Berkeley Communications Group

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the head of corporate communications for proALPHA Group GmbH, an ERP and business software solutions provider for small and medium-sized businesses. We help our customers optimize and integrate core processes across their value chain for greater efficiency and competitiveness.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Berkeley Communications Group?

We needed support with our corporate communications. Our goals were to increase awareness and reputation and reduce the perceived gap between proALPHA and its major competitors in the ERP space in the public eye.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Berkeley Communications Group supports us with our corporate communications. The team is in a position to utilize the full range of PR tools, from traditional press releases to creative formats such as “Media Insight” and complex surveys. Berkeley Communications Group has also helped us generate a general media buzz and high-profile coverage, especially in the business press.

What is the team composition?

We work with 2–5 teammates from Berkeley Communications Group.

How did you come to work with Berkeley Communications Group?

I worked with Berkeley Communications Group many years ago. For this project, I invited agencies — ranging from boutique firms to network agencies — to pitch. I chose Berkeley Communications Group because I particularly valued their media relations. The team was a great culture fit and offered good value for the cost. I was particularly impressed by their storytelling approach and the good balance between a down-to-earth style and a forward-looking perspective.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with Berkeley Communications Group in March 2022, and our engagement is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

Berkeley Communications Group’s AI communication campaign, in particular, has been very successful — both in terms of quantity and quality. Our core messages have resonated with core media and have been cited as sources in LLMs. Since October 2025, our AI campaign has achieved the following results:Moreover, we conduct an annual reputation and brand assessment. Our reputation and brand value scores have doubled compared to last year.

How did Berkeley Communications Group perform from a project management standpoint?

Berkeley Communications Group’s project management is thoroughly professional and reliable. The team stays on schedule and within budget. We communicate via in-person meetings, virtual meetings, and emails or messaging apps.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Berkeley Communications Group’s deep understanding of our industries and solutions, ability to translate this into compelling narratives, and close and reliable relationships with key journalists in our industry are impressive. I’m also impressed by their creative approach and proactivity.

Are there any areas they could improve?

So far, we’re very satisfied with Berkeley Communications Group in every respect.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the senior director of branding and corporate marketing for Denodo, a software provider and technology organization. We’ve been in the business for over 26 years, and I’ve been with the company for 10 years.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Berkeley Communications Group?

We were working with a boutique firm that wasn’t working well for us, so we decided to hire a larger PR firm. We needed help with our PR and branding. We wanted to establish ourselves as a leader in data management and integration and as an AI-focused, futuristic company.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Initially, we presented our company’s vision and spoke to Berkeley Communications Group about our product and our company’s worldwide presence, specifically in the US. We also showed them where we needed their help from a PR and branding standpoint. They were willing to take the challenge, and that’s what they’re helping us with.

Berkeley Communications Group helps us with bylines, pitching to tier-one media, different media contacts, media interview prep, and media training. They also help us with awards by figuring out the value of those awards and writing or editing the award nominations. The team has understood our company, our value proposition, where we are, and where we want to be in five years.

What is the team composition?

We work with a team of five people, including Paul, Berkeley Communications Group's COO.

How did you come to work with Berkeley Communications Group?

We met with Berkeley Communications Group and other peer agencies. They showed us their commitments and what they would deliver on a monthly and yearly basis. Their strategy, goals, and vision aligned with ours. They showed proof of how much they had worked in the tech industry and how they had increased the PR effect of other companies. We felt at ease.

How much have you invested with them?

We spend around $120,000 per year.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in April 2024, and the engagement is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

Thanks to Berkeley Communications Group, our PR has been scaling quite a bit. Our scale of PR has increased 3–4 times over the last couple of years. We used to do 4–5 activities a month, and now we do 20–25 activities a month.

We’ve won three awards this year, and they’ve helped us get 91% AI-focused coverage. We see among our customer base and prospect base that people have started thinking about us as a leader in the data management market and as a company with a strong AI focus. 

The team has had 16 helpers with 16 press releases, 3 awards, 6 podcasts, 13 bylines, 16 media mentions, and interviews. One of the specific criteria that we need to have AI-focused coverage, so they've got us 91% AI-focused coverage.

How did Berkeley Communications Group perform from a project management standpoint?

