Maryland State Ad Agency

What Maryland State Ad Agency does

The Maryland State Ad Agency (MSAA) is a division of Maryland Public Television (MPT) that provides full-service advertising, marketing, communications, and media buying services exclusively to Maryland state agencies and related organizations. Founded in 2016, MSAA operates under MPT's enabling legislation, which authorizes MPT to use its broadcasting facilities, equipment, and resources to provide services to the State and earn revenue. The agency is headquartered at 11767 Owings Mills Boulevard in Owings Mills, Maryland, and operates with a small team of 8 employees. Named customers include the Maryland Public Service Commission, Maryland Department of Aging, Maryland State Department of Education, Maryland Higher Education Commission, Maryland Department of Health - Behavioral Health Administration, and the Maryland Emergency Management Agency (COVID-19 Joint Information Center).

MSAA delivers its services through six integrated offerings spanning the campaign lifecycle: Production (turning creative concepts into marketing materials), Strategy (audience targeting and campaign planning), Creative (visual design and messaging), Media Buying (committing millions of dollars in cost-efficient placements across television, radio, and digital/social channels), Consultation (strategic guidance), and Measurement (campaign analytics and outcome reporting). The technology stack is not publicly disclosed; MSAA is positioned as a service provider, not a software platform. Distribution uses an online intake form and direct outreach to Maryland state agencies, with no commercial GTM motion beyond the in-state government vertical.

The business model is a professional services arrangement in which MSAA charges Maryland state agencies for agency fees and media-buying services, with pricing not publicly disclosed and structured as quote-based engagements rather than transactional pricing. As a division of a state government public media entity, MSAA is publicly owned and not a candidate for traditional PE/VC investment. The agency won the 2024 Best Small Agency award from Muse Creative and has sustained multi-year engagements with several Maryland agencies, including a 20+ year partnership with the Maryland State Department of Education's Maryland Teacher of the Year Program.

Name

Maryland State Ad Agency

Legal name

Maryland State Ad Agency

Website

https://mdadagency.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Maryland State Ad Agency (MSAA) is a division of Maryland Public Television that provides full-service advertising, marketing, communications, and media buying services exclusively to Maryland state government agencies and related organizations, operating since 2016 from Owings Mills, Maryland.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Owings Mills

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

Revenue model

1. Government Agency Marketing Services: MSAA provides full-service advertising, marketing, and media buying services to Maryland state agencies and related organizations. The agency operates as a division of Maryland Public Television, which was encouraged by its enabling legislation to use its facilities and resources to provide services to the State and earn revenue.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

MSAA is a full-service advertising, marketing, communications, and media buying service that produces campaigns for Maryland state agencies and related organizations. Operating as a division of Maryland Public Television, it offers an integrated portfolio covering production, strategy, creative development, media buying, consultation, and measurement/analytics. Services are delivered directly to state government clients on a project basis, with the agency committing millions of dollars in cost-efficient media buys across television, radio, and digital channels.

Product overview

MSAA is a full-service advertising, marketing, and media buying service offered as a unified service portfolio rather than a software platform with modular components. The company provides six integrated service offerings: Production (turning creative concepts into tangible marketing materials), Strategy (creating detailed plans to achieve marketing goals), Creative (conceptualizing campaigns with visual designs and messaging), Media Buying (executing cost-efficient media purchases across multiple channels), Consultation (optimizing marketing efforts and providing strategic guidance), and Measurement (analyzing and interpreting campaign data to report outcomes). These services work together as a comprehensive campaign lifecycle, from initial strategy development through creative production, media execution, and performance measurement.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Production MSAA's production services turn creative concepts into tangible marketing materials and campaigns for Maryland state agencies and related organizations, encompassing all elements involved in producing marketing deliverables.
• Strategy MSAA's strategy development services create detailed plans to help state agencies achieve their marketing goals, including audience targeting and campaign planning.
• Creative MSAA's creative services conceptualize campaigns that effectively reach target audiences, developing visual designs, messaging, and creative concepts for Maryland state agency marketing initiatives.
• Media Buying MSAA's media buying services commit millions of dollars towards cost-efficient and effective media buys across television, radio, and digital platforms for Maryland state agencies.
• Consultation MSAA's consultation services help Maryland state agencies optimize their marketing efforts, approach challenges, broadcast important messaging, and develop strategic recommendations.
• Measurement MSAA's measurement services analyze and interpret campaign data, providing meaningful reports on outcomes and measuring the effectiveness of marketing efforts for state agency clients.

Quantifiable outcome

• Exceeded contracted impressions on campaigns
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Maryland Public Television (MPT)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMSAA is a division of Maryland Public Television (MPT). MPT's enabling legislation encourages MPT to make use of its facilities, equipment, and other resources to provide services to the State and earn revenue. In 2016, MPT started MSAA operations. MSAA leverages MPT's facilities, equipment, and expertise to provide advertising and marketing services to state agencies.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights2 records

Direct peers

• Marathon Strategies: Strategic communications and public affairs firm serving corporate, nonprofit, and government clients. Comparable because it provides integrated campaign support including messaging, media strategy, and stakeholder communications — capabilities that overlap with MSAA's consultation, strategy, and creative services.
• M+R: Communications agency for nonprofits, advocacy organizations, and causes. Directly comparable to MSAA in mission-driven client base, integrated campaign services (creative, media buying, digital), and emphasis on maximizing constrained budgets to reach broad audiences — exactly MSAA's value proposition for state agencies.
• BerlinRosen: Strategic communications and public affairs firm with significant public-sector, nonprofit, and advocacy clients. Comparable because it sells integrated communications, message development, and campaign execution to institutions operating under public-scrutiny constraints similar to MSAA's state agency clients.
• GMMB: Washington, DC-based advertising and public affairs firm serving political campaigns, advocacy groups, and public-sector clients. Directly comparable because it sells the same full-service stack (creative, media buying, strategy, production) to government and cause-based clients — the same buyer profile MSAA serves in Maryland.
• SKDKnickerbocker: Public affairs and advertising firm with deep government and political client work. Closely comparable to MSAA in delivering integrated advertising, crisis communications, and media buying for public-sector and institutional clients, often under tight budgets and rapid timelines.
• Bully Pulpit Interactive: Digital-first public affairs and advertising firm serving Democratic campaigns, nonprofits, and government-adjacent clients. Comparable because it combines creative, paid media, and measurement services for institutional clients whose missions mirror those of MSAA's state agency partners.

Broad incumbents

• Hill+Knowlton: Global public affairs and communications firm with a strong government and public-sector practice. Comparable as a broad incumbent delivering strategic communications, crisis response, and public-sector campaigns that overlap with MSAA's service portfolio and client mission orientation.
• Ogilvy: Global advertising and public relations network with an established public-sector practice. Comparable as a broad incumbent that offers the same full-service stack MSAA does (creative, media, production, measurement), but at far larger scale and with a national/international footprint rather than a single-state focus.
• Brunswick Group: Global advisory firm specializing in critical issues communications, public affairs, and stakeholder engagement. Comparable as a broad incumbent working with public-sector, corporate, and institutional clients on reputation and communications strategy — adjacent to MSAA's consultation and crisis-response offerings.
• Edelman: Global public relations and communications firm with substantial government and public-sector work. Comparable as a broad incumbent offering integrated strategy, creative, and media services to public-sector and institutional clients — the same buyer category as MSAA's state agency clients, but at enterprise scale.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/mdadagency

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

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 Maryland State Ad Agency