Breaking new ground: A look at past winners of PR Daily’s Top Agencies Awards

A great agency can take a story and put a shine on it that brings it to the masses or packages it to new, targeted audiences in an innovative way. It’s not always an easy job, but the best agencies know how to make it look like clockwork.

We’ve highlighted some past winners of the Ragan PR Daily Top Agencies Awards to get a better perspective on their successes.

Public Relations Campaign: Source Code Communications

The background: Source Code Communications is proof that great things can come in smaller packages. The company manages to do envelope-pushing work for its clients while also maintaining a people-first ethos.

The company’s Source Code Strong program prioritizes those who make the agency a success. Every employee on the team is able to leave by 2 PM on Fridays, making for a more balanced week. In addition, employees are given a $900 mental wellness stipend, access to talk therapy, and a “Nope Day” when an employee can call out to refuel their mental supply, no questions asked.

Source Code’s people first policies also include a sabbatical program. Employees with four years of service can get up to four weeks of paid leave to rest and recharge. The company also puts a major focus on DE&I work, hosting workshops and working intentionally to ensure that everyone can bring their true selves to work.

The takeaway: No matter the size of your agency, you can still make a big difference for your people and clients.

Technology Agency: Treble

The background: At their core, agencies are there to serve client needs. For Treble, that means being there for every stage of the client journey, whether that’s at the very outset of operations or through an IPO.

During its work with client Spectro Cloud, Treble expanded the client’s voice in the market by creating a customized media plan around Spectro Cloud’s project launch announcements while highlighting the company’s successful Series B funding round.

Treble used a multifaceted strategy to engage media contacts that included engaging with reporters at the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society, the country’s largest healthcare nonprofit, and creating distinct strategies for both announcements.

Treble’s work and customized strategies proved successful. The announcements earned press in top publications including Forbes and The Wall Street Journal, making for both a happy client and agency. 

The takeaway: Creating custom campaigns that work in lockstep can deepen client connections and generate higher-tier earned coverage.

Public Relations Campaign: Dotted Line Communications — Singles in America 11

The background: When Dotted Line Communications was tasked by dating platform Match to run the media promotion for its Singles in America study, a novel approach was required to portray the striking data set. Billed as the most comprehensive study of single adults in the country, the resulting report found that more singles were reconsidering what qualities they were looking for in a partner.

It was time for a new storytelling strategy. By looking at the numbers in Match’s study, Dotted Line created multiple story angles to maximize potential media placement.

Dotted Line began outreach with lifestyle, consumer and tech reporters, in addition to late-night shows and local news in order to maximize the breadth of the study’s reach.

The strategy was a hit. Dotted Line earned the study 113 pieces of media coverage in publications like TIME, The Guardian and Fast Company. In addition, Match’s data found its way onto the television airwaves with mentions on “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” on CBS and NPR’s “All Things Considered”. 

The takeaway: There’s always a fresh and innovative way to tell stories using interesting data.

Don’t forget to apply to this year’s Top Agencies Awards before the May 10 deadline.

Sean Devlin is an editor at Ragan Communications. In his spare time he enjoys Philly sports and hosting trivia.