Millennials may know who P. Diddy, Jay-Z, Daymond John, Bethenny Frankel, and many other moguls are, but do they know about the man that paved the way for entrepreneurs to elevate their game? LACED Agency was tasked with sharing the inspiring story of Reginald F. Lewis to a new generation of fresh, young thinkers. Leveraging the power of social media marketing and a targeted social ad buy – LACED Agency successfully promoted the PBS Pioneers Documentary, “Reginald F. Lewis & The Making of a Billion Dollar Empire” during Black History Month. The campaign drove massive brand awareness reaching more than 2 million+ new viewers and sharing the story of the first-ever African American billionaire business tycoon on Wall Street. 

The goal of the campaign was to create brand awareness in the local New York and Los Angeles markets. Our intent was to share RFL’s inspiring story to new audiences and encourage viewers to watch the RFL Documentary Film’s roll-out on PBS Pioneers. To do this, LACED developed original content marketing themes and creative design for the campaign which was implemented across Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. Using a hashtag strategy to connect with key audiences, the campaign was able to authentically introduce a new generation to Reginald F. Lewis, an inspiring person of prominence, the 1st Black $Billion Dealmaker, closing the $985 million leveraged buyout of Beatrice International Foods (which at the time, was the largest offshore transaction ever completed in the United States). LACED Agency took a strategic approach to re-packaging older archived videos by designing custom bumpers and VOs with motion graphics. This approach was essential in providing a fresh look & feel to important video content that really resonated with younger audiences and boosted brand awareness via video ads. Campaign efforts culminated with the promotion of the official launch party in NYC on Day 30 of the social media & ad campaign. The Launch Party included celebrity guests, a Trailblazing Titan Panel of key thought leaders, and a sneak peak of the PBS PIONEERS: RFL Documentary during the party.