What Ragan does

Ragan Communications (legal entity Lawrence Ragan Communications, Inc.) is a privately held media, training, and professional development company founded around 1970 and headquartered in Chicago, serving corporate communications, public relations, internal communications, HR/people, and marketing professionals globally. The company operates a portfolio of interconnected brands: PRDaily.com (PR-focused publishing), Ragan.com (daily editorial for communicators), Ragan Training (an on-demand video library exceeding 1,000 hours), the Center for AI Strategy (a $995/year AI-focused membership bundled with a $1,700 AI Certificate Course), Ragan Insider (premium membership from $545/year), The Communications Framework (a managed learning service mapping competencies across six knowledge areas), the Communications Leadership Council (exclusive senior-executive community), and Comms Week (a licensed industry event). The business sells recurring subscriptions, conference and event registrations, certificate/workshop tuition, awards entry fees, corporate sponsorships, and on-demand content, distributed primarily through its own websites with phone-based inside sales for enterprise and team pricing.

The company monetizes via five primary revenue streams: membership subscriptions (Ragan Insider and Center for AI Strategy at $545-$2,895/year tiers), conference and event registrations across 20+ annual events held in cities including New York, Austin, Seattle, Nashville, Orlando plus virtual formats, certificate programs and workshops (AI Certificate, Crisis Communications, Brand Storytelling, etc.), awards programs (PR Daily Awards, AI Excellence Awards, Top Women in Communications, HR Awards, Top Places to Work, Content Marketing, Video & Visual, Nonprofit, CSR, Zenith, and more), and corporate sponsorships plus on-demand content sales. Marketing channels span content marketing on Ragan.com/PRDaily.com, email newsletters, organic social (LinkedIn, YouTube, Facebook, Threads, Instagram), events, webinars, award programs, and earned media. Membership discounts of $200-$250 per conference, $50 per webinar, 50% off job board placements, and 15% off awards entry fees are designed to drive cross-product retention across the ecosystem.

The company serves a customer base of 10,000+ communicators at organizations including Edelman, Cargill, GE HealthCare, New York Life, Lockheed Martin, Progressive, MetLife, Citi, Wells Fargo, The Home Depot, T-Mobile, Pfizer, Merck, SAP, and Honeywell, with a Member Advisors board of 20+ senior industry practitioners. Leadership includes CEO Diane Schwartz and Chairman/Owner Mark Ragan, with Stephanie Nivinskus as Principal of the Center for AI Strategy and Brian Pittman as Ragan AI Analyst and Dean of Ragan Training. The company has no public revenue disclosure and is not backed by private equity or venture capital, operating as an independent closely held business. It was recognized on the Inc. 5000 list for 2025 as a fastest-growing company and historically acquired Comms Week in April 2021.

Name

Ragan

Legal name

Lawrence Ragan Communications, Inc.

Website

https://ragan.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1970

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Ragan Communications is a privately held Chicago-based media, training, and professional development company serving corporate communications, PR, internal communications, and marketing professionals with subscriptions, conferences, awards, and on-demand training.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Communications Professional Development and Media

NAICS

Advertising, Public Relations, and Related Services (5418), Broadcasting and Content Providers (516)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Media Relations & Press Office Services (MPAAADAI)

akta.pro secondary industry

News Agencies & Wire Services (General & Specialized) (MPAJADAE)

Keywords

• Corporate communications training
• Communications professional development
• Internal communications media
• Public relations publishing
• Communications conferences

