PHILADELPHIA BUSINESS JOURNAL
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“Changing an agency name from ‘communications’ to ‘public relations’ can indicate a move towards a more strategic focus. A name change can imply the addition of new capabilities and strengths.
— SUSAN MUDAMBI ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR OF MARKETING, TEMPLE UNIVERSITY’S FOX SCHOOL OF BUSINESS
THE TEAM AT KIMBALL HUGHES PUBLIC RELATIONS includes (front row) Public Relations Manager and Content Strategist Samantha Kimball, Senior Public Relations Manager Eileen Coyne, Vice President Rod Hughes, (back row) President Gary Kimball, Media Relations Coordinator Elizabeth Rubino, Public Relations Associate Ryan Stephen, Public Relations Associate Roxana Pita-Romero.
Preparing for leadership transition, Montco PR agency rebrands BY KENNETH HILARIO PBJ Reporter
T
he appointment of a new partner at a Philadelphia-area public relations agency has called for a rebrand and new name to reflect the new leadership moving forward. Gary Kimball in 1995 founded the eponymous Kimball Communications, a Blue Bell, Pa.-based PR agency that specializes in insurance, real estate law and trade associations, among others. The agency in 2016 named its thenvice president Rod Hughes as partner after he joined the agency four years prior. With Hughes now a partner, Kimball Communications will be known as Kimball Hughes Public Relations. The rebrand is meant to communicate the leading role Hughes will have in the company. Since joining the agency in 2012, Kimball has doubled in size and expanded its services. Since 2012, business has grown 12 to 21 percent annually, Kimball told the Philadelphia Business Journal, and he projects growth in 2017 to be
in the “upper end of that range.” “The new name tells our prospective clients what our current clients already know, which is that when they deal with Rod they are dealing with the next head of the agency,” Kimball added. Renaming an agency to include more than one partner is an important signal to current and prospective clients. It “sends a clear message about leadership,” said Susan Mudambi, associate professor of marketing at Temple University’s Fox School of Business. Many small agencies avoid thinking about its succession plan, which could be a red flag for potential clients. “Changing an agency name from ‘communications’ to ‘public relations’ can indicate a move towards a more strategic focus,” Mudambi said. “A name change can imply the addition of new capabilities and strengths.” Kimball will focus on growing the agency’s crisis communications practice and new business development efforts; Hughes will work with account managers. The agency has grown to seven full-time staff members and three consultants; three new employees were
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added in the past 18 months, including an account manager. The newly rebranded company also anticipates growing its work force in 2018, Kimball said. Kimball Hughes Public Relations in June this year moved into new offices with more working space and room for future growth, and the agency in the first half of the year added eight new clients. A number of Philadelphia-area marketing communications agencies have undergone rebrands, most recently two women-owned agencies, Furia Rubel Communications and Spryte Communications. “The good news for the agency is that when clients read about a rebranding, they might also start thinking about their own needs for change and improvement,” Temple’s Mudambi said. Kimball Hughes Public Relations is evolving alongside the PR industry, which has also changed and adapted, particularly with the rise of digital media. “This has a lot to do with the Great Recession and its impact on advertising and marketing budgets,” Kimball said.
“The recession proved to business leaders how much mileage they could get out of a good PR strategy or campaign.” It’s positioned in-house PR professionals and agencies as primary resources, rather than secondary or tertiary resources, in the development of business decisions, he added. Public relations budgets have grown year over year as a result. The global public relations field is expected to grow from its current $14 billion size to $19.3 billion by 2021, according to a 2016 report conducted by the University of Southern California’s Annenberg Center for Public Relations and the Holmes Report. Additionally, agency leaders said they anticipate company headcount would increase 26 percent by 2021 to accommodate the growth, according to the report that surveyed over 1,000 PR senior executives. “All survey respondents agree that in five years their jobs will become more complex, challenging and strategic,” according to the Holmes Report. About 87 percent of respondents said the term “public relations” will not describe the work they will do in the next five years.
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