A Journey Through Innovation: IT Expo and Reflecting on a Transformative Era 

In the transformative era of the late 90s and early 2000s, our team at MRB Public Relations, a MikeWorldWide company, embarked on an exhilarating journey with ADTRAN, a trailblazer in broadband connectivity solutions. At that pivotal time, ADTRAN was diving into the competitive enterprise class networking solutions arena, challenging giants like Cisco, Juniper, HP, Nokia, Dell, and Huawei. Despite Gartner’s skepticism about ADTRAN’s prospects, our strategic public relations efforts propelled ADTRAN to the enviable position of being second only to Cisco in the enterprise router market. 

Our collaboration with ADTRAN was nothing short of remarkable – a decade of persistent media engagement, vibrant trade shows, and cherished camaraderie with an extraordinary team. ADTRAN’s CEO, the esteemed Mark Smith, was a visionary leader who once introduced me to a promising startup led by a former intern. This encounter was the beginning of another inspiring chapter. 

Visiting this startup, we were greeted by its youthful founders in their laid-back attire of shorts and flip-flops. The company, led by the brilliant and youthful CEO Mark Spencer, was a testament to innovation and entrepreneurial spirit. Spencer, while a student at Auburn, had ingeniously developed a phone system using open-source code, giving birth to Asterisk. Despite its earlier inception and global developer interest, Asterisk was largely unnoticed by the telecom industry’s giants and analysts. 

MRB Public Relations embraced the challenge of elevating this under-the-radar company, Digium. We defied expectations, garnering immense media attention and transforming Digium into a telecommunications powerhouse closely watched by media, industry analysts, and investors. Our efforts not only skyrocketed Digium’s media presence, with over 500 print articles and heightened visibility for Spencer, but also significantly boosted their financial growth and attracted substantial venture capital investment. 

Our strategic media and analyst relations campaigns for Digium were a resounding success. We secured extensive coverage in both trade and business press, facilitated Digium’s inclusion in Gartner’s Magic Quadrant, and played a crucial role in expanding their revenue, partner network, and market share. The impact was profound, with MRB placing high-level business stories in major publications and fueling Digium’s ascent in the VoIP community. 

Our journey with Digium paved the way for our deep-rooted presence in the VoIP community and at TMC media shows like Internet Telephony. We proudly contributed to the launch of the first AstriCon, a precursor to IT Expo. As I look forward to this year’s IT Expo, set for February 13-15 at the Broward County Convention Center in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, I am excited to reconnect with old friends and colleagues. If you plan to attend, I welcome the opportunity to meet, share a coffee, or enjoy a drink together. I eagerly anticipate the shared memories and new stories at this year’s event. See you there! 

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