Welcome to the Informed Engagement Network. 

We’re skilled researchers, strategists and content producers—passionate about helping clients think differently to solve business challenges.

OUR PROMISE 

We drive top-line revenue, market share and influence.

Content marketing for Fortune 100 health care company: Grew social traffic 40X, tripled mobile referral, doubled enterprise Google-indexed pages.

Digital marcom campaign for broadband services industry: Short-term results included 11M search impressions, 352K site visits, 334K video views and 24K qualified leads.

Research + target marketing in global supply chain space: Following a period with no deals in 18 months, 25% of targets reached out directly to client, 65% socialized content directly with cohorts and first 4 deals closed in next 6 months.

Twitter thought-leadership for Fortune 100 healthcare company: Site traffic increased 535%, delivering 2K qualified leads and beating industry benchmarks by 50%.

Awareness campaign for TV entertainment industry: Garnered 4M search impressions, 100K site visits and 100% increase in engagement, doubling CPM efficiency.

COVID19 ”blitz” blog campaign in healthcare industry: 1 million emails with 31% open rate
and 265,000 site visits.

OUR DIFFERENCE

We apply the skills of journalists like no other agency in the world.

Our Journalistic Approach

Our team has conducted more than 50,000 interviews in pursuit of tens of thousands of stories. The core competencies needed to succeed in these endeavors—investigative ability, tenacity and creativity—are the foundation of our approach.

The effect is work that is fact-based, authentic and impactful.

Establish Facts

We conduct research and intelligence to reveal truths and insights. 

Develop Strategies

We leverage insights to engineer strategies proven to deliver desired business outcomes.

Produce Content

We blend research and strategy to create informed content with the power to persuade and engage.

OUR TEAM

We’re skilled journalists and strategists.

Rick Kupchella

Rick Kupchella

Founder / CEO

Tim Sherno

Tim Sherno

SVP Research & Strategy

Becky Nahm

Becky Nahm

Vice President Content Production

Peter Lecy

Peter Lecy

Finance & Operations

Paul Hillen

Paul Hillen

Business & Go-to-Market Strategy

Sarah Elbert

Sarah Elbert

Director Client Services

Maria Reitan

Maria Reitan

Strategist

Sean Ryan

Sean Ryan

Vice President Digital Strategy

Anne Cowan

Anne Cowan

Communications Strategist

Shaymus McLaughlin

Shaymus McLaughlin

Chief of Staff

Megan Murphy

Megan Murphy

Administrative Manager

Steve Wallace

Steve Wallace

Digital Strategist

OUR PROCESS

You Can Expect Us To

Know What Questions to Ask

Interrogate the Facts

Distill Complexity

Think Critically

Defend Authenticity

Influence Change

Succeed

OUR CLIENTS

We partner for results.

THE ELEVATE BLOG

 

Insights & Research

Branding in the Age of Divisiveness

Recent events may usher in a new era of consumer mindfulness, one in which companies’ political donations are heavily scrutinized.By Sarah Elbert, Director of Client Services for i.e. network Today, a company’s brand is comprised of more than the products it sells. I...
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Science + Journalism: A Match Made for Research Success

By Rick Kupchella, CEO and founder of IEN Just like the decades I spent in the news business, one of the things I’ve most enjoyed about my life in business is how deep we get to go on many different subjects—subjects as disparate as health care, education, finance,...
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What the Next COVID Wave Means for Businesses

What will the next six weeks look like, as COVID peaks around the country? CEO Rick Kupchella spoke with HealthPartners Executive Medical Director, Brian Rank, to answer that very question. They explore the scientific computer modeling that has gotten more accurate...
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Where Do Content Strategies Come From?

By Rick Kupchella, CEO and Founder of i.e. network In 30 years of broadcast news—and a few years as a children’s book author—one thing I’ve developed is an affinity for simple questions. Particularly questions that are posed as simple questions—but really aren't....
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Stop Fishing for Your Audience! Go Find It

We are living in a rare moment in the history of communication. Not since the launch of Morse code, when the speed of messaging moved from months to seconds, has there been such a tectonic shift in the opportunity of our profession. We don’t have the single source...
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The TV News to Digital Marketing Time Warp

MADISON, Wis. (early 2005) My 6’5” news director stared down at me, chuckling. “Facebook? You really think that is a story? For real?” Al Zobel, a long time TV news vet, had a particularly high standard for what qualified as “news." He was naturally skeptical. I was a...
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What’s the Story You Want to Tell?

The Hollywood awards season sparks office pools and friendly debate about our favorite stories from the silver screen. These stories have compelling characters, conflict, climax and a resolution. This type of storytelling is different from the storytelling getting so...
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Let’s get started.

Please reach out so that we can get to work tackling your unique challenges. 

Contact Us