They meet deadlines and stay on budget. They provide more than they could. If they have a particular commitment to a project, they usually do more than we expect. They send a detailed email after our weekly meetings about every activity and what’s going on. They give us 2–3 months’ heads-up on which awards we should apply to and which media interviews and PR activities are going to take place.

We have weekly Zoom meetings. So at least 4–5 people from Berkeley Communications Group join every week call. The team is constantly looking for the latest and greatest happening in the market, the trends, and which media houses are the right ones to talk to. They're trying to figure out which journals or which media houses or publications are the right publications for AI-focused coverage, so it feels that they keep track of their commitment and their timeline.

After our weekly meeting, Berkeley Communications Group sends a very detailed email about every activity categorized by what's going on, their commitment, and our goal, and Berkeley Communications Group helps us with awards.

What did you find most impressive about them?

We’re impressed by their commitment. They’re not a boutique or the largest PR agency, but the bang for the buck they provide is amazing. They strive to get us to the tier-one media and do as many activities as they can. They know the latest and greatest stance. We love working with their team. They’re constantly looking for the latest and greatest trends and media houses to talk to. Everything they do moves the needle in the right direction for us.

There is no such threshold for Berkeley Communications Group; they're all about providing value. We have a contract, but every month they strive to get us to tier-one media and do as many activities as they can, including podcasts, press releases, media interviews, bylines, and media mentions. The team knows the latest and greatest stance. 

Moreover, the best thing about Berkeley Communications Group is their team. We love working with the team weekly. Berkeley Communications Group's CEO moved from the UK to the US, which is kind of on the noodle and so because we are sometimes not able to secure customers.

Are there any areas they could improve?

We’ve been pushing Berkeley Communications Group to take us to the AI-focused coverage in all the outlets and publication houses where AI is the number one thing. We’re also pushing them to take us to tier-one coverage like Forbes and The Wall Street Journal. The good thing is that they’re already doing amazing. We need to be able to have big publications and news. The more customers we bring or the more media-worthy news we have, the more Berkeley Communications Group will be able to help us. However, we can already see the signs.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be committed. Berkeley Communications Group is a very committed firm. Their team is amazing; I’ve rarely worked with such vendor teams in the past. They’re personable and easily approachable. As long as both parties have the same commitment, Berkeley Communications Group will do wonders for you.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the head of product and marketing for Telent, a company that provides IT and critical communication services for a range of public sector clients in the UK.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Berkeley Communications Group?

We wanted to hire a new PR agency to help us better deliver messages about our company, which is quite a complex business. We wanted to create messaging that better drives the wide-ranging services we offer to different sectors in the UK and helps us get stronger engagement and visibility through the media, primarily different trade press titles.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Berkeley Communications Group has provided PR services for us. Initially, we gave them a good overview of our business. The first key step was arranging a storytelling workshop. It was a facilitated session led by their CEO and attended by me and a number of my team members representing marketing and senior leaders from our company, including our CEO, engineering director, and strategy director. The storytelling workshop took us through a process to better articulate what we do as a business from the perspective of how it benefits our clients. It helped us stop talking about what we do and how great we are and enabled us to focus on what that means for our clients and how we can help them.

Berkeley Communications Group has created a messaging framework they call the North Star narrative. It’s a textual document that describes what we do and is like core content we can use to develop further written content. We’ve also commissioned them to create a video version of this narrative for our social media and website, which has been well-received. In a little over three minutes, it delivers a really impactful message about our company, what we do, and how we can help our target customers.

Currently, we’re working on developing an ongoing quarterly program of external content designed to supplement our case studies and press releases with stronger engagement with some key media cycles through viewpoint and thought leadership articles.

What is the team composition?

We work with about four teammates from Berkeley Communications Group, including our account director, Mike, two account managers, and a content writer/social media specialist. The team changes depending on the project we’re working on, but they can bring in other colleagues with different skill sets.

How did you come to work with Berkeley Communications Group?

Berkeley Communications Group contacted us via cold call a long time ago. I was impressed with their pitch and attitude, and kept in touch with the view that, at some point in the future, if we were ever going through a process to select a new agency, I would include Berkeley Communications Group in the mix. We selected them following a competitive end-of-process.

