In the United States, Black History Month (February) is a 43 year old celebration of cultural achievements. Consumers have come to expect nothing new for this national event. Brands play and it safe by by cheering for history but are missing a tipping point in the African American zeitgeist – a critical, game-changing insight. We are in a new Black Renaissance, where black people are redefining success on their terms. The black community is ready for a celebration of the dreams and the future made possible by more than 400 years of black history, culture and contributions in the US. Because Black consumers reward brands that demonstrate cultural fluency, our goal was to create awareness among the target that AT&T reveres black history and is invested in the future it created. We sought to improve brand health, affinity, resonance and loyalty via a hyper-relevant cultural conversation - Black Future Month.

A listicle of 28 Dream in Black Future Makers comprised the signature vertical for Black Future Month. The list was delivered in a way millennials care about; digitally. Our inaugural list of the 28 Future Makers were the most influential, relevant and compelling cultural avatars in the marketplace. The rubric for making the list was part esoteric and part data. We first needed to understand their impact on the culture. Were they a 'first', a 'best' a 'most'? Were they new, next and respected? And then we needed to take a look at their reach and resonance in social media and again, esoterically, in the culture. We leveraged the power of their celebrity and their influence to build social media velocity (trended 3X on Twitter) and for wide public relations pick up. Zendaya, Queen Latifah, Sean “Diddy” Combs, Khalid and Anderson Paak were some members of the inaugural list.

We surveyed key indicators like income, geography, Afro retro-acculturation, over indexing for technology, and movements like Black Lives Matter. When taken together, these indicators show we are in a New Black Renaissance. We wanted to harness the movement in a way where we would co-create culture so authentically with the consumer that the brand is inexorably linked to it.

The target audience for the campaign was Black Millennials (20-34), US-based, digital savvy, culturally discerning and open to spending more with brands that reflect their values.

Social media platforms, Instagram and Twitter is where our target audience goes for cultural screening on news and commerce, as evidenced by Black Twitter and the digital fire that is #blackexcellence. This is where we promoted the list of current and future icons to which our target could relate.

The Dream in Black 28 Future Makers launched on February 1, 2019. We released the names of 7 FutureMakers each week via social media. Each weekly launch was announced by a member of the list via IG Live. Over the month, FutureMakers posted their dreams for the future and how they planned to make their own history. We boosted interest with digital content, a national contest to join the list, a website announcement, and with killer blanket PR. The Dream in Black Future Makers were everywhere. Culminating in the final week, 6 names were released along with a consumer who was chosen during a nation-wide social media search. The program concluded on February 28, 2019.

We blew KPIs through the roof.

Social Reach - 53.6M

PR Impressions - 75.6M

Achievement against business targets:

During Black History Month, AT&T's Brand Reputation increased by 6%

Rose to #1 in AA brand preference in the category in February

Brand rating increased by 1 hard-earned point in February to its highest level in one year.

Instagram Fan Growth +33% and Twitter Fan Growth (+306%)

One post from the campaign was AT&T's #1 most popular Instagram post of the month

Program responsible for nearly 2% of all Instagram content engagement in the telecom industry (AT&T vs. major competitors) in February

32 lifestyle public relations hits - deemed nearly impossible for a telecom brand.