Expanding Strategic Marketing Offerings for Today’s CMO
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About The Halo Group
The Halo Group is a marketing communications and branding agency that brings experts in business, branding, advertising and public relations together to work as a single team. Halo helps companies with every experience that a customer has with their brand. The Halo team works alongside a select group of international, national and regional clients who understand the value of talent and professionalism. Halo’s work has been honored with some of the industry’s top awards; Telly, Webby, and Internet Advertising Competition Awards but, more important, these campaigns are building relationships around the globe. The Halo Group was founded in 1994 and is a member of AAAA, PRSA, NAWBO, and WBNY.
The Halo Group Revs Up Marketing Selecting Tom Cunningham as Chief Marketing Officer
Tom brings over 20 years of experience in marketing communications, brand strategy, client services and business development to The Halo Group. From some of the largest traditional advertising and public relations agencies to mid-size independents, Tom’s areas of expertise include, sports and entertainment, retail, consumer packaged goods and business to business. He has worked with iconic brands including, Reebok, Top Flite Golf, The NHL and General Motors.
“I believe that even the largest brands are looking for a new kind of agency - agile, business-oriented, creative, ROI driven. To be competitive you need to be a more aggressive marketer,” said Cunningham. “I was really attracted to the world-class creative, strategic and management talent, which will no doubt elevate us as we grow the business over the next few years.”
As clients have gotten savvier regarding marketing, Halo’s Chief Executive Officer Linda Passante believes this is an opportune time for businesses as well as small agencies.
“When facing a financially challenging economy, those companies that are assertive will emerge ahead,” said Passante. “Don’t cut your marketing – this is the time to double down.”
About The Halo Group
The Halo Group is a marketing communications and branding agency that brings experts in business, branding, advertising and public relations together to work as a single team. Halo helps companies with every experience that a customer has with their brand. The Halo team works alongside a select group of international, national and regional clients who understand the value of talent and professionalism. Halo’s work has been honored with some of the industry’s top awards; Telly, Webby, and Internet Advertising Competition Awards but, more important, these campaigns are building relationships around the globe. The Halo Group was founded in 1994 and is a member of AAAA, PRSA, NAWBO, and WBNY.
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The Halo Group, a New York-based branding and marketing communications agency, announced today that Michael Gambino has joined the agency as Executive Creative Director.
Michael brings more than 17 years of multifaceted large and small agency experience. During his career he has created campaigns for many of the world’s greatest brands including Coca-Cola, FedEx, McDonald’s, Mars and Verizon. Michael started his career as an Art Director on the launch of MasterCard’s renowned “Priceless” campaign, and the “Make It a Bud Light” campaign. Michael also created many memorable ads for Visa’s “It’s everywhere you want to be” campaign and its many sponsorship campaigns for the Olympics, the NFL, the TONY Awards, the Triple Crown, and NASCAR.
“Mike is the ideal leader to take the helm of Halo’s creative team,” said Linda Passante, CEO of The Halo Group. “There are a lot of acclaimed ECD’s out there but he has all of the impressive big-brand experience while maintaining the small-agency management style needed for Halo, which places a crucial emphasis on an agency-wide inclusionary, creative work-style.”
“Halo’s culture is what initially piqued my interests,” explains Michael. “Many agencies preach the idea of collaboration but it was quickly apparent that Halo lives by this philosophy. Halo’s truly a culture of collaborators and there’s a refreshing creative freedom and diverse talent found in every department from brand strategy and PR, to social media and digital,” Michael explains.
Recently, Michael was Group Creative Director on Verizon FiOS, co-creating the popular Cable Guy character. Michael also wrote the film, Space Cadet, which is currently in post-production. Michael’s work has been featured in Adweek, AOL Fuel the Future, and more than one hundred blog sites internationally. He has also exhibited his paintings and sculptures at galleries nationwide. Winning virtually every award, including the Gold Cannes Lion, Gold One Show Pencils and a few Effies, he has even been nominated for an EMMY Award. A native New Yorker, Michael holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Advertising Design from the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York.
