JOHN ARMATO
SENIOR PARTNER AND CREATIVE STRATEGIST
FLEISHMAN-HILLARD INTERNATIONAL COMMUNICATIONS

JOHN ARMATO IS A MARKETING COMMUNICATIONS VETERAN and creative strategist who provides senior counsel to corporate, nonprofit, and association clients. Known as a creative thinker, passionate presenter, and insightful facilitator, he has worked in Fleishman-Hillard’s Kansas City, New York, and Sacramento offices, helping organizations position their brands, develop their messages, and generate effective ideas for achieving their business objectives. With more than a dozen years at the agency, 20 years in communications, and a lifetime of creative pursuits as a musician, graphic designer, and writer, Mr. Armato brings an eclectic perspective to his work.

Mr. Armato has led or been an integral part of teams working with brands and companies such as Procter & Gamble, Hallmark, H&R Block, Hyatt, Subway Restaurants, Universal Orlando Resort, Visa, Dunkin’ Brands, Levenger, Spirit Halloween, Fiserv and Genentech, as well as associations and organizations such as the Egyptian Tourism Authority, U.S. Potato Board, California Cut Flower Commission, National Association of Insurance Commissioners, the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness, the Center for Practical Bioethics, and The Wharton School.

Mr. Armato is a member of Fleishman-Hillard’s Writers Group and Travel and Tourism Practice Group. He is a former global co-chair of the firm’s Marketing Communications Practice Group, where he spearheaded the development of the group’s Marketplace Mandates. He has a diverse communications background that has yielded dozens of honors (including two Silver Anvils, the “Oscar” of the PR profession) from a wide range of organizations.

Some of his award-winning work includes the creation of a nontraditional outreach program for Subway that allowed thousands of consumers to request daily motivational phone calls recorded by weight-loss inspiration, Jared Fogle (“The Subway Guy”) for an entire month, helping to boost sales in the otherwise slow January time period. Mr. Armato also worked on the launch of Hallmark’s “Warm Wishes” line of greeting cards, which helped Hallmark earn back market share eroded by discount card shops. The program earned a Silver Anvil for effectiveness in shifting consumer perceptions.

Mr. Armato has media-trained Olympic athletes and corporate executives for interviews ranging from “The Oprah Winfrey Show” to local newspapers, and is a go-to writer for unique projects, ranging from a song about the nutritional value of potatoes (Potato Power!) to style guides, CEO speeches to corporate histories, and recently even a coloring book. His specialties also include message development, for which he created the FH Message Lab process, to help organizations more effectively tell their stories.

Mr. Armato is in demand to lead “big idea” brainstorm sessions, which he has done for such clients as AT&T, Hallmark, Gatorade, Visa, and Novartis. He also designs and delivers professional development programs related to the creative process, plan development, and writing. He is a popular speaker across the Fleishman-Hillard network and at client meetings and professional conferences. His training programs and keynote presentations have been featured at the Wharton School, Catholic Healthcare West, CIGNA, Philanthropy Midwest, PRSA Teleseminar, Ragan’s Strategic Media Relations conferences, and others. Mr. Armato maintains a blog on the creative process, communications, and a life of ideas titled “Think Inside The Box” at www.thinkinside.biz.

Before joining Fleishman-Hillard in 1996, Mr. Armato was senior copywriter for a national marketing communications firm that specializes in the hospitality industry, where he helped launch Club Hotels by Doubletree. Before that, he was director of community relations for Avila College (now Avila University) in Kansas City, Missouri.

A graduate of the University of Missouri-Kansas City, Mr. Armato also is a professional jazz drummer and serves on the board of trustees of VanderCook College of Music in Chicago. He also is the founder of the whimsical online movement “QCTM” which fights against fake e-laughter.