The year 2020 has been a time of grueling adjustment and challenges for so many of us. But, as people are realizing, this year has also brought both hard reflection and opportunities for growth. This rings true for Fineman PR: In November, Fineman PR was acquired by Phoenix-based, full-service marketing communications firm Off Madison Ave, exactly 32 years to the date (November 1, 1988) that I started my San Francisco public relations agency. The timing was no coincidence; it was meant to be.
When I started my public relations agency in the late eighties, I was determined to further define Public Relations and make it a more powerful and recognized tool in the marketing mix. There was no such thing as social media; fax machines and networked computers were what we thought of as high tech, and we used actual tablets and notebooks made of paper for notes. To say the least, we were less automated by today’s standards but still “smart,” just without smart devices.
For me, back then, defining PR for a wildly competitive marketplace meant developing a dynamic publicity machine, based on memorable, entertaining, and, perhaps, provocative story lines that showcased the values of my clients’ brands. As a brand marketing tool, my public relations methodology was, at its core, trust-building communications for the brand promise. It was to be ethical, attention-getting and crisp. At the same time, I knew there was so much more to public relations than just publicity. As we became more and more successful, clients began giving us more than one-dimensional work.
I fulfilled my vision with message-driven, national news for my clients, and so was born “Brand PR.” I coined that term to show that public relations could make a brand promise so viscerally meaningful – in language, stories, experiences and messages – that other factors (price, for example) lose relevance. In the decades to come, Fineman PR also earned national recognition for its 17-year running of the widely published “Top Ten PR Blunders of the Year” to comically demonstrate the public relations impact of an organization’s every word and action. We also developed the PANTCHEK crisis principals (don’t get caught with your pants down in a watershed moment).
Twenty years in, a new age was upon us, an age of videos, social media, clever digital graphics, significantly shorter attention spans and an exponential surge of online media outlets, citizen journalists and web-based forums. We upped our game to build that side of the business as client needs and demands continued to evolve.
Over the years, the caliber of Fineman PR’s clients and our results on their behalf have been the source of tremendous pride that continues to this day. From representing the two distinguished Napa Valley wineries that, 20 years previously, put California’s wine industry on the map (beating their French competitors in the 1976 Paris Blind Tasting), to creating memorable Brand PR programs for countless consumer packaged goods and natural foods brands; to coordinating major client events all the way to the White House; and supporting crisis clients around the clock in their most dire moments to do the right thing by their customers, employees and communities. We handled a few colorful and sometimes bizarre high-profile issues that most people wouldn’t believe unless you were in the room with us. At the core, we are known for bringing discretion and fresh thinking to each unique public relations challenge. As anyone who has worked with me will tell you, at Fineman PR, “spin” is a forbidden four-letter word.
Last year, I met David Anderson, co-founder and co-CEO of a highly competent and visionary digital agency based in Phoenix: Off Madison Ave. Besides being like-minded about our areas of expertise and our mutually dry senses of humor, and with David’s agency based on the solid principles of behavior design and digital communications, Off Madison Ave specialized in areas that we sought growth. In turn, David and his founding partner Roger Hurni valued our substantive approach to public relations, our reputation for quality work, our crisis communications expertise, and our 30-year track record. We knew fairly quickly there was a match, the kismet I mentioned in my opening paragraph.
Off Madison Ave’s acquisition of Fineman PR became official November 1st. Even amid the challenges and changes of 2020, our teams have melded (via Zoom) with high energy, creative sparks and excellent rapport. The two teams are surprisingly similar in temperament, complementary in our skills and strengths, and each appreciative of the capabilities we all bring to the party. I look forward to the next chapter of smart, creative growth and continued excellence. Many thanks to David, Off Madison Ave co-founder Roger Hurni and to my own team as we embark on this new adventure. I am, as always, grateful to my many friends in the business and valued clients who have been part of our journey and look forward to reconnecting as a member of the Off Madison Ave team.