Berkeley Communications Group's approach to what they call storytelling and their star narrative made us choose them. We have a complex business with a broad range of technologies and customers. That's a difficult message to articulate clearly. Still, we were really intrigued by this north star narrative approach that Berkeley Communications Group was championing and the approach that they have to developing messaging based on that. That was what appealed most to us about their pitch.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent approximately £50,000–£200,000 per year.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in October 2024, and it’s an ongoing partnership.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

Berkeley Communications Group has created our North Star narrative and simple messaging about how we help the leaders of our customers better run their businesses and deliver public services by being a strong partner for their technology. We've transformed our external communications from being all about projects and more towards viewpoint articles and thought leadership. We talk about themes and challenges that we can assist with and are experts on, trying to get more engagement with the media. The team is starting to build a reputation for us as subject matter experts, so journalists and content providers come to us for opinions and responses, and try to contribute to articles.

Berkeley Communications Group used to monitor coverage using a tool called Meltwater, but they've transitioned to a much better tool. The team compares our share of voice with some identified key competitors so that we understand how we're doing regarding share of voice. They're not doing brand perception. Overall, they meet our expectations.

How did Berkeley Communications Group perform from a project management standpoint?

We haven’t done many projects with them, but we’ve been very pleased with the results. They deliver on time and within the budget we’ve agreed on. Berkeley Communications Group uses monday.com for project management. We have a weekly Microsoft Teams call with them and a quarterly face-to-face meeting. We use email primarily in between for sharing.

What did you find most impressive about them?

We’re impressed with Berkeley Communications Group's storytelling approach to creating content.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, there's nothing in particular that stands out. We're happy with them and have a contract in place, which we've extended.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be very clear about what you want as an outcome. The success comes from the quality of the brief. Articulate to Berkeley Communications Group what you’re looking for so they can deliver it.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the senior marketing communications manager of a software company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Berkeley Communications Group?

We needed help with our PR activities.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Berkeley Communications Group provides us with ongoing PR services. We hold quarterly meetings to discuss the topics we want to address in the public domain, and Berkeley Communications Group develops a plan for the next three months based on those requirements. The team also outlines the media activities we'll engage in during that time.

Berkeley Communications Group conducts regular PR activities across multiple sectors and creates one or two monthly press releases. The team interviews one of our subject matter experts on a topic and crafts a press release or media byline to cover the ideas presented by the expert. Berkeley Communications Group pitches the stories to relevant magazines and publications in which we're keen to be displayed.

If we needed to make a statement addressing some issues with our solutions, we'd have Berkeley Communications Group craft our responses and handle any media inquiries. Fortunately, we haven't required those services, so the team is primarily responsible for our media management and press releases.

What is the team composition?

We generally work with three people, including Jennie, their senior account manager, and Callum, our junior account manager. Freddie will be joining the team, taking Callum's place. We've also worked with Mike, a senior figure at Berkeley Communications Group.

How did you come to work with Berkeley Communications Group?

My line manager initiated the partnership with Berkeley Communications Group, and I inherited it. We initially found them through a recommendation and some research. We conducted a tendering process that considered several different agencies.

We chose Berkeley Communications Group because they demonstrated expertise in technology, which was helpful for us. Our products are complex, regarding AI and future automation development, and Berkeley Communications Group showed a profound understanding of these concepts.

How much have you invested with them?

We spend slightly over £50,000 per year on a monthly retainer with Berkeley Communications Group, which amounts to around £250,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in June 2020, and the partnership is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

Berkeley Communications Group has excelled in helping us be seen in the right conversations so that the correct target audiences become aware of our company. The team has also helped us highlight particular individuals from our company and position them as thought leaders in their respective sectors and industries.

Berkeley Communications Group provides quarterly analyses of the coverage we've received and our comparison against different competitors in terms of the number of media mentions we're getting, which helps us track whether we're improving.

We wouldn't continue working with Berkeley Communications Group if we didn't feel that they were successful. We measure the increasing number of publications we get, around 20 articles a month, and that continues to improve rather than plateau.

Although we lack many metrics to measure Berkeley Communications Group's work, the most essential aspect of their work for us is knowledge and awareness, which are intangible and immeasurable.

How did Berkeley Communications Group perform from a project management standpoint?

