Pennsylvania, April 11, 2016

Bigger is always better. We’ve all heard the phrase before, but is it actually true? Inovāt, a digital marketing agency based in Central Pennsylvania, would certainly disagree with that statement. Comprised of nine people, Inovāt is living proof that great things can come from small teams.

Founded in 2002 by Doug Logan and Nick Weaver, Inovāt has since grown to include current Creative Director Joshua Buckwalter who joined in 2013. From coordinating campaigns with brands like Ferrari to developing marketing plans for startups, Joshua has worked on some exciting projects in his time with the agency. We chatted with Joshua to learn more about Inovāt and hear his thoughts on the industry.

Describe the core work of Inovāt:

Inovāt is a full-service digital marketing shop based out of Central Pennsylvania. We primarily work with clients in the Northeastern part of the States, but we also have a few international brands coming to us.

Trademarked a “small and mighty digital agency,” at Inovāt we pride ourselves in being a close team that focuses on some rather big challenges in the digital world. We especially like to work with companies that are underdogs, or the little guy in the market. We aim to develop smart and innovative marketing plans that help these companies stand out amongst their competitors on the web. A great example is the work we did for Zippy Shell, a small company in the saturated market of moving and storage. We helped them refine their branding so they could compete with the big guys.

If you could describe your agency in 3 words, what would those be?

Tight-knit, passionate, and innovative.

How did you become interested in digital media and marketing? At a young age or at the university level?

I started out in the industry back in 2003. Upon graduation, I worked in a variety of niches in the field. I started out in direct mail and proceeded to work in e-commerce, the food industry, and also publishing. Each role was related to marketing as a whole, but offered me a unique experience, distinct from the others. Throughout all of my jobs, I began to build digital skills, growing my abilities to code and understand how to make things successful on the Internet. In 2010, I made the full switch and transitioned to digital agency work. I applied my passion for the field and saw that I started to get really successful with the work I was doing.


What does the word creativity mean to you?


I believe that all humans are innately creative. Society oftentimes thinks of creativity as a power that belongs to a certain type of person. I disagree with that. The act of creativity simply means being able to think about things in different ways.

What are a few of your favorite digital brands?

Google, for sure. Out of the tech field, Google really seems to be invested in the web. Apple is invested in their own eco-system, whereas Google is committed more to open technologies.

Another brand I really love is Everlane, an online brand committed to ethical clothing production. Most of my wardrobe is from them, but my appreciation for the company extends beyond just the clothes. I like how they built their brand through the website and have successfully utilized digital marketing.

Are there online publications, professionals, or industry leaders you follow?

For digital news about the industry, I go to Verge and Vox. Other sites that I find inspiring are Behance and siteInspire.

Which region of the world excites you most in terms of digital creativity?

At the moment, I’d have to say South America. The work coming out of this part of the world is extremely innovative.

What is a digital trend that is here to stay, at least for the relative time being?

We currently have the ability to see the exact impact digital marketing has on the bottom line. Clients expect a high level of accountability in the work they do with us and want to see detailed data on their exact ROI. Agencies are being held to a higher accountability for the projects they take on, and this trend will only continue to develop.

Where do you see digital marketing in the future?

While not the exact tangible future, the field of virtual reality excites me a lot. The products are just coming out now and will soon be accessible to the public for the first time. It will be in a lot of people’s best interest to figure out how virtual reality will play into the web space and the future of digital marketing. We don’t yet know this impact, but I would say it will likely have some influence.

You can see more of Inovāt’s work on their portfolio page. For digital insight and other thoughts, be sure to check out Inovāt on Twitter or on the agency blog.

Learn more ABOUT INOVAT

agenciesApplebrandsclientsCreativitydataDigital agencyDoug LoganFerrariGoogleInovātOnlinePennsylvaniaProfilesprojects