merit
1980
Norcross, GA
Marketing/Advertising
34
Other
Unique Approach That No One Knows They NEED
Response Media is a performance agency with a soul — a CRM brain paired with a brand heart. We break them, reimagine them, and build something better.
At our core, we are The Empath — built on deeply understanding people, behavior, and what drives behavior change and action. Empathy isn’t a layer we add; it’s the foundation of how we think, plan, and perform. That mindset allows us to break rigid norms and deliver smarter, more human strategies that move both people and growth.
We challenge the industry’s obsession with segmentation over substance. While others emphasize polish, we stay grounded in performance and purpose. No fluff. No holding co. agendas or stakeholders. Just practical, smart, strategic work that delivers.
We also break the rule that says media, CRM, and strategy should live in silos. We uniquely integrate them and use data as the cohesion to turn insights into full-funnel, omnichannel journeys that drive measurable, sustainable business value.
Our approach and key differentiators are powered by behavioral science. We use proprietary frameworks to decode belief systems, motivation, constraints, and emotional drivers. This helps us connect with people not just as “audiences,” but at an emotional and psychological level. It’s what enables us to create campaigns that truly resonate because people want to feel seen. They want to feel understood. That’s how we connect. That’s how we perform.
In categories like CPG, where retailers often own the consumer relationship, we help brands take control back. We turn paid media into a driver of first-party/owned data growth, and leverage their owned data into deeper, more valuable customer connections.
And we do all of this by choice, because we’re independent. That independence frees us to lead with heart, reward curiosity, and build work around understanding and measurable results, rather than assumptions.
We don’t perform for performance’s sake. We make performance meaningful.
Our culture didn’t happen by accident.
It’s something we’ve deliberately built, shaped, and protected precisely because we’re independent.
Independence gives us the freedom to design our teams and our work around people, not rigid processes. Here, strategists collaborate directly with media planners, and account leaders help shape creative and audience insights. We don’t operate in silos or wait for layers of approval. We solve problems together: quickly, thoughtfully, and with purpose. From the very beginning, independence has empowered us to build a culture that puts people first. When a client needs to pivot, we move as one: agile, in sync, and focused on impact. What matters most isn’t the process, it’s the people behind the work. That kind of flexibility isn’t a perk of being independent; it’s the essence of how we operate.
Eight months ago, we didn’t just launch a new logo, we launched a new identity: “Re:”. More than a design refresh, it’s a symbol of our independence and our 45-year heritage in data and science, dating back to our founding in 1980. Inspired by the periodic table of elements, the logo reflects the roots of who we are. It’s also a nod to the commonly seen email reply intro, as email is a solid basis for a channel we’ve leveraged through the years to create deep, personalized relationships between brands and buyers. The rebrand honors our history while carrying forward the empathy that defines our culture and the vision that drives what’s next. That reflection also sparked a series of new initiatives designed to strengthen how we connect with one another.
We use our rebrand moment as a catalyst to reexamine how we work and how we support one another. This led to the creation of the Re:Connect Team, a group of employees from across departments focused on finding practical, meaningful ways to strengthen our culture and foster engagement. One of the team’s first initiatives was First Tuesday Talks, a monthly session where a team member shares a personal interest or experience that reflects who they are, in or outside of work. They’ve also introduced things like a company book swap, a restaurant recommendation group, and friendly agencywide competitions – all small, but super meaningful ways to bring people together. These conversations have helped build stronger relationships and a greater sense of connection across the team.
The results? More honest dialogue, better collaboration, and a stronger sense of community. This didn’t come from policy or top-down directives. They grew from the ideas and involvement of our people. And that’s only possible because we’re independent.
We won a Breakthrough Culture award this year, one of our most prized honors because our people and culture aren’t a side initiative, they’re the very core of who we are and how we operate.
Our culture continues to evolve because we’re committed to improving how we work, and how we work together to drive continuously better results for our client partners.
