SHIFT Communications is the public relations agency that does what no other has dared to do: We measure our performance according to the impact that we have in driving your business forward. It’s a powerful, versatile, highly logical concept. Yet it’s not one you’ll find at other PR firms. That's because at SHIFT we have a strict No Hype policy.

The truth is that most other PR firms measure their success according to the press coverage they generate. Sure, it’s easy to measure, but ultimately, it ignores any impact upon the client’s business objectives.

We think it’s time that public relations offers more traction – more business traction. SHIFT PR programs generate revenue-enhancing results, and we measure our value accordingly. So along with tracking media coverage, bylined articles and speaking engagements, we track our impact on such key business objectives as sales lead generation, event attendance, reseller inquiries, and investment attraction — objectives that directly tie our PR to your bottom line. (Click for more about our Services.)

We know how to work with public companies as well as private ones, and companies in all stages of growth. Our teams have run highly successful agency relationships with large, multinational organizations that compete in mature markets. The team has also delivered results for small venture-funded start-ups and helped bootstrapped ventures establish mind share and capture market share.

Regardless of size or goals, all clients at SHIFT are treated as “A” List. Our innovative business model assures it. Every SHIFT client is guaranteed a strong, experienced account team that provides senior-level strategic counsel and exemplary tactical execution. Since no single client is responsible for any more than a small percentage of our revenues, our employees are empowered to provide public relations programs that are fully integrated with each client’s own business strategies. And we excel at providing PR, media relations, and marketing strategy that is both deeply insightful and unblinkingly honest.

1. What makes SHIFT Communications different from the hundreds of other public relations firms? What does SHIFT do better – and why?

While other firms talk a good game about the need for disciplined PR to help motivate sales, they continue to craft communications programs within the marketing “silo”; they continue to report solely to the marketing chief; they haul elephantine clip books to quarterly review meetings and bring a glossy version for the next Board of Directors meeting.

By contrast, SHIFT Communications’ unique approach is initiated at the intersection of the CEO’s vision, the marketing executive’s strategy and the sales field realities. We win in competitive situations thanks to the creativity of our ideas – which are based on how we can positively impact a client’s business, not just its reputation. Think, “Reputations That Drive Revenues” when you think “SHIFT.”

2. How does SHIFT define "public relations?"

We define the “public” in Public Relations as “prospects”. Our goal is to help clients develop transaction-based relationships with this audience. We do this by first, incrementally increasing awareness of the client within target segments (via media relations and e-marketing campaigns), and second, by developing messages and helping to create marketing programs that motivate transaction behaviors – whether it’s product sales, event attendance, partnership overtures, webinar registration, etc.

3. How does SHIFT demonstrate success? How does SHIFT prove to its clients that what it does works?

The PR industry’s historic inability to quantify its impact has led to frequent budgetary drubbings. SHIFT is trying to change that paradigm now; working with clients at the beginning of the engagement to ensure they are equipped to measure our performance.

PR can impact many types of transactions, but most often it needs to impact lead generation. The client organization must be capable of capturing, tracking and analyzing their lead flow, if they hope to measure the impact of PR and other marketing programs.

Once they have been empowered to do so (through process changes and/or technology investments), SHIFT’s clients find themselves able to make specific statements as:
“ Public Relations accounted for 32.7 percent of sales leads in the last quarter; of these leads, 20.1 percent were high quality and we closed 14 percent of them. Our churn among customers who came to us through Public Relations is 7 percent… etc., etc.”
With such sophisticated tracking power on-hand, PR always shines!

Now, re-read the sample quote above but replace “PR” with any other marketing campaign – e-mail, direct mail, advertising, etc. Or replace “sales” with “new stock holders” or “new partners” or “trade event and webinar attendees.” By helping clients identify and measure the results of the entire marketing program mix, SHIFT becomes more tightly engaged with its clients.

4. Does SHIFT have a formal "process" for approaching public relations challenges? What specific products does SHIFT employ?

Although the details of our processes are proprietary, broadly, they begin with Messaging Labs with a client’s CEO, the top sales executive (and, separately, with bellwether employees within the field sales force) and the marketing team. These sessions are held in tandem with LeadSensor™ that ensure our clients are able to accurately measure the results of their lead generation activities.

Once the message and strategy are set, SHIFT creates and deploys “High Performance” communications programs, ranging from traditional media relations and product launches to hard-core Competitive Relations campaigns.

5. What types of clients are most likely to benefit from SHIFT’S “ High Performance Public Relations” approach?

SHIFT works best with companies of $10M - $500M in revenues. We have two offices, in Boston and San Francisco, but our 50+ clients come from all over the world. Core is Technology, but our diverse client base includes an apparel company, a consumer device company, law firms, etc.

6. What would attract an employee to SHIFT? What are SHIFT’s values and why do they appeal to recruits and employees?

These are the values that make a SHIFT employee an “A Player”: Fearlessness. Loyalty. Honesty. Initiative. Optimism. Quality.

Fearlessness is the most valued trait and the most telling reason for why SHIFT attracts and retains creative and dynamic employees. We do not encourage malcontent but rather have structured our business in such a way that employees can tell their clients what they really think about the PR program, the message, etc., without fear of reprisal. If we lose a client as a result of such fearless counsel, no one loses a job. This creates an atmosphere of freedom and opportunity that motivates more effective programs and better client relationships.

7. What's the outlook for SHIFT in 2006?

SHIFT Communications will grow in 2006 by refining and marketing its sales-focused approach, and by adding service modules that will impact C-Suite executive teams more so than any other PR firm in the past. We are also exploring additional geographic and practice-based opportunities on a select basis. It’s all about smart growth, not growth for growth’s sake.