Pod Digital Media Renews Multi-Year Deal With McDonald’s USA

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Pod Digital Media (PDM), the first multicultural podcast agency network representing more than 400 shows hosted by Black and Latino podcasters, has announced it has renewed its multi-year deal with McDonald’s USA. The original two-year deal launched in January 2022 with custom segments, content, and specialized ads targeting diverse young audiences. The renewal deal, which begins in January 2024, will extend for another two years. Both parties remain committed to working together to help advance diversity, equity, and inclusion in media.

Since the beginning of this collaboration, Pod Digital Media has helped McDonald’s connect with Gen Z listeners and its core 35-49 audience by creating custom content and placing pre- and mid-roll advertisements across the network’s African American, Asian-American & Pacific Islander, Hispanic, Gen Z, and Esports properties. Most notably, PDM produced McDonald’s Change Leaders Live Podcast Activation campaign featuring the stories of McDonald’s 2023 Black and Positively Golden® Change Leaders, 10 young Black leaders making a difference in their communities. The campaign exceeded all benchmarks – in-person engagement, influencer amplification, and custom episodes – and McDonald’s was delighted with the production, branded moments, and overall results. In fact, the Change Leaders campaign was so successful that it won the 2023 ANA Multicultural Excellence Award in the Audio (Radio, Internet Radio, and Podcasts) category.

“We are thrilled to renew our collaboration with McDonald’s and to continue helping the brand connect with multicultural audiences nationwide,” said Gary Coichy, CEO of Pod Digital Media (who is a member of the 1 in 8, as his first job was as a McDonald’s drive-thru cashier ). “We also plan to expand on our already-successful campaigns with more activations, influencer marketing, and other experiential opportunities.”

“We serve 13,500+ diverse and unique communities here in the US, and over the past two years, we’ve had the great pleasure of working with the creative minds at Pod Digital Media to bring authentic content to these communities in a deeper, more resonant capacity.” Caleb Pearson, VP – Customer Engagement & Media, McDonald’s USA, “Our customers and employees deserve to hear stories told for and by their communities, and we are looking forward to renewing our contract and look forward to continuing the impactful work.”

About Pod Digital Media

As a certified minority-owned small business based in New York City, Pod Digital Media (PDM) is the first multicultural podcast agency network that exclusively caters to podcasters with multicultural audiences and connects them to blue-chip advertisers for long-term, seasonal, and special investments. With over 400 podcasts reaching primarily Black and Hispanic American audience segments, the agency places ads on their shows and delivers tangible results to advertisers.