Pivot Points: Five Decisions Every Successful Leader Must Make

Chapter 2IDEA: Bud Frankel, Founder and Former Chairman of Frankel & Company

WHY YOU SHOULD KNOW HIM AND ABOUT HIS WORK

Bud Frankel, founder of Frankel & Company, built what he originally started as a sales promotion agency into a marketing powerhouse that spearheaded the creation of the $15 billion marketing services industry. During 40 years at the helm, he was an innovator of marketing ideas as well as how agencies worked. In 1979, Frankel introduced nationally the McDonald’s Happy Meal, the most successful giveaway program in history. Frankel had also launched the first worthy cause promotion with Clark Gum Tree of Life program in 1969 and the first major promotion of the Olympic Games with McDonald’s “When the US Wins, You Win” for the 1976 Montreal Games. Frankel was the industry pioneer of the commercial use of computer graphics in 1985 when a high-resolution system for print advertising was first available. Advertising Age named Frankel & Company agency of the year in 1989. That same year, Bud was the first inductee to the Council of Sales Promotion Agencies Hall of Fame. The company’s success derived as much from the Frankel culture of work-hard-and-play-hard as from Bud’s visionary leadership. Clients recognized Frankel for its combination of natural teamwork and effective sales-­building marketing programs as what made the agency in a class by itself.

Frankel was the largest independently owned marketing services agency in the United States for nearly two decades. ...