Back in 2009 at the height of the financial meltdown, Andrew Ryan, APR chose the adventurous yet risky path when he decided to take the leap and form Commonwealth Partnerships, a strategic communications and media relations boutique firm focusing on the real estate, A/C/E (architecture, construction, and engineering), senior living, and professional services industries—the industries he is passionate about and for which he was interested in helping to make a real difference during a very slow economy.
Five years later, Andrew’s firm is still thriving with 40-50 percent year over year growth in revenue—a particularly extraordinary achievement considering that Andrew is just 31 years old. That is who Andrew is, though—a passionate professional who is committed to furthering the public relations professional while at the same time contributing to his community. This strong passion and work ethic, alongside stellar client performance and results, led to his selection as a Bronze winner in the “PR PRO of the Year Under 40” category in Bulldog Reporter’s 2015 Stars of PR Awards.
Breaking into the industry
From a professional standpoint, Andrew’s career is packed with major successes. Right after graduating from the University of Richmond in 2006, Andrew embarked on a career in public relations as a Media Relations Assistant at American Enterprise Institute (AEI), a highly-respected Washington, D.C.-based think tank dedicated to research and education on issues of government, politics, economics and social welfare. During that time, Andrew worked in a two-person department to promote thought leadership for the in-house scholars, which included actively pitching scholars on issues surrounding U.S. economic, healthcare, education and defense policies.
Andrew with his Bulldog Stars of PR Award
Given that these topics were highly complex and ever-evolving, Andrew’s work was cut out for him. However, under the guidance of long-time PR veteran Veronique Rodman, he learned the ins and outs of public policy media relations. During his time at AEI, Andrew was successful in securing national and international media coverage for scholars like former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations John Bolton on foreign policy matters related to the Iraq War and human rights violations occurring in the Middle East. Andrew worked with many of AEI’s scholars to secure and coordinate on-air interviews as well as interviews and opinion pieces in some of the nation’s biggest publications, including The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal and the Washington Post.
During Andrew’s time at AEI, the organization saw an uptick in media inquiries and hits in part due to his diligence in positioning the scholars as world-class resources on public policy. As his former supervisor said of Andrew, “[He] is a born publicist. He is not only charming and innovative, but also insightful and a hard worker.”
Continuing the journey
After a year and a half, Andrew decided he wanted to continue his career in public relations and joined a small Washington, D.C.-based boutique firm.
At his new position, Andrew really had the opportunity to think creatively and innovatively about how public relations can be used to solve problems. A variety of PR campaigns—including complicated litigation at the appellate and Supreme Court level; a campaign on behalf of a New Jersey medical center; and a triumphant initiative that Andrew spearheaded on behalf of a Hungarian-American family that was trying to reclaim over 2,500 pieces of artwork that was stolen from them during Nazi occupation in World War II—led to Andrew being recognized by PR News’ 15 to Watch Under 30.
Launching his own firm
Andrew was just getting started. In 2009, he launched Commonwealth Partnerships with his business partner and set off to represent clients in industries in which he was passionate. One of those industries was real estate. In 2012, Commonwealth Partnerships was hired by HHHunt Communities to develop a comprehensive public relations and social media campaign for the real estate developer. Working with senior leadership, Andrew outlined several goals for the campaign including increasing inquiries about HHHunt’s neighborhoods, increasing home sales, creating more awareness in the Greater Richmond and Williamsburg communities about HHHunt’s philosophy behind its neighborhoods, and creating more awareness about new neighborhoods that the developer was launching. Using social media and traditional media relations as tactics, he was able to boost the HHHunt Communities brand by 500 percent on Facebook and was able to secure over two dozen stories about the developer over a one year period.
As a result of his work, Commonwealth Partnerships was engaged to grow its relationship with HHHunt in 2013 and represent the corporation as a whole which included a home building section, senior living, apartments, and communities. One of the most significant achievements that he was able to secure for the company were numerous feature articles in regional papers such as the Richmond Times-Dispatch and Roanoke Times as well as trade publications about how HHHunt was redefining the real estate development industry by focusing more on giving back to the communities it was in. HHHunt had a long history of giving back to various community organizations such as the YMCA and Habitat for Humanity but never received much attention about those efforts. Andrew created an in-depth plan to use social media and public relations as a tool to bring about more awareness of these initiatives. This was critical to the success of the company since more and more buyers/renters were interested in living in communities that were contributing to society. One metric that HHHunt likes to share is that Andrew took over HHHunt’s Facebook page when there were only 34 Likes. After only a year and a half he has built it to almost 700 Likes through organic growth.