Berkeley Communications Group consistently meets deadlines and is quick and efficient at turning things around, especially when faced with a tight deadline. The budget is an agreed-upon monthly retainer, so it remains the same amount every month.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Berkeley Communications Group has good relationships with journalists, helping them open doors to start conversations and get things printed. This is based on their experience in PR and their craft in writing. The team takes dry subjects and makes them interesting to journalists, which is why they've been successful in getting things publicized for us.

Are there any areas they could improve?

We don't think there's anything they need to improve on. We're happy with the balance of how much we're getting for what we're paying.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Brief Berkeley Communications Group well and explain what you want, what type of coverage you want, and the crucial points you want to get across. The team will work hard to ensure they hit those marks.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the head of corporate communications for an IT services company. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Berkeley Communications Group?

We were interested in raising our profile amongst our customers and other stakeholders who weren’t aware of who we were and what we did. Ours is an Irish company that has recently expanded into the UK and the US. Although we were well-known in our regular, deep-seated customer base, we had a corporate and branding awareness issue in our expansion.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Berkeley Communications Group provides us with PR services to help us raise our brand awareness. We started by identifying our targets. Initially, we didn't have any media databases or ideas of what our target trades might be, such as the vertical and technology press. Berkeley Communications Group helped us build a picture of what the most impactful publications would be and why we would want to target them.

From there, Berkeley Communications Group led a listening exercise about our offer and helped us tease out our unique selling points against a crowded tech and digital transformation landscape. The team has developed a content and editorial plan and helped us with blog posts.

Berkeley Communications Group has written articles about our story and AI offer, including its different aspects, and gets those articles placed in magazines. They’ve created some press releases for us, including customer releases and corporate releases. Berkeley Communications Group has also secured interview opportunities for our CEO and comment opportunities 2–3 times a week. The team provides a report, for which I believe they use Meltwater. 

What is the team composition?

We work with a robust account team, including an account manager, two people working in the press office, and an account director, who isn't involved in the day-to-day but who I can contact if there's any escalation. 

How did you come to work with Berkeley Communications Group?

I used to work in an agency, and I'd encountered Berkeley Communications Group before. We did a full tender process, and the tender went to them. I needed to have an objective third party in the mix, and I chose them because I’d come across them before. Their response to the tender blew all the other agencies out of the water.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent about £50,000 (approximately $65,000 USD).

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in March 2024, and the engagement is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

As of July 2024, we’ve had about 80 pieces of coverage, 15 article placements, 13 backlinks, and three face-to-face interviews. We’re getting coverage in quite a few publications with a domain authority of 70 or above. 

Berkeley Communications Group has also gotten us really good coverage from our press releases, which has massively amplified our metrics.  The team has been really proactive about getting interview and comment opportunities. Just today, our CTO got featured in a magazine that was a tier-one target. 

How did Berkeley Communications Group perform from a project management standpoint?

We have weekly Microsoft Teams monitoring calls with the team. Our account team meets every week except for sick leave or holidays. Additionally, we communicate via email and phone, Microsoft Teams chat, and a SharePoint site for file sharing. Berkeley Communications Group uses monday.com for project management.

They’re very responsive, and if I message them, they always reply straight away. I use an alias for emails, which go to everyone on the Berkeley Communications Group team. If a teammate's not in, someone else responds to my email. 

Are there any employees from the service provider's team that you would like to give a shout-out to in this review?

One of the teammates who works at the press office has been really good.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Berkeley Communications Group's ability to land relationships with journalists is impressive. They have excellent relationships with tech trade journalists. From my experience working in an agency, I know how challenging it can be to pitch stories, but Berkeley Communications Group can always pull in the coverage.

Are there any areas they could improve?

It’s too soon to tell if there’s anything they can improve on.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Having a comprehensive brief and scope of work is essential. Berkeley Communications Group offers many things and has many competencies, but it’s crucial to focus on what you need for your business challenges. This way, you can focus and not be pulled in different directions; it's especially important to stick to your specific needs if you have a limited budget. 

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am a manager at BenQ UK

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

We’re a leading global display technology brand and manufacturer with expertise in both B2C and B2B markets, including education, corporate, retail, and consumer tech hardware. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Berkeley Communications Group to accomplish?

