As 2026 comes to a close, our team at Zilker Media is taking time to look back on the people who trusted us with their stories. This year, those people included cardiologists and contractors, attorneys and authors, nonprofit founders and CEOs, and each of them chose to step forward and share what they know with the communities they serve. Their willingness to be the messenger for their companies is what makes our work possible, and we’re grateful for the openness and generosity they brought to every interview, byline, and award nomination along the way.
Here are some of the moments we were most proud to be part of.
The Voices Our Clients Shared With the World
Many of the leaders we work alongside spent 2026 sharing their expertise in publications their audiences trust. This is far from an exhaustive list of what our clients accomplished this year, but these are some of the pieces that stayed with our team long after they ran.
Cardiologist Dr. Alan Rozanski of the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai was featured in TIME’s coverage of the resolutions that help people age better. His research on connection and heart health then carried into Real Simple, a Reader’s Digest piece on making friends as an adult, and Parade, where he shared the first thing he asks when a patient says their chest feels tight. The physicians of Northern Virginia Family Practice had a lot to say about the future of their profession, too. CEO Dr. Natasha Lewry Beauvais wrote for the AAFP’s Family Practice Management about rethinking parental leave in medicine. Her colleague Dr. Mark Sullivan wrote for Annals of Internal Medicine and Medical Economics about protecting the patient–physician relationship as AI and burnout reshape care.
Beth Goff-McMillan, CEO of SKG and founder of FOLIO, told the story behind her mantra, “What if we get it right?”, in the Bizwomen “In Her Own Words” series. She was also featured in Forbes, alongside her daughter Annabelle, on the leadership skills mothers develop that workplaces now need. Les Csorba, partner at Heidrick & Struggles and author of Aware, wrote an opinion piece for the Houston Chronicle on why a father’s lessons matter more than ever in the age of AI. Jamie Gerdsen of G5 Ventures argued in Contractor Magazine that private equity can’t grow what it buys without investing in people and operations. Jeff Rosenthal, co-CEO of ProjectNext Leadership, wrote for NACD Directorship on closing the CEO succession readiness gap. Jonathan Greene of Streamline shared his perspective in Morning Brew’s The Playbook on the rise of the “forever renter.”
What Strategic Visibility Can Do in 90 Days
One of the clearest examples of how credibility builds on itself came from our work with Melissa Drew, founder of InSite BUILD, a Maryland general contractor. When we began working together in November 2025, potential clients searching for the company found very little, and AI platforms didn’t know it existed. Through a strategy that connected earned media, Melissa’s personal LinkedIn presence, and an expanded website, InSite BUILD ranked #1 on Google for branded search within 90 days and held the #1 position on both ChatGPT and Perplexity for “construction management services in Eastern Shore of Maryland.”
The recognition that followed was just as meaningful. InSite BUILD ranked #28 on the Inc. 5000 and was named the #1 fastest-growing private company in the Mid-Atlantic on Inc. Regionals. Melissa was named to the Inc. Female Founders 500 and an EY Entrepreneur of the Year 2026 Mid-Atlantic winner, and she was featured in Fixr’s Women in Construction Week roundup.
Celebrating the People Behind the Recognition
Some of our favorite moments this year came from watching our clients be recognized by their peers and communities. Marsha Stone, founder and CEO of Foundation Stone Family of Programs, and Beth Goff-McMillan were both named finalists for Austin Under 40 Mentor of the Year. Stacy Johnson, founder of Central Texas Table of Grace, was named a finalist for the Austin Business Journal’s 2026 Women in Business Awards. She was also nominated for the ABJ’s 2026 Best CEO Awards, alongside attorney Jason Wright of the Law Office of Jason Wright and Dr. Josh Myers of Adjuvant Behavioral Health.
Our own team had a year to celebrate, too. Zilker Media was named to the Inc. 5000 and to Inc.’s 2026 Power Partners list, and several of our team members were recognized for the work they do on behalf of our clients. Our Co-Founder and CEO, Paige Velasquez Budde, was honored as one of Austin Woman’s 2026 Change Makers. Our Chief Strategy Officer, Nichole Williamson, was named a 2026 Austin Business Journal Women in Business finalist. Our Strategy Director, Haley Snider, was named an Agency Trailblazer in AdExchanger’s 2026 Top Women in Media & Ad Tech. Our Senior Strategist, Saxonee Arreaga, was honored among PRNEWS’ Top Women in PR & Communications in the Agency Account Accelerators category. Our Senior Publicist, Sarah Wilson, was named to Qwoted’s Top 100 in PR for the third consecutive quarter.
Paige wrote for Fast Company about the shifts leaders must make to build trust in an age of skepticism, and we marked our ninth anniversary by introducing the Zilker Media AI Discoverability Ecosystem, a framework that connects earned media, owned content, and executive brand strategy to help companies become visible, credible, and recommended by AI.
Stories Rooted in Our Community
Some of the stories we were most grateful to tell came from close to home. KXAN shared the story of how Stacy Johnson, who entered the foster care system at two years old, is now leading a $15 million campaign to expand her Round Rock campus for foster children and young adults. On National Women in Medicine Day, we celebrated twelve physicians and clinicians who are changing health care for the better.
This year we hosted our fifth annual Nonprofit Summit at our office, and it drew our largest turnout yet, with nonprofit leaders from across Central Texas. Alongside our team’s sessions on PR, content, and email marketing, guest consultant Jonathan Puffinbarger shared insights from his work in the nonprofit space. The summit has become one of the ways we give back to the organizations doing some of the most important work in our community, and we are grateful to everyone who joined us.
Our team stayed connected to the communities that shaped us, from joining the Texas Exes Longhorn Business Network to Nichole teaching a session on owning your personal brand in an AI-driven world at the ATX Women in Web3 & AI Femme Founder Bootcamp.
What We’re Carrying Into 2027
Each of these stories began with a leader who had something valuable to share and was willing to step forward as the messenger for their company. The relationships and credibility our clients built this year will keep working for them long after a story ran or an award was announced.
We are grateful to every client who trusted us with their story in 2026, and we can’t wait to see what we will build together next year. If you’re curious how your own leadership and company show up when people ask AI for a recommendation, take our Brand Power Score quiz or reach out to our team to learn more.