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Capabilities/Public Relations

Awards, Events & Speaking Opportunities

We’ll help you raise visibility in more ways than one.

Award Submissions

Great companies are built by great people, and if your company is a “Best Place to Work” or The Wall Street Journal’s “Next Big Thing,” we’ll make sure everyone else knows about it.

Walker Sands identifies awards and recognitions that will have the biggest impact for you, whether it’s an industry award for great client work or a coveted spot on the Inc. 5000.

Awards catch the eye of investors, prospective clients and strategic partners and can be used as a tool to recruit top talent.

Here is just a sampling of the recognition our clients have earned:

  • The Wall Street Journal’s “Next Big Thing”
  • Gartner “Cool Vendor”
  • Microsoft Partner of the Year
  • Inc. 500/5000
  • Deloitte Fast 500
  • E&Y Entrepreneur of the Year
  • BtoB Magazine Top Agency
  • CNN’s “Coolest Gadgets of the Year”

Once we help you win, we’ll work with you to promote your big wins in a way that establishes credibility with the right audiences.

Press Tours

Some of the key press and analyst tour activities we assist with include:

  • Tour Planning. We begin with a discussion of objectives for doing a tour and an evaluation of options. Location, timing and news value are critical components. If we decide to pursue a tour, we determine dates and cities and create an initial list of target contacts for meetings.
  • Scheduling Meetings. We leverage our long-standing relationships with the media and analyst communities to schedule meetings and ensure productive interactions. Journalists and analysts are exceptionally busy, so our goal is to facilitate an interaction that is productive for both client and journalist.
  • Tour Preparation. We work with you to create and perfect tour materials, including corporate presentations and product demonstrations. We coach executives on presentation skills and we “practice, practice, practice” until everyone agrees that we are ready for show time. This includes not only walking through your presentation materials but also reviewing a long list of questions that we think you are likely to be asked, and defining good answers to even the toughest questions. We also provide a briefing document on each individual you will meet with so that you understand their background and interests.
  • Conducting the Tour. We accompany you on the tour, introduce you to the editors, and provide feedback after each meeting to help you improve your messages and your delivery. Our goal is to gain maximum exposure for your new product and to position your company as an industry innovator.
  • Tour Follow-Up. We take detailed notes during your meetings and follow up on any questions that were not answered or additional information that was requested. We also engage with the journalists or analysts to get their feedback and ensure they received and understood your key messages. We aggressively pursue coverage opportunities from the media and positive recommendations from the analysts.

Speaking Opportunities

The foundation of good PR is getting the right message in front of the right audience. Sometimes that means making a splash at conferences and events.

A PR event strategy can elevate your executives and customers as speakers at key industry trade shows, conferences and seminars while delivering a strong testimonial to the value of your company’s products and services.

Walker Sands places you in front of the key audiences in your industry. We work with you at every stage of the game, from assembling a who’s-who of industry experts for a panel discussion to polishing up a keynote deck.

With our comprehensive approach, we take the heavy lifting off your plate by:

  • Researching Opportunities. We develop an ongoing calendar of possible speaking opportunities that fit your strategic objectives. We draw upon our relationships with leading conference and trade show companies to improve your chances of securing a spot.
  • Submitting Proposals. When we find an appropriate speaking opportunity, we write and pitch winning abstracts and submit them as presentation proposals.
  • Preparing Presentations. We work with you to write your speech and perfect your presentation materials. We coach speakers on their presentation skills and we ensure that your delivery will be as high-impact as possible.

Whether it’s a major international conference or a regional trade show, Walker Sands will help you identify and pursue the events where you’ll see the strongest return on your investment.

Our clients have spoken or presented at the following conferences:

  • International Consumer Electronics Show (CES)
  • Dreamforce
  • Microsoft Convergence
  • Mobile World Congress
  • South by Southwest (SXSW)
  • VentureBeat Mobile Summit
  • Corporate Executive Board (CEB) Sales & Marketing Summit
  • Ad:tech
  • Money20/20
  • RSA
  • SaaStr
  • Publishing Business Conference & Expo