• Increasing Brand Awareness & Recognition
• Supporting B2B and B2C Sales
• Promoting our Brand Heritage and Building on our Story
• Build Positive Relationships with Key Media

SOLUTION

How did you find Berkeley Communications Group?

Referral

Why did you select Berkeley Communications Group over others?

• High ratings
• Close to my geographic location
• Company values aligned

How many teammates from Berkeley Communications Group were assigned to this project?

2-5 Employees

Describe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.

Berkeley Communications act as our PR Agency for our UK operations and are an excepetional extension to our marketing team. We work with them to conduct a number of PR activities which support our marketing efforts including:

• Act as our primary contact for all media relations and daily press office enquries
• Secure media reviews in top tier, key digital and print publications on B2C tech hardware products (monitors, mice, lighting, projectors and cameras)
• Creating, editing and distibuting press releases to UK media
• Reactive PR - commenting on topical news stories
• General PR advice or crisis communications if needed
• Invite journalists to any media events we hold
• B2B Thought leadership content creation for education and business markets
• B2B Case study creation (on a project basis)
• Writing awards entries
• Media training if required

Every quarter we hold a planning meeting to map out the future work for the quarter. Due to the nature of our business, we tend to switch focus rapidly to keep up with current trends, and Berkeley are always flexible and adaptable to this. Which we very much appreciate!

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

On our B2C side - we have seen a drastic increase in our media coverage for BenQ, in top tier publications. Aswell as a better relationship with journalists who keep coming back to ask us for more reviews. 
This is helping to build a healthy pipeline of constant reviews which ultimately helps our brand awareness, recognition and SEO presence online. Berkeley are quick and professional at responding to any inward and outward facing communications to journalists which we very much appreciate. This helps to give a positive view of our brand. 

On our B2B side we have also seen a huge improvement in our coverage by using thought leadership content to position BenQ as a leader in the education space by securing repeat coverage in the likes of FE News, Education Journal etc. 

Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?

Amanda and her team at Berkeley are always onhand for anything we need. They are quick at responding to any emails and projects are turned around quickly! This is a need for us as a business as we are a fast-paced company who needs to react to trends as soon as we see them. 

We are constantly kept up to date on any progress and feel in the loop at all times. They take time to listen to our needs and carefully understand what we expect from them or the individual project. 

As a company, we have alot of arms to our business, and this can take some time to get used too, where each product sits, and which category it belongs too, or who the TA is. However, Berkeley take the time to listen to us and our direction, and get it right every time. This is much appreciated when we have alot of products all designed for different markets. 

When we have suggestions they are taken onboard professionally and quickly. 

We are often given short notice on product releases, or press releases from our HQ and Berkeley always turn this around very quickly and to a high standard. 

What was your primary form of communication with Berkeley Communications Group?

• In-Person Meeting
• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

Berkeley Communications Group is highly professional. This means they are organised, deliver ontime and ensure the work is completed to a high standard. They have a number of high quality media connections and knowedge of the latest tech media publications.

They are also highly approachable. Anything we need - we know that they are always there to support us or offer any advice we need. This makes it a breeze to work with them, and they really are like an extension of our marketing team.

We love working with the whole team at Berkeley, and always look forward to our bi-weekly catch ups and quarterly planning meetings!

Are there any areas for improvement or something Berkeley Communications Group could have done differently?

Improving Press Release coverage, get more published in publications.  

Ensuring we get media samples back ontime, or publish the reviews quickly. However, I know that some journalists can take their time and will be reviewing other brands products which may be more interesting, and this is not necessarily Berkeley's fault. But we need a quicker turnaround so we can release some of our stock back. Sometimes journalists hold onto them for too long.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the brand director at Printify, an online platform for e-commerce entrepreneurs who want to start their e-commerce business by selling customized products. We offer a tech platform that users can sign up to for free and choose from 900 products to sell. Users can put their designs on the products using our technology and publish them on their Etsy, Shopify, or Amazon accounts. When a customer buys that specific product, we print, ship, and deliver it straight to them.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Berkeley Communications Group?

We needed a PR service provider. Our goal was to get more mentions and awareness of our company in popular media publications since we mostly received mentions from websites, social media, and YouTube channels. We aimed to get journalists and big mainstream publications to cover our company's work. 

