With a reputation for delivering results, Wills & Associates has become a go-to firm for companies and organizations in the technology, telecommunications, life sciences and non-profit sectors. Clients benefit from our clear-cut experience in these industries; strong relationships we have developed with top-tier media, industry analysts and other key influencers; and our ability to help clients effectively tell their stories and get noticed.
General Dynamics Information Technology is a global provider of information technology (IT), systems engineering, professional services and simulation and training to customers in the defense, federal civilian government, health, homeland security, intelligence, state and local government and commercial sectors.
Since 2014, W&A has provided both public relations and social media strategy for General Dynamics Information Technology.
For more than 25 years, Bangladesh-based Rahimafrooz Renewable Energy Ltd. (RREL) has delivered pioneering solar and renewable energy solutions throughout South Asia. The company’s unique and innovative approach of integrated solar systems and off-grid storage solutions has enabled it to bring energy to more than 1.5 million homes in South Asia and positively impact millions of lives.
RREL hired W&A to create awareness of the company’s innovation and impact-focused business expansion.
Emergent BioSolutions, a publicly traded, global specialty pharmaceutical company, hired W&A in 2008 to develop and execute an ongoing strategic media relations program in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan region, which is home of its global headquarters.
W&A’s program focuses on positioning C-level executives as thought leaders, promoting corporate products announcements, securing high-profile coverage of several company acquisitions, promoting a core growth strategy initiative and creating positive exposure of the company’s significant employee and corporate giving program.
Emergent BioSolutions receives regular media coverage in the leading local daily newspapers – Washington Post and Baltimore Sun – and in the key business media, such as the Washington Business Journal and Baltimore Business Journal.
Learning Undefeated, non-profit that provides life-changing STEM experiences for high needs communities through innovative and experiential education programs for grades K-12, initially hired W&A to promote its efforts throughout Maryland. Learning Undefeated is now offering innovative programs to students in 17 states with a goal of sparking interest in STEM careers, building the workforce that will drive the innovation economy, and bridging school, community, health, and business..
Since 2011, W&A has built a media outreach strategy focused on the major corporate support of advancing STEM education, generating story lines, media advisories, background materials and individuals pitches custom-tailored for print and television media.
W&A has repeatedly secured major news exposure for Learning Undefeated from the leading Baltimore/Washington, D.C. media, including local network television affiliates, The Washington Post, Washington Business Journal, Baltimore Business Journal and The Baltimore Sun. Coverage includes op-eds on STEM-related issues, news stories on Learning Undefeated’s partnerships and feature stories on how the organization is advancing STEM education.
Scientific Games is a leading innovator in the global lottery and regulated gaming industries. Beginning with the breakthrough technology that launched the world’s very first secure instant lottery game in 1974, the company has continued to advance the games, technology, programs, marketing research and security that have been a driving force behind the success of more than 300 customers on six continents over the last 40 years.
W&A was hired in 2017 to provide strategic media relations counsel for the company’s lottery contract with the Maryland Lottery.
The KSA (Kingdom of Saudi Arabia) Cybersecurity Conference 2017 – Saudi Arabia’s leading cybersecurity event – hired W&A to identify top U.S. cybersecurity companies interested in exploring business opportunities with high-ranking officials who lead cyber efforts for the Saudi government and top executives in the private sector, including those in banking, aviation, telecommunication, utility, and oil and gas. This exclusive event in Buraydah, the capital of the Qassim Region of Saudi Arabia, is under the patronage of HRH Crown Prince Mohammed bin Naif, the KSA Ministry of the Interior, and HRH Prince Faysal bin Abdur Rahman al Saud, the Governor of Qassim in north central Saudi Arabia.
The Tech Council of Maryland (TCM) is the largest technology trade group serving the advanced technology and biotechnology communities of Maryland. TCM’s mission is to advocate for the interests of the technology community, further the role of technology in the Maryland economy, and nurture an environment where technology companies can collaborate, grow and succeed.
Since 2008, W&A has been the public relations firm of record for TCM, providing a range services, including content creation (press releases, op-eds, blogs, speeches), media relations and strategic counsel for the organization’s CEO.
TCM has received significant local, regional and national media exposure as a result of W&A’s efforts.