Headquarters

HQ city

Chicago

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Membership Subscriptions: Ragan Insider individual and team memberships providing access to premium content, reports, surveys, and member discounts. Single year at $545 or two years at $998. Premium bundle with Ragan Training at $2,895/year.
2. Center for AI Strategy Membership: Annual membership at $995/year including AI certificate course ($1,700 value), three in-person AI summits, six expert calls, research, and 25% discount on AI conferences.
3. Conference & Event Registration: Revenue from major annual conferences including Future of Communications, AI Horizons, PR Daily Conference, Social Media Conference, Employee Experience Conference, Internal Communications Conference, and Leadership Retreat for Women.
4. Certificate Programs & Workshops: Virtual and in-person certificate courses including AI Certificate Course, Crisis Communications Certificate, Brand Storytelling Certificate, and various workshops with registration fees.
5. Awards Programs: Entry fees for award programs including PR Daily Awards, AI Excellence Awards, Top Women in Communications Awards, HR Awards, Employee Communications Awards, and others. 15% member discount on entry fees.
6. Sponsorship Revenue: Corporate sponsorship opportunities at conferences and events. Contact [email protected] or 312-960-4204.
7. On-Demand Content Sales: Sale of conference recordings and on-demand content bundles from past events.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

Ragan Communications operates a media, training, and events business serving corporate, internal, and public relations communicators. It publishes daily content on ragan.com and PRDaily.com, sells premium memberships (Ragan Insider, Center for AI Strategy, Communications Leadership Council), runs 20+ annual conferences and certificate programs, and operates industry award programs. Customers are communications, PR, HR, and marketing professionals at organizations worldwide.

Product overview

Ragan Communications operates as a media and professional development company serving the communications industry. The core offering consists of Ragan.com and PRDaily.com (news/content platforms), supplemented by a portfolio of add-on products including Ragan Training (1,000+ hours of on-demand video training), the Center for AI Strategy ($995/year membership with AI Certificate Course), Ragan Insider (premium content membership from $545/year), The Communications Framework (skills development system), and Events/Awards programs. The products are sold individually or bundled, with the Center for AI Strategy and Ragan Insider representing key growth areas in AI education and professional membership.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Center for AI Strategy: Membership program for communicators and marketers learning and applying AI, includes certificate courses, summits, expert calls, and research.

Products and services

• Ragan.com Membership Site Daily news, analysis, and resources website for communications professionals, covering internal communications, public relations, AI, social media, culture, and writing.
• PR Daily PR-focused digital publication under the Ragan portfolio offering news, insights, and resources for public relations professionals, including the PR Daily Awards and PR Daily Conference.
• Ragan Insider Membership Premium annual membership providing exclusive access to Ragan.com and PRDaily.com content, quarterly Learning Labs, original research and reports, salary surveys, conference discounts ($200-$250 off), and awards entry discounts for individual communicators and teams.
• Center for AI Strategy Membership Annual AI-focused membership program for communicators and marketers at $995/year, including an AI Certificate Course ($1,700 value), in-person AI Summits, virtual tutorials, expert calls, an AI Readiness Assessment Tool, proprietary research, and 25% discount on AI conferences.
• Ragan Training On-demand video training and tutorial library offering 1,000+ hours of professional development content, including certificate courses, conference recordings, and workshops for communications professionals.
• The Communications Framework Proprietary managed learning and development system mapping communications competencies across six knowledge areas (Internal Comms, PR, Social Media & Marketing, Business Acumen, Leadership, Technology) with four learning paths (Basic, Intermediate, Advanced, Upskilling), delivered as a service to organizations.
• Ragan Conferences and Events Portfolio of 20+ in-person and virtual annual conferences, summits, workshops, and certificate programs serving communications, PR, HR, social media, and AI professionals.
• Ragan Awards Programs Industry award programs recognizing excellence across communications disciplines (PR, AI, HR, social media, video, marketing, internal comms, agencies, nonprofits, CSR, workplace culture), with entry fees and discounted rates for members.
• Communications Leadership Council (CLC) Exclusive membership council for senior communications executives (CCOs and VPs) providing peer networking, advisory access, retreats, roundtables, and complimentary access to the Center for AI Strategy.

