Brooke Hammerling on how early-stage startups should think about PR

It’s easy to remember the big names in tech. But we often forget about the operators who help them along the way. When it comes to the person behind the person, few are as notable and experienced as Brooke Hammerling.

I sat down with the Brew PR founder (and new pop culture newsletter author), who sold her firm to Freuds in 2016 for $15 million, to discuss how startups should think about media presence, when they should go about hiring a comms lead or an agency, and how to go about that process.

Hammerling founded Brew PR 15 years ago during a pivotal time in the communications industry. Tech was starting to gain traction, and the incumbent communications agencies were still pretty much doing things the same way: cold calls and emails.

She graduated from Rollins College in 1996 and worked in-house at a firm called MobShop. She then did some consultant work for firms like Oracle corporate, Electronic Arts corporate, Xfire, Fractal Edge and then worked at an agency called Zeno (formerly PR21) before setting her own course with Brew.

The company’s title was a play on Brooke’s own name; her parents called her “Broo” when she was growing up. She said that the word made her think of a witch’s cauldron, where the final spell would be a perfectly stewed mix of various ingredients — both from the founder and the team she assembled.

“I never felt comfortable being a solo act,” said Hammerling. “I love being a part of something.” 

There were a few rules. The company focused on the technology sector, particularly on emerging technology, and demanded to work directly with the founder, not just the comms team. 

Timing was a big part of Brew’s success, she recalled. Technology was suddenly on everyone’s mind as new products and brands brought innovation to consumers. Silicon Valley and San Francisco were far more accessible and open, and few tech entrepreneurs were considered to be superstars or industry leaders. Hammerling embedded herself in the community and read everything she could get her hands on.

But the tech side is but half of the media agency recipe. The tech media was experiencing the same barrage of disconnected and unwanted emails and phone calls from people they’d never heard of pitching them on companies or events they’d never heard of.

Hammerling. Read. Everything.

She took the time and energy to understand what individual reporters cared about, their stance on big issues and the general landscape of the industries they covered. She built relationships with reporters and promoted a culture within Brew where the media was treated like a client.

It’s been 15 years. Brew has represented brands like SmartThings (sold to Samsung), August Lock, Oracle, Netsuite, and the list goes on. 

This interview has been edited for length and clarity. 

TechCrunch: How has the tech PR landscape changed?

Brooke Hammerling: Never before have we seen a time where the founders of these businesses are directly involved with their storytelling. They’re the ones who are passionately involved, and they’re their own PR machine. Whether they’re public facing or behind the scenes doesn’t even really matter.

There were many many companies back in the day where the head of communications and PR and the CEO would probably not have a direct partnership. They would fall under the CMO or the marketing department and it was all this product-driven stuff.

Now, the CEO or the founder is the voice of the company. So that communications partner becomes a very trusted, key partner in many cases. And I encourage founders and CEOs, if they don’t have that direct relationship with their head of comms, to make it that. Because they sort of become your guide around how to tell that story, how to structure it, who to tell that story to. And it shouldn’t be based on numbers or what numbers are the result of, or on stats or data. It should be based on pure understanding and passion for your brand.

TechCrunch: What are the biggest PR ‘don’ts’ on the client side? What should founders avoid doing when meeting with comms agencies or when they’re in the process of securing coverage?

Hammerling: I’m always surprised that some people don’t really understand what you should and shouldn’t do when communicating with someone. Maybe because it comes more naturally to me. Even as recently as last week, I had someone come to me saying they wanted to yell at somebody for what they wrote about them that they didn’t agree with. And they were serious.

Once I pointed out that that wasn’t a very good idea, they understood and even said that they didn’t think about it that way.

I wouldn’t have a job if this came easy to everybody. But my instincts, and those of really good communications people, is that we can see five steps ahead and figure out how to get to that outcome.

Generally, what I tell founders is that if their instincts aren’t good on the communications side, don’t do knee jerk reactions. Think before you tweet. Think before you email. Get guidance from somebody else if you’re questioning a writer or an influencer or thought leader. Don’t pick a fight. Not everything needs to be said.

These are things I find myself saying quite a bit.

Don’t lie. Don’t promise and then have to back out of that promise when things change. Don’t say yes to everything.

TechCrunch: What’s the craziest request you’ve ever gotten from a client?

Hammerling: There was a founder that we ended up not taking on as a client, actually. But we were just getting ready to sign, and he sent back a request within the contract to secure the cover of Forbes within three months. And this was an unknown founder. And the company wasn’t doing something really grandiose enough to warrant that, but he really wanted it written in the contract that they’d be on the cover of Forbes. To me, that was a sign that he was going about this thing for the wrong reasons.

You know, people see how open I am on Twitter and that I have relationships with people that aren’t clients. And they’ll send me requests like, “hey, we’re trying to come up with a six-month strategy and communications plan. Would you mind giving me some thoughts on this?”

They’re basically asking me to give away my work for free. So that happens quite a bit and I’m shocked by that. I wouldn’t walk up to McDonald’s and be like, “I’m feeling really hungry today. Just give me a burger.”

We all have our moments, but if a CEO starts to yell or scream or call people names, even in the heat of the moment, it’s not acceptable.