Andrew’s management of the relationship with HHHunt shows the amazing opportunities that exist when tangible results are achieved for a client. Each year HHHunt has grown into a larger client.
Another innovative approach to PR harkened back to his days at AEI of promoting thought leadership. Working with a professional service client who was interested in developing a brand about building companies from the ground up, Andrew came up with the idea of pitching the individual to Forbes for a bi-weekly column on the magazine’s website. The client loved the idea and Andrew worked with him to create an editorial calendar and topic list for the columns. Over a two year period, the column was widely read and the client was contacted by small business owners and entrepreneurs from all over the world for assistance. As a result, the client became an investor and mentor for many of the entrepreneurs who contacted him through the column.
A community-minded perspective
All of this is admirable in the context of his PR career but one of the main reasons that Andrew wanted to start his own firm was that he wanted to give back to his community. In 2009, Andrew was elected to serve on the Board of Directors for the Richmond Chapter of PRSA. He has made a lasting impact on the Chapter, including creating a lunch buddy program to help new members meet and network with existing members. He has also mentored several younger members of the chapter with career and professional advice. Over the past year, Andrew was responsible to developing a new set of by-laws for the Chapter to help the organization through its growth. This year, Andrew is serving as the President of the Chapter.
In addition to his PRSA responsibilities, Andrew is an active volunteer with several other organizations such as Virginia Supportive Housing where he was honored with the 2013 Bob Sledd Volunteer of the Year Award for his work in chairing the homeless organization’s 25th anniversary. He also received a commendation from U.S. Senator Mark Warner for receiving the award. He currently sits on the Board of Housing Virginia, a statewide partnership of public and private organizations and committed to providing access to high quality, affordable housing in suitable locations.
Andrew’s leadership qualities continue to be recognized around the Greater Richmond region and statewide. He was selected to be a member of the Class of 2014 for Leadership Metro Richmond, a community leadership development organization with a mission to connect and educate diverse groups of community leaders, inspiring them to serve the Greater Richmond region. He was also the 2013 recipient of Style Weekly’s 40 Under 40 in Greater Richmond.
In addition to community service, Andrew is very active in several industry-specific professional organizations such as former chair of the Advocacy Committee for the Henrico County Business Council and a Board member for the Home Building Association of Richmond.
A professional development champion
As unbelievable as it sounds, Andrew is also committed to professional development on top of this professional and community activities. In 2013 he received his Accreditation in Public Relations from the Universal Accreditation Board and PRSA, as well as certificates from the University of Richmond’s School of Continuing Studies.
Andrew may not represent Fortune 500 companies but he is doing the thing he loves in the industries that he is most excited about. Throughout his career thus far, he has demonstrated professional leadership, integrity, contributions to the profession, a passion to improve society, and breakthrough solutions to communications approaches.
Andrew took the time to offer some comprehensive and inspiring insights to Bulldog Reporter:
What are the biggest challenges for today’s PR professionals, and how have you overcome them?
The constantly evolving landscape of communications channels is a significant challenge for PR professionals. It’s easy to want to jump on the newest tool or platform, but I think it’s important to evaluate a channel before spending time and resources on it. Understanding who your client or organization is trying to reach remains paramount as is recognizing how they receive information. Whether it’s through earned, paid, social, or owned channels, it can be overwhelming and easy to fall into a trap of trying to do too much. I’ve overcome this challenge through consistent research of our clients and their audiences. That research shouldn’t stop once a campaign begins. As the number of communication channels continues to rise, I think earned media is more critical than ever because it can credential your organization or client and help you rise above all of the chaos and noise. Also, don’t forget about tried and true methods of media relations. Relying on traditional tools, such as press releases and media pitches, can still be very effective and shouldn’t be overlooked.