For 45 years, our culture has evolved with the same independence that defines us: focused, curious, collaborative, and real. People here care: about the work, the clients, and each other. That kind of culture isn’t manufactured. It’s earned. And at the end of the day, it’s not just what we do that makes the difference, it’s who we are, how we do it, and who we do it with.
Independence gives us something no holding company ever could: the freedom to put performance, agility, and client needs first (always). That’s why our average client tenure is over six years. We adapt quickly to shifting priorities, stay laser-focused on client goals, and evolve our approach without red tape or politics getting in the way.
When Xiidra, a new pharma client in 2024, needed to make a bold shift in their CRM strategy, our independence gave us the freedom nt only support it, but lead with a fresh approach. With no big-pharma pedigree and no legacy roadmap to follow, we built a behavior-first program that deeply resonated with patients. We brought creative, media, and data teams together to challenge the status quo and deliver with purpose. The work not only transformed patient engagement but also earned recognition beyond our walls: helping us win Ad Age’s Data & Insights Small Agency of the Year and contributing to our client partner Paul DeSilva’s win for Fierce Pharma Marketer of the Year. That recognition speaks to the courage of Paul and the Xiidra, Bausch + Lomb team, who trusted us to bring bold, innovative ideas to life, proof of what true partnership, powered by independence, can achieve.
The results of our work:
4x engagement vs. pharma benchmarks
6x engagement vs. Client’s previous efforts
30% higher prescription fill rates
Patients in new our program we’re more than 3x more likely to continue treatment at month 7 (when doctor tells them they should) – leading to better health outcomes
We proved that behavioral science and data can help our client, Xiidra, provide genuinely helpful journeys to their patients that produced better interactions with their healthcare professionals and better health outcomes. That kind of breakthrough doesn’t come from inflated decks or bloated timelines, nor the vast capability of holding company networks. It happens when a smart, independent, empowered team is trusted to do the work and has the freedom to do it right.
Filling an Unmet Need for Strategic Data-led Marketing
Response Media was founded 45 years ago with a simple but forward-looking belief: that data, when harnessed thoughtfully, could drive better marketing outcomes. Long before anyone coined terms like “first-party data” or “performance marketing,” we were helping brands use direct mail and data-driven strategies to produce measurable results.
From the beginning, our independence was intentional. It wasn’t a reaction to the market; it was a commitment to doing what’s best for clients. Staying independent gave us the freedom to experiment with how data and behavior intersect, to evolve what we’re truly best in the world and adapt with agility, and to push boundaries without the constraints of holding company boundaries, incentives, or layers of approval.
As digital evolved, so did we, translating our direct marketing expertise into omnichannel engagement that consistently delivered top-quartile ROI. Along the way, we uncovered what would become our true superpower: helping brands connect with hard-to-reach consumers through personalized, scalable journeys rooted in relevance. That insight became our North Star.
Independence has allowed us to double down on what we know works, deep personalization powered by data, and to evolve on our own terms. It’s what made our recent rebrand possible, and it’s what continues to drive our growth into new spaces like pharma and EdTech, without compromising what makes us who we are.
In a world where economics, margin pressure, and AI threaten the independent agency business model, we must have optimism that these threats are also opportunities to continue the legacy that independent agencies have built. Much of the best work in marketing and advertising has been created and engineered by independent agencies who have the freedom to experiment and evolve on their own terms.
Three factors will factor into how we help build the future of marketing as an independent agency:
The availability of data will continue to increase, allowing us to continue to personalize marketing to deeper, more resonant levels – driving more value, meaning, and better outcomes for our clients.
Technology and tools will continue to improve, giving us the opportunity to automate journeys faster, cheaper, and better.
Increasing global privacy concerns, legislation, and regulatory challenges for advertising and marketing will make responsible data practices and first-party permission-driven marketing more important and impactful.
Our purpose of leveraging data to make marketing better is quickly evolving to how brands can provide truly helpful journeys to their buyers. As marketing evolves, we hope to lead independent agencies down the path of Helpful Marketing through data-led personalized messaging as the gold standard.
