Steve Conroy, President of Conroy Public Relations, has provided publicity services to agencies for more than three decades. He’s worked with designers, PR firms, digital shops, branding agencies, photographers, songwriters, and more all over the world to make sure their great work gets the recognition and visibility it deserves. Steve’s knowledge of the industry and ability to get timely, relevant stories and features placed are unmatched. 

We sat down with Steve to learn about navigating the evolving media landscape, the biggest challenges clients are facing in PR, and the lasting power of a good story.

WPI >> Tell me about yourself and your company. What types of agencies do you work with? What services do you provide? 

Steve >> I work with and have worked with almost every type of agency - advertising, design, branding, direct marketing, and digital as well as production and public relations firms, photographers, even songwriters. For all, I provide publicity services to help them reach an audience that will help support the agency's new business efforts. And that’s the #1 objective of agency publicity. I also act as a consultant for agencies that what an opinion about the publicity potential of a  story, how to handle a crisis situation or how to conduct a successful interview.

WPI >> Your company’s tagline is “The agent of agencies.” Tell us about the genesis of this tagline and what it means to you and your clients. 

Steve >> I’m the agent, the person, the reporter working inside your agency to help you tell your story, I’m representing you, your team, and your clients to the media and we spend our time knowing who and how to reach the right people as it is our primary focus.

WPI >> What are the biggest challenges you’re seeing clients face today? 

Steve >> As I work with small and medium-sized agencies the constant challenge is getting attention from publications that are often just too interested in even the most dull and lazy campaigns from name brands and the Top 30 agencies. Personnel announcements are $2-400 in your local business journal and the daily newspapers along with the NY Times and WSJ  stopped covering advertising and retail a decade ago. Finding a home for a good story is a challenge.

WPI >> What are the biggest trends in PR you’re seeing this year? 

Steve >> I don’t really follow trends impacting public relations, I really consider myself an ‘ad guy’ and I think my clients do as well. Up until recently, I’ve always shared space with an agency. In that regard, I think the trend for a few years for ad agencies and communication firms in general has been CCD - Collaboration, Consolidation and Disruption.

WPI >> What are the key results your clients are expecting when it comes to their publicity? 

Steve >> Managing expectations is always the hard part, but most agencies have a realistic view of media attention and when I can exceed those expectations it’s always a plus especially when a good story results in a new business contact. My clients will let me know when that happens, always nice to hear, but sure it happens more often than they tell me.

WPI >> The media landscape has changed and expanded exponentially since you started your company in 1989. With a 24-hour news cycle, more “media” outlets than ever before, numerous social media channels, and the rise of online influencers and content creators, the public has nearly unlimited access to information. How are you helping clients navigate this new media landscape? 

Steve >> I try to stay awake and alert to changes in the media so I can keep my clients aware of what to expect, what to take advantage of, and what to avoid. Most of my clients, my agencies have staff that watch the media landscape and know what to do and how to do it. Then I can help them tell their story when they take action or put a new approach in place.

WPI >> Naturally, a great deal has changed in the industry, but is there anything that hasn’t changed? 

Steve >> The power of a good story and the impact of the third-party endorsement - it’s not you saying how creative and smart you are, it’s the media saying how creative and smart you are.

WPI >> I recently heard a former editor from a major trade pub say “coverage is coverage is coverage.” He was sharing advice with a group of PR managers, and his intention with this statement was to encourage them not to discount coverage from local media outlets. Do you agree with this sentiment? How would you compare local vs. trade vs. digital media coverage in terms of advantages and effectiveness? 

Steve >> I’ve had, although not recently, a client say that they want more than ‘local media attention’, but it’s never local, it’s always coverage that exceeds that as a story gets picked up online. We send releases locally, nationally and internationally to publications that write about marketing and advertising. Where and whenever you get media attention, I always encourage merchandising the publicity, post it on your site, and use the socials - Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram to expand the reach and readership for the story, make it yours and let viewers know where it came from and why.

WPI >> Building relationships with and securing coverage from media outlets is a key objective of your PR services. What other opportunities exist for gaining publicity? 

Steve >> Other opportunities for publicity and media attention come from award shows, speaking engagements, and community involvement. Agency or a client doing something special or fun for the holidays, Valentine’s Day or during the Super Bowl? Adweek did a roundup of clients running regional commercials during the Big Game and we were able to get two agencies and their clients included in that feature. Special projects - a flooded US Navy museum ship in Buffalo, support for the Ukraine, Black History Month, Earth Day.  Find something and get involved.

WPI >> You’ve had a long career working with hundreds of clients around the world, so it’s likely difficult to narrow it down, but if you had to pick, what project or client are you most proud of? 

Steve >> Yikes, one from the past - writing a short, one page story suggestion and having Arnold Worldwide’s Creative Director Mary Moore eventually be featured in the Wall Street Journal’s Creative Leaders Series.  

And one a bit more recent - working with Amsterdam agency 180 when they were just four creative guys in a shared office space and getting them international attention that, I’d like to think, contributed to their success.

This article is an installment in a series where Worldwide Partners speaks with experienced consultants and service providers that are part of our https://www.worldwidepartners.com/news-blog?in=wpi_facultyWPI Faculty. Check back for more interviews with our industry’s leading consultants in PR, business development, financial services and more.