Salient PR

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the Founder and former CEO of Arable

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

Arable makes advanced connected sensors that help farmers manage water more effectively.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Salient PR to accomplish?

• Gain attention of investors
• Be seen as a market leader / innovator
• Attract talent

SOLUTION

How did you find Salient PR?

Referral

Why did you select Salient PR over others?

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

How many teammates from Salient PR were assigned to this project?

2-5 Employees

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

At the start of our engagement, I knew literally nothing about PR and we were rapidly going broke and needed investors.  We needed someone who could get us press, but also to teach us how to use press, how strategic communications and interviews worked, how a baby startup like ours was supposed to use a professional agency like Salient PR. So at one level we needed certain work done, but we also needed coaching on what work we should try to get done. 

The scope of work began with writing a narrative about the company, positioning us in the market, identifying our values and our founding spirit, and ultimately the benefits to society that would accompany our success. 

The scope then turned towards identifying a few verticals or journalistic "beats" we would want to position ourselves, leading to a set of print and online platforms and specific journalists to target. 

We then identified a newsworthy event to anchor our pitches around, and drafted custom pitches to each vertical, with a personal letter to each journalist.  This led to interviews, which included both a preparation phase (talking points, fast facts, what questions to expect) and an execution phase, joined by Justin.  A lot of effort was spent on outreach, scheduling, prepping and following up, leading to ultimate publication. 

The outcome was a clear leaderboard that tracked all of our achievements. That first pair of compains remains the best set of compaigns I have ever run. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Now that I have more experience in PR, most of it is overpriced for what it delivers, because it lacks hustle. A lot of people can write a document with brand positioning. It is really hard work to develop a list of 100+ journalist targets and pitch them individually with a nuanced understanding of what that journalists's beat is.  What if they don't do funding stories? What if they need an exclusive?  If you can get them to express interest, it is very hard to continue to draw them out and ultimately get an interview, even an email interview.  A master class includes developing relationships with individual journalists and coming back to them months or years later to get them to do the BIG story they are holding out for. 

Justin and Salient are hands down the most professional people we have ever worked with, and we have worked with many firms, boutique to multinational. To this day Justin is my model for what excellence in this field looks like.  We got dozens of interviews and press pieces on a tight schedule and it both led to our Series A and was a great way to celebrate the close. 

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

In addition to the topline numbers (articles, views etc) we got routine scheduled checkins and updates, showing that the project was moving and on track because at the time we had no idea what we were doing (!) and had no bandwidth to manage someone else. In that sense, Justin was an extension of our team for the period he was on the project. 

When the project wound down, we got a lot of assets to keep for our own DIY work afterwards, not least all the media prep / copy / fast facts. 

What was your primary form of communication with Salient PR?

Virtual Meeting

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

What is most amazing about Justin is that he works as hard as you would if you had to do it. For a startup founder, it is really challenging to get people who are able to bring that intensity, and Salient is clearly positioned to meet the needs of people who are disappointed by how poorly their needs are met by Big PR. 

When people talk about culture fit, often they are talking about clothes or music or other aesthetics, but here culture fit means understanding what a founder is trying to do, channeling that vision into a workable form, and working at the same furious pace on the PR side as the company is working on the engineering and commercial side. That is simply hard to fake, and with Justin it is just innate to who he is and the culture of the organization he created. 

Are there any areas for improvement or something Salient PR could have done differently?

None. I learned far more from them than I ever realized I didn't know. I am not here to give critiques just gratitude.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the Sr. Manager, Content of BuildOps

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

BuildOps gives commercial contractors one system to run the entire shop — service, projects, and everything in between

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Salient PR to accomplish?

• Securing high-impact coverage in tier-one outlets (e.g., TechCrunch, Reuters, The Information) to validate BuildOps’ market leadership.
• Driving awareness across construction, SaaS, and business publications to reach both contractors and investors.
• Elevating BuildOps executives as trusted thought leaders on topics such as workforce resilience, technology adoption, and AI in construction.
• Building a repeatable PR engine to support ongoing announcements, research, and leadership visibility.

SOLUTION

How did you find Salient PR?

Referral

Why did you select Salient PR over others?

• High ratings
• Great culture fit
• Referred to me
• Company values aligned

How many teammates from Salient PR were assigned to this project?

