Ad Shop Looks Beyond Census Numbers to Provide Online Multicultural Site

NEW YORK – Nov. 17, 2009 – Seeking to infuse its digital innovation strategy with a dose of real-world perspective, Adrenalina, a leading multicultural advertising and marketing agency that is part of the MDC Partners network, said today it is mounting a next-generation multicultural micro site aimed at unleashing the power and influence of U.S. Hispanic and African Americans. Dubbed TheCountThatCounts.com, the micro site serves to buoy the GetAdrenalina.com portal with Web 2.0 strategic insights while widening the discussion about the impending 2010 U.S. Census beyond a numbers story to include an examination of the cultural cues, trends and conversations that shape the attitudes of African Americans and Hispanics. The micro site is scheduled to go live today and may be found at the agency’s portal, GetAdrenalina.com. “The numbers alone no longer define the marketplace,” said Manuel Wernicky, president, chief ideas officer and managing partner, Adrenalina. “The significant population shift expected to occur among minority groups by 2042 is the start of a powerful movement and transformation of multicultural consumers as the new mainstream.” TheCountThatCounts.com, is designed to provide a venue for U.S. Latinos, African Americans and others to share constructive info and ideas that help to further the conversation about the nation’s transformation into a new America. The site also is considered to be a media channel for users to voice their thoughts and perspective on the emerging cultural shift in the U.S. population. “We’ve embarked on these efforts to help generate, share and perpetuate a better understanding of people of color,” Wernicky said. “We think the time is now to expand the discussion about the changing face of America using social media and the Web to initiate an online destination for discourse, social examination and the development of strategic initiatives that help build cultural movements.” Census projections predict that by 2042 Hispanics, African Americans and other people of color who long have been in the minority of the U.S. population will comprise the nation’s collective majority. TheCountThatCounts.com features four main sections, including a newsfeed section offering relevant content about multicultural issues, trends and info culled from CNN.com and the PewHispanic.com, the Web site of the Pew Hispanic Center. A section devoted to Twitter will aggregate ‘tweets’ about conversations, trends and other comments being said by users about the emerging multicultural marketplace, Hispanics, African Americans and other people of color. Additionally, the micro site will showcase press clips that highlight news and features about the innovation, creativity and strategy behind Adrenalina while a dedicated YouTube.com channel will broadcast videos that underscore the significance of an emerging multicultural mainstream. With the rollout of the diversity-themed micro site, Adrenalina becomes the first ad shop in the multicultural space to develop and mount client services offering nuanced, cultural and behavioral insights that extend beyond traditional consumer experiences. “Looking to 2010 and beyond, marketers seeking to connect their brands with consumers must step up their strategies and shift to speaking ‘in cultures not in languages.’” said Manuel Wernicky, president, chief ideas officer and managing partner. “Marketers should think of the census as a tool for marketing to a collective of multicultural consumers. The future is no longer about selling independently to diverse members of the whole.” For more than a year, Adrenalina has been pumping up its client services and carving out its expertise as an ad shop that doesn’t make ads but instead creates emotions in anticipation of an expected growth surge by 2050 when U.S. Hispanics, already the nation’s largest minority, are projected to account for 30 percent, or one in six, Americans, per the U.S. Census Bureau. For more information about Adrenalina, or to obtain screen images of the micro site, send an email to: news@getadrenalina.com. About Adrenalina A new kind of agency for a new America, Adrenalina, New York, is a brand leadership consultancy that infuses multinational brands with cultural and emotional messaging via digital innovation, creative experiences with stopping power, social networking and action marketing strategies designed to ignite a multicultural consumer revolution. About MDC Partners MDC Partners is a leading provider of marketing communications services to clients in North America, Europe and Latin America. Through its partnership of entrepreneurial firms it provides advertising, specialized communications and consulting services to leading brands. MDC Partners’ philosophy emphasizes the utilization of strategy and creativity to drive growth for its clients. “MDC Partners is the Place Where Great Talent Lives.” MDC Partners Class A shares are publicly traded on the NASDAQ under the symbol “MDCA” and on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol “MDZA.”