The Marketing Agency That’s Inspiring Social Movements

Iron Light, a full-service marketing agency with advocacy at its core, has had a big year. The agency earned inaugural spots on both the Inc. Regionals Midwest and the Inc. 5000. It also rolled out new divisions: Intelligence & Insights to improve data-driven audience targeting, and Impact Production to drive social change through filmmaking. For Iron Light, goals include getting an idea to trend online, activating advocates, and changing laws.

Co-Founder and President Austin Berg started Iron Light in 2018 with Co-founder and CEO Ryan Green to support purpose-driven brands and nonprofit organizations breaking barriers–often those imposed by government. Using neuroscience-based approaches, the agency creates persuasive content and builds engaged communities that advocate for change. Iron Light’s work has reformed 55 laws, including medical marijuana legalization in Mississippi, universal school choice programs in Arkansas and West Virginia, and, in 2020, winning the most expensive ballot fight in Midwest history. “We work with people who share our vision of a world without limits on human potential,” Berg says.

“WE CAN DO THIS FOREVER”

Berg recalls the moment he knew he found his calling. He had been working to raise awareness about Lisa Creason, a single mother who went to prison more than 20 years ago for stealing money from a cash register to buy food for her daughter. Lisa had turned her life around, but the state had barred her from getting a nursing license. Berg and Green galvanized audiences to support Lisa, contributing to a law ending a categorical ban on certain ex-offenders working in health care. “I remember calling Ryan, and we were both crying. We felt the weight of the community fighting for this. And from that point on, we were like, ‘We can do this forever.’” Iron Light was born.

PUSHING IMPACT PRODUCTION FORWARD

The founders’ passion has only grown and so have the successes. “Forbidden to See Us Scream in Tehran,” a short film about a female lead singer of a death metal group in Tehran, earned international praise. Iron Light collaborator Farbod Ardebili directed the film from the U.S. using WhatsApp. Following the death of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old killed by the Iranian Morality Police in September 2022 for not wearing her hijab, Iron Light worked with WhatsApp’s parent company, Meta, to promote the film internally and on its platforms. After film advisors met with the United Nations (UN), the UN removed the Islamic Republic from its Commission on the Status of Women. Iron Light also inspired the U.S. Congress to advance the MAHSA Act, imposing sanctions on Iranian officials. The team is now working on a feature-length version of the film. “Storytelling is at the core of what we do,” Berg says. “When it comes to compelling action, there’s nothing more powerful than the right messenger speaking to the right audience at the right time.”