Sapiens' clients took three categories at the 2026 NZ Radio & Podcast Awards. Its content for clients has drawn more than 400 million organic views this year.
Sapiens, the Auckland agency behind 2026 Podcast of the Year Between Two Beers, has won Excellence in Strategy (Central Auckland) at the 2026 2degrees Auckland Business Awards, ahead of finalists including Eden Park and Abe's Bagels. The win caps a year in which Sapiens' clients took three categories at the NZ Radio & Podcast Awards.
At those awards in June, Between Two Beers won Podcast of the Year and Best Society & Culture Podcast, and Making Cents with Frances Cook won Best Business & Finance Podcast. A year earlier, client Sportscafe won Best Podcast.
Sapiens builds audiences for shows and brands on social media and YouTube. In 2026 so far, content it made for clients has drawn more than 400 million organic views across Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube and LinkedIn.
Announcing the strategy award, the organisers said: "Behind every scroll-stopping campaign is a plan, and this Auckland social media and growth agency has built theirs into a genuine point of difference for the brands they work with."
Founder Marcus Logan started the business alone in 2021, working from a spare bedroom in the family home. It is now a team of 10 and on track to pass $1 million in revenue in 2026.
This year the agency also took on its first television client. Sapiens runs the social media for Paddy Gower Has Issues on Three, where its content has drawn 15.9 million views across Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and YouTube in 2026.
Rugby Rivals, the rugby debate show with Sir John Kirwan and Victor Matfield that Sapiens runs social media for, shows the approach at work. It has drawn 5.75 million YouTube views in 2026, and in August and September it out-viewed The Rugby Pod and The Good, The Bad & The Rugby, two of the world's biggest rugby podcasts, with a fraction of their subscribers.
"Everyone says New Zealand is too small to build a media business," says Logan. "This year's Podcast of the Year started as a few mates and a microphone. Kiwis haven't stopped watching. They've moved from the TV schedule to the feed, and our job is to get a show in front of the people who'll love it."
"The strategy Sapiens first put to us was outstanding," says Between Two Beers co-host Steve Holloway. "We had around 3,000 followers at the time. Today we have about 250,000."
Sapiens' other clients include The Dom Harvey Podcast, consumer brands Sal's Pizza and Generate KiwiSaver, and Mitey, the Sir John Kirwan Foundation's mental health programme.
www.sapiens.nz
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