Four of the nine work from offices on the Kansas side, three in Overland Park and one in Lenexa. Three are on the Missouri side, and MERGE and VML print no Kansas City street address at all, so each card says which side it is on. "Agents now build the campaign, segment the audience, draft the copy, and stage the send. The marketer is the director, not the operator." That is what I rank for below.
1. EVERSANA INTOUCH
1EVERSANA INTOUCH
Jessica Snider, SVP, Social Media, EVERSANA INTOUCH
- Best for
- Pharma brands wanting ML patient and HCP targeting
- Location
- Overland Park, Kansas side of the metro: 7045 College Blvd, #300; 226 staff located in the Kansas City metro on LinkedIn
- AI stack
- AI VI (gradient-boosting classifier and patient clustering), Machine-learning HCP targeting
EVERSANA INTOUCH is a pharma and life-sciences agency, and its AI sits in the targeting. Its AI VI tool, a gradient-boosting classifier trained on patient-journey data with patients then clustered into severity segments, identified nearly 1.8 million additional likely patients for a midsize pharmaceutical client. It also uses machine learning to identify which HCPs are likely to begin prescribing a product. The AI case study names no client.
It has been owned by EVERSANA since the acquisition closed in December 2021, and it still trades as Intouch from its office at 7045 College Blvd, #300, Overland Park, on the Kansas side of the state line. 226 of its staff are located in the metro on LinkedIn, including SVP of Social Media Jessica Snider. It works in life sciences only.
The pick for a pharma or life-sciences brand that wants machine-learning targeting from a large team on the Kansas side.
2. BarkleyOKRP
2BarkleyOKRP
Michael A. Levine, Vice President, Marketing, BarkleyOKRP
- Best for
- National consumer brands wanting AI-scored creative
- Location
- Kansas City, Missouri side of the metro: headquarters at 1740 Main Street; 316 staff located in the Kansas City metro on LinkedIn
- AI stack
- M1 Refinery (MissionOne Media creative-scoring tool on Google Gemini)
BarkleyOKRP's AI is a tool that reads creative. M1 Refinery, MissionOne Media's proprietary AI scoring tool built on Google Gemini, analyzed more than 600 James Avery ad assets and mapped creative elements to KPIs. It found ring-focused ads were 3.5% of the creative but delivered 14% of average daily revenue at a 7.4x ROAS. Those numbers describe what the analysis found in past ads, not a lift the tool produced. Its Million Dollar Whopper for Burger King was a nationwide contest powered by AI.
It is the full-service independent formed by merging Barkley and OKRP, headquartered at 1740 Main Street on the Missouri side, with Campaign's 2026 Creative AI Studio of the Year on its awards list. Its Frontier Airlines campaign earned 130MM impressions. 316 staff are located in the metro on LinkedIn, including VP of Marketing Michael A. Levine.
The pick for a national consumer brand that wants a large independent agency that scores creative with AI.
3. MERGE
3MERGE
Tom Demetriou, EVP, Executive Creative Director, MERGE
- Best for
- Health and wellness brands wanting marketing plus martech
- Location
- Kansas City is one of eight listed offices (Chicago headquarters); no Kansas City street address printed, so the side of the state line is not stated; 55 staff located in the Kansas City metro on LinkedIn
- AI stack
- AI-driven audit synthesis
MERGE is a health and wellness marketing and technology agency headquartered in Chicago, and Kansas City is one of the eight offices on its about page. Its site prints no Kansas City street address, so it gives no side of the state line. Its one AI-tied result: for Ortho Molecular Products, proprietary AI-driven audit synthesis compressed six weeks of research and analysis into two.
Its bigger numbers are operations work, not AI. Kraft Heinz saves $4 million a year with a DAM system MERGE implemented, and Kroger saw 35% time savings in marketing operations workflows from Workfront automation. 55 staff are located in the metro on LinkedIn, including EVP and Executive Creative Director Tom Demetriou.
The pick for a health or wellness brand that wants marketing and marketing technology from one firm with a real Kansas City team.