Maryland lawmakers enacted a 6 percent tax on computer services in Maryland in 2007 with virtually no warning. The state’s tech community was forced to advocate against a tax that nobody saw coming and therefore hadn’t been prepared to address. A Baltimore-based tech CEO founded the Maryland Computer Services Association (MCSA) to advocate for full repeal of the tax and hired W&A to provide public relations counsel.
W&A designed a comprehensive public relations campaign, including message development, media training, media outreach, event management and coalition building.
Despite incredible odds, the Maryland General Assembly repealed the Tech Tax before it even went into effect. Journalists described the client’s repeal effort as “speedy and forceful” and as a “cause célèbre,” while leading state lawmakers praised our client for “going from zero to 60 in three seconds.” Technology companies that were on the verge of moving out of state to avoid the tax remained in Maryland, and lawmakers since have not considered any similar tech tax.
Dozens of stories on the repeal efforts appeared throughout Maryland and surrounding states, and W&A was responsible for a Wall Street Journal editorial opposing the Tech Tax that appeared the week the Maryland legislature voted on the repeal.
W&A oversaw media relations and managed the press center for GovSec, the nation’s premier event for government, homeland security and law enforcement professionals. GovSec provided education sessions and a trade show featuring proven strategies and cost-effective technology that enable these individuals to succeed in their mission of protecting our critical infrastructures, key assets, communities and the nation.
W&A developed media strategy, drafted press releases, provided media outreach and managed interviews, which resulted in hundreds of media stories about the event between 2010-2014 and a doubling in the number of media who attended the event during that period.
Abell Foundation
Actix
Adelberg, Rudow, Dorf, Hendler & Sameth
AegiSoft Corporation
Akin Gump Technology Ventures
Allfirst Bank
AlliedSignal
Alpert, Barker & Calcutt
American Agricultural Foundation
American Center for International Leadership
American Coalition Against Crime
American Foundation of Urological Diseases
American Information Systems (AIS)
American Land Trust
American Port Systems
American Telesystems
American-Israel Chamber of Commerce
Americans for Alaska
Americans for Legal Reform
America’s Black Colleges
Apgar & Co.
Arthur Young & Co.
Arundel Corp.
Asner Associates
Aspen Institute
Audiobooks
Baltimore Bancorp
Baltimore City Taxpayers
Baltimore Convention Center
Baltimore County Forward
Baltimore Federal Financial
Baltimore Harbor Endowment
Baltimore Thermal
BCI Contractors, Inc.
Believe Wireless
Bencel “Voice Defense”
Benedictine School for Exceptional Children
Berwick Associates, LLC
Black & Decker
Blue Cross & Blue Shield
Brightwood Retirement Community
British Telecom
Brookings Institution
Broventure
Browning-Ferris Corp.
Buckinham’s Choice
Burger King Corp.
BWI Development Council
C.W. Amos
Capital Savings Bank
CentraBank
Cernium
Chesapeake Wildlife Heritage
Ciccarone Center at The Johns Hopkins Hospital
CIGNA
Citicorp
Citizens for a Sound Economy
Citizens Information Technology Education Corporation (CITEC)
Classic Catering
College Construction Loan Insurance Association
Columbia Consulting Group
Columbus Center
Community Colleges of Baltimore
Company Entier
Concord Coalition
Conservation Fund
Coopers & Lybrand
Copper Ridge
Cox Creek Refining Co.
CSX Intermodal
CSX Transportation
CustomCity.com
Daft McCune & Walker
Defywire
D-Day Museum
Directorship
Dittus Communications
DLITE (Maryland Coastal Bays Program)
Dulaney Valley Memorial Gardens, Inc.
Dwight D. Eisenhower Centennial Conference/Gettysburg College
Eastmet Corp.
Economic Development Council of Greater Baltimore
Edison Electric Institute
Edison Group
eIncubator
Eisenhower Era Education Program/The Eisenhower Legacy Film Project
Eisenhower Foundation
Electric Press
Elliott Affiliates, Ltd.
Emergent BioSolutions
Environmental Assessment Council
Environmental Elements Corp.
Environmental Recovery Associates
eOriginal
Episcopal Social Ministries of MD
Ernst & Young LLP
Euro RSCG Brann
F.A. Davis & Sons
Fair Hill Races
First National Bank of Maryland/Allied Irish Bank
Flanders Foreign Investment Office
Franklin Square Hospital
G. H. Dalsheimer Gallery
G.D. Searle & Company
General Dynamic Information Technology
Giant Food Co.
