The agency's win is a validation of its commitment to constant innovation in PR and digital marketing. DUO's strong commercial performance, and expectations of strong growth in 2025, are the direct result of strategic decisions made in the wake of a PR industry facing significant changes.

DUO adapted its business offering, both in terms of how it serves clients as well as how it runs internally, to a genuinely digitally enabled PR and digital marketing partner. Starting years ago, we pressure-checked ourselves for relevance and then benchmarked ourselves against global best practices so that we could take advantage of the immense possibilities in the industry.

All decisions have been guided by the business's focus on strong commercial growth while staying true to DUO's purpose of giving technology innovators a voice. To this end, and without giving too much away now, DUO is in the advanced stages of launching another international division early in the new year. We're already working in this new, exciting space and so now we are laying the groundwork to scale.

Key highlights of DUO's 2024 include:

Launching the DUO Consumer Division

Building on its reputation in the B2B technology PR and digital marketing industry, DUO launched its consumer division in late 2024. Having dipped our toes into the consumer world over the past few years for clients that have both business and consumer customers, it felt like a natural evolution of our business. As anyone in the industry would know, it requires specialised skills, and so when you find the right skills, the runway and opportunities change completely.

Launched the DUO Digital Handbook

We identified a need to upskill PR professionals who are trained and experienced in traditional PR. And so this comprehensive handbook is designed to empower PR people of all levels to become digitally astute.

Launched the Plexus Global Training Academy 

This initiative, alongside 20 international partners, benefits all employees of the agencies that belong to Plexus. It covers learnings, insights, expertise and best practices from diverse markets to the collective, which is incredibly valuable in ensuring teams are ahead of the curve.

Other Notable 2024 Milestones

Other Notable 2024 DUO Milestones include:

  • new operational management platform for full visibility and accountability of tasks, benefitting both clients and internal operations
  • automated its recruitment processes for better efficiency and reliable skills pipelines
  • completed a total brand overhaul to align more closely with the DUO's purpose and future
  • launched a brand new AI-optimised website to boost organic website traffic
  • onboarded a number of exciting new clients, and 
  • received testimonials from clients and produced case studies demonstrating real value added.

Our 20th anniversary has been a year of growth. However, none of it was coincidental but rather the result of deliberate, careful planning. The seeds have started to germinate and our pipeline for 2025 is impressive. DUO is poised for solid growth next year and beyond, enabling us to be the partner of choice for more of Africa's technology innovators.

For more information, visit www.duomarketing.co.za. You can also follow DUO on Facebook, LinkedIn, X, or on Instagram. 

*Image courtesy of contributor