Best Bourbon” at the World Whiskies Awards.

The challenge

In an oversaturated market of cocktail recipe books and spirits to pair with them, A. Smith Bowman Distillery and Madison+Main set out to create a Branded Cocktail Recipe Book to sell in their gift shop and online.

The approach

The Branded Cocktail Recipe Book began with a multiple-day photoshoot onsight to showcase all 27 cocktails that would be featured in the book. After strategizing how to properly market the cocktails (including target markets), Madison+Main got busy color correcting the images, writing the recipes, and designing the layout.

Anti-Human Trafficking Campaign

When Virginia’s Office of the Attorney General decided to fight human trafficking in the Commonwealth, they knew they needed a bold attack plan. Unfortunately, human trafficking isn’t just something you see in action movies. It doesn’t just happen in foreign countries, it often extends beyond sex trafficking into forced labor, and it crosses genders, with both males and females being almost equally affected. It was important for this campaign to both offer a lifeline to actual victims and educate the public so they would be able to identify and report suspicious activity that went beyond stereotypes.

The challenge

How do you effectively communicate to someone being held against their will? Instead of a typical awareness campaign, trying to reach a broad swath of the general population, our challenge was to reach people who may be actively involved in human trafficking: those that may be held against their will, those who wish to exploit them, and anyone who may come into contact with illegal trafficking activity.

The approach

Almost 50% of the U.S. population lives within a one-day drive of Virginia, making it a notorious focal point for trafficking. Our research indicated that truck stops are a hotbed for this kind of activity so, we targeted mobile phones that were within a quarter-mile of truck stops and rest areas along the major interstates in Virginia. 

Through a series of geo-targeted mobile banner ads, we were able to reach concerned citizens, possible “johns,” victims who have internet-capable mobile phones, etc., to make them aware of the problem and let them know that help is out there. The ads featured direct wording to victims, such as “Are you being held against your will?” in a variety of different languages, including Spanish, Korean, and Vietnamese. Other ads directly addressed exploiters — “She needs your help, not your cash.” We also targeted the top 50 illicit websites in Virginia where potential “johns” could be looking to make the leap from the virtual world into the real world of sex trafficking.

Who’s Your Driver?

Who’s Your Driver? is a sober and safe driving initiative that was started by DRIVE SMART Virginia, a non-profit organization with a mission to eliminate alcohol-related crashes and to educate citizens on safe driving practices. The Who’s Your Driver campaign included a safe driving pledge, social media content and promotion opportunities, event sponsorships, live activation at events, and a website, all of which run throughout the NASCAR racing season as well as at several motorsports tracks throughout Virginia.

The challenge

Madison+Main was tasked with focusing our efforts on 18-34-year-old rural, truck driving males, which studies show contribute to a large portion of the alcohol-related crashes in Virginia. Besides ensuring that their media spend reached the target demographic, the client also wanted to increase their presence at numerous motorsports events throughout the state and increase participation in their Safe Driving Pledge.

The approach

In addition to fulfilling the existing sponsorship partnerships that DRIVE SMART Virginia had with race tracks across the state, M+M placed paid media on Facebook and Twitter with three goals. The first goal was general awareness to promote sign-ups for the pledge among our target audience. The second goal was geo-targeted ads that were targeted around the race tracks where DRIVE SMART Virginia had a physical presence. The last goal was to increase participation in the VIP experiences.

Throughout our work, we found that Who’s Your Driver? engaged fans and followers from our target audience on multiple platforms. They participated in the VIP Experience through more than one activity and communicated with us on social content.

Madison+Main created social media content that, through geo and psychographic targeting techniques, enticed targeted users to take the Safe Driving pledge and to participate in the VIP experiences.

Respect Richmond Campaign

When Virginia’s Office of the Attorney General wanted to crack down on rising gang and gun violence crimes in the city of Richmond, VA, they needed a bold approach that would cut through the clutter and connect with at-risk youth on a deeply emotional level.

The challenge

The goal and the objective of the Project Safe Neighborhoods initiative was to decrease gang-related homicides, aggravated assaults, and robberies in Richmond, Virginia. They wanted to launch a mutli-platform outreach campaign that would work in unison with their street-level law enforcement activities.

The approach

The campaign needed to communicate a deterrent message to would-be criminals, with the simultaneous promotion of community resources. A portion of the campaign also needed to build on community responsibility and utilizing community members as force multipliers. Finally, we wanted to address a major issue: once a shooting happens, there is typically a retaliatory event within about two weeks. Geographically, the campaign was hyper-focused on three neighborhoods within the Richmond city limits. However, within those three neighborhoods, we identified those three different “audiences” that needed to be reached with different messaging: 

1. Direct messaging to reach the gang members
2. Community messaging to reach our community members 
3. Anti-reactionary “audience” which was a segment of the direct and community audiences with specific anti-retaliatory messaging that was deployed after a qualifying incident

Despite having a very small geographic target market and even more segmented psychographic and behavioral audiences, we developed a relatable, surround sound campaign called Respect Richmond. We utilized billboards, in-store marketing at gas stations and convenience stores in the relevant neighborhoods, television, radio, digital, and social ads and even appeared on internet-connected devices such as Xbox consoles and Smart TVs. If an audience member was in our targeted neighborhoods, they weren’t able to get away from our messaging.

