CBS EcoMedia Inc. Broadens Reach With Launch of "Wellness" and "Education" Ads

NEW YORK, April 11, 2012  /PRNewswire/ -- CBS EcoMedia Inc. today announced the expansion of its pioneering EcoAd advertising program. "EducationAd" and "WellnessAd" advertisements now join the "EcoAd" program as options for corporations looking to make a positive impact in the communities in which they advertise. With the launch of these new products, CBS EcoMedia Inc. continues to realize its mission: to fund projects supported by the nation's most effective nonprofit organizations with ad dollars, thereby turning advertising into an engine for social change.

"We value the tremendous contribution EcoMedia has made not only within CBS in growing our offerings to advertisers, but more importantly to the numerous communities that have directly benefited from the projects EcoMedia has implemented," said Leslie Moonves, President and Chief Executive Officer of CBS Corporation. "It's fantastic news all around that EcoMedia is expanding its award-winning program offering; we look forward to sharing our innovative advertising model with clients and communities alike."

The EcoAd, EducationAd and WellnessAd advertising programs – which are exclusive offerings of CBS EcoMedia Inc. – are available to clients across all CBS platforms, affording them the opportunity to fund critical, tangible social improvement projects through the advertising they buy. The advertising programs will create jobs, save taxpayers money and bring environmental, health and education benefits to communities across the country.

CBS encourages viewers to look for the EcoAd, EducationAd and WellnessAd program logos on commercials presented across its many platforms. These three icons signify that the advertiser has provided funding for one of a number of urgent yet underfunded projects, including lighting and other energy efficiency retrofits, solar power installations, organic gardens, tree plantings, mobile health clinics, family comfort programs, fitness zones, education scholarships, school supplies and nutritious meals for school children in underserved communities – projects that might not happen without the financial support made possible through the EcoMedia public-private partnership model.

Today's announcement includes multiple advertisers and nonprofit partners including General Motors, Chevrolet, Ronald McDonald House Charities® (RMHC®) and Starlight's Children Foundation. A complete list of advertising and non-profit partners is available below.

"We set out to design a business model that could harness the billions of dollars spent annually on advertising to support projects championed by the country's leading non-profits," explains Paul Polizzotto, President and Founder, CBS EcoMedia Inc.  "Our non-profit partners are tackling the most serious social issues of our time – pollution, disease, educational inequality – and we're helping them do it, by aligning them with advertisers looking to make a difference. Our EcoAd, WellnessAd and EducationAd programs engage consumers in a fundamentally new way changing the conversation between viewers and advertisers. At EcoMedia we believe that advertising should do more than inform and entertain.  We encourage consumers to expect more from commercials.  In the process, we're turning viewers into volunteers, and the mainstream media model – the ordinary commercial – is elevated into an agent for social change."

A promotional campaign educating viewers about the power and purpose of the EcoAd, WellnessAd and EducationAd program debuts on the CBS Television Network and across other CBS platforms today.

"Timing is everything, and there couldn't be a better time for EcoMedia to be expanding its mission. Its programs are so relevant right now because they effectively link real, pressing local community needs with advertisers' corporate social responsibility goals," says Lynn Fantom, CEO of ID Media, an Interpublic Group media agency that works with Fortune 500 brands, including American Express, Johnson & Johnson, Verizon, Nationwide and Select Comfort.

"GM recognizes that in order to grow our business we must align ourselves with the needs of society. To further this strategy we partnered with EcoMedia over a year ago and together have been making positive contributions to many communities we serve," said Michael J. Robinson, Vice President, Sustainability and Global Regulatory Affairs for General Motors. "We applaud EcoMedia for expanding their program to include Wellness and Education; we look forward to growing our partnership to increase our impact nationwide."

"The mission of RHMC to improve the health and well being of children and their families couldn't align more seamlessly with EcoMedia's commitment to build healthy communities," said RMHC President and CEO Marty Coyne. "Whether through monetary gifts, in-kind donations or volunteering, corporate donors like EcoMedia and the companies it works with are a vital part of helping us deliver comfort and care to the children and families serve through RMHC programs and services."

"Starlight Children's Foundation is able to embrace, empower and enrich the lives of chronically ill children and their families through donations from generous partners like CBS EcoMedia and its clients," said Jacqueline Hart-Ibrahim, Global CEO of Starlight Children's Foundation. "As CBS EcoMedia pioneers a new advertising model to bring positive change to communities nationwide, Starlight will continue to innovate meaningful psychosocial digital programs that also reach into communities everywhere and ultimately bring comfort, strength and joy to those who need it most."

The expansion of EcoMedia's advertising offerings to include wellness and education products has grown the company's reach exponentially.  In addition to GM, Chevrolet, Starlight's Children Foundation and Ronald McDonald House Charities, advertisers, nonprofit partners and beneficiaries of funded projects to date include: Philadelphia tri state Cadillac Dealers,  Supernetwork Buick GMC Dealers, The Colorado Chevy Dealers, Energizer, Elephant Insurance Services, Cirque du Soleil, Select Comfort, Snapple, Waste Management, Winthrop-University Hospital of Mineola, NY, Xcel Energy, Fisher House Foundation, Volunteers of America, Junior Achievement, Children's Health Fund, KIPP Foundation, Kids In Need Foundation, Enterprise Community Partners, National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, Waterkeeper Alliance, Association of Science & Technology Centers, Little Kids Rock,  National Association of Counties, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, San Francisco Parks, Recreation & Open Spaces, Environmental Charter School, Miami-Dade County Parks & Recreation, Phyllis Wheatley Community Center, Denver Parks & Recreation, the Maryland Zoo, Torrance Unified School District, Hope Manor housing for homeless veterans in Chicago, and the City of Long Beach, Calif.

About CBS EcoMedia Inc.

At EcoMedia, we're propelled by the desire to create positive social change; that's been our mission since we founded the company in 2002.  In 2008, after successfully partnering with CBS on a wide-range of environmental projects, EcoMedia became the newest addition to the CBS Corporation portfolio, exponentially scaling our reach across television, radio, interactive, publishing and outdoor media.

Through our patent-pending EcoAd, WellnessAd and EducationAd programs, an innovative twist on traditional advertising, advertisers are able to support much-needed local projects which, in turn, creates jobs, saves taxpayer money, and improves the quality of life in communities nationwide.  In the process, we're fundamentally altering the advertising landscape, elevating the ordinary, traditional commercial – and media, in general – into a catalyst for tangible, quantifiable social change.

Please visit ecomediacbs.com to learn more. 

By participating in EcoMedia's EcoAd, WellnessAd and EducationAd advertising programs, EcoMedia's advertisers agree to provide funding for projects we believe will have a beneficial effect upon the environment, health and/or education within local communities.  EcoMedia's advertising programs are not certification programs nor are the EcoAd, WellnessAd, or EducationAd logos seals of approval. EcoMedia does not in any way certify, endorse or make any representations about EcoMedia program advertisers, their products or services. 

SOURCE CBS EcoMedia Inc.