DUO has capped off a remarkable year by being named the Best Full-Service Technology-Focused PR and Marketing Agency 2024 – Sub-Saharan Africa at the 2024 Technology Innovator Awards. The award rounds off a 20th anniversary year that saw the agency launch a consumer division and achieve strong commercial growth off the back of the previous year’s record growth.
Commenting on the award, CEO Judith Middleton says the agency’s win is validation of its commitment to constant innovation in PR and digital marketing. She adds that DUO’s strong commercial performance, and expectations of strong growth in 2025, are the direct result of strategic decisions made in the wake of a PR industry facing significant changes.
She says the agency has adapted its business offering, both in terms of how it serves clients as well as how it runs internally, to a genuinely digitally enabled PR and digital marketing partner. “Starting years ago, we pressure-checked ourselves for relevance, and then benchmarked ourselves against global best practices so that we could take advantage of the immense possibilities in the industry.”
Middleton explains that all decisions have been guided by the business’s focus on strong commercial growth, while staying true to DUO’s purpose of giving technology innovators a voice. To this end, and without giving too much away now, she says, DUO is in advanced stages of launching another international division early in the new year. “We’re already working in this new, exciting space, and so now we are laying the groundwork to scale.”
Key highlights of DUO’s remarkable 2024 include:
Celebrating 20 years in business with multiple global awards
“DUO is a mature, owner-led agency that proactively chooses symbiotic client relationships over “serve at all cost ” type relationships. This gravitas has been earned through two decades of strategic counsel in the PR and digital marketing space,” explains Middleton.
Celebrating 18 years with Vox as a client
The length of this relationship, which is still going strong, is testament to the deep, value-driven partnerships that DUO prioritises. “We have grown and adapted with Vox as it has evolved over the years. Long-term relationships are built on transparency, accountability, innovation and results,” says Middleton.
Launching the DUO consumer division
Building on its strong reputation in the B2B technology PR and digital marketing industry, DUO launched its consumer division in late 2024. “Having dipped our toes into the consumer world over the past few years for clients that have both business and consumer customers, it felt like a natural evolution of our business,” explains Middleton. “As anyone in the industry would know, it requires specialised skills, and so when you find the right skills, the runway and opportunities change completely. This division is already growing quickly with some really strong brands.”
Launched our own digital reporting tool
“Businesses want more than old-fashioned PR reporting,” explains Middleton. “Our digital reporting tool goes beyond conventional reporting to include rich insights such as sentiment and share of voice, to demonstrate real ROI and enable better commercial decision-making from Google Analytics, HubSpot etc.”
Launched the DUO Digital Handbook
“We identified a need to upskill PR professionals who are trained and experienced in traditional PR. And so this comprehensive handbook is designed to empower PR people of all levels to become digitally astute,” says Middleton.
Launched the Plexus Global Training Academy
“This initiative, alongside 20 international partners, benefits all employees of the agencies that belong to Plexus,” says Middleton. It covers learnings, insights, expertise and best practices from diverse markets to the collective, which is incredibly valuable in ensuring teams are ahead of the curve.”
Other notable 2024 milestones
- New operational management platform for full visibility and accountability of tasks, benefitting both clients and internal operations.
- Automated its recruitment processes for better efficiency and reliable skills pipelines.
- Completed a total brand overhaul to align more closely with the DUO’s purpose and future
- Launched a brand new AI-optimised website to boost organic website traffic
- Onboarded a number of exciting new clients.
- Received exceptional testimonials from clients and produced outstanding case studies demonstrating real value added.
“Our 20th anniversary has been a year of growth,” says Middleton. “However, none of it was coincidental but rather the result of deliberate, careful planning. The seeds have started to germinate and our pipeline for 2025 is impressive. DUO is poised for solid growth next year and beyond, enabling us to be the partner of choice for more of Africa’s technology innovators.”
If you’d like to chat with a partner who can help differentiate your technology brand to your target market, drive traffic to your owned platforms, and potentially generate leads, contact us today.
