Kimball Hughes Public Relations

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the marketing manager at Fastmail, a privacy-focused email company. We’re an alternative to bigger email companies, and what sets us apart is the fact that we don't serve ads to our customers. If you're not paying, you're the product; we don't sell any data, and that's one of our core values as a privacy-focused email company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Kimball Hughes Public Relations?

We needed assistance with our PR strategy to get more awareness about our company. Our goal was to get earned media.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Kimball Hughes Public Relations has been overseeing all of our company’s PR efforts. This includes press releases, crisis PR, and setting interviews with our subject matter experts (SMEs) on inbound and outbound media. 

They develop the PR strategy for each quarter of the year and try to gain more earned media by positioning our SMEs as experts in the fields we’re interested in — like email, open standards, privacy, and cybersecurity issues. Then, we lay out our top four SMEs to speak on some of these subjects. They’ve been pitching monthly to local, regional, and international outlets, as well as other media like podcasts. 

Currently, we’re working with Kimball Hughes Public Relations on our 2023 PR campaign for our privacy concerns and the promotion strategy for our redesigned website.

What is the team composition?

We work with a team of three people. Rod (President & Principal) is the managing partner and handles all negotiations. He works with another person and has set us up with an account manager as well. 

How did you come to work with Kimball Hughes Public Relations?

We had already worked with Kimball Hughes Public Relations on another project and enjoyed their services. Initially, someone else referred them to me, and we contacted them again to talk about ongoing services. 

We chose them because we felt they weren’t making promises they couldn’t deliver as other vendors did. We know earning media is difficult, so we talked about the reach of their work and settled on a price.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with Kimball Hughes Public Relations in November 2021, and our partnership is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Since we started working with Kimball Hughes Public Relations, we've seen an increase in our website's traffic. Something that's really important for us is how many positive stories and interviews get published on media outlets, and we've experienced a tenfold increase from when we weren't using a PR firm.

How did Kimball Hughes Public Relations perform from a project management standpoint?

Kimball Hughes Public Relations delivers everything on time or sometimes ahead of schedule, like a press release we recently asked them to do. They're very punctual with their management style.

As far as communication, we use email as a first-line method. We also use Zoom and phone calls. We've been having monthly meetings and keeping weekly contact, and we also do a mid-month check-in to schedule any additional work. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

Kimball Hughes Public Relations is very trustworthy, and that stands out. They've kept their word and managed expectations correctly.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I can't think of anything Kimball Hughes Public Relations can improve. We've been growing together, and they identify areas for improvement even before we do. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

I recommend customers do their own research about what they want to accomplish. Kimball Hughes Public Relations does a great job earning media coverage, but we also research other possibilities that we discuss with the team to decide if they're plausible. Overall, doing your own diligence in conjunction with their work brings more opportunities to the table.