About The Halo Group
The Halo Group is a marketing communications and branding agency that brings experts in business, branding, advertising and public relations together to work as a single team. Halo helps companies with every experience that a customer has with their brand. The Halo team works alongside a select group of international, national and regional clients who understand the value of talent and professionalism. Halo’s work has been honored with some of the industry’s top awards; Telly, Webby, and Internet Advertising Competition Awards but, more important, these campaigns are building relationships around the globe. The Halo Group was founded in 1994 and is a member of AAAA, PRSA, NAWBO, and WBNY.
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The Halo Group, a New York-based brand and marketing communications agency, announced today that it was awarded an Honorable Mention by the 2012 PR Daily Awards, Ragan Communications’ first annual international public relations competition. The Halo Group was presided an Honorable Mention in the Best Use of QR Code in a PR/Marketing Campaign category for developing the ‘Marketing Innovation Reality Check’, a mobile survey sponsorship at Columbia University Business School's Center on Global Brand Leadership BRITE '11 Conference.
The Halo Group's mobile survey was accessed via a QR code and promoted by a program that included conference signage, social media and an onsite “street team.” This enabled attendees to participate in a survey, enter a drawing and understand the real internal challenges to creating, implementing and measuring innovation within their organization. Survey respondents were BRITE conference attendees ranging from CMOs from top brands to leading academics to some of the foremost marketing and branding agencies.
“We’re thrilled to be recognized for our own marketing campaign by Ragan’s PR Daily and stand among the competitions’ other honorees, an established and talented group of public relations leaders,” said Linda Passante, CEO/Founding Partner of The Halo Group.
About The Halo Group
The Halo Group is a New York based brand and marketing communications agency providing clients with marketing solutions from traditional advertising to digital/interactive to media planning/buying to PR to social media. Founded in 1994,The Halo team works alongside a select group of international, national and regional clients, helping them with every experience that a customer has with their brand. Halo’s global campaigns have been honored with some of the industry’s top awards, Telly, Webby, and Internet Advertising Competition Awards. The Halo Group is also one of only three New York City partners of Pinnacle Worldwide, an international partnership of public relations firms in dozens of cities around the world. For more information, please visit www.thehalogroup.net.
About Ragan Communications
Ragan Communications operates two of the top news and information sites for the PR and corporate communications industry—Ragan.com and PRDaily.com. These daily news sites attract nearly 700,000 global visitors. The company also covers the health care and HR communication industries with its daily news sites HealthCareCommunication.com and HRCommunication.com. Chicago-based Ragan is also the leading provider of conferences and online training to PR, media relations and corporate communications professionals.
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Mount Airy Casino Resort in the Poconos has debuted an extensive redesign of its website, mountairycasino.com, the first since the premier casino mountain resort opened five years ago.
The state-of-the-art website, created by branding and marketing communications agency of record, The Halo Group, showcases Mount Airy’s unique Pocono Mountain Casino Resort experience and tells the story of all this year-round resort has to offer; the excitement of casino gaming, gourmet dining, luxurious accommodations, entertainment, and a range of indoor and outdoor activities.
“The site’s revamped content falls in line with the rustic elegant experience that separates Mount Airy from over 50 casino resorts that are competing for travelling gamers in the hotly contested northeast market,” said Linda Passante, CEO, The Halo Group. “Marking the beginning of a shift to more online communications, the website’s goal is to intrigue guests, serve as a tool for Mount Airy’s Players Club Members and to encourage visitors to be a part of the buzz by sharing their stories on Facebook and Twitter.”
Streamlined for easier navigation, as well robust content management, the new simplified user interface was built in the latest HTML5 web industry standards. The site now allows easy access for patrons to reserve a hotel room, check out nightlife and book a tee time or table for dinner from every page.
PLAY. Home to more than 2,000 of the latest slot machines, 72 of the hottest table games including blackjack, roulette, craps, baccarat and poker. This section lets guests instantly browse all the 24/7 gaming, tournaments, promotions, and top-notch entertainment Mount Airy Casino has to offer. Learn about Mount Airy Casino’s Players Club Program, view benefits and rewards and sign up instantly. You can also book a spa appointment or a tee time at the 18-Hole championship Golf Course.
STAY. With the hotel’s luxurious warm ambiance, and long list of amenities, naturally accentuating the serenity of the Pocono Mountain setting, visitors can book one of the exquisite guest rooms, view room packages, book meetings, events and purchase gift cards.
