For many, purpose-led marketing may still seem synonymous with working with a nonprofit or donating to a charity. But Oberland’s goal is to create a world where brands care about their purpose as much as they care about digital strategy. 

The idea seems to be gaining traction as consumers become more critical of companies’ stances.

“Purpose-driven is often an afterthought, and not part of a brand’s DNA,” said Lisa Topol, managing partner and executive creative director at Oberland. “We’ve been able to help brands combine creativity and consciousness and see that if purpose is more centered in your brand and you walk the walk, you become more profitable.”

Oberland had 45 clients in 2020, much of it project-based work. It purposefully reduced to 13 clients last year, and revenue still rose 12% from 2022, with more than half of that from for-profit companies. 

“The last year has been a culmination of a three-year strategy to change our portfolio from a lot of smaller projects to deeper connections with more focused work,” said Drew Train, Oberland’s CEO and co-founder. 

“The worse the world gets, the more relevant we become,” Train added. “More and more, consumers are demanding a response from companies. Brands think of purpose-led as a narrow category of working with a nonprofit. But purpose can be practical.” He points to clients like Strong Roots frozen foods for being plant-based and a certified B Corp, and e.l.f Cosmetics for being vegan, fair trade and animal cruelty-free. (Oberland partnered with e.l.f and blind Paralympic swimmer Anastasia Pagonis for the start of the brand’s “Show Your(s)e.l.f.” series highlighting resilience and perseverance.)

Oberland’s work shows how purpose can show up in ways large and small—from large socioeconomic and political concerns to how to adjust to bladder leaks as we age. 

After working with the ACLU in 2022 to reframe the debate over abortion restrictions as “forced pregnancy,” Oberland expanded that relationship with the “We Show Up” campaign focused on voter rights, trans rights, immigration rights and reproductive rights.

The agency also worked with Brady: United Against Gun Violence, for a twist on popular “unboxing” videos. The campaign used celebrities including NFL player Josh Morgan and Olympic biathlete and two-time World Cup silver medalist Susan Dunklee to create gunboxing videos showing how to safely lock away guns.

For period underwear brand Thinx, Oberland created a series of ads, directed by Pamela Adlon, in which younger women shared with their moms that they can just wear period underwear rather than use tampons or pads. The campaign led to a 50% increase in product sales, according to Oberland.

“We were able to use our own realness and humor to make this topic something people pay attention to,” said Kate Charles, managing partner and chief strategy officer at Oberland. “I think one reason why the work was so incredible was that there were three generations of women working on it—Gen Z, millennials and Gen X—and we all had shared pain points.”

Oberland pays 100% of health care premiums starting on an employee’s first day. The company is mostly remote, and has a benefit called “Fuck it! or Fix it” where each quarter, every employee is given $250 to either “fuck it” and go out for the night or “fix it” and donate the money to a cause of their choice.

“It’s funny that this is a purpose-driven agency of the year, but the real magic will happen when you don’t have to categorize it,” Topol said.

“This is just the beginning for purpose marketing,” Charles added. “Consumers will show with their wallets what is important to them.”