Quantifiable outcome

• Members who attend just two Ragan conferences per year save $400–$500 on registration alone, more than covering the annual membership fee.
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers9 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability1 record

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• PR DailycoreOthersPR Daily is Ragan's sister publication covering PR and communications news. Integrated into the Ragan ecosystem with shared content, award programs (PR Daily Awards, PR Daily Conference), and combined membership offerings.
• Ragan TrainingcoreOthersRagan Training is the video and tutorial library arm of Ragan Communications. Offers 1,000+ hours of on-demand training, certificate courses, and conference recordings. Bundled with Ragan Insider membership.
• Center for AI StrategycoreOthersA dedicated AI-focused membership program within Ragan Communications for communicators and marketers to learn about AI applications. Includes certificate courses, expert calls, research, and AI summits.
• Communications Leadership Council (CLC)coreOthersExclusive membership tier for senior communications executives providing access to councils, retreats, and peer networking. Complimentary access to Center for AI Strategy included for CLC members.
• Comms WeekminorOthersIndustry week dedicated to communications professionals. Ragan offers Communications Week Licensing for hosting local events.
• Comms FrameworkminorOthersThe Communications Framework is Ragan's proprietary L&D mapping system offered as a managed learning service to organizations.
• Member Advisors (Center for AI Strategy)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner20+ industry practitioners from organizations including Edelman, Golin Ketchum, Burson, GE HealthCare, Lockheed Martin, New York Life, and others serve as advisors guiding Center for AI Strategy content and programming.
• Venue PartnersminorOthersConference venues include Microsoft Headquarters (Seattle), Hyatt Regency (Austin), New York Marriott Brooklyn, Grand Hyatt Nashville, Walt Disney World Swan Resort (Orlando), Ritz-Carlton (Dana Point), Sanctuary Camelback Mountain Resort (Paradise Valley AZ), City Winery NYC, Yale Club NYC.
• Member Companies (logos)minorOthersCompanies with employees as members include Progressive, MetLife, Honeywell, The Home Depot, Pfizer, Ally, SAP, Merck, 3M, T-Mobile, Wells Fargo, Citi, Meijer.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Content Marketing Institute: Content Marketing Institute (CMI) produces content marketing conferences (Content Marketing World), training, and resources for marketers — overlapping with Ragan's content and event model for an adjacent audience.
• MarketingProfs: MarketingProfs is a B2B marketing training and certification business offering courses, events, and webinars to marketers — overlapping with Ragan's marketing segment but with a broader marketing-adjacent scope and a longer-tenured PRO membership model.
• HubSpot Academy: HubSpot Academy offers free and paid certification courses in marketing, sales, and content — the dominant free incumbent in B2B marketing and communications training, comparable to Ragan Training as a content + certification platform for the same marketing/comms buyer.

Others

• Public Relations Society of America (PRSA): PRSA is the largest US professional membership association for PR practitioners, providing member benefits, certifications, and events — a directly comparable member-driven organization serving the same customer base as Ragan, rather than a direct competitor.
• International Association of Business Communicators (IABC): IABC is a global member association for business communicators with chapters, certification, and an annual world conference — the international counterpart to PRSA and a sibling member-driven model to Ragan's communications community.

Direct peers

• O'Dwyer's PR: O'Dwyer's is a longstanding PR trade publication and directory serving communications professionals and PR agencies with news, rankings, and editorial content closely comparable to Ragan's trade publishing.
• Spin Sucks: Spin Sucks is a PR and marketing media brand with a popular podcast, agency, and community offering content and training to communications professionals — directly comparable to Ragan's content + community play.
• CommPRO: CommPRO.biz is a B2B news and community platform covering PR, communications, and marketing — the same audience and editorial category as Ragan, and a notable career node for the same editorial talent (Ragan's Brian Pittman was previously editorial director at CommPRO).
• PRWeek: PRWeek is the leading global trade publication and event brand serving public relations professionals, with US Awards, conferences, and editorial coverage that directly competes with Ragan's PRDaily news site and PR Daily Conference portfolio.
• Bulldog Reporter: Bulldog Reporter is a B2B media and content brand focused on PR, communications, and marketing professionals — operating a daily news site and awards programs that compete directly with Ragan's PRDaily and awards portfolio. Ragan's own dean of training previously served as editorial director at Bulldog Reporter, underscoring the adjacency.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/markraganceo
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@ragancommunications
• Facebookfacebook.com/RaganCommunications
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ragan-communications
• Instagraminstagram.com/ragan_comms

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A1 record

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Ragan