4. VML
4VML
Jon Cook, Global CEO, VML, VML
- Best for
- Global brands wanting network-scale creative
- Founded
- 1992
- Location
- Founded in Kansas City in 1992; no Kansas City street address printed, so the side of the state line is not stated; 629 staff located in the Kansas City metro on LinkedIn
- AI stack
- AI Operating Models, AI Content Supply Chain
VML was founded in Kansas City in 1992 and has been part of WPP since 2001, and it still has the largest metro team on this list: 629 staff located in the metro on LinkedIn, including Global CEO Jon Cook, whose profile places him in Mission, on the Kansas side. Kansas City is listed among its career locations, but its site prints no Kansas City street address.
Its AI work is firm-wide, not tied to this office. MagnifEye, an AI-powered vision screening experience, lifted 1001 Optometry eye-test bookings 53.36%, and it sells clients AI operating models and an AI content supply chain. It is a 26,000-person network and the least specialized firm here.
The pick for a global brand that wants network scale with a Kansas City bench; a mid-size brand will pay for scope it does not use.
5. TANK New Media
5TANK New Media
Krista Ankenman, Co-Founder/VP Client Services, TANK New Media
- Best for
- B2B HubSpot users wanting Breeze AI set up
- Location
- Overland Park, Kansas side of the metro: 7255 W 98th Terrace, Suite 162; 5 staff located in the Kansas City metro on LinkedIn
- Platforms
- HubSpot
- AI stack
- HubSpot Breeze Assistant, HubSpot Breeze Agents
TANK New Media is a B2B HubSpot shop, and its HubSpot AI service covers Breeze Assistant enablement, planning where Breeze Agents can automate work, and sales AI workflows for prospect research, outreach preparation and activity summaries. The tools are HubSpot's own, and no published client result is tied to the AI work.
Its numbers come from inbound work: Dakota Storage Buildings grew contacts 49% and closed deals 94%, and it won a 2018 HubSpot Impact Award for a sales enablement success story. Its office is at 7255 W 98th Terrace, Suite 162, Overland Park, on the Kansas side. 5 staff are located in the metro on LinkedIn, including co-founder Krista Ankenman. It fits a manufacturer or complex-sale firm already running on HubSpot.
The pick for a B2B company on HubSpot that wants HubSpot's AI features set up by a small specialist team.
6. Rank Fuse Digital Marketing
6Rank Fuse Digital Marketing
Kevin Pike, President, Rank Fuse Digital Marketing
- Best for
- Local businesses wanting managed AI front-desk agents
- Location
- Lenexa, Kansas side of the metro: its own building at 10981 Eicher Drive; 7 staff located in the Kansas City metro on LinkedIn
- AI stack
- Managed AI voice, SMS and chat agents (platform not named)
Rank Fuse builds and manages AI agents that answer calls, texts and chats, qualify the lead and book the job, with a Friday report of what the AI handled. The same page sells answer engine optimization and paid placements inside ChatGPT. It does not name the platform the agents run on, and no published result is tied to them.
Its numbers are search and enrollment: Johnson County Community College saw a 655% increase in enrollment form starts in Q1 2024 against the prior year. It moved into its own building at 10981 Eicher Drive, Lenexa, on the Kansas side, and 7 staff are located in the metro on LinkedIn, including President Kevin Pike. Its services menu is broad, so it suits a local or regional business that wants the phones and search handled by one firm.
The pick for a local or regional business that wants AI agents on the phones plus search work from a firm in its own building.
7. Mod Op
7Mod Op
Leigh Ann Cleaver, Executive Vice President, Client Experience and Partner, Mod Op
- Best for
- Brands wanting a national agency with an AI/ML team
- Location
- Kansas City, Missouri side of the metro: 1525 Locust St.; 2 staff located in the Kansas City metro on LinkedIn, so it passes on its verified office
- AI stack
- Orion marketing intelligence platform, AI/ML Pilot Team
Mod Op is a national full-service agency with an in-house AI program. Its CTO initiated and leads Mod Op's AI/ML Pilot Team, AI Council and Innovation Pipeline, and Orion, its marketing intelligence platform, links its creative, media, data and AI-enabled capabilities. Neither page ties a client result to AI.
Its Kansas City team is small. Its office at 1525 Locust St., in the Crossroads on the Missouri side, came with its 2020 acquisition of Sage Communications. 2 staff are located in the metro on LinkedIn, including Executive Vice President Leigh Ann Cleaver.
The pick for a brand that wants a national agency's AI program with a Kansas City office, knowing the local team is small.
