THIRD EAR

What THIRD EAR does

THIRD EAR (legal entity: LatinWorks Marketing, LLC) is a full-service integrated advertising agency founded in 1998 by Alejandro Ruelas and headquartered at 828 W 6th St, Suite 150, Austin, Texas. Originally launched as LatinWorks to serve Hispanic marketing needs, the firm rebranded to THIRD EAR in 2019 to reflect an evolution from a pure multicultural specialty agency to an 'identities-led' Total Market offering, with the stated thesis that effective consumer engagement depends on understanding how people see themselves rather than how external demographics categorize them. The agency is minority-owned and certified by the National Minority Supplier Diversity Council (NMSDC), and operates as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Omnicom Group within the Omnicom Advertising Collective.

The agency's service offering spans strategy (brand planning, audience segmentation, primary qualitative and quantitative research), creative (platforms, integrated campaigns, content, identity design, packaging), connections (comms planning, performance and search, influencer strategy, media strategy), data and measurement (planning, test-and-learn, database management, dashboards), and production (film, content, out-of-home, print, social, experiential). Revenue is generated through professional services fees — project-based engagements and retainer arrangements for Agency of Record (AOR) relationships with enterprise clients. The customer base spans automotive (Nissan, INFINITI), CPG (Mars brands, PepsiCo's Lay's), retail (Target, Ashley), beverage (Heineken USA's Red Stripe, Canijilla), technology (Google), sports and entertainment (MLB, Bravo), tourism (Visit Austin), government and nonprofit (Texas Lottery, American Heart Association), and newer 2025 additions (Coca-Cola, Victoria, NNTA, Humana). The agency employs 51–100 people and is led by a senior team drawn from Arnold Worldwide, TBWA\Chiat\Day, McCann, Leo Burnett, and Havas.

THIRD EAR is a private, subsidiary-level operating company within Omnicom Group; there are no external funding rounds, no disclosed revenue figures, no proprietary technology product, and no AI/ML platform. Its competitive position rests on multicultural creative talent, enterprise-level client relationships, holding-company distribution advantages via Omnicom, and supplier-diversity certification that unlocks corporate procurement budgets.

Name

THIRD EAR

Legal name

LatinWorks Marketing, LLC dba THIRD EAR

Website

https://wearethirdear.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1998

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

THIRD EAR is an Austin-based, minority-owned integrated advertising agency (Omnicom subsidiary) that uses an 'identities-led' approach to create multicultural campaigns — particularly for Hispanic and Black audiences — for enterprise clients across automotive, CPG, retail, beverage, tech, and government sectors.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Austin

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, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Advertising and Marketing Services: THIRD EAR generates revenue through providing integrated advertising and marketing services to brand clients. Services include strategy, creative development, media planning and investment, content production, and digital services. Revenue is derived from project-based fees, retainer arrangements for Agency of Record relationships, and campaign-based engagements.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

THIRD EAR is a full-service integrated advertising agency that delivers strategy, creative development, media planning and investment, content production, and digital services to enterprise brand clients. The agency operates under an "identities-led" approach that prioritizes understanding how consumers see themselves versus how the world sees them, with deep specialization in multicultural marketing for Hispanic and Black audiences in the United States.

Product overview

THIRD EAR is a full-service advertising and marketing agency that operates as a minority-owned business certified by the National Minority Supplier Diversity Council. The agency provides integrated advertising services under an 'identities-led' approach, specializing in multicultural marketing. The agency is part of Omnicom Group and a member of the Omnicom Advertising Collective. Rather than offering a discrete software product or platform, THIRD EAR delivers agency services including strategy, creative development, media planning, content production, and data analytics to its client partners. The agency formerly operated under the name LatinWorks Marketing, LLC before rebranding to THIRD EAR.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Integrated Advertising Campaign Services Full-service end-to-end campaign development including strategy, creative, media, and production, delivered as Agency of Record relationships or project-based engagements for enterprise brands.
• Creative Development and Production Creative platform development, integrated campaign concepts, identity design, packaging, and production across film, content, OOH, print, and digital channels.

Quantifiable outcome

• 500% spike in Hispanic Share of Voice for Target's #SinTraducción campaign
• +6 more outcomes

Named customers19 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core, flagship, major and minor.

• Omnicom GroupcoreOthersTHIRD EAR is a subsidiary of Omnicom Group, one of the largest global advertising and marketing holding companies. As part of Omnicom, the agency has access to extensive resources, client relationships, and industry expertise across multiple agency brands.
• Omnicom Advertising CollectivecoreOthersTHIRD EAR is a member of the Omnicom Advertising Collective, an integrated advertising network within Omnicom that brings together complementary agencies to serve clients with comprehensive marketing solutions.
• iHeartMediaflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerTHIRD EAR partnered with iHeartMedia to bring together INFINITI Motor Company and five-time Grammy winner Jon Batiste for INFINITELY Live, a concert series hosted in Brooklyn, NY. The partnership created an experiential marketing event that showcased the QX80's refined craftsmanship.
• Televisa UnivisionflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerTHIRD EAR partnered with Televisa Univision for the Latin GRAMMYs to help INFINITI capture the rhythm of the road through the 'Los Sonidos Del Lujo' campaign, transforming the QX80's soundscape into an experimental artist's canvas.
• UnivisionmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerTHIRD EAR partnered with Univision for the Grow with Google campaign, utilizing Univision's brand tracker and media presence to measure campaign effectiveness among US Latinx audiences. The partnership helped drive 62% positive brand sentiment among respondents.
• Ad Council and COVID CollaborativemajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerTHIRD EAR created the 'Get Back to Hugs' campaign for the American Heart Association as part of the Ad Council and COVID Collaborative's massive communications effort to educate the public about COVID-19 vaccines.
• BillboardmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerTHIRD EAR partnered with Billboard for the INFINITI X Billboard campaign, leveraging Billboard's music and culture platform to tell the story of luxury car ownership and musical inspiration.
• ChefsfeedminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerVisit Austin campaign featured a custom experiential and digital partnership with Chefsfeed, providing access to restaurants for custom culinary programs amplified by authentic foodie influencers.
• National Minority Supplier Diversity Council (NMSDC)coreOthersTHIRD EAR is certified as a minority-owned business by the National Minority Supplier Diversity Council, enabling the agency to participate in supplier diversity programs with corporate partners.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Market position

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/third-ear-agency
• Xx.com/wearethirdear

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about THIRD EAR