A second challenge is the integration of PR, marketing, and communications. Increasingly, our clients see PR, social media, marketing, and communications on the same field. This integration is both challenging and exciting. Braking down of traditional roles offers opportunities for PR professionals to showcase their value as a strategic resource. We’ve all heard that content is king and it is. PR professionals are experts are crafting and leveraging content in ways that support their client or organization’s goals. The shifting nature of our industry can be uncomfortable, but holds a great deal of opportunity for PR professionals.
What key attributes define your approach to PR and communications?
Three attributes define my approach to PR and communications: Resourcefulness, creativity, and humanity. I believe that PR and communications professionals should strive to be trusted advisors for their clients, whether internal or external. PR professionals need to position themselves as a resource in order to become that trusted partner. How can you help someone achieve their goals? What can you do to make a client’s life easier? How are you are thinking proactively about client needs? These are key questions to ask yourself when you’re serving as a resource. The same approach works well with members of the media. PR professionals, especially those who focus on media relations, should consider themselves a resource for media outlets. You’re trying to help connect them with the best sources that will inform their audiences. You’re also sharing unique or interesting stories that they might not be aware of otherwise. Of course, this also means that you have to be honest with yourself and clients, and not pitch stories you know are worthless. I keep this mindset of resourcefulness on every project.
Creativity is another key attribute and it relates to resourcefulness. There are so many ways to tell a story now and so many people trying to share their story/messaging. Our firm works hard to find creative ways to share stories from our clients and it’s served us well. My team and I try to look for unique or new perspectives and angles on a topic. Creativity can be tough and take a lot of time, but the investment is always worth the effort.
Humanity might seem like a strange attribute, but I believe a key to my success is directly related to the ways in which I treat others. There is no need to be rude or curt. Rather than simply saying “no” or “that can’t be done,” team members at my firm and I try to find an alternative solution. By proposing another solution, you’re being proactive. People want to work with others who are solution oriented. Similarly, when working with reporters or other members of the media, I always try to treat them with respect. I may disagree with a decision they make, but am always polite. Finally, simply saying “thank you” to someone can go a long way toward building a positive relationship.
In what unique ways do you approach and build rapport with reporters and influencers?
As I mentioned above, I think the first priority needs to be on treating reporters and influencers with respect. When approaching reporters and influencers, I also try to ensure that I have something that would actually be of interest to them. Trying to convince someone that the story or relationship you’re advocating for is worthwhile and newsworthy when it’s not is a difficult job and one that people see through quite easily.
Additionally, it’s hard to go back to someone again when they don’t trust you or think that you’re pitching garbage. I’m not afraid to ask for help, either. If I’m not sure who to reach out to at a specific outlet, I ask someone there (usually a managing editor, section editor, or assignment editor). I’ll tell them that I’m not sure who to contact and explain why I reached out to them. I ask for their help in pointing me in the right direction. This works a lot. Reporters and influencers appreciate the explanation upfront and don’t think I’m just sending a blanket pitch to them. It’s about building trust and relationships. Asking for help is a great way to do this.
Another unique tactic is brutal honesty. For example, I’ve approached reporters during down times (i.e., late summer, holidays, etc.) when I thought they might have a more difficult time finding a source. I mention that if they’re having trouble tracking down sources, I can connect them with credible sources and relevant stories that they may have missed during busier times. Looking for these opportunities in unexpected places and at slower times has worked for me.
Secrets of Success: Andrew offers the following recommendations to other PR colleagues to help them achieving similar goals and accolades—demonstrating why he was awarded a Bronze in Bulldog’s 2015 Stars of PR Awards in the “PR PRO of the Year Under 40” category:
First, think creatively and proactively. Don’t just settle for “no,” but find an alternative solution that will help your client achieve their goals.
Second, be a resource for others. This list should include your managers, clients, colleagues and reporters/influencers. When others see you as indispensable and a trusted advisor, you’ll get more opportunities and results.
Third, treat others with respect. PR and communications is all about relationships. You need to build, maintain, and grow a variety of relationships in your career. If you’re rude, difficult, or unethical others won’t want to work with you. It’s an easy way to undermine your growth professionally and personally. I believe that much of my success is a result of how I’ve treated others and worked with them.
Richard Carufel
The post Industry Passion, Unflappable Integrity and an Adventurous PR Spirit Earn Andrew Ryan a Bulldog Bronze as “PR Pro of the Year Under 40” appeared first on Bulldog Reporter.