Motive
Motive is a Denver-based full-service marketing and advertising agency operating eight independent studios across brand experience, storytelling, design, digital innovation, content production, commerce, sports/gaming/entertainment, and strategy. It serves enterprise consumer brands and is part of the employee-owned Project Worldwide network.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2014
- HeadquartersDenver, United States
- Headcount101–250
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Motive does
Motive is a Denver-headquartered, full-service marketing and advertising agency operating as a creative community of eight independent studios — Brand Experience, Brand Storytelling, Design, Digital Innovation, Motive Made Studios, Commerce (formerly Shoptology), Sports/Gaming/Entertainment, and Strategy + Cultural Insights. The firm serves enterprise consumer brands across the drink, eat, live, drive, and engage categories; named client engagements include MTN DEW (Borderlands Motel activation), Dick's Sporting Goods (WNBA All-Star), and Ruffles (LeBron James partnership). Motive is wholly owned by Project Worldwide, an employee-owned network of marketing services agencies spanning 45 offices globally, and operates additional offices in New York, Los Angeles, and Toronto under the legal entity Motive Group, Inc., incorporated in Colorado. Founded by Matt Statman (CEO and Chief Creative Officer) with Krista Nicholson as President, Motive has 51-100 employees and bills itself as a 'creative community born at the center of culture' applying a 'land of misfit toys' talent philosophy under the 'Chasing Greatness' mantra.
The agency's business model is professional services: revenue is generated through negotiated project-based engagements and retainers with enterprise brand clients, with no standardized or publicly disclosed pricing. Go-to-market is consultative enterprise sales via a dedicated new-business channel ([email protected]) and account teams, with portfolio-driven demand generation through Instagram, LinkedIn, and video case studies. Service delivery spans strategy, creative ideation, design, digital/social, content production, experiential activations, commerce strategy, and sports/entertainment marketing — the eight studios collaborate cross-functionally rather than operating as separate P&Ls. Recent strategic moves include the Shoptology acquisition (commerce), entry into Canada via Toronto, and the founder's elevation to Global Chief Creative Officer at parent Project Worldwide.
No proprietary technology platform, software product, or AI/ML capability is disclosed; the offering is human-creative-services-led. There is no disclosed revenue, no public funding history, and no venture or private equity ownership signals — the entity sits within an employee-owned parent structure. Operating geographies are North America (USA and Canada), and the company is privately held.
Motive firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Motive
- Legal name
- Motive Group, Inc.
- Website
- https://wearemotive.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2014
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 101–250 employees
- Short description
- Motive is a Denver-based full-service marketing and advertising agency operating eight independent studios across brand experience, storytelling, design, digital innovation, content production, commerce, sports/gaming/entertainment, and strategy. It serves enterprise consumer brands and is part of the employee-owned Project Worldwide network.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Motive industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Marketing & Advertising Services
- NAICS
- Advertising Agencies (54181)
- SIC
- Services-Advertising Agencies (7311)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Integrated Full-Service Creative Agencies (MPAAAAAA)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Brand Activations & Experiential Campaign Design (MPAAAGAA), Brand Strategy & Identity Systems (MPAAAEAA), Creative Concepting & Campaign Development (BPAFAEAD)
Keywords
Where Motive is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Denver
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices4 records
Markets served
Motive business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Creative Agency Services: Motive generates revenue through professional creative services engagements with brand clients. As a full-service agency with eight studios, they likely offer project-based work, retainers, and potentially performance-based arrangements depending on client needs. Services span brand communications, digital+social, content creation, brand experience activations, strategy, design, and commerce.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels3 records
Motive product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Motive is a full-service marketing and advertising agency that delivers hyperconnected creativity across eight independent studios spanning brand experience, brand storytelling, design, digital innovation, content production, commerce (Shoptology), sports/gaming/entertainment, and strategy and cultural insights. The agency serves enterprise consumer brands with culture-first campaigns, experiential activations, integrated digital and social programs, content production, and interconnected commerce solutions, typically via project-based or retainer engagements.
Product overview
Motive is a full-service marketing and advertising agency organized as a creative community of eight independent studios. The offering is structured as a platform-plus-modules architecture, with each studio providing a distinct service: Brand Experience (experiential activations), Brand Storytelling (brand communications), Design (visual identity), Digital Innovation (digital/social), Motive Made Studios (content production), Commerce (e-commerce solutions, formerly Shoptology), Sports/Gaming/Entertainment, and Strategy + Cultural Insights. The eight studios work collaboratively to deliver hyperconnected creativity for bold brands.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Shoptology: Expertly navigating interconnected commerce to help businesses and brands get results. Now part of Motive's commerce studio.
Products and services
- Brand Experience Architecting experiences at the core of culture, engineered to become media assets. Experiential activations studio for bold brands seeking event-driven, earnable-media campaigns.
- Brand Storytelling Culture-first brand communications across consumer touchpoints. Communications studio delivering integrated brand storytelling for enterprise brand clients.
- Design Using visual language to craft identities and stories that resonate with human audiences. Brand identity and visual design studio.
- Digital Innovation Digital navigators across a universe of connective platforms and tools. Digital and social practice delivering platform-specific creative work.
- Motive Made Studios World-class production and post-production for storytelling across the spectrum of content platforms and formats. In-house content production and post-production studio.
- Commerce (Shoptology) Expertly navigating interconnected commerce to help businesses and brands get results. Commerce studio built on the Shoptology acquisition, offering interconnected commerce solutions for businesses and brands.
- Sports, Gaming + Entertainment Shaping the Sports, Gaming & Entertainment culture through research, experience and expertise. Specialized studio serving brands operating in sports, gaming, and entertainment sectors.
- Strategy + Cultural Insights Building the roadmaps between brands and their audiences, with must-see stops along the way. Strategy and cultural insights studio providing brand strategy and cultural research.
Companies that use Motive
Customer profileNamed customers3 records
Segments1 record
Ideal customer profiles1 record
Motive technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Motive partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- Project WorldwidecoreMotive is part of Project Worldwide, an independent network of marketing services agencies wholly owned and led by employees. The network spans 45 offices globally. Motive operates as one of the flagship agencies within this alliance, benefiting from shared resources, cross-agency collaboration, and the collective strength of an independent spirit while leveraging collective capabilities for client partners.
Scale indicators2 records
Recent moves5 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Motive competitors and assessment
Company assessmentMarket position
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks2 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Motive social profiles
Digital presenceMotive financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Motive leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles9 records
Motive subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries1 record
Motive funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Motive M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Motive
What does Motive do?
Motive is a full-service marketing and advertising agency that delivers hyperconnected creativity across eight independent studios spanning brand experience, brand storytelling, design, digital innovation, content production, commerce (Shoptology), sports/gaming/entertainment, and strategy and cultural insights. The agency serves enterprise consumer brands with culture-first campaigns, experiential activations, integrated digital and social programs, content production, and interconnected commerce solutions, typically via project-based or retainer engagements.
Is Motive a public or private company?
Motive is a private company. It is classified as management employee owned and is currently operating.
When was Motive founded?
Motive was founded in 2014. It employs 101 to 250 people.
Where is Motive based?
Motive is headquartered in Denver, United States, in the North America region.
How does Motive make money?
One revenue line is on record: creative Agency Services.
Does Motive have an API?
No public API is recorded for Motive.
What industry is Motive in?
Motive's product category is Marketing & Advertising Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPAAAAAA, Integrated Full-Service Creative Agencies, with a secondary code of MPAAAGAA, Brand Activations & Experiential Campaign Design. Its NAICS code is 54181 and its SIC code is 7311.