Castle in Atlanta

VP Philip Hauserman spoke about crisis communications planning and response strategies at the annual meeting of the Florida Independent College and Risk Management Association in West Palm Beach, Florida.

Philip discussed the best ways to manage crisis situations at the kickoff luncheon of the Alabama Chapter of 
Risk and Insurance Management Society in Birmingham, Alabama. 
He co-presented with members of the Atlanta and Birmingham offices of the insurance brokerage firm of McGriff, Seibels & Williams
a subsidiary of BB&T Holdings Inc.

Castle on Maui


Aloha! Castle Events SVP Keri McIntosh spent time talking about our global events practice with Seattle PRGN partner, Aaron Blank, CEO & President, The Fearey Groupwhile he was visiting Maui. 

This week, Castle welcomes a client in the government sector to the Hawaiian Islands for a three-night, four-day program on Oahu at the Turtle Bay Resort. 

Castle Wins! 


Castle has won the 
Best Non-Profit/Charity Fundraising Event category for our work with  Family Reach Foundation
The International Business Awards annually recognizes outstanding performance in the workplace worldwide.  Castle produced Family Reach Foundation's second annual Imagine Session uniting stakeholders in a think-tank style event to elevate awareness of the financial toxicity of cancer and generate collaborative and innovative solutions to this national problem.

Castle was also once again featured on the  Boston Business Journal
list of the top public relations firms in the region.

Castle in the Community

We hosted our annual Write Boston 
Job Shadow Day, where students from the organization's Summer Journalism Institute joined us for a writing and social media workshop. Three years after creating this award-winning community program, we're thrilled to see a number of other area organizations, including The Boston Globe, following our lead and hosting WriteBoston students at their own annual events.

Castle is a  proud 
strategic partner of 
Tomorrow's Women TODAY's upcoming Events For Change on October 15, the second in an ongoing series. The event will bring together leaders from across the Commonwealth to discuss pressing topics impacting women in the workplace, such as power dynamics, allyship and women on boards. Castle clients Brown Advisory and 
Eos Foundation are involved as host and sponsor. 

Castle Outside of the Office

As a certified women-owned business, we're especially proud to participate in the 
Center for Women & Enterprise's annual Women Business Leaders Conference  on October 19. For the third year in a row, Sandy will emcee the day-long event. For more information visit the  CWE website .

The March of Dimes
  will hold its annual 
Black Ties for Babies Gala on October 20 at the UMass Club. The sold-out event will feature live entertainment, dinner and dancing, and a lively auction for a great cause. Funds raised support medical research, community programs, education and advocacy to ensure the health of all moms and babies. To support this event, visit the  March of Dimes website.

Family Reach Foundation  is hosting its first annual Night of Wonder event at the  Boston Children's Museum  on Saturday, October 27. Reach your inner child to ensure cancer-fighting children can experience the care-free joys of childhood. Castle is proud to sponsor this event. For tickets and sponsorship opportunities, please click here

Welcome New Clients
We're proud to serve these new clients:

  

  
 
 
Our crisis communications team was busy over the summer, having been engaged by clients in Connecticut (biomedical research institution), Massachusetts (healthcare providers, universities and independent schools) and an independent school in Alabama Our services included crisis management in high-stakes situations, as well as crisis responses training around social media scenarios.
Five PR Tips From a Former Journalist
By Peter Francis, PR Assistant Account Executive

As traditional media outlets see more newsroom cutbacks, reporters are working harder and longer in the face of tightening budgets and increasing public skepticism. With fewer reporters bearing heavier workloads, you have to be savvy when trying to place your news and reports.

When I was a reporter a short time ago, nine out of every ten pitches I received ended up in my digital trash bin, for a variety of reasons.
Here are a few tips to make a better impression with reporters -- and grab more coverage.

1. Develop a rapport

We're not splitting the atom. People are more likely to interact 
with -- and be more receptive to -- people they've spoken with before.

Before you do anything, be sure to do your homework. This means having a working knowledge of reporters, news directors, editors and digital content managers -- who they are and what they cover.

Once you've zeroed in on the people who might be interested in your pitch, reach out to them on the phone.

I know, nobody relishes phone interruptions. You know what else nobody relishes? Sifting through an inbox.