2-5 Employees

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

Our PR partner works closely with us to elevate BuildOps’ brand visibility and executive thought leadership across both top-tier media and industry-specific publications.  Core Scope of Work:  Executive Thought Leadership Placement: Secures media opportunities for our leadership team, including op-eds, interviews, and contributed articles in national business publications and trade-specific outlets. Media Relations & Coordination: Acts as the main point of contact with journalists to coordinate interviews, placements, and responses. This includes managing media outreach for key company milestones such as office openings and fundraising announcements (e.g., our most recent Series C round). Strategic Media Planning & Awareness: Proactively identifies relevant media opportunities and events (conferences, panels, award circuits) where our executives can be featured or engaged to strengthen our brand presence. Podcast Outreach & Booking: Pitches and secures podcast appearances for our executive team to expand reach and thought leadership within targeted verticals. Media Training & Interview Prep: Prepares internal spokespeople for press engagements through coaching, Q&A planning, and key messaging development. Event Support: Assists in planning and executing media involvement around high-visibility moments such as office launches or customer events, ensuring consistent and strategic coverage.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Multiple (dozens) executive bylines and op-eds placed in both top-tier and industry-specific publications.

Bookings for executive podcast appearances, helping position BuildOps leadership as credible voices in the trades and SaaS space.

Secured consistent media coverage around major events such as our most recent Series C fundraise (TechCrunch) and expansion (Axios). 

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

Our PR partner has been highly dependable in managing ongoing and ad hoc initiatives. They consistently deliver items on time and maintain strong communication throughout the process.

Timeliness: Deliverables such as pitches, draft op-eds, press materials, and media coordination have been handled within expected timelines — even on tight turnarounds tied to news cycles or event launches.

Responsiveness: Communication is prompt and thoughtful. They’re quick to respond to new asks, adjust plans based on shifting internal priorities, and surface time-sensitive opportunities proactively.

Organization & Follow-Through: They take ownership of press coordination and ensure no detail slips through the cracks — from initial outreach to final publication. Media prep sessions are scheduled early, and reminders are clear and well-managed.

Proactive Guidance: Beyond execution, they offer helpful suggestions on how to shape stories, identify new angles, or reframe pitches for better results — showing initiative, not just reactivity.

Overall, their project management approach has allowed us to stay focused on the message while trusting them to handle the mechanics.

What was your primary form of communication with Salient PR?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

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

What stood out most was their ability to balance strategic thinking with hands-on execution. They understood our industry, knew how to position our leadership team effectively, and brought ideas to the table that helped us show up in the right places at the right time.

Are there any areas for improvement or something Salient PR could have done differently?

At this stage, there aren’t any clear areas for improvement. They’ve been a reliable and thoughtful partner throughout, consistently delivering quality work and staying aligned with our goals. Any challenges we’ve encountered have been more about timing and prioritization than execution.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I was the first VP of marketing for Kadena, a blockchain SaaS company. Kadena offers a scalable Layer-1 Proof-of-Work blockchain and the secure Pact smart contract language, enabling high-throughput, low-fee, and secure blockchain solutions for developers and innovators.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Salient PR?

We needed help defining/leading our category as a Layer-1 Proof-of-Work blockchain and communicating our competitive advantages, including our leadership team, consisting of the co-founders who had built J.P. Morgan's first blockchain.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Salient PR helped us increase awareness and perception among peers, media, and the general public through regular profile pieces in top-tier target media such as CoinDesk, Forbes, and TechCrunch. They also worked on improving our leadership team's relationships with crypto and business press through commentary and op-ed placements in Business Insider, CNBC, and Decrypt. 
Additionally, Salient PR worked on obtaining positive recognition of company milestones in The Block, CoinTelegraph, and other leading crypto outlets. 
They also helped us foster proactive thought leadership opportunities through panel and keynote speaking opportunities at industry conferences like Consensus and on national broadcast appearances like Bloomberg TV. In doing so, Salient PR prepared pitches, conducted media outreach, drafted press releases, and secured speaking opportunities.

What is the team composition?

We worked with 2–5 teammates from Salient PR, including the founder Justin.

How did you come to work with Salient PR?

I had worked with Salient PR before at a previous startup. I found them through an online search, where I came across an article that listed their founder as one of the top PR professionals in tech. I chose them because their pricing fit our budget, they were a great culture fit, they offered good value for the cost, and I had a positive experience working with them in the past.

How much have you invested with them?

Kadena was on a monthly retainer.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together from April 2019–December 2021.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Kadena had a 517% year-over-year increase in media coverage, a 1,031% year-over-year increase in feature article placement, and a 270% year-over-year increase in backlinks to our website (2019 vs. 2018). We also earned feature coverage in top-tier media such as Bloomberg, CoinDesk, Forbes, Fortune, and TechCrunch.Our business development and partnerships team shared that the increased media coverage was helpful for them in getting meetings and closing deals. We had partnerships with both Chainlink and Cosmos; our media coverage was supportive in getting the partners' buy-in for co-marketing campaigns.

How did Salient PR perform from a project management standpoint?

