We redesigned our business using an ancient Chinese martial art.
Tai chi is the embodiment of yin and yang. The principles of this martial art can also apply to business. If you listen first, stay grounded, maintain balance, are fluid about solutions, and open to outcomes, you can remove friction and harness energy.
Traction was founded as an agency in 2001. We did some great work. Hired amazing people. Partnered with incredible brands. Even won an AdAge Small Agency Award. But at some point, we started to feel the market change.
We listened to our clients and heard they were taking work in-house to create speed and efficiency.
We listened to our people and heard they wanted more flexibility without losing that feeling of being part of a high-performing team.
We looked inward, and saw that the old way of running an agency wasn’t conducive to balancing between the experience clients need and the experience talent wants.
So we changed. Everything.
What is a marketing acccelerator?
In 2019, Traction evolved from a traditional agency into a new model designed for the needs of modern clients. It’s a lean approach with a small core supported by a “Liquid Workforce” of fractional talent — many with brand-side experience — and strategic partnerships, armed with AI solutions and a deeply collaborative way of working with in-house teams.
Don't just take our word for it.
Traction won a silver award in the 2026 ANA B2 Awards for Midsized Agency of the Year. We were also named the #1 talent management team in the US for Campaign's Agency of the Year awards in 2024 and earned finalist recognition in 2025.
Our secret sauce
These four ways of working unlock the power to accelerate your marketing.
Marketing System Design
Traction doesn’t compete with in-house teams. We help them succeed. We design a scalable marketing system that aligns people, platforms, partners and process to help clients thrive in an AI world — and build custom AI operating systems that bring together agents and context while tailoring workflows and ontologies to architect advantage.
This case study shows how we saved on $20B retailer over $15M while improving their marketing capabilities.
Our Liquid Workforce is our secret weapon.
We provide the very best talent from our Liquid Workforce talent collective of over 300 remote creatives, strategists, media planners, developers and mar-tech consultants. This zero-waste model delivers a ton of value to our clients who get more senior people for the same price.
In-house experience.
At Traction, accounts are led by senior executives with brand-side experience at companies like lululemon, Hilton, Canva, Citi, Nordstrom and CNN. This helps us meet in-house teams where you are to fill gaps and accelerate your marketing. That matters because while 78% of brands say capability building is very important, only 5% say they have the capabilities they need.
The Futureproof Project.
We help our clients apply foresight to their marketing through an invite-only community of 350+ brand leaders at the forefront of emerging tech. We share learnings, inspiration and expertise about Generative AI and Web 3 to help one another turn marketing innovation into competitive advantage.