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Havas agencies Havas London, Havas Lemz, Havas New York and Havas Immerse have lost their B Corporation certifications due to Havas Media’s relationship with Shell. An investigation by the nonprofit B Lab, which is tasked with determining that B Corporations voluntarily meet certain standards of transparency, accountability, sustainability and performance, was undertaken following complaints from other agencies after Havas Media signed the contract. (While Havas Media did not have certified B Corporation status, the use of the Havas name across the company’s units now prevents B Corporation status for all of them.) Clean Creatives, a campaign calling on advertising and PR agencies to refuse to work with fossil fuel companies, led the backlash against Havas. “Creative agencies should not be working for the companies destroying the planet,” Clean Creatives executive director Duncan Meisel said in a statement.
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Ironistic, an Alexandria, VA-based digital agency, merges with RISE Marketing, a specialized marketing communications agency headquartered in Vermont. RISE Marketing’s entire staff will join the Ironistic team. Ironistic specializes in web development and design expertise, website hosting and maintenance services, and extensive digital marketing services, including PPC and SEO management. RISE Marketing focuses on serving as an extension of their client’s marketing department to provide content marketing, as well as advertising, email marketing, public relations, events management, and social media. “In RISE Marketing, we found a partner that shares a similar vision and values,” said Ironistic co-founder and CEO Jared Elliott. “By combining our two entities we will be able to naturally extend our range of services, leveraging our combined expertise and resources for greater impact and innovation in the marketing landscape.”
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PR73, which in June rebranded from Press Record Communications, releases its first research report, “Building Trust: Insights and Strategies for Communications Teams.” The report, which surveyed 100 US-based communications pros from organizations like NBC Universal, Disney and Visa, finds that many communications pros think a trust gap exists between in-house communications teams and internal stakeholders. The report’s findings show that 50 percent of respondents feel dispensable to senior leadership; only 49 percent of respondents feel highly trusted by other departments; one-third of respondents find it challenging to work with their senior executives and two-thirds of respondents say that departments in their organizations ignore or resist their strategies.
Golin launches Lighthouse 360, a service helping companies handle the human side of AI adoption... PR Boutiques International adds five new members... 24 Seven, a marketing, creative and digital talent solutions firm, acquires New York-based marketing consulting firm Markacy.
The Public Relations Global Network adds Rooster, a London-based agency, as its newest member for the United Kingdom... Spectrum Science launches Mo (short for Momentum), an AI-powered platform... Kinetic Marketing Communications, a women-owned marketing communications agency and on-demand marketing talent firm, launches its Strategic Marketing AI Framework.
Ruder Finn launches rf.StoryLab, a creative incubator that merges generative AI tools with human-powered creative vision... Do It On, a Lisbon-based marketing and communication agency, joins INT. Agencies, an international collective of independent full-service agencies with a presence across five continents... The Public Relations Society of America releases “AI Prompting 101: A ‘Start Here’ Guide for Professional Communicators,” a resource offering practical, structured guidance to help communications pros integrate generative AI tools into their daily work.
PKPR, a New York-based boutique shop, launches a book publicity division focused on nonfiction authors... Palantir Technologies and Stagwell form a partnership to create an AI-driven platform for marketers... The Conference Board is presenting a Nov. 18-19 event at the Brooklyn Marriott that will look at the priorities, challenges and opportunities facing AI decision-makers today.
Gregory FCA is marking its 35th anniversary with a comprehensive rebrand... Madden Media, a Tucson-based agency, teams with Denver-based Karsh Hagan... Jasper, an AI content automation platform, launches Jasper Grid, an interface that allows marketing teams to create and orchestrate content across a range of channels, audiences and regions.
