Celebrating 30 Years of Innovation: Results Direct's Impact on Association Technology

Katie Atkinson Honored With AWTC Badass Award

The Association Women Technology Champions (AWTC) Badass Award was created to honor exceptional women whose leadership and innovation have shaped the association community. Recipients of the award launched their companies when business technology was just emerging, navigating multiple tech revolutions while helping countless associations and nonprofits leverage technology to fulfill their missions.

Katie Atkinson, who co-founded Results Direct, was recently honored with the AWTC Badass Award. Starting with marketing and communications, she embraced the rise of the internet in the mid-1990s and helped to transformed the company into a leader in website design and development for associations. Over 30 years, Results Direct has grown to provide enterprise-level website solutions and mobile apps, and now serves 400+ associations in 9 countries and 34 US states.

As a co-founder, I'm pleased to share this Q&A with Katie that spotlights the history and highlights that have shaped the company: 

Question: How and when was Results Direct founded?

Answer: I founded Results Direct in 1992, and the company was originally focused on marketing and communications for associations. At the time, technology wasn’t part of the business. It wasn’t until 3 years later that we shifted in that direction.

My background was actually in advertising and marketing. I studied rhetoric and communications in college, and had originally intended to pursue a career in film and video production. My first jobs were at the BBC in London and in advertising in Washington, and I eventually got involved with associations through a role at the Greater Washington Society of Association Executives (GWSAE), where I worked on the magazine staff. That experience gave me insight into the impact of associations, and I realized that I really enjoyed working in the space.

After 5 years at GWSAE, I went off on my own, providing marketing and communications services for associations. I did everything from newsletters to cold calling for event attendance. Then, after getting married and moving away from Washington, DC, I asked myself, “What’s next?” Around that time, in late 1994 and early 1995, the web was just starting to emerge. I realized that while I didn’t have a tech background, I knew associations well and could learn the technology.

In the early days of Results Direct’s transition to a web company, there were 3 of us – 2 technologists and myself. Most web startups at the time were run by tech people, but I saw the web as more than just technology – it was a powerful tool for communications. I recognized that associations and the web were a perfect fit. One of our first major clients was GWSAE (which later merged with ASAE), and I personally designed and built their first website. I learned HTML by buying a book at Barnes & Noble and teaching myself.

Q: How has Results Direct grown and adapted to offer new products and services for the association community?

A: Rather than focusing on rapid expansion, our goal has always been to provide the best possible service for our clients and create a strong workplace for our staff. I’m incredibly proud of our team – many staff come from association backgrounds – and the number of staff who have worked for Results Direct for 15, 20, and 25+ years serving our clients.

In addition to associations, we've also been privileged to work with clients in higher education and the for-profit sector including Verizon Long Distance, Marriott International, and the Central Bank of Belize. But 90% of our clients are trade and professional associations across medical, scientific, engineering, education, finance, law, manufacturing, and other specialities.

Over the years, we’ve seen technology and the needs of associations change, and we realized that just being a web services company wouldn’t be enough to serve our key market. That led to a shift where we diversified our business and began developing mobile and event apps, moving from being purely a web services company to balancing both web services and mobile products.

Today, our business is evenly split between web services and mobile product offerings, enabling us to continue growing in a sustainable way while helping associations to leverage technology fully. Investing in mobile and event apps has also enabled us to expand globally, and we now have clients in 9 countries and an office in London.

Q: To what do you attribute Results Direct’s longevity (30 years) in serving associations?

A: Results Direct is always looking ahead to identify solutions that will help our association clients succeed – whether that’s mobile apps or AI or other emerging technologies. We listen closely to our clients and their needs, because these play an important role in shaping our offerings.

In addition, we stay true to our principles and ethics. In industries like associations and technology, we cross paths with the same people over and over, so maintaining integrity and delivering on our promises are essential.

Q: What advice would you give to women in leadership roles in associations or technology?

A: Women should recognize and uplift each other as much as possible. There’s often an expectation that we’ll quietly excel – balancing work, leadership, and family – without much acknowledgment. For nearly 10 years, I was a Girl Scout leader which was personally very fulfilling, but I realized that we didn’t do enough to recognize one another.

Women need to support and encourage one another more. Acknowledging each other’s efforts and accomplishments can go a long way in fostering strong leadership and community in both associations and technology.