Goucher College
Governor’s Employment and Training Council
Graffito/Active 8
Great State Publishing, LLC (Maryland Life Magazine)
Greater Baltimore Medical Center
GS Communications
GTE Sprint
Haagen-Dazs
Harbor Hospital
Harford
Harford Day School
HBO
HCFA
Heartlands Retirement Community
Helen Bentley & Associates
Heritage Bank
Herman Maril Collection
Hill & Knowlton, Inc.
Historic Annapolis
HMS Bounty
Horizon
Institute for Health Policy Analysis
ITOFCA
J.M. Huber
JCPenney
Joseph Richey House
Kennedy Krieger Institute
Keswick Home
Key Bank and Trust
Kinetics Marketing and Communications
KMS Group
KoolSpan
Kraft General Foods
Lista’s
Mantech/NSI
Maryland 4-H Club Foundation
Maryland Bankers Association
Maryland Beef Council
Maryland Business for Responsive Government
Maryland Committee for Safety Belt Use
Maryland Consumers for Liability Reform
Maryland Distribution Council
Maryland Economic Development Corporation (MEDCO)
Maryland Economic Growth Associates
Maryland Electric Utility Council
Maryland Eye Bank
Maryland Health and Education Institute
Maryland Historical Society
Maryland Horse Coalition
Maryland Million
Maryland Port Administration
Maryland Preparedness
Maryland State Fair & Agricultural Society
Marylanders for a Balanced Federal Budget
Marylanders for Competitive Coal Transportation
Marylanders for Malpractice Liability Reform
MCI
MdBio Foundation
Melnicove, Kauffman, Weiner & Smouse
Mercury Distribution Co.
Merseyside Development Corp.
Metapath Software International (MSI)
Mid-Atlantic Venture Association
MNC Mortgage Corp.
Montgomery County Fair
Montgomery Village Foundation
Montgomery County Collaboration Council
Monument Group Mpowerplayer
Mt. Washington Country School
National Association of Home Builders
National Center for Victims of Crime
National Committee for a Balanced Budget Amendment
National Committee for the Single 6-year Presidential Term
National Holstein-Friesian Cattle Association of America
National Taxpayers Union
National Wildflower Research Center
Nature Conservancy
Network Security Consulting (NSC)
Newstar
Nicaraguan American National Foundation
Nimitz Museum
Northrop Grumman Information Technology
O’Conor, Piper & Flynn
O’Donnell Fellowship
Omni International Hotel – Baltimore
Opera Camerata of Washington
Orbid Corporation
Patton, Boggs & Blow
Peak Harvest Health
Pen Mar
Phoenix Healthcare
Piedmont Airlines/USAir
Pimlico Racecourse/The Preakness
Piper & Marbury
Pocket Communications, Inc.
Preston Trucking
Prodigy
Public Affairs Council
Raytheon Silent Runner
Reader’s Digest
Regalian
Reid & Priest
River Run
Russer Foods
Safe Kids Campaign
SAFE Risk Management Systems, LLC
Schluderberg-Kurdle (Esskay)
Scientific Applications International Corp. (SAIC)
SCM Chemicals
Security Management Corp.
Security Square Mall
Severna Park Mall
Skyline Network Technologies, Inc.
Southern Company
St. Joseph Hospital
Starbright Media Corporation
State Board for Higher Education
Statutory Benefits Management Corp.
Step 9 Software
TCI Communications of Baltimore
Tech Council of Maryland
Teleconsult, Inc.
TeleCorp PCS
Terminal Transportation
TESSCO Technologies
The Belts Corp.
The Florida Department of Citrus
The Harlan Co.
The Harwood Group
The Kolker Consultancy
The Police Foundation
Tort Reform Coalition
Towers, Perrin, Forster & Crosby
Towson University
U.S.F. Constellation Foundation, Inc.
UNC Inc.
United Industrial Corp./AAI
United Parcel Service
Urban & Schwartzberg, Inc.
Valley Motors
Venable, Baejer & Howard
W.R. Grace
Washington College
Washington/Baltimore Regional Association
Westell Technologies
WiderThan Co., Ltd
WJZ – Channel 13
WMAR – Channel 2
Wolpoff & Co. LLP
World Trace Center Institute
WorldCell (International Mobile Communications)
Ztango