evry health
The Award Advantage: How Strategic Award Submissions Build Thought Leadership That Lasts
THE SITUATION
Evry Health is a Dallas-based, mobile-first health insurance company that has set out to do what few in the industry dare attempt: eliminate the friction from healthcare. Since its founding in 2017, Evry has built a tech-forward model that removes copays and deductibles to reduce barriers to care — and has done so in a market notorious for resisting change. Evry CEO and Co-Founder Chris Gay, has been the driving force behind the company's vision and its positioning in the market.
When Evry Health engaged Dala Communications, the goal was clear: build awareness for a company challenging the status quo in one of the most competitive and complex industries in the country, and position its leadership as credible voices in the healthcare and innovation conversation.
While we immediately jumped on the immediate story telling opportunities tied to executive profiles and industry trends, but when we had tapped every earned opportunity during that time frame, we had to pivot our PR strategy. We got creative when it came to securing additional earned coverage vs. buying an ad or sponsored content which doesn’t provide as much credibility as true PR does.
Our approach was to let industry and business recognition do the heavy lifting and drive earned placements — and to pursue it from every angle.
DALA’S SOLUTION
At Dala, we have built award strategies into our thought leadership approach for clients across industries for more than 20 years — from project-based recognitions that highlight innovative work, to leadership awards that elevate the executives behind it, to business awards that validate the organization as a whole. When executed with intention, these recognitions stack — each one building on the last to create a body of credibility that no single press release can replicate.
We took this same forward-thinking approach for Evry Health, treating award submissions as part of a larger PR strategy. This began with a deliberate, multi-layered structure designed to position Evry across multiple audiences, categories, and timeframes simultaneously.
What Is an Award Strategy and Why Does It Work?
It starts with:
• Identifying the right programs — not every award is worth pursuing. We research programs by credibility of the issuing organization, audience reach, editorial tie-in potential, and relevance to the client's strategic narrative
• Sequencing submissions intentionally — local recognition builds regional credibility; regional recognition supports national positioning. We sequence accordingly
• Matching award type to goal — project-based awards validate the work; leadership awards elevate the executive; business awards build the brand. A strong award strategy uses all three
• Turning submissions into content — whether Evry won or was named a finalist, the recognition became part of a media pitch, a social asset, a sales tool, and a future award submission proof point
The result is not a single moment of recognition. It is a compounding record that grows more compelling over time.
THE RESULTS
Dala pursued a deliberate mix of award types that together built a 360-degree picture of Evry Health as an organization and Chris Gay as a leader. Here is how the strategy layered into six different categories:
Leadership Recognition: Dallas Business Journal C-Suite Leaders 2025
The DBJ C-Suite Leaders award is one of the most visible executive recognition programs in North Texas, drawing significant attention from the DFW business community. Securing this placement positioned Chris Gay among the region's most respected senior leaders — not just as a healthcare executive, but as a C-suite peer to leaders across every major industry in the market.
Executive Profile: D CEO Dallas 500 2025 (and 2023!)
The Dallas 500 is D CEO's flagship annual publication profiling the most powerful business leaders in North Texas. Being included is not submitted for — it is earned through visibility, credibility, and relevance. Dala's ongoing work to position Chris Gay as a credible thought leader contributed to his inclusion in this prestigious list, which reaches DFW's most influential decision-makers and gives executives a platform to share their vision in their own voice.
Healthcare Innovation: D CEO Excellence in Healthcare Awards 2025 — Finalist, Outstanding Healthcare Innovator
Being named a finalist for Outstanding Healthcare Innovator among the region's most competitive healthcare recognition program is a significant credibility signal. Finalists are recognized alongside winners, generating editorial coverage in D CEO Healthcare — a targeted publication read by the healthcare executives and decision-makers Evry is built to serve.
Business Innovation: D CEO Innovation in Healthcare 2026 — Finalist
A second finalist recognition from D CEO's healthcare awards portfolio reinforced Evry's standing as a company at the forefront of how the industry is changing. Two finalist placements in the same award family, across categories, communicate breadth — this is not a one-dimensional company.
Technology & AI: Dallas Innovates AI 75 — 2026 Class
The Dallas Innovates AI 75 recognizes the visionaries, creators, and influencers fueling the growth of artificial intelligence in the Dallas-Fort Worth region, published in partnership with the Dallas Regional Chamber. For a tech-first health insurer competing in a market where AI fluency is increasingly table stakes, this recognition places Evry in the company of the region's most forward-looking innovators — and signals to employers, investors, and partners that Evry is not just talking about the future of healthcare; it is building it.
Business Growth: Longhorn 100 — 2026
The Longhorn 100 honors the 100 fastest-growing businesses led by University of Texas at Austin alumni — a recognition that speaks directly to Evry's trajectory as a business, not just its mission as a company. For Chris Gay, a UT Austin alumnus, this award bridges his personal story and his company's growth into one cohesive narrative.
Taken individually, each of these recognitions is meaningful. Taken together, they tell a story that no single piece of content could tell on its own. It is a thought leadership portfolio built not through paid media, but through earned recognition from organizations whose credibility already speaks for itself.