8. Jennings Social Media & MarTech (JSMM)
8Jennings Social Media & MarTech (JSMM)
Valerie Jennings, CEO, Jennings Social Media & MarTech (JSMM)
- Best for
- Mid-sized brands wanting AI-assisted creative and GEO
- Location
- Overland Park, Kansas side of the metro: 7301 West 133rd Street, Suite 310; 5 staff located in the Kansas City metro on LinkedIn
- AI stack
- Generative-AI buyer personas
JSMM used generative AI to build detailed buyer personas that guided creative and media targeting for an ed-tech campaign, and the same page reports an XReps campaign at a 0.99% CTR and a $0.59 CPC. An AI Creative Systems Lead is on staff. Its GEO work got The C.W. Farm and Ranch Venue 133 web pages cited across AI-generated answers, which is AI search, not automation.
Its headquarters is at 7301 West 133rd Street, Suite 310, Overland Park, on the Kansas side, and its site also lists Miami Beach and Irvine addresses. 5 staff are located in the metro on LinkedIn, including CEO Valerie Jennings.
The pick for a mid-sized brand that wants AI-assisted creative and AI-search visibility from a small Kansas-side team.
9. LaborTech Solutions
9LaborTech Solutions
Sam Pileggi, Co-Founder, LaborTech Solutions
- Best for
- Home-service firms wanting AI back-office agents
- Location
- Kansas City, Missouri side of the metro, no office credited: its printed 50 E 13th St address is the One Light apartment tower; 7 staff located in the Kansas City metro on LinkedIn
- AI stack
- Accounts Receivable agent
LaborTech Solutions sells an Accounts Receivable agent that sends invoices, follows up on overdue balances and collects payments automatically, alongside payables, phone and chat agents for home-service firms, and AI Development Engineer Ethan Guenther is on its team. It describes a full AI operating system rollout for a client it does not name, with no number.
Its published results are SEO: Unique Painting & Windows grew organic traffic 83.5%, and Pileggi Painting doubled organic traffic and grew total sessions 30.5%. Its printed address, 50 E 13th St on the Missouri side, is the One Light apartment tower. 7 staff are located in the metro on LinkedIn, including co-founder Sam Pileggi.
The pick for a home-service business that wants AI agents on invoices and phones, from a team with no credited office.
Also worth knowing
These Kansas City firms were considered and are not ranked.
Several have AI claims and no Kansas City team. Intero Digital is a Colorado Springs firm with San Diego and Columbus offices, no Kansas City office on its site and 2 staff in the metro. The Turn Group runs an AI website integration line with RAG search and chatbots, and its AI case results are anonymized, with the client given only as a "Regional Personal-Injury Law Firm"; its founder is its one metro staffer. Suvysoft calls itself an Olathe studio, reports one AI result for a client it does not name, prints no street address and shows no metro staff on LinkedIn. OmniFunnel Marketing, The Automators, Sure Oak, WebFX, Anderson Collaborative, The AD Leaf, Transformed Design and AM Web Insights have no metro staff. Valorem, RiseX and Opinosis Analytics state no Kansas City office or team.
Several have a real metro team and no AI in delivery. Rhycom has 8 metro staff and describes Rhythm SM, its "AI-native" platform for brand sentiment and competitor benchmarking, with no client result or delivery workflow tied to it. Coegi, a St. Louis paid media firm with a Kansas City office and 8 metro staff, has one case using AI-powered inventory optimization to cut programmatic carbon emissions, with no number. Global Prairie's AI is service-line copy, its Cleveland Clinic result is Marketo nurture automation rather than AI, and its Kansas-side address is a PO box. emfluence sells AI Overview visibility and email automation with no AI in its delivery described.
Others sell AI for search or AI as a service line. EAG Advertising & Marketing sells an AI Brand Visibility audit, Native lists a "ChatGPT/AI" channel, and Fusion sells GEO and AI-assisted web development from a PO box in Overland Park. The Dental SEO Consultant is a solo dental SEO consultant selling AI-search ranking. Thrive is an Arlington, Texas firm with no Kansas City team shown, and Vizion is an Irving, Texas firm whose Kansas address, #24262, is an administrative mailbox.
Four28 and MarketLeverage print 6550 Sprint Pkwy, Suite 200, a Workin.space serviced-office suite that unrelated firms also list. KC Web Specialists, WiseGuys and Social Apex print Spark Coworking, and Fresco and Karuna print 1100 Main St, Suite 400, one suite shared by unrelated firms.
