On Tuesday, Target Market News announced that Clifford Franklin, president and CEO of FUSE Advertising, is its 2009 Advertising Executive of the Year.
Target Market News, the nation’s leading authority on African-American marketing, media and consumer research, annually recognizes executives who “promote greater understanding of, growth of, and sensitivity toward the African-American consumer market.”
Franklin told The American the success of his firm is “relationship-driven and reputation-driven.”
The reputation of FUSE speaks for itself. Ad Age ranks it as the sixth-largest black-owned ad agency in the U.S., with annual capitalized dealings of $71 million.
Last year, FUSE pulled a trifecta in Democratic politics by serving as African-American agency of record for the Obama, U.S. Senate and U.S. House campaign committees. FUSE added CNN to its client list in 2008, promoting its “Black Experience in America” tour.
In late 2008, FUSE also launched a satellite company, e3thos.com. This is an all-video online network providing news, top scripted shows (such as 24 and 30 Rock) and its own original content, including Dr. Benjamin Ola Akande’s economic show My Street and In Plain English, featuring New York attorney, Larry English.
Franklin said e3thos.com is “the only all-video network targeted to African Americans and urban progressives” and projected it will generate more than $25 million in advertising revenue over the next 12-18 months.
“We represent very well across the country, but it still doesn’t seem to help in St. Louis,” Franklin said.
Franklin and the rest of the FUSE leadership team were recognized as 2007 Entrepreneurs of the Year by The St. Louis American Foundation. Franklin seized the occasion of the awards dinner to blast St. Louis for its cautious country-club business culture.
As for FUSE being “relationship-driven,” that is abundantly evident.
The agency’s executive vice president is Franklin’s wife, Sharilyn Franklin, and its executive creative director is his brother, Michael Franklin. Rounding out the leadership team is Gerald Hawthorne, vice president of Account and Media Services, who is Cliff and Mike Franklin’s fraternity brother in Kappa Alpha Psi.
The Kappa connection
The bond of fraternity brotherhood has been just as important to FUSE as the Franklin blood.
“The Kappa men have been very beneficial to us,” Cliff Franklin said.
Kappa Executive Director Richard Lee Snow said the organization has an active member of 120,000 strong. Though networking on a brother’s behalf is standard for Kappas, he said, FUSE also gets an extra boost as the fraternity’s ad agency.
“We have an opportunity to get their name out there to our national partners,” Snow said of FUSE.
Snow mentioned American Airlines and IBM as two large clients of FUSE where a Kappa connection helped the Franklins seal the deal. It helps that the highest-ranking African American at IBM, Rodney C. Adkins, is a Kappa.
“Fortunately, most of our key brothers at the senior level in executive positions at national corporations remain in their positions, despite the economic downturn,” Snow said.
Snow said it is a major benefit to Cliff Franklin that he is a member of the fraternity’s elite K100 executive group, comprised of “senior-level executives at national corporations, as well as accomplished entrepreneurs.”
Other St. Louis-based executives in K100 are John Jacobs, Johnny Furr Jr. and Mike Roberts.
As for FUSE’s future, Franklin hinted at more national political work coming out of Washington, D.C., but – perhaps oddly for someone who produces advertising for a living – he was hesitant to tout himself or his agency.
“You are only as good as your last campaign,” he said.
Franklin will be recognized on June 30 at an awards dinner during the Tenth Annual Marketing to African Americans with Excellence (MAAX) Summit.
Other 2009 awardees are:
* Media Executive of the Year – Louis Carr, president Broadcast Media Sales, Black Entertainment Television
* Marketing Executive of the Year – Crystal Worthem, Multicultural Marketing manager, Ford Motor Co.
* Research Executive of the Year – Esther Franklin, executive vice president, director of Cultural Identities, Starcom Mediavest Group
* Public Relations Executive of the Year – Kim Hunter, president/CEO, Lagrant Communications
* Lifetime Achievement Award – Jonathan Rodgers, president, TV One.
For further information, call Target Market News at 312-408-1881.
