April White Named Gold Stevie® Winner

April White started Trust Relations in 2019 on a “dream, a prayer and a really, really bad Wix site.” She endeavored to create the PR agency she wished existed—one that would leave the toxic agency culture behind, embrace inclusivity wholeheartedly and curate the best teams for clients by tapping into a remote workforce, thereby delivering the best work for clients possible. 

Her vision to create the “anti-agency” was to disrupt the way things have been done in the past and catapult the industry into the future. In just a few years, that dream became a reality—so much so she recently received a world renowned Stevie award in recognition of her accomplishments. White took home the gold for “Most Innovative Woman of the Year – Advertising, Marketing and Public Relations.” 

“It would not have been possible without the team at Trust Relations that saw the vision I had and made it the reality it is today,” White said during her acceptance speech in Las Vegas. “It’s an absolute dream to be here in front of you now, four years later.”

Since its founding, Trust Relations has grown from a one-person firm into an international agency with a team of more than 35 experts. Under White’s leadership, it has expanded beyond its roots of providing public relations services, and now offers a full suite of integrated marketing communications solutions. 

White’s dream started after she climbed the PR ladder in New York City, working for many of the biggest agencies in the world, including Weber Shandwick, Edelman and Rubenstein Public Relations. While she was grateful to have learned from the best and brightest in the industry, her experiences at other agencies also left her wanting to do things differently. 

Trust Relations is the term White coined to replace “Public Relations,” which she saw as an increasingly antiquated term and outdated approach to strategic communications. Trust Relations instead focuses on aligning clients’ “storytelling” with their “story-doing” to ensure they do what they say before they say what they do.  This, in turn, builds trust with their audience and long-lasting brand loyalty.

Winning the Gold Stevie award is validation not only of White’s vision but also a demonstration of the integrated marketing agency’s continued growth. Trust Relations has doubled in size and revenue every year since its founding. It now has a marketing team based in Sydney, Australia in addition to the U.S.-based public relations team, which is headquartered in Williams, Arizona. White’s scenic location on the cusp of the Grand Canyon is further evidence of her unique vision and approach to a fully remote agency. 

The Stevie Awards were celebrated during a gala event at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas on Friday, November 11. The evening began with cocktails and networking followed by dinner in the ballroom. The culmination of the night was, of course, the awards presentation, where White was awarded the gold prize.

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