Tech PR and digital marketing agency celebrates 15 years of success

Known for delivering strong, results-driven digital marketing and PR solutions for tech enterprises, DUO Marketing + Communications is celebrating 15 years of success.

Founded in 2004, the award-winning company specialises in servicing B2B tech brands in sub-Saharan Africa, with offices in Cape Town and Johannesburg, and a partner consultant in both Kenya and Dubai.

“We don’t merely understand tech, we have a true passion for what tech enables for businesses on the continent,” says Judith Middleton, founder and director of New Business Development. “The reason DUO was founded was really because of my love for innovation and the potential impact technology has on businesses and individuals.”

This is reflected throughout DUO’s robust team of professionals, all of whom have experience with technology companies, and are skilled at translating the business value of technology simply and effectively.

“Our team is made up of a broad range of skills, which has contributed significantly to our success,” adds Dominique Pienaar, DUO CEO. “Some of our team members are analytically oriented, while others are creative.This results in a multi-dimensional way of servicing our clients that delivers excellence beyond exception. We believe that the value of the collective is where the real benefit lies for our clients.”

Changing the game

DUO was one of the first PR agencies to become a niche, holistic partner in the technology industry at the time, changing the traditional PR business model by focusing on driving measurable commercial results for their clients rather than exchanging time for money.

“We pride ourselves on being truly accountable for brand acceleration and are able to report at board level on why and where budget is being spent and what it means commercially,” says Middleton.

Partnerships are crucial to DUO. “People are what make our business the success it is,” says Pienaar. “We grow by listening carefully to our clients’ needs and then build real, measurable, results-driven solutions to meet these needs.”

“DUO was built on a consultative approach. Our methodology focuses on understanding customer needs, using our skills, the right message and platform to meet business objectives and deliver tangible returns.”

“For many of our clients, we become either an extension of their team, or their PR and digital marketing department,” says Middleton.

Achieving growth and success

Over the past 15 years, DUO’s services have broadened considerably, extending beyond traditional PR and marketing to include digital expertise as well.

“Our full range of services builds on a deep understanding of the client’s business, technology, and goals, which are critically important,” says Middleton. “At the start of any client relationship we pressure-test their messages, work out their differentiators, and understand their competition. We then partner this with a comprehensive content curation strategy delivered via the channels that best fit the strategy, to achieve real brand elevation.”

The effectiveness of DUO’s strategy was internationally recognised in 2016, when Veeam named DUO their Best Global PR Agency. DUO is also the only PR agency in Africa that has been invited to become a member of Plexus Group, giving the company access to the very best tech PR agencies across the world to learn and share knowledge with.

“Our success is also evident in the scope and calibre of our clients,” says Middleton. “It’s not often that a PR agency gets to retain a client like Vox for 12 years. We have been fortunate to have a great relationship and a deep understanding of that business, becoming quite an integral part of their team.” Other clients such as Metacom have been with DUO for over 10 years too.

Other critical milestones include establishing a  team in Johannesburg nearly 5 years ago; launching Amazon’s first customer call centre in South Africa; winning global accounts such as Veeam, Wirecard, Huawei and Oracle. DUO has also represented global tech analysts Gartner in South Africa giving our team excellent insight into global trends and case studies.

“We have an incredible amount of agility that is  founded on a co-operative leadership approach and recognises the strengths of the team,” says Pienaar. “We are passionate about excellence and continue to push the boundaries of what solutions and skills our team is able to deliver.”

Customer testimonials can be found here.

For more information or to request an appointment with our CEO or Founder, visit the DUO Marketing + Communications website.