We’re *still* socially distanced. Our yo-yoing 401Ks are giving us agida. We said goodbye to Kobe Bryant, Chadwick Boseman and Ruth Bader Ginsburg (ugly cry). Obviously, we’re all more than eager to turn the page to 2021 and never look back.
But, before we do, we wanted to take a moment to remember the highs from this year and, yes, there are many. Here’s our agency’s proof that, in hindsight, not everything sucked in 2020:
- More Curious Minds, Creative Thinkers + Collaborative Partners: Despite all the uncertainty this year, our team grew. Since March, we added five new professionals who add smarts, creativity and an expanded skillset to our deepening bench.
- Best in the Biz: We’re not in it for the awards, but it sure feels good to be recognized as a team. Out of 85 companies in Central Ohio, FrazierHeiby was one of the top 10 brands to receive the most votes in the Columbus CEO Best in Business Awards.
- How About Them Apples?: Our new business pipeline continued to be strong throughout the year, including a big win with Crunch Time Apple Growers to promote its SnapDragon™ and RubyFrost™ varieties to consumers across the U.S. We hit the ground running in September and secured a number of quick wins, including a feature in The Wall Street Journal with a dreamy headline: “It’s Crunch Time for New Apple Varieties.”
- “How You Doin’?”: Since going virtual in mid-March, we’ve had to get creative in how we stay connected as a team. We’ve hosted “Joey Time” sessions to check in on one another where we simply ask each other “How you doin’?” We’ve had countless happy hours, trivia games and lunch + learns over Google Hangout. A few times we even snuck out to a park where we could social distance when the weather was nice.
- Impact at the Statehouse: Our Senior Partner of Client Experience, Whitney Somerville, participated in this year’s class of Leadership Ohio where her impact project centered around expanding legislative visibility to youth needs. And our Account Executive Laura Baird recently graduated from the Columbus Young Professionals (CYP) Impact Academy where her community project centered on promoting diversity and inclusion in YP organizations across the country.
- Kicking Cancer’s Butt: After years of planning and preparations, our client St. Elizabeth Healthcare cut the ribbon and officially opened its state-of-the-art Cancer Center. Serving the Northern Kentucky community and beyond, this facility is impressive in every way and it was our great honor to play a role in shaping the narrative and telling the oncology story across communications channels.
- When Giving Back Makes You GRIN: Our team is incredibly competitive. We proved this yet again with our annual Thanksgiving Food Drive competition where Team Gravy beat out Team Turkey and Team Stuffing in collecting canned food and personal care items. All in, our agency donated more than 3,000 diapers, more than 100 personal care items, and more than 400 face masks, hand sanitizers and canned goods. Our contributions benefited Gahanna Residents in Need (GRIN).
- Flex with Plex: Every one of our clients’ businesses was impacted by COVID-19. Fortunately, we work with a number of smart in-house folks who appreciate the value of strategic communication, particularly in trying times. One such client was an industrial manufacturing company. Deemed an essential business, this organization needed to quickly reimagine its factory floors to allow for social distancing, all while rolling out a brand new ERP system called PLEX. It was on our team to manage all internal communications to their staff about these important changes, and it was some of the most rewarding work we tackled all year.
- Turning Over a New Leaf: Perhaps the biggest change for FrazierHeiby happened at the helm. On January 1, 2020, we returned to our roots as a women-owned business when Lauren Parker, Ann Mulvany and Whitney Somerville took over management of the agency. Reimagining every aspect of the business, the dynamic trio have breathed new life into the organization — and it shows.
From all of us at FrazierHeiby, we wish you all health and happiness in the New Year. Cheers to what’s next.