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Berkeley Communications Group managed our company's PR and press relations. The team was focused on booking mentions of our company in the press and publications. Berkeley Communications Group accomplished mentions for our company in different publications, including Business Insider, CNBC, The Washington Post, and The New York Times. We also used these publications as part of our backlinking strategy.

What is the team composition?

I met weekly with four teammates from Berkeley Communications Group, including Alysha (Associate Director & North American Chief Storyteller) and Robin (Head of North America, Managing Director). 

How did you come to work with Berkeley Communications Group?

 Berkeley Communications Group was recommended to me by a colleague I worked with at another company. I had to find at least three different service providers to present to my company. Berkeley Communications Group created a pitch and a financial proposal, which I shared with my team. We chose Berkeley Communications Group among four companies because they scored the best on our metrics. 

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked with Berkeley Communications Group from April 2023–April 2024. We're about to conclude our partnership because we've achieved our goals. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

Berkeley Communications Group helped us achieve mentions in the publications we wanted.

How did Berkeley Communications Group perform from a project management standpoint?

Berkeley Communications Group was organized and had a specific list of deliverables. The team turned up to meetings on time and met deadlines. Berkeley Communications Group also delivered reports, and when we needed extra help from them in a short period of time, the team delivered quickly.
Are there any employees from the service provider's team that you would like to give a shout-out to in this review?

Alysha, who managed my account, helped us a lot with strategizing and choosing which clients to go after.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I was impressed by Berkeley Communications Group's diligence, attention to detail, and willingness to adapt.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I believe Berkeley Communications Group was used to working with traditional companies. Since we're a young company, it took the team a little while to understand the language we use and how we do things. 

Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?

I recommend being sure of what you want to achieve when engaging with the team. Berkeley Communications Group is a good option if you're looking for a press agency to help you tell a story in the traditional media. 

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the CEO of Shelly USA

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

Distributing devices for Smart Home Automation

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Berkeley Communications to accomplish?

• Increasing brand recognition and awareness
• Supporting B2B sales
• Making the company more visible for potential investors

SOLUTION

How did you find Berkeley Communications?

Online Search

Why did you select Berkeley Communications over others?

• Great culture fit
• Good value for cost
• Company values aligned

How many teammates from Berkeley Communications were assigned to this project?

2-5 Employees

Describe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.

• Securing media coverage of corporate events, new product launches, etc. 
• Proactively pitching topics of interest for our audience / potential customers / investors. 
• Drafting bylines and thought leadership that are after published and converted to blog posts. 
• Actively monitoring for coverage. 
• Monitoring for and submitting applications for industry awards. 

Deliverables:

• 111 publications for the 1st half of 2023 with total reach of 967.26 M (UVM) 
• CES '22 coverage and on floor presentations; in preparation for CES 2023 and already secured keynote for our GroupCEO 
• CEDIA '23 Denver, Colorado in preparation 
• Shelly Awards and Recognitions by CES, Fast Company, CEDIA

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

The number of publications and the increasing interest from the media

Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?

Excellent service! They are learning in detail our needs and corporate culture and always stay very close to our needs. Always delivering in time. Extra proactive and often their help exceed the scope of our formal agreement.

What was your primary form of communication with Berkeley Communications?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

• Great team.
• Endless creativity.
• Energy and proactivity.

Are there any areas for improvement or something Berkeley Communications could have done differently?

There's always areas to improve, but together we are tackling them. I wish for broader coverage from leading media outlets and I'm sure in the coming months we'll get it.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CEO of Red Helix, a network performance and cybersecurity managed services company based in the UK.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Berkeley Communications?

Before this project, our name and look and feel seemed to be from the 1970s and 1980s; nothing was fresh about our brand. Moreover, our content didn’t speak to businesses; it spoke to technical people.

Therefore, we wanted to work with a multi-functional agency that could help us with our rebranding, content creation, and PR. Berkeley was one of the few agencies that covered all those aspects, so we hired them.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Initially, we went through a discovery phase with Berkeley to go through our requirements. We provided them with a quick, clear view of what we needed. From there, Berkeley’s team structured workshops and facilitated our thinking regarding our branding.

