When our founders, David Ralls and Elaine Ralls, started Commit Agency, they had three things in mind for the trajectory of the business: 1) to serve the community, 2) to help businesses grow and succeed, and 3) to have fun working together while creating impactful work for our clients.
It is humbling and inspiring to know their vision came true. Let’s look back on some of the highlights as we celebrate our 25th year in business.
Make An Impact
Some of the most meaningful work we’ve done has centered around businesses that give back.
In 2011, we helped the Chandler Compadres create Rock the Cause for Kids, a fundraising event that raised $150,000 on its inaugural night. Ten years later, in 2021, Rock the Cause raised over $1 million with 100% of the funds going to support organizations like Boys and Girls Clubs of the Valley and ICAN in Chandler. We are proud to provide pro-bono branding and creative design services for this special event.
Through David’s role on the board of the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Valley, we have introduced an opportunity for our team members to give back to the organization through a Qualified Charitable Organization (QCO) payroll deduction program, which has resulted in tens of thousands of dollars for this very deserving organization.
The COVID-19 pandemic had a significant impact on many of our clients whom we supported with pro-bono work, including Boys & Girls Clubs of the Valley. Of course, we jumped at the opportunity to create a mission video for the organization to get the word out about their incredible response to stay open so essential workers had a place for their kids to go while they were at work. We also made a monetary donation on our clients’ behalf during the 2020 holiday season—this organization does so much for the community and will always hold a special place in our hearts.
Help Businesses Succeed
Goodwill of Central and Northern Arizona has been a creative joy to work with and has been one of the most talked about campaigns to date. The “Expect the Unexpected” campaign features exaggerated items emerging from a Goodwill store—think spaceships and unicorns—as a way to highlight the thrill of hunting for thrifted finds. In addition to being a 2019 Gold Addy winner, the campaign increased Google My Business (GMB) searches by more than 29 MILLION in the first six months of 2020 YOY. We’ve also exceeded revenue forecasts every year (except for 2020) since we began.
When it comes to branding work, Skytop Lodge and eegee’s come to mind, both with iconic brand stories. Through social media, content, web, digital and branding, we helped Skytop Lodge increase room revenue by approximately 15% in one year, while increasing web traffic and creating a meaningful brand experience.
For eegee’s, a fancy new website, a cool Vannette food truck and revamped social media content strategy helped a vibrant new brand come to life, perfectly poised for timely activations as the Tucson-based cult fave prepared to enter the Phoenix market. Most notably, an April Fool’s product launch social post not only received an organic engagement rate of 25.6% but also generated primetime earned media.
Maricopa County Elections Department was (and still is) a very fulfilling challenge. Commit was part of driving election awareness with the #BeBallotReady campaign strategy that helped make the 2020 elections the most successful in recent history. In addition to generating historic voter turnout, our work received national recognition for using creative tools to reach voters.
Who knew ROI could look so freakin’ cool? Nerd alert: check out more of our case studies here.
Have Fun Working Together
Some of our team members’ kids were babies when we started working at Commit with some now in high school and even off to college. Talk about perspective to think about how far we’ve come as an agency and how much our kids have grown over the years. Without fail, the number one reason we’ve heard about why people work at Commit is the people. We definitely have fun together. Connecting on a personal and creative level every day fills up our cups and brings an immense sense of community to the office. Even when we “see” some of our team members virtually.
The Commit culture has continued to thrive over the years. Without fail, having the right people in the right role makes all the difference in the agency’s creativity, productivity and happiness. We’re proud to recruit some of the best. Today, the team is vibrant and continues to produce amazing results for our clients. Whether it’s coming together for an impromptu coffee run, an all-hands meeting or our upcoming anniversary celebration, spending time fostering team relationships has always served us well.
Celebrating 25 Years
It’s important to note that 2015 was a pivotal year for Commit Agency. That year, we moved to our current office in Downtown Chandler, rebranded ourselves, acquired a digital agency and introduced our Experience Design services. Having endured several recessions and now a global pandemic, we have always prioritized our clients and our team to do the right thing no matter what.
Today, we celebrate our amazing team as we look forward to another quarter century as a trusted partner to so many diverse and exciting brands. Follow along on social media as we continue commemorating 25 years with #Commit25 – Cheers!
