The 2015 It List

There are a lot of lists out there. But if you’re an experiential marketer, there’s only one that counts. And you’re lookin’ at it.

Thirteen years ago we started our It List to help event departments across the country better navigate a burgeoning industry—and its growing agency landscape. We curated our recommendations and then categorized the skills and strengths of the top shops to help brands funnel their RFPs and their budgets to the right partners for the job. And we helped offer a bit of perspective and organization to an up-and-coming marketing discipline that was generating great work, but was still a bit of a mystery to many brands.

Flash forward to today. Experiential is hardly the new kid on the block. Event budgets are up (and in many cases, flat out stealing cash from cohorts in advertising and p.r.). Event strategies are serving as the main engine for entire integrated marketing efforts. And not surprisingly, there have never been more players vying for a piece of the action in the experiential space. That’s why there’s never been a better time for the It List.

This year, the Top 100 event agencies collectively represent the best of what this industry has become. The conceptual work is stellar. The strategic expertise is bar none. The digital savvy is exceptional. It’s our strongest list to date, and, just as rigorous and thorough as it was the year we started it—this It List is your bankable guide to the veteran shops and rookie agencies that are leading event marketing today. Of course, making the final picks for each year’s list is no easy task. And this year we had more agencies apply than ever before. Inevitably, a few that once made the list will find that as their businesses have evolved, so too has our need to shine a spotlight on just those shops that are delivering the most experiential expertise.

It’s the most competitive agency community in the industry’s history to be sure. But it’s also one of the most exciting times for brand marketers, who have access to more talent, experience and specializations than ever. We congratulate all of the agencies selected for this year’s It List, and present to you the Top 100 Event Agencies of 2015.

For the full list of winners, click here.