During those workshops, we talked about who we were as a company and what we valued. From there, Berkeley came up with a new name for us and created our logo, brand book, imagery, and tagline so that every aspect of our branding was aligned.

Since then, Berkeley has created our content and redeveloped our entire website. Additionally, they’ve helped us with our PR efforts, which have included creating press releases, promotional videos, and speeches.

For example, Berkeley has created a two-and-a-half-minute corporate video for us that reflex what we do as a company. Moreover, they’ve written several important thought leadership pieces for us and helped us with broadcast media.

What is the team composition?

On the rebranding part of our project, we’ve worked with around four teammates from Berkeley. As for the PR and content creation side, we’ve worked with around 4–5 of their teammates. One of their teammates is a chief storyteller; he focuses on business storytelling. Other teammates include an account manager, a communications manager, and a content manager.

How did you come to work with Berkeley Communications?

Berkeley came to us as a loose recommendation. When talking about rebranding our company, someone who our CCO knew recommended speaking with Berkeley. From there, we reached out to them.

When we started talking with them, they were very credible regarding the work they had done for other clients; their credentials and credibility really stood out. Still, one of the most outstanding aspects for me was the reassurance that the people we met during the selling process were the ones who committed to continuing to work with us as clients.

I felt very comfortable with that because the relationship we had built with Berkeley’s team during the sales cycle was very good. From that point on, everything was very easy.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent around $200,000 on the rebranding project. Now, we pay Berkeley around $120,000 annually for ongoing services.

What is the status of this engagement?

We formally engaged with Berkeley around January 2022. Although the original rebranding project is already completed, we now work with Berkeley on an annual basis for PR and content creation services.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement? 

Berkeley Communications has developed a very impactful new brand for our company, which has been fantastically well received by our staff, our clients, and the market in general. Moreover, the fact that every branding and content asset has come from a single company has helped us create assets that are well-joined together.

Berkeley’s guidance and experience during this rebranding process have been outstanding. When I look at who we are now as a company, I can tell that our brand image has really reshaped our company from the inside, which has led us to various successes on the outside.

As for the video they’ve created, the imagery and music Berkeley used to produce it truly reflect the Red Helix brand that we wanted. Moreover, thanks to their PR efforts, we’ve secured a slot from Sky News.

Overall, our company feels on a very different level as a result of the outreach and engagement that Berkeley has helped us achieve from business and technical journalists.

Thanks to Berkeley’s efforts, we’ve seen increased traffic on our website by very large percentages. Additionally, the potential readership from the PR side is in the millions region. Historically, we weren’t close to the millions, so Berkeley’s PR work has helped us increase our potential readership level a lot.

Regarding qualitative feedback, Berkeley’s quality of work is really high. When they write content pieces for us, they get our tone of voice and language very well, so we don’t have to continuously rework what they do.

Moreover, Berkeley always comes up with very innovative ideas, which is very helpful. Their team is very good at building the quarterly forward features planning as well, which is also very helpful.

How did Berkeley Communications perform from a project management standpoint?

Berkeley has always worked within our budget, and they’ve been very clear about what that budget includes and what doesn’t. We’re always clear about what they’re doing, and there are always defined lines regarding their accountability. Still, they often go above and beyond their responsibilities, writing content pieces that we should be writing.

We have regular weekly calls with Berkeley because those calls keep us focused. Additionally, we do quarterly reviews to review what was done in the last quarter and what comes next for the next quarter.

What did you find most impressive about them?

One of the things that really impressed us about working with Berkeley early into our engagement was that they helped us reshape our vision and focus on what we needed rather than what we wanted. That was a very good sign that Berkeley understood our requirements and had the experience to lead us to what we needed.

As part of this assessment, the time Berkeley took to understand what we needed was noteworthy. Some of the competitors we talked to didn’t take that time. Instead, they came to the table with prepackaged ideas of what they had done in the past and tried to make those ideas fit what we were looking for. Berkeley listened and understood our needs, and they came up with a tailored approach.

Are there any areas they could improve?

There’s nothing Berkeley could improve on. Their team is very open and responsive to feedback.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Have an idea of what you’re looking for but don’t be fixed on that idea because Berkeley will help educate you during the selling process.