OVERVIEW
We take brands higher
Headquartered in Richmond, Virginia, Elevation is an integrated marketing firm dedicated to elevating the brands of our clients through creative and strategic excellence. Founded in 2001 by principals Frank Gilliam and Aaron Dotson, Elevation delivers a higher level of thinking and a higher level of service—helping our clients achieve a higher level of success.
Elevation has built a national reputation for excellence based on five core strengths:
- We ask good questions
- We understand the delicate balance between “brand” and “promotion”
- We get it—and get it fast
- We believe in the power of simplicity
- We are design-centric
Contact us today to learn more about our experience, our team and how we can help elevate your brand.

CAPABILITIES
CLIENTS

- Arconic
- Baskervill
- Capital One
- Children’s Museum
- Donate Life Virginia
- Duke’s Mayonnaise
- Evergreen Enterprises
- Indevco
- James River Association
- Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden
- Liquibox
- National D-Day Memorial
- OrthoVirginia
- Pairwise
- Thomas Jefferson’s Poplar Forest
- Quarles
- Sarcoxie Nursery
- Sauer’s Spices & Extracts
- Silgan Dispensing
- Smithfield Foods
- The Spice Hunter
- Swedish Match
- Super Radiator Coils
- the valentine
- Virginia 529
- Virgina Green Lawn Care
- Virginia Credit Union
- Virginia Tourism Corp.
- YouDecide

PEOPLE

Aaron Dotson
Founder, Executive Creative Director
He creates, builds and sells, sells, sells brands. A strategist and professor with a passion for storytelling who still loves the title “copywriter.” Recipient of the Richmond Ad Club’s highest honor: Advertising Person of the Year.

Frank Gilliam
Founder, Executive Creative Director
He’s the rarest find: the person who makes everything he touches better. His thinking and design sensibility run through the region’s most successful brands. And he's nationally recognized as a "Designer To Watch" by Graphic Design USA magazine.

Stacie Elliott
Chief Operating Officer
Imagine a CPA who actually “gets” marketing strategy—and tirelessly supports creatives and account teams in their drive for greatness. Meet Stacie. She helps our clients move their businesses forward. And that’s how she keeps moving ours forward, too.

Shade Wilson
Director of Digital Strategy
Shade has more than 20 years experience in digital marketing. Yet his branding and advertising experience goes far beyond that—enabling him to take an integrated marketing approach to everything he does. He’s also the past president of the American Marketing Association’s Richmond Chapter.

Kim Moore
Account Director
Strategically minded. Killer instincts. Always on top of everything (and yes, we mean everything). Kim always knows the right questions to ask to keep everyone on our team and yours moving toward the same goal.

Emily Greenwood
Senior Account Manager
You know that instinctive, super-sharp marketer you always wanted who was not only strategically minded but also a killer tactician? The multi-tasker extraordinaire who can think big yet never miss a single detail? That’s our Emily.

C.J. Hawn
Creative Director
A client’s dream and our ultimate triple threat: writer, art director and designer. Quick witted. Wickedly smart. Leads broadcast and video efforts around the nation and demands the best from others because she does from herself.

Carol Williams
Director of Account Planning
When Carol enters the room, you know you’re going to be asked questions. Big, serious, thought-provoking questions. The kind that will allow her to develop the insights she uses to craft integrated marketing plans that deliver on both brand and sales drivers.

Scott Vadas
Art Director
With a background that includes both Design Army and in-house corporate design departments, Scott not only knows how to push for the very best creative, but also understands that the work needs to, well, work. He delivers on both accounts.

Corey Lane
Senior Account Manager
With a reputation as a serial “intrapreneur,” Corey challenges clients and agency partners alike to tap into innovative opportunities to grow their business with applied strategy and disciplined execution.

Marnie Martin
Senior Manager, Operations & Project Management
Maybe it’s her unmatched dedication to getting things done right. Maybe it’s the way she holds us all accountable for deadlines. Maybe it’s the way she hands out “snaps” to her coworkers and clients. Whatever it is, we love it, and everyone loves Marnie.

Daniel Uhorchuk
Senior Studio Artist
When you jump out of airplanes for the United States Army, you learn that details matter. Daniel has an eye for detail like your life (or the life of your project) depends on it. That’s why we trust him with so many of our most important projects.

Heath Flohre
Art Director
Heath is a rare combination of creative talent and organization who prides himself on staying ahead of the curve with creative technology. He supports our clients’ digital efforts and brings a critical eye to user interface design.

Kate Bredimus
Associate Creative Director
The copywriter we waited eight years to hire. Seriously. As one of the region’s sharpest (and funniest) creatives, we made repeated efforts to bring her to the team. The stars finally aligned—and she’s a star for us, indeed.

Stephanie Lewis
Senior Account Manager
Have a project that demands an intense focus and absolutely zero chance for failure? Our clients often do, and that’s why so many of them get assigned to Stephanie. She is reliability and dependability personified, and always gets it done.

Logan Graham
Account Manager
Logan is a versatile marketer with a background in start-ups, media and non-profits. But it’s her experience integrating traditional and digital to create effective and engaging marketing campaigns that makes all the difference.

