Blog

In preparation for our 10^th Anniversary, we did for Curley Company what we tell clients to do all the time: focus on the message. We asked ourselves, “What is our message? Why is Curley Company different from other PR firms?”

We put pen to paper (me) and fingers to screens (the rest of the team) to define how we do business. We were all wordsmiths (naturally! PR pros can debate a synonym endlessly), but documenting our message was actually very easy. We identified what makes us unique—the values at the core of our organization and our commitment to live each principle to the best of our ability each day.

Here’s what you can expect from Curley Company:

• We put our clients first.
• We are grounded and engaged in the world around us—as it impacts our work, as it impacts our future.
• We do what we say we will do.
• We like what we what do and the people we do it with—our clients, our colleagues, our partners.
• We treat others as we would like to be treated.
• We are curious, resourceful and creative, and yet, organized, efficient and decisive.
• We do our best work, every single day.

Each value speaks for itself and, as a collection, this list speaks for us. These values are what distinguish Curley Company from being just another face in the crowd.

There is a reason why people celebrate birthdays—cake. With this milestone each year comes an excuse for the “corner piece” or just one more bite. In our house, we start discussing which flavor to have weeks before the actual day. Will it be red velvet (mine), angel food (Paul’s), or Funfetti® (the girls)?  

In the PR business, we often use birthdays or anniversaries as a communications “hook” for clients; these milestones are a valuable opportunity to share an important message about their organization. Over the years, Curley Company has been hired many times to develop a communications strategy to capitalize on this annual spotlight. Most recently, we worked with The Century Council to celebrate their 20th Anniversary. We helped create a year-long celebration which started with cake (naturally) and culminated in an inspirational gala dinner at the Newseum. It was a proud moment for both The Century Council and our team.

We’ve also noticed a few other campaigns that remind us how impactful a birthday can be.

• When @USNatArchives celebrated their 75^th Anniversary, they went “Big!” A special exhibit featured “big items,” such as General Douglas MacArthur’s military personnel file and Shaq’s size 22 shoe.
• To honor their centennial, Universal Studios launched an interactive timeline through 100 years of movies. Even 50 years later, you still have to watch the sky for The Birds!
• In 2011, Twitter turned 5 years old. According to their birthday blog post, users were sending 140 million Tweets each day or one billion Tweets every 8 days. By comparison, it took 3 years, 2 months, and 1 day to reach the first one billion Tweets.

Now it’s our turn. In 2012, Curley Company celebrates 10 years!

This birthday is our chance to shine a spotlight on the Curley Company and our clients, and it starts right here on the blog. I never thought I would choose to blog (who has time to create all that content?!), but as we tell our clients, it’s a great way to tell your own story. So this year, we are going to practice what we preach. We’re going to make time to blog about our vision and our business.

Throughout the year, we’ll share our dedication to client service, introduce you to the Curley team, and often talk in “10s.” To celebrate 10 years, we will feature our ten favorite event venues, social media trends, local restaurants and more. Most importantly, we’ll write about our values and how those influence our work every day. With these as our guide, we’ll surely get to celebrate our own 20^th Anniversary soon enough.

Happy Birthday Curley Company!

In 2011, Curley Company helped many of our clients get more comfortable with social media. As it became easier, it was more fun, too. Our team began communicating with each other at the watercooler, over email, and through text messages via hashtag-style snippets instead of complete sentences. We just said #hashtagit—and great meetings became #loveourclients; company lunches meant #bondingtime; and long afternoons were simply #needcoffee.

This new year promises more fun and interesting work, but before we focus on the future, we reflected on a few of the successes from the past year. There is no better way to share the 2011 Curley Company client highlights other than to #hashtagit.

1. #improudtosay
In 2011, we introduced a new Curley Company team, declared our values, and created a strategic PR plan for the company—we are our newest “client.” Hard to say now the cobbler’s kid has no shoes.

2. #strongwomen
We welcomed the National Network to End Domestic Violence as a client and will support them as they bring over 1000 advocates and activists from all over the world to the 2nd World Conference of Women’s Shelters this coming February.

3. #techprom
Annual @CenDemTech dinner. Say no more.

4. #72hourpastrami
Our team helped kick off the national release of Modernist Cuisine: The Art and Science of Cooking with a whirlwind media launch in NYC. Author Nathan Myhrvold made appearances on Today, The Colbert Report, and Charlie Rose, among others.

5. #mobilefriendly
During the National Hispanic Media Coalition 25th Anniversary awards reception, we incorporated an online registration system that allowed guests to check-in on iPads and smart phones. We are excited to continue using this technology at events and meetings to make life easier for our clients. Thanks @eventfarmhand.

6. #flawless
We loved @centurycouncil‘s 20th Anniversary Celebration at the Newseum, complete with a 200-foot video introduction from Shaquille O’Neil.

7. #newlooknewfeel
Our team created a fresh appearance for the Air Medical Operators Association’s materials and website.

8. #privacyexpert
Our client @Jim_Adler took the leap and tweeted his way to a milestone 650 followers on Twitter. Follow him for thoughts on “privacy, data, leadership, and voting.”

9. #cloudworthy
It was all about the cloud at a series of Commission events we helped @TechAmerica implement around the country.

10. #atlonglast
After years of deliberation, Congress passed the America Invents Act, a landmark patent reform bill that our client Intellectual Ventures supported to encourage innovation and invention.

At Curley Company, we look forward to sharing more highlights in the coming year. Follow us here as we #bringon2012.