EAT. Pleasure for every palate. Five exciting restaurants allow visitors to indulge their every craving. View menus, wine lists and reserve a table online via OpenTable at two of the award winning, regional restaurants red Steakhouse and Le Sorrelle Cucina.
The only casino resort in all of Pennsylvania to receive a AAA 4-diamond rating, Mount Airy Casino Resort offers guests the ultimate experience in casino gaming, golf, outdoor activities, entertainment, five restaurants, 188 lavish guest rooms and deluxe suites.
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About The Halo Group
The Halo Group is a New York based marketing communications and branding agency that brings experts in business, branding, advertising and public relations together to work as a single team. Founded in 1994,The Halo team works alongside a select group of international, national and regional clients, helping them with every experience that a customer has with their brand. Halo’s global campaigns have been honored with some of the industry’s top awards, Telly, Webby, and Internet Advertising Competition Awards. The Halo Group is also one of only three New York City partners of Pinnacle Worldwide, an international partnership of public relations firms in dozens of cities around the world. For more information, please visit www.thehalogroup.net.
Branding and marketing communications agency, The Halo Group has been chosen by Virginia-based Infinit Software Solutions, Inc, to launch Linguizz, the first visually-driven vocabulary and English learning system that accelerates students’ word retention and comprehension.
Answering this demand for improved English language education tools, English language learning expert Michael K. Bender and software and visual designer Art Toezer, CEO and Founder of Infinit Software Solutions Inc, developed Linguizz. Created for not only faster learning, but also longer retention and superior comprehension, the unique learning system combines visuals, word definitions and pronunciations to provide students and teachers with enhanced context to understand English vocabulary.
“Halo has an excellent understanding of the crowded educational marketplace and what it takes for our brand to successfully connect with our customers,” said Toezer.
The agency’s focus will be on creating and enhancing Linquizz’s brand identity, positioning the system as a global platform for learning English by using powerful visual imagery that translates words across borders. The New York-based agency will also provide integrated marketing communications services to build brand awareness amongst key trade and consumer education audiences including creative, advertising, packaging, trade shows and public relations.
“With our extensive knowledge and experience in global education, we immediately knew that this was a product the market had been waiting for,” said Linda Passante, CEO, The Halo Group. "Halo’s reputation for helping brands break into highly competitive industries, makes working with Linguizz a natural fit for our team.”
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About The Halo Group
The Halo Group is a New York based marketing communications and branding agency that brings experts in business, branding, advertising and public relations together to work as a single team. Founded in 1994,The Halo team works alongside a select group of international, national and regional clients, helping them with every experience that a customer has with their brand. Halo’s global campaigns have been honored with some of the industry’s top awards, Telly, Webby, and Internet Advertising Competition Awards. The Halo Group is also one of only three New York City partners of Pinnacle Worldwide, an international partnership of public relations firms in dozens of cities around the world. For more information, please visit www.thehalogroup.net.
NEW YORK, June 13, 2012 – New York’s branding and marketing communications agency, The Halo Group, has joined Pinnacle Worldwide, Inc., an international network of nearly 50 leading independently owned public relations firms located on four continents and dozens of cities throughout the world. The agency will be the third member based in New York.
“Pinnacle Worldwide provides a solution for independent agencies to better serve national and international clients,” said Linda Passante, CEO/Co-founder of The Halo Group. “Members with varied expertise are committed to supporting one another. This partnership adds valuable resources; an investment in our firm and its future.”
“We are very pleased to partner with The Halo Group,” said Johanna Mouton, Executive Director Pinnacle Worldwide. “Our members were impressed by their superior reputation in the industry, wealth of integrated offerings and resources for our members. I believe Linda Passante and her team at Halo will bring a new and fresh perspective to the Pinnacle network.”
About Pinnacle Worldwide
About The Halo Group
The Halo Group is a New York based marketing communications and branding agency that brings experts in business, branding, advertising and public relations together to work as a single team. Founded in 1994,The Halo team works alongside a select group of international, national and regional clients, helping them with every experience that a customer has with their brand. Halo’s global campaigns have been honored with some of the industry’s top awards, Telly, Webby, and Internet Advertising Competition Awards. The Halo Group is also one of only three New York City partners of Pinnacle Worldwide, an international partnership of public relations firms in dozens of cities around the world. For more information, please visit www.thehalogroup.net.
