Companies growing their way through tough times

Tuchen says passionate employees are one reason for the company’s growth. Another factor: Free products. Rapid7 has about 150,000 people using its free services, such as Metasploit, which tests to see whether a user’s computer network can be penetrated. The company then works to convert those users into paying customers for its other services.

Tuchen said Rapid7 has a superior product, adding, “By and large, our customers try it out and come to the same conclusion.’’

Another company on a hiring spree is digital marketing agency Digitas, which hired 160 workers this past year, increasing its Boston base to 700 employees .

For ad agencies, it’s clients that bring in the business. The agency, owned by Paris-based Publicis Groupe, recently added such accounts as insurance company Aflac and Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co., prompting the largest crop of new employees in recent years, said Barbara Goose, executive vice president and executive director of Digitas’s Boston and Detroit offices.

There’s also been more business from existing clients, including Buick, Procter & Gamble, and local brands such as Stop & Shop Supermarket Co., as those businesses look to broaden their advertising beyond traditional television and print media, Goose said.

In September, for example, the firm launched a branding campaign for Samsung Electronics Co., a Digitas client since 2006. The agency recruited YouTube.com star FreddieW (Freddie Wong) to promote a new Samsung smartphone aimed at consumers between the ages of 18 and 34, who enjoy video gaming and online videos.

Viewers were asked to identify the video games Wong referenced in the video, and which scenes were shot with Samsung’s smartphone. Since its Sept. 10 debut, the video has attracted 9 million views and 23,000 comments.

Like Digitas, Watertown-based ad agency Allen & Gerritsen is growing thanks to more digital work from its 22 clients, including the Boston Celtics, Bright Horizons Family Solutions - the number one large employer in this year’s Top Places survey - and the Ninety Nine Restaurants chain.