1) Celebrating 20 years:

Inner-City Arts: Brody PR was hired to raise the profile of Inner-City Arts as it prepared for its 20th anniversary and the opening of its expanded campus (designed by celebrated architect Michael Maltzan and garden designer Nancy Power). We modernized and reinvigorated the image and positioned the organization for national prominence. This included establishing an archive of alumni oral histories; revamping the newsletter to be more emotionally engaging; upgrading the website and creating a monthly e-newsletter; establishing relationships with the local, regional and national media, as well as media training the key spokespeople for the organization. We garnered major national publicity for the organization, including substantial media coverage of the architecture; doubled its newsletter subscriber list; significantly raised its profile in the downtown Los Angeles community and prepared the organization to secure appropriations money. In direct relation to the new outreach efforts, Inner-City Arts has continued to secure major foundation funding despite the recession, and increase its donor and volunteer base by one fourth. We recently announced the results of a major, multi-year UCLA / US Department of Education research study on the effects of an arts-based education on at-risk children, positioning Inner-City Arts as the go to place for research on arts and education.

2) A Crowning Moment for Inner-City Arts:

When Inner-City Arts learned that the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge planned to visit the nonprofit arts organization on Skid Row in Los Angeles, they turned to their trusted public relations firm to manage media relations. With only three weeks notice, Brody PR turned what could have been a media circus into a well-orchestrated opportunity for Inner-City Arts to capture millions and millions of media impressions. From pre-event access, day-of-event coverage and post-event stories, Brody PR handled hundreds of media requests from around the world. The visit by Prince William and his bride Catherine Middleton to Inner-City Arts garnered approximately 1,380 broadcast hits, (CNN, The Today Show, Good Morning America, NBC Nightly News), and more than 2,500 print and online hits (Los Angeles Times, People Magazine, New York Times, Associated Press). The broadcast hits in North America alone totaled $13 million in equivalent television advertising dollars, and website visits went from a few hundred daily to more than 110,000 immediately following the event.

1. Brody’s efforts included media training Inner-City Arts staff, teaching artists, and some of the students. She worked closely with the British Embassy to credential appropriate media, making a special effort to include reporters important to Inner-City Arts – those who cover social services and Skid Row. Brody live Tweeted during the event, created a special section on the Inner-City Arts website with a slide show and resulting media coverage, and prepared a feature for the Inner-City Arts newsletter. Media were granted access before and after the event to learn more about Inner-City Arts, and to view the art that was created by the children and the Royal Highnesses.
2. The Royals’ visit was a direct result of prior media coverage obtained by Brody PR -- a visit from cellist Yo-Yo Ma to Inner-City Arts, featured in the Los Angeles Times, was seen by the British Consulate who then came and toured the organization.