Liz Belte
Art Director
You’d be hard pressed to find a more dedicated, more positive design talent than Liz. No matter what you throw at her (a last minute deadline…a total mess of a project…a ridiculously impossible request) she never gets flustered or frustrated. And trust us—we’ve tried.

Hunter Knierim
Account Director
Cool. Calm. Collected. And above all else, incredibly insightful. With over 15 years experience as both a marketing leader and entrepreneur, Hunter brings a quiet thoughtfulness that his clients and colleagues find both assuring and inspiring.

Puck Byrne
Graphic Designer
Meet the only designer in Richmond whose talent and personality are big enough to have a music festival named after him in Austin, Texas. Puck’s how-can-I-help-you? attitude and creative spirit make him a hit wherever he goes.

Ryan Muldoon
Senior Copywriter
With a career that has spanned music journalism and nonprofit communications—in addition to traditional agency work—Ryan brings significant writing experience to our clients. And his insight is matched by a level-headedness that makes Ryan the calm of the creative storm.

Pam Tucker
Accounting Assistant
Your company's accounting department will appreciate Pam. And that means you will, too. With over a decade of agency finance experience at The Martin Agency, Pam keeps our billing and other financial matters buttoned up—and reminds us to get our time sheets in on time, too.

Matt Brown
Senior Graphic Designer
With specialties in illustration, package design and motion design, Matt brings over 20 years of experience to our clients—and does it with a smile and energy that makes him a favorite of everyone with whom he works.

Bryce Praught
Graphic Designer
This former Eagle Scout lives up to the “be prepared” motto with a sharp set of design skills and a great work ethic that drives him to keep pushing creative to be the best it possibly can be.

Beth Borum
Associate Creative Director
With an artist’s eye, next-level design skills and a calm, clear focus, Beth elevates creative across the agency without breaking a sweat. After spending more than a decade working in design and advertising in Chicago, she returned back east to find a home at Elevation as an associate creative director. Here, she raises the bar for our team through thoughtful, high-impact creative that’s strategic—and stunning.

Kim Peters
Graphic Designer
Kim’s like a can of soda—small, bubbly and packed with energy. She handles projects of any size with ease, while her strategic thinking means she never loses sight of the big picture. As a recent VCU grad, Kim sees every job as an opportunity to improve her skills.

Aaron Ware
Digital Engagement Manager
Aaron’s a bit of a digital engagement alchemist. By combining data analysis and human empathy, he helps clients make a deeper connection with their audience to deliver more than just “likes” and pageviews. Even more impressive, Aaron connects with folks offline too, with an infectious enthusiasm that seems to follow him around the office.

Brian Burton
Senior Copywriter
Armed with a versatile skillset and a desire to innovate, Brian thinks beyond the conventional by crafting unique solutions that range from product design to stunts and activations. With a career path that spans from Richmond to the Middle East and back, his work combines international experience with local insights.

Caleb Walker
Paid Digital Media Analyst
You might not expect someone who’s 6’6” to be into small details. But, that’s Caleb. He’s an expert at making tiny optimizations that produce big results, and bigger dollar signs for clients. Driven by curiosity, Caleb’s happiest when he’s deep into the minutia of data, getting real-time results.

Tara Rowan
Senior Project Manager
Outgoing, detail-oriented and a natural leader, Tara was born to be a Project Manager. She easily juggles multiple jobs from kick-off to completion and does it with passion and panache. Want proof? Just ask to see one of her meticulous, hand-written to-do lists.

Katie Stone
Account Manager
In her spare time, Katie teaches Barre (a hybrid of ballet and yoga). Which is appropriate. Because in her role as an Account Manager, she exudes strength, grace and passion. She’s also flexible, adapting her communication styles to fit what’s best for the client. No wonder she helps our clients keep a ‘leg up’ on their competition.

Janell Dutchess
Paid Digital Media Manager
A Richmonder by way of Syracuse, you could say Janell specializes in bridging distances. As our Paid Digital Media Manager, she’s a pro at figuring out how to connect to audiences in new and powerful ways, then translate the impact of those connections back to our clients.

Lauren Prezioso
Account Manager
Lauren’s energy and meticulousness as a project manager at Elevation made her a favorite of both her clients and her creative teams—which is a delicate balancing act, indeed! Now as an account manager, Lauren is bringing the same level of attention and clarity to her work, while letting her leadership and strategy skills shine even more brightly.

Jason Sullivan
Art Director
Whenever he tackles a project, Jason has a simple formula: Sit down & work hard. Because he knows his designs can do more than just look great—they can solve client problems, too. It’s an approach he perfected working at some of Virginia’s top publications, as well as agency and in-house roles. But don’t assume he’s always at a desk. After hours, this dad of two enjoys hiking, cycling & anything outdoors.

Chris Fullman
Associate Director of Platforms & Products
Chris thinks big picture. Like, really big. Because he’s responsible for ensuring entire online ecosystems foster meaningful experiences for our clients, their customers and the greater community. How does he manage it all? By constantly learning new things to help him achieve his ultimate goal: Making the world a better place.

Kristin Youngblood
Senior Project Manager
Extremely friendly. Super organized. Creatively savvy. Just three out of a billion reasons why Kristin is a Project Manager extraordinaire. She's also a self-described “movie & beer nerd”. No wonder she’s equally loved by creatives, clients and just about anyone who walks through our front door.