Identity of Twitter's 1960's "Adman" Revealed: South Carolina Ad Agency Wins in International Competition

The creator of Twitter's celebrated "Frank Adman" has finally gone public. At last week's 140 Characters Conference in NYC, Pinkerton South partner David Benardo officially acknowledged that he is responsible for the creation and voice of the mysterious ad man who lives in a different time zone. 1962, to be exact.

Myrtle Beach, SC (PRWEB) June 25, 2009 -- As an award-winning creative director, Benardo has amassed hundreds of his own followers on Twitter. But that's not what won him honors this time. After his Frank Adman video entry in the online "I am a Character" competition swept the popular vote by a landslide, producer Jeff Pulver personally invited Benardo to attend 140 Characters Conference as his VIP guest.

David Benardo is a pioneer in what's becoming known as "twittertainment." His popular Frank Adman is an entirely original character born in and living exclusively within Twitter. Fueled by a growing fan base of well over 2,000 at last count, Frank is a west coast Madison Avenue type living large in the early 60s. His lifestyle includes martini-swilling, chain-smoking, and skirt-chasing. He's also become widely known as the inventor of the virtual "Twittertini," which quickly evolved into the lexicon of social media-speak on Twitter.

"Frank," a.k.a. David Benardo, was introduced and "outed" to the standing-room-only audience during the "Mad Men on Twitter" panel chaired by Carri Bugbee and Helen Klein Ross. Ms. Bugbee is best known for her 2009 Shorty award (equivalent to an Oscar) won in the Advertising Industry category for her work as Peggy Olson on Twitter. Helen Klein Ross "tweets" not only as Mad Men's Betty Draper, but also as "adbroad," the #1 person listed on AdWeek's latest list of the top 50 to follow on Twitter.

So what's with the "140 Characters" name? If you're familiar with the Internet's newest explosive growth phenomenon, you know already. Twitter is a microblog where anyone can post or "tweet" real time updates to followers, 140 characters at a time. "Twitter is reinventing the way we relate to and influence each other," Benardo says. "I'm always on the lookout for innovative ways to leverage new media for our clients. Basically, the era of interruptive advertising is over. The trick is to provide content that interests and entertains people."

What's most important in this Brave "Now" World? "Authenticity trumps everything in social media," he explains. "Nothing happens overnight. It's a garden. You plant relationships, then cultivate them very carefully, consistently over time. That's the future of advertising. It's all about engagement."

To view Benardo's winning video submission, visit http://bit.ly/frankadmanvideo

Frank Adman on Twitter at www.twitter.com/frankadman

David Benardo on Twitter at www.twitter.com/benardo

Download a photo of David Benardo at www.pinkertonsouth.com/benardo

Read his blog at http://davidbenardo.tumblr.com

Pinkerton South is a full service advertising agency focused on creating interactive brand experience in real time. Over the past two decades, partners David Benardo and Bonnie Rodgers have won a lion's share of market for diverse challenger-brand clients, from international to regional. with creative, strategic, media, social media, googleable websites, and design services. Pinkerton South is committed to creating messages so compelling that even the most indifferent among us will stop and take a look. For more information, visit www.pinkertonsouth.com. (We bring dogs to our office.)

###