360 Automation AI presents itself as a Kansas City AI consultancy, but its "results" are generic industry statistics on a blog, and it names one client and prints no street address. Turn The Page National has no named clients, case studies or people.
Software, IT, consulting, staffing and other firms that surface in Kansas City marketing searches are not marketing agencies and are not assessed here.
How to choose between them
A pharma or life-sciences brand should start with EVERSANA INTOUCH, the only firm here with machine-learning models built on patient data. A national consumer brand that wants a big independent agency that scores its creative with AI has BarkleyOKRP. A health or wellness brand that needs marketing and marketing technology from one firm has MERGE, and a global brand that wants network scale with a Kansas City bench has VML. A B2B company on HubSpot has TANK New Media. A local business that wants AI agents on its phones has Rank Fuse, and a home-service firm that wants AI chasing its invoices has LaborTech Solutions. A mid-sized brand after AI-assisted creative and AI-search visibility has JSMM, and a brand that wants a national agency's AI program with a local office has Mod Op.
My view is that the next step is setting a goal and letting an agent build the program, writing and sending for each contact one at a time. So ask each of these firms which steps its agents run and which its people run. Ask which side of the state line the people doing your work sit on.
How this list is ranked
How this list is ranked
I score every marketing agency here on four criteria, for a total out of 50: AI automation out of 20, and specialization, published evidence and a real Kansas City team, each out of 10. Each card links the sources behind its score.
Nitrosend, which I co-founded, publishes this page. It is an email platform for agencies, not a marketing agency, and is not ranked.
FAQ
EVERSANA INTOUCH, because it builds machine-learning targeting into its client work and publishes the result: nearly 1.8 million additional likely patients found for a midsize pharmaceutical client. It is a life-sciences specialist, though. For a brand outside pharma, BarkleyOKRP is second, with its own Gemini-built creative-scoring tool and a Kansas City headquarters, and MERGE is third, for health and wellness brands.
The difference shows in what each one publishes. BarkleyOKRP documents its James Avery creative analysis. MERGE shows its AI audit synthesis for Ortho Molecular Products. Rank Fuse describes the AI agents it runs on clients' phones. Read those pages and you will know which one describes your business.
Between $1,000 and $5,000 a month for most local SEO and digital marketing programs, $2,500 to $10,000+ a month for national SEO, and $10,000 to $25,000+ a month for enterprise SEO, before ad spend. None of the nine ranked firms prints a price, so these figures come from firms that publish them, labeled where a firm has no local office.
Lifted Logic, an Overland Park web design and SEO agency, puts local SEO at $500 to $2,500 a month, national SEO at $2,500 to $10,000+ and enterprise SEO at $10,000 to $25,000+. Helium SEO, a Cincinnati firm that serves Kansas City with no local office, says most Kansas City campaigns run $1,000 to $5,000+ a month. Suvysoft's 2026 Kansas City price index puts a small-business website at $4,000 to $8,000 and SEO retainers at $1,500 to $4,000 a month, and MRP2, a Kansas City consultant, says larger local agencies start around $200 an hour. At the low end, SEOteric, a Georgia firm with a Kansas City landing page, sells Website as a Service from $249 a month.
BarkleyOKRP's postings print salaries, which shows what the people cost. They list Denver, Colorado, where pay ranges are required, alongside Kansas City. A paid search specialist earns $50,000 to $60,000, a media planner $60,000 to $85,000, a director of media planning $100,000 to $150,000, and a vice president of decision science $160,000 to $220,000.
Look for one of four things: a named tool with a described function, a named workflow, a person with an AI or automation role on the team, or a case study that ties automation to a number. A banner is not evidence. In Kansas City much of what gets sold as AI is AI search visibility, which gets a firm cited by ChatGPT but does not automate any work.
Every AI point on this page links to one of those. EVERSANA INTOUCH names the model behind its patient targeting. BarkleyOKRP's James Avery numbers are what its tool found in past ads, not a lift, and MERGE's Kroger savings came from Workfront automation.
On four criteria: AI automation out of 20, and specialization, published evidence and a real Kansas City team, each out of 10, for a total out of 50. Each card links the sources behind its score.