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NEW YORK, May 30, 2012 – New York’s branding and marketing communications agency, The Halo Group, announced today that Jeff Peters has joined the agency as a Social Media Specialist.
In his role, Jeff will maintain client’s superior reputations while fostering key relationships with consumers through on-going digital dialogue, utilizing the latest communications tools and tactics.
“Clients understand the importance of social media in their marketing communications mix and most are out there communicating however, they need help creating a strategy to keep them focused,” said Linda Passante, CEO/Co-founder of The Halo Group. “ With Jeff’s understanding of when and where to use the latest social media tools, he is well-equipped to advise any of the brands we work with.”
Peters has in-depth experience in the development and execution of social media strategies for clients such as Cisco, Ubisoft, Viacom, Red Bull, CMT and CBS Sports. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Pittsburgh.
“I’m thrilled to be joining Halo and continue to develop the agency’s social media presence,” said Peters. “Halo’s team is truly of group of experts within the communications industry so my goal is to build upon the agency’s influential approach to marketing for our clients within the social media sphere.”
Halo’s expansion of its social media department includes the addition of Whitney McGowan as Social Media Networker. McGowan will work closely with Peters in the creation of strategic social media programs for Halo’s clients, seamlessly incorporating these programs into the overall marketing and communications campaigns.
About The Halo Group
The Halo Group is a New York based marketing communications and branding agency that brings experts in business, branding, advertising and public relations together to work as a single team. Founded in 1994,The Halo team works alongside a select group of international, national and regional clients, helping them with every experience that a customer has with their brand. Halo’s global campaigns have been honored with some of the industry’s top awards, Telly, Webby, and Internet Advertising Competition Awards. The Halo Group is also one of only three New York City partners of Pinnacle Worldwide, an international partnership of public relations firms in dozens of cities around the world. For more information, please visit www.thehalogroup.net.
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NEW YORK, May 23, 2012 – The Halo Group, a New York branding and marketing communications agency, announced today that Lara Cohn was promoted to Senior Vice President/Director of Public Relations.
Since joining Halo in 2010, Cohn has led the public relations function at the integrated communications agency, expanding the discipline into events, social media, and online content creation. “Halo’s integrated environment and the trust of our clients allow me to be creative in ways far beyond what I could do at a PR-only agency, “ said Cohn, “and that approach is apparent in the coverage we are landing for clients like Liebherr refrigeration, which was recently featured on NBC’s LX.TV’s Open House, helping raise brand awareness within the highly influential design community.”
Working with Halo CEO Linda Passante, Cohn also secured membership for the agency in Pinnacle Worldwide, a select international network of independent public relations firms.
“Lara is a great force for earned media and she has a rare ability to assess all media and how best PR tactics will work within an overall communications program,” said Passante.
Before Halo, Cohn’s career included various leadership roles, generating billions of impressions for global brands including Procter & Gamble, American Red Cross, Bayer, PetSmart and Macy’s. She has been honored repeatedly for her work, and is a multiple Silver Anvil award winner (the highest accolade in the world of public relations), a member of the Counselors Academy of the Public Relations Society of America, and a judge for the annual PR News’ Platinum Awards. Additionally, she is an active mentor to young PR professionals, as well as students from her alma mater, Lehigh University.
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The Halo Group is a New York based marketing communications and branding agency that brings experts in business, branding, advertising and public relations together to work as a single team. Founded in 1994, The Halo team works alongside a select group of international, national and regional clients, helping them with every experience that a customer has with their brand. Halo is a member of Pinnacle Worldwide and their global campaigns have been honored with some of the industry’s top honors, including Telly, Webby, and Internet Advertising Competition Awards. For more information, please visit www.thehalogroup.net
The Halo Group recently launched a new blog, The Halo Group Effect. Featuring original content, The Halo Group Effect provides expert assestments of the latest marketing, advertising and communications strategies and tactics. The blog also includes a weekly feature, 'The Five Things You Shouldn’t Have Missed This Week,' a roundup of the top stories from around industry.
The Halo Group Effect is designed to offer insightful industry analysis as well as build a community of key thought leaders. Blog posts are created by Halo staff as well as guest bloggers.