Compass Entertainment Complex

Compass Entertainment Complex is a massive and all-inclusive entertainment center opening Spring 2020 in Lancaster, Virginia. Their 28,000 sq. foot facility will house a full-service restaurant, laser tag, go-karts, mini-golf climbing walls, a six-screen movie cinema, and much more.

The challenge

When Compass Entertainment Center first approached Madison+Main, they were completely unbranded and referring to themselves simply as a “Rappahannock Entertainment Center.” With their groundbreaking quickly on the horizon, they needed a full branding campaign, including a new name, two new brands; for the complex and an adjacent restaurant. Madison+Main was just the right team for the job!

The approach

Our strategy stemmed from our agencies’ approach: Bold Brands Win. We knew that this entertainment center needed to grab attention, excite people, draw a crowd, and clearly portray the unique personality of the center. Madison+Main held company brainstorms, with insight from our clients, and developed multiple detailed options for our awesome clients.

Texas Inn

Texas Inn, known by locals as “The T Room,” is Lynchburg, Virginia’s oldest dining establishment, founded in 1935. Now with two locations – Downtown and Cornerstone – the business still serves “1,500 people, 15 at a time.” To date, the Texas Inn has served more than 6 million customers.

The challenge

This iconic diner has a long and distinguished history, but it had fallen on hard times. When Madison+Main began working with the company in 2018, ownership reported seven consecutive years of revenue declines, and the company — and the brand — needed a makeover.

The approach

Madison+Main prescribed some tough medicine for the company; a new brand image, a website, a complete overhaul of the interior of the restaurants and new operational procedures and revenue streams (merchandise sales, online delivery services, new menus and menu items).

With an emphasis on social media, digital marketing, local radio and public relations, the T Room has regained market share in the fast-casual space and experienced an amazing turn-around. Web traffic has increased by 500%. The company’s Facebook page grew from 237 to 5,311 followers in only one year and has a 4.8 rating on Facebook and 4.7 rating on Google. Madison+Main’s online video announcing delivery services UberEats and Grubhub was viewed more than 100,000 times — not bad for a 15 seat lunch counter. 😉

Maola Milk

Maola Milk is a proud brand of the Maryland & Virginia Milk Producers Cooperative Association that was formed in 1920 to promote milk that is created by families, for families! 100% fresh, 100% local. The brand includes family-owned dairy farms spanning several Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern states and chose Madison+Main to help launch, market, and establish partnerships for MilkPEP’s first-ever program, called “Love What’s Real,” connecting the Maola Milk brand with local culinary experts to promote milk.

The challenge

People often overlook milk as a cooking ingredient, solely viewing it as a delicious and nutritious drink. Our challenge was to position milk in a new and exciting way by partnering with a local, well-known chef to highlight how milk can play a starring role in the kitchen by incorporating it into homemade recipes.

The approach

Madison+Main established a partnership with Chef Lee Gregory, who is the co-owner of Alewife and Executive Chef at Southbound. Around the same time, Chef Lee Gregory received praise by GQ Magazine for his use of locally-produced ingredients, naming Southbound the “Best New Restaurant” in 2019. Our team strategically teamed up with him and helped produce videos of him in his restaurant’s kitchen incorporating various Maola products to create custom recipes including Milk Chocolate Panna Cotta, Buttermilk-Brined Fried Chicken, Milk Roasted Chicken, and Milk Cake. In addition, we created Facebook and Twitter posts for a new social media campaign to promote the chef partnership and Maola Milk’s involvement in MilkPEP’s campaign. As an educational aspect, we also included many milk benefits into the messaging.

Virginia Energy Sense

Virginia Energy Sense (VES) is the Commonwealth’s energy education program managed by the State Corporation Commission.

The challenge

Virginia set a goal to reduce electric energy consumption 10 percent below the 2006 level by 2022 and created the Virginia Energy Sense program. The goals of this statewide public awareness campaign are to help consumers make informed choices, increase awareness of options for conserving electricity, and enable consumers to reduce their energy consumption.

The approach

Madison+Main created a bold new multifaceted marketing and PR campaign that appealed to a wide range of Virginians and put more of an emphasis on digital media to maximize the campaign reach and most importantly, get Virginians to take small steps towards energy reduction. We created Jack, a wise-cracking power plug, who sounds remarkably similar to an Academy award-winning villain with the same first name. Jack achieved instant recognition, delighting everyone aged three to 93.

We expanded VES’s digital reach across the state, securing coverage and mention in high-impact media targets. In addition, we helped them strengthen existing partnerships and cultivated new ones to increase awareness of energy conservation as well as share the many ways that Virginians can easily and cost-effectively save energy in their homes, at work, or at school.

Lucy Corr

Lucy Corr is a not-for-profit continuing care retirement community that has served as a pillar for Chesterfield County since 1970, catering to active seniors aged 62 and older. They offer senior living services including Independent Living, Assisted Living, Health Care Center, Life Care, and Adult Day Center.

The challenge

A picture can tell a thousand words…until it can’t. With a beautiful, 43-acre community, the challenge was capturing all of its glory in a single, easily digestible format that would keep viewers engaged and interested in Lucy Corr while differentiating the community from its competitors.

The approach

Madison+Main worked with long-time partners and full-service video production studio, Broadscope Media, to shoot a drone video of the community in its entirety — highlighting the various amenities and natural beauty of the community. Before doing so, our talented team wrote the visual treatment, picked the perfect actors from a large talent pool, and laid the groundwork for a successful shoot. The video showcases residents enjoying social activities, their extensive walking trails, new cottages and apartments — plus more.