Tour Train: Red Frog Events & Zapwater Communications

One of the benefits of being a PRSSA member is the chance to attend agency tours. Several times throughout the semester, Illinois State University’s PRSSA chapter has the opportunity to tour various agencies and network with professionals. Agency tours provide members with the chance to see a company up close and personal and are a great way to get a feel for different types of organizations and environments. We kicked off the school year with our first tour to Red Frog Events and Zapwater Communications.

Red Frog Events

When you walk into Red Frog Events’ office, you may think to yourself, “is this a workplace or a play place?” With its unique S’mores treat stops, foosball tables, high-five practice walls, tree houses, conference rooms with swings instead of chairs and more, you can’t help but wish you worked in a place filled with so many fun amenities. Each area inside Red Frog Events has different distinctive designs, making it easy to see that it is a company driven by creativity.

Red Frog Events is known for its events, including the Great Urban Race, Warrior Dash mud run, Firefly Music Festival, American Beer Classic and more. Each year event attendance increases, the events grow bigger and Red Frog continues to become more successful.

While on the tour, members learned about the internship opportunities offered by Red Frog Events. There are many perks of being an intern at Red Frog Events, including great work experience, competitive pay, unlimited vacation days, traveling while working and many more. If you have not gotten the chance to check out Red Frog Events, take a look at all they have to offer as a company.

Zapwater Communications

Zapwater Communications is a small boutique agency located in the West Loop of Chicago. They have clients in areas such as lifestyle, fashion, hospitality and education. Upon walking into the Zapwater Communications office, it feels like a laid-back work environment. The office has a studio feel, with a few rooms providing office space for the employees.  Zapwater has approximately 15- 20 employees (including interns).

Assistan Publicist Megan Breehl and Senior Publicist Stephanie Poquette presented case studies and discussed some of the work Zapwater has done for its clients. Some of the agency’s clients include Topshop, Hotel Sax Chicago and The Tie Bar. They also shared general advice and insights about agency life, how to succeed in public relations and Zapwater’s internship program.

Interns at Zapwater are assigned to several accounts within different areas. This way, interns are exposed to multiple niches and are hopefully able to find their “fit.”  Employees at Zapwater have to be quick, innovative thinkers to come up with new and interesting ideas for clients. Megan and Stephanie stressed the importance of company “fit” and enjoying the culture and work environment. Passion and personality are some of the keys to success at both Zapwater and other PR agencies.

It was a great opportunity to be able to get a closer look at an agency that is smaller in size. For students looking for a small, close-knit agency, Zapwater could be a perfect fit.


By Lindsay Mikrut