Epic Media Group
Company: Epic Media Group, New York, NY
Company Description: Epic Media Group is a global online performance marketing company that provides advertisers and agencies with measurable Internet advertising impact. Leveraging proprietary technologies, and over 40,000 publishing partners, Epic provides its advertising clients with performance and direct response marketing services, search engine marketing, media planning, and targeted, worldwide online reach.
Nomination Category: Company / Organization Categories
Nomination Sub Category: Best Overall Company of the Year - Up to 2,500 Employees
Nomination Title: Epic Media Group
1. Tell the story about what this nominated company achieved since January 1 2009 (up to 500 words). Focus on specific accomplishments, and relate these accomplishments to past performance or industry norms. Be sure to mention obstacles overcome, innovations or discoveries made, and outcomes:
At the beginning of 2009, we were in the midst of one of the worst recessionary
environments this country has seen in generations. Epic Advertising had a few
main goals at the beginning of the year: 1) Grow the business in the face of the
economy; 2) Expand its operations; 3) Maintain the corporate culture and make
the company a fun place to work; 4) Actively hire great talent; 5) Obtain
financial results strong enough to allow us re-invest in the company. When
evaluating us, we feel that the answers to these questions will provide a
glimpse of why Epic should be considered “Best Overall Company of the Year”.
Epic Advertising grew its revenues 60% in 2009 over 2008. For a digital
marketing company, we are an established, profitable company that has been in
business for 9 years – and so the company’s growth percentage was off a revenue
dollar base well into the 9 figures (Sorry, as a private company we do not
disclose exact revenue figures).
The company expanded its operations in 2009, by opening an important London
office as the central European hub of operations. The company was able to secure
office space and hire a small team (which is being expanded in 2010 because of
strong results).
Epic’s corporate culture is one of its’ most important strong points, and one
that Management takes seriously. Our success in this area was notable in 2009
when we were selected by Crain’s New York Business as the #3 “Best Places to
Work”, including being ranked the #1 company in the small business category of
500 employees or less.
Even in the midst of the recession, we were able to hire great people. Most
notably, the GM of Europe (Rob Wilson, a former DoubleClick executive), the head
of our Online Intelligence division for advertiser brand protection (E.J.
Hilbert, the former head of security for MySpace and a former FBI Cyber Crime
chief), and several strong managers.
Finally, the company’s results allowed us to reinvest in the business. This was
seen mostly in its launch of Online Intelligence, based in Southern California,
which aims at ensuring online advertising safety and brand protection for our
clients. There was investment in human resources, but also quite a bit of
financial investment in tools and technology. The result? Online Intelligence
was named the online agency of record for the Oprah Winfrey brands. Further, the
company launched its very own industry print publication with Epic’s CMO as
Editor and Publisher, and was able to grow its subscriber base by 30% during 2009.
2. List hyperlinks to any online news stories, press releases, or other documents that support the claims made in the section above. IMPORTANT: Begin each link with http://, and enclose each link in square brackets; for example, [http://www.youraddress.com]:
http://www.adotas.com/2009/01/epic-advertising-posts-strong-2008-and-q4-gains/
http://mashable.com/2009/12/24/news-media-content-trends/
3. Provide a brief (up to 100 words) biography about the leader of this nominated company:
Don Mathis is the CEO of Epic Advertising, and is responsible for the strategic
vision and management of the enterprise. Prior to his appointment as CEO, he was
the company's Chief Operating Officer and, earlier, the SVP of Operations and
Technology. Prior to Epic, Don held various posts at Small World Sports,
government consultancy firm FH Inc, AlixPartners and McKinsey & Company. Don's
background includes service as a Naval Officer, having served with the United
Nations in Cambodia and Bosnia. He is a graduate of Vassar College (BA in Asian
Studies, with honors) and the Harvard Business School (MBA).