Salient PR was communicative and responsive. They stuck to the agreed-upon timelines and delivered results. We communicated through Zoom, emails, and Slack.

What did you find most impressive about them?

The strength of their media relationships, the creativity of their communications, the quality of their writing, and the strategic way they helped us position Kadena in the competitive landscape of crypto were impressive.

Are there any areas they could improve?

It took everyone a while to build trust with one another. Understandably, it took some time for Salient PR to understand the differentiators of our blockchain technology.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the Founder of The Empathy Firm

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

PR Firm 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Salient PR to accomplish?

• Needed help with a PR project for one of our clients

SOLUTION

How did you find Salient PR?

Referral

Why did you select Salient PR over others?

We wernt going to be a number

How many teammates from Salient PR were assigned to this project?

2-5 Employees

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

Justin and his team helped to secure placement pitching for different niche clients that were hard to pitch.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Amount of PR placements on relevant publications

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

Everything was delivered either on time or about a week or two before

What was your primary form of communication with Salient PR?

Virtual Meeting

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

Just thought they were actually good at what they do. Sounds funny, but it's pretty rare

Are there any areas for improvement or something Salient PR could have done differently?

It would be cool if they worked with a greater range of publications, but they do have a pretty wide range that they have good relationships with and are familiar pitching

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the managing partner of Bread, a software company. We design and build user-friendly digital products, leveraging a multidisciplinary team to solve complex problems for ambitious clients.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Salient PR?

We needed help increasing our brand awareness and top of funnel.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Salient PR helped us identify publications to write in, podcasts to participate in, and create a content calendar. The team also handled the actual outreach.

What is the team composition?

We worked with two teammates from Salient PR.

How did you come to work with Salient PR?

Salient PR was introduced to me through a friend. I had worked with them at my previous startup.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent around $10,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together from January–February 2023.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Salient PR helped us publish 13 articles and book 13 podcasts. We hit all of the milestones.

How did Salient PR perform from a project management standpoint?

Salient PR delivered on time. We communicated via Google Hangouts and Slack.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Salient PR was incredibly honest about what they could do for us, given our industry and service. Other PR agencies we spoke to mostly presented a generic offering. The team was also super reasonable about the budget and offered additional ideas to drive our top of funnel.

Moreover, Salient PR took the time to understand our business and often helped me think through how to best present it.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, there aren’t any.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

I’ll work with them again and recommend them to anyone.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the CRO of DevZero, a software company. We offer a Kubernetes optimization platform that dynamically rightsizes container resources in real-time, reducing over-provisioning and delivering significant cost savings while maintaining peak performance.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Salient PR?

We announced a set of new capabilities and needed help with PR.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We announced a new set of capabilities at KubeCon, our biggest annual event, and we were looking to set up meetings with news outlets ahead of, during, and after the tradeshow. Justin (Founder) and the team set up more than 20 interviews with various outlets. They also set up debrief meetings with reporters.

What is the team composition?

We worked with two teammates from Salient PR.

How did you come to work with Salient PR?

We found them through a referral. Justin showed knowledge of our domain and mentioned publications and reporters that were relevant to our domain.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together from September–December 2024.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Salient PR set up over 20 meetings and about a dozen articles featuring DevZero. These results led to more traffic to our website, more visibility, and more pipeline.

How did Salient PR perform from a project management standpoint?

Salient PR delivered on time despite tight timelines. The team was very communicative through Slack and always available.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Salient PR worked hard, delivered what they promised, and was always available.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I can't think of anything for Salient PR to improve.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the senior manager of content marketing at Sauce Labs, a software company. We provide an AI-powered platform that helps enterprises ensure continuous quality and performance of web and mobile applications throughout the software development lifecycle.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Salient PR?

We needed a proactive agency that would not only respond to requests for quotes but also be a partner that would uncover the right angles, speaking opportunities, media outlets, and press release strategies for our specific business needs.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Salient PR is a full-service PR agency that handles media relations, pitching, and external thought leadership bylines for us. The team has pitched a research report that I own and has already garnered a lot of external attention and write-ups.

What is the team composition?

We work with two teammates from Salient PR.

How did you come to work with Salient PR?

A colleague referred Salient PR to us since she had worked with them in the past. We chose them because they had specific and relevant experience, which made the most sense for us.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with Salient PR in April 2025, and our engagement is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We’ve seen an increase in our share of voice and placements.

How did Salient PR perform from a project management standpoint?

Salient PR always delivers on time and is dependable. We primarily communicate via Slack.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I like that Salient PR is highly focused on work with impact instead of performative activities that make them look busy. The quality of their work is also much higher than a typical PR agency. Our CEO has often called out how much he likes their PR writing in releases.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No. We're super happy with them.