Another time, years ago, I met this founder. Some high-profile investors insisted that I meet with him, so I ended up changing my flight from SF back to New York in order to meet with him. When he showed up, he was a sophomore at Stanford and everything he was wearing had a Stanford logo on it, from the cap to the jacket to the shirt. The tie, the khaki pants, the briefcase. I was shocked by the whole entire look.

When we started talking about budget, he looked at me with real shock in his eyes. He said, “Oh no no no, you don’t seem to understand. You’re going to pay to work with me. I’m not paying you. I’m giving you the opportunity to work with me. I’ll give you a little bit of equity if this works after three months, and then we can talk about a bigger partnership.”

I literally walked out of the meeting laughing. The business flamed out very publicly before it ever launched.

TechCrunch: You mentioned that you’ve been lucky to have so many amazing clients. But have you ever had to fire a client? If so, why?

Hammerling: This is a very, very emotional business. To a founder, their startup is their baby. And you don’t tell somebody that their baby is ugly. So, when somebody writes something that they don’t agree with, that can be very difficult and very emotional. And some people handle emotions better than others.

We all have our moments, but if a CEO starts to yell or scream or call people names, even in the heat of the moment, it’s not acceptable. I’ve seen people blow up over the smallest things with the largest explosions. That’s unacceptable.

There were certainly instances over the years of mistruths being told. We just couldn’t deal with that. Generally speaking, that doesn’t usually come straight from the CEO. They may have had people working for them that passed on misinformation to them, but we would then deliver it to the media. And that put us in a line of fire that’s not acceptable.

It’s ok to say “no” or “no comment,” but never lie.

TechCrunch: So when a founder reads a story and it turns out the author called their baby ugly, they obviously shouldn’t throw a fit. But what should they do?

Hammerling: If it’s online and there are errors — actual errors — you can certainly send a note to the media to correct it. For example, if a number is incorrect or a name is misspelled. And that’s become easier with online media. But founders need to know that a lot of these places — the Wall Street Journal, New York Times, Forbes — have a system where the author doesn’t generally pick the headline. Other editors do that. A lot of people ‘love the story, hate the headline,’ and there isn’t much you can do about that.

I had a founder say to me recently, “why didn’t they just write what was in the press release?” I had to explain that the press release is generally not how reporters write a story.

I always tell people to try not to read into it. If it’s a personal dig about you, like what you’re wearing or how you look, then just know that moving forward you will spend your time with other journalists. But if it’s about the business, and there’s a knock on it, you need to really take a hard look before it gets out of control.

Don’t blame the journalists and say “there must have been an installation problem” or “user error.” Maybe there was a real situation. Maybe they’re giving you something real to look into. These are seasoned people who know what they’re doing.

All that said, if you’re working with media to tell your story, it’s not the media’s job to write a press release. The media has to be careful and look at competitors and talk about the landscape of the industry. They’re not going to give a big wet kiss to every company and say “This is the best thing since sliced bread.”

Exposing yourself to public domain, getting media to write about you, is a double-edged sword. You do get awareness, and it could be amazing. You might get investment or it could help with recruiting, customer acquisition, brand recognition. But there’s always going to be that other side where they’re going to raise questions, and look at the weaknesses. If there is a weakness, the reporters are going to find it. If there is a big competitor, the reporters are going to write about it. It’s not the reporters’ job to sit there and say “I’m your marketing person.” Sometimes, people forget that.

TechCrunch: There does seem to be a surprising lack of understanding when it comes to the process of reporting and writing a story.

Hammerling: I’ve worked with a lot of young entrepreneurs and I just forget that many of them don’t know the rules of engagement. I had a founder say to me recently, “why didn’t they just write what was in the press release?”

I had to explain that the press release is generally not how reporters write a story. A press release can be useful for some things — all the pertinent information is in one place — but for a quote or anything real in the article, it’s not going to come from copy and paste on a press release.

I’ve had founders tell me that they’re just going to send the reporter a quote. And again, I have to explain that that’s just not how it works.

TechCrunch: So when should a company start thinking about PR, whether it’s hiring someone internally or an external agency? Is there a particular category or stage of company when it’s time to flip that switch?

Hammerling: There is no steadfast rule. It’s really dependent on the company and founder. I have this rule of thumb. If you’re an early-stage company, and you’re an unknown founder, and you’re coming out with your own take on something, you don’t want to spend your money on PR too early. You want to spend that money on product development and engagement and engineering and so forth.

There are so many great companies out there who have great stories that they just didn’t know how to freakin’ craft, and they never saw the light of day.

And that’s why we think it’s important for those founders to build relationships with some of the key media. You don’t need to have 75 stories about you. It just takes one or two to get things going from there once you have a journalist who has a deep understanding of early-stage companies and innovation.

Some early-stage companies should get help earlier than others. Zynga is a good example. Mark Pincus was a legacy CEO and someone who was well-known in the community. So it was important for him, before launching what was going to an incredibly disruptive category, to have his ducks all in a row because every spotlight was going to be on whatever he was going to do next.

It’s super important for a legacy CEO, someone who already has a footprint in the industry, to have their storytelling and messaging and the articulation of that message correct before they ever get their first customer.

In cases where you’re launching a super-controversial business, it’s important to have somebody there who knows the delicacies and the intricate nature of messaging. Because that’s what it comes down to. There are so many great companies out there who have great stories that they just didn’t know how to freakin’ craft, and they never saw the light of day.

TechCrunch: So when a company is ready to go out and bring on a PR agency or a comms person, what should they expect? What should they hire for?

Hammerling: Well, first of all, you get what you pay for. A company that’s just raised $40 million will come in and say that it’s really important for them to get their name out there, but we don’t have the budget to spend $7,000 to $10,000 a month on PR. And these same companies will pay for any other service they’re getting, but they don’t understand the value-add of PR.

It’s an expensive investment, and it should be because you’re getting exceptional leadership and strategy around what to do with the story. It’s not just about announcements.

There are different kinds of announcements — a funding announcement, or product announcement or what some people call a ‘momentum’ announcement, which is around new hires or progress in the business. But it’s the stories in between announcements that are most important. You need to navigate that storytelling, and that happens outside of the usual press release-driven communications.

You want someone who can straddle both and set a strategy so you can communicate different stories to different audiences. You want someone who knows the media who are covering that space, and not just the media. Some outrageous percentage of Gen Z trusts Kim Kardashian the same or more than the Wall Street Journal. So someone who can navigate getting in front of people with a voice, who have a big footprint.

You want someone who can push back on the founder and not say “yes” to everything. Someone who is structured in their approach and can make sure everyone knows what they should be doing with a clear understanding of the rules of engagement.

It’s not about getting the same story in 30 different publications. No journalist wants to write the same story as all their peers. A great comms person knows how to be more targeted in their approach while still being transparent with the media about the fact that other publications might be covering the story.

Founders need to find the person that they can really lean into to help guide them, and someone who knows the key journalists and can get through the noise to have a direct relationship. The way that PR people get there is to take the time to build the relationships and get in front of journalists, whether it’s over coffee or meeting up at a conference or on social media.

TechCrunch: What kind of questions should founders ask when interviewing agencies?

Hammerling: Well, whether it’s agencies or an in-house comms candidate, the first question a founder should always ask is “Do you get what we do?” and “Are you excited about what we do?”

One of the reasons Brew was successful was because we would never take a client just because they could pay us. If you could pay us $100,000/month and we didn’t believe in your product, then you are going to be a terrible client. So what’s the point?

The second thing is to get a feel for their understanding of the category. They have to know the category, the market, the media in it, the places to be and the conferences.

And third, don’t expect to hear a six-month strategy during the interview. An agency can’t come up with that in any meaningful way without coming on board. 

Founders shouldn’t be looking for agencies that promise coverage up front. You should be looking out for an agency to say, “This would probably be really interesting to so-and-so writer, and I’d like to bring it to them early,” as opposed to “I just had lunch with so-and-so writer and they’re my best friend and I guarantee they’ll cover this story.” People promise and the founders get really frustrated. There’s no formula to make sure everybody writes the story.

There’s also a personality factor. You have to feel comfortable, that you trust them but also that you enjoy them. PR people are almost like therapists to their clients. There is a lot of counseling and listening and talking about emotions, and sometimes having to push back on that. So if you don’t have somebody that you enjoy or are interested in working with more than just a little bit, it’s probably not the right fit for you.

You also want to look for an agency with minimal turnover. It doesn’t matter how much you’re paying an agency if their people keep changing. That becomes problematic for the client because they’re building relationships with that person and with the media via that person.

TechCrunch: Is there an order of operations when it comes to external vs. internal comms? Should a founder hire an in-house comms lead before an agency, or vice versa?

Hammerling: First and foremost, it’s about opportunity. If you happen to meet someone that’s in PR and you really click with them and love them, whether they’re at an agency or in-house somewhere, you should grab that person. You do what you can. And if they aren’t grabbable — maybe they don’t want to leave where they’re at — then at least you know them and can trust them to give you a really good recommendation for someone else.

Invest in what you’re not best at.

That being said, things don’t always just drop in your lap. So if it’s time to bring on an agency, there are some amazing best-of-breed agencies out there that focus on early-stage startups or B2B businesses or are particularly suited to securing business coverage or trade coverage.

Figure out what your specific goals are before you go searching for an agency.

TechCrunch: To close us out, is there any advice you’d like to leave founders with?

Hammerling: When you’re an early-stage founder, it is such a hustle. You are the brand person, you’re the creative, you are the fundraiser and the director of marketing and the HR director and the lead comms person. Founders wear so many hats. And many of the younger entrepreneurs are just born that way. They don’t notice that they’re doing so many different jobs.

The problem is that you can’t sustain that. So I tell founders to recognize when they start to see things slip. You can’t stay up for 24 hours a day. Eventually, things will slip and you need to recognize that and identify where your skill sets are best utilized.

There are some companies who are great at PR. They happen to be amazing, and they don’t need to invest that early on in PR. Maybe you don’t like dealing with all the office management stuff. Invest in what you’re not best at.