Put a voice with a name, and, if they're local, consider asking them to grab a cup of coffee. They're all busy and strapped for time, but if you make the right first impression, have something valuable to offer, and can work around their schedules, they may be willing to get to know you.

2. Don't waste their time and get to know their deadlines

Time is a priceless asset for anyone in a deadline-driven industry, but especially for reporters, who work (and live) in a 24-hour news cycle that is also driven by the Internet.

So ask them to grab that cup of coffee in a low-pressure setting when you're not pitching anything specific, and instead use it as an opportunity to learn more about what they need. Reporters are always looking for good sources and stories (and free coffee doesn't hurt).

Make it quick, give them a business card, and stay in touch every few weeks.

When you do pitch them, don't do it an hour before their evening deadline or at 3:30 p.m. on a Friday. This is a great way to get permanently banished to the "deleted items" section of their email.

3. Try to understand the places where reporters work -- and tailor your pitches accordingly
 
Sometimes it's not feasible to personally sit down with reporters, but always make the effort to speak with someone before pitching them for the first time.

Reporters are always looking for fresh angles and good reporters always try to include as many voices as possible in a story. If you're in the food service industry, for example, pitch your story about your company's efforts to reduce childhood obesity to a reporter in an area where obesity rates are prevalent.
 
If you're a venture capital firm, don't just pitch to business journals in big cities. Pitch smaller outlets about your efforts to spur investment in gateway, urban and rural areas.
 
Even if the reporter or editor says "thanks, but no thanks," you've at least put yourself on their radar as a future resource, and sometimes that's even better than one individual story.

To read the rest of this article, click here.
Castle Events Around the World
Producing events around the globe gives our event professionals a unique perspective on our industry. As a result, we consistently elevate client programs by utilizing cultural ideas, new trends and innovative technology. We believe that crossing borders allows us to bring home the best-of-the-best and bring the best from home to our clients across the world. In the next few months, we will be producing sales incentives programs, customer meetings, sales kick-off meetings, employee events and award celebrations throughout the US, in Europe and in the Caribbean.


  

Client News
Hospitality
Café Landwer CEO and Co-Founder Nir Caspi spoke to JewishBoston about moving to Boston to expand his restaurant business. The 75-store Israeli chain recently opened its first two US locations in Boston, in the Fenway and Cleveland Circle neighborhoods, with more to come... 

Healthcare
South Shore Health System spoke to The Patriot Ledger  about its new Chemotherapy Orientation pilot program, which educates patients about what to expect during cancer treatment.

Newton-Wellesley Hospital hosted another forum in its "Health & Higher Ed" series, which convenes hospital personnel and college administrators to discuss health issues affecting college campuses. The recent event addressed what the legalization of marijuana means for local college campuses and how marijuana use physically and psychologically affects students. 
 
Nonprofit
For the second year in a row, the Brain Aneurysm Foundation proudly teamed up with Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker as he declared September "Brain Aneurysm Awareness Month" throughout the Commonwealth.


Maicharia Weir Lytle , president and CEO, United South End Settlementswas profiled in the Boston Business Journal, where she discussed her vision for the 126-year-old nonprofit. Maicharia also appeared on Boston Neighborhood Network News with USES Coaching Manager Melody Valdes to discuss the nonprofit's new coaching model and its Change Maker Dinner events. 

Higher Education
College of Saint Rose President Carolyn Stefanco spoke with Diverse Issues in Higher Education  about the need to increase gender equity in higher education, specifically the number of women in executive leadership positions.

Upcoming Client Events
On September 27, client  Eos Foundation   partners with State House News Service on an event to release its findings on the Women's Power Gap in Higher Education Study and Report Card. The first-of-its-kind study looks at women's leadership at Massachusetts public and private colleges and universities, and ranks the schools in terms of gender parity. For more information, and to register, click here.

On October 1 and 2, our client Initiative for a Competitive Inner City will hold its 20th anniversary conference, and release its IC 100 list of the top inner city businesses in the country. ICIC, founded by Harvard Business School's Michael Porter and led today by CEO Steve Grossman, will convene business leaders from around the nation to discuss its milestone research into the strides our inner cities are making to fuel economic growth through job creation, revenue and innovation. WCVB's Karen Holmes Ward will emcee the award ceremony. The program includes sessions with national business leaders including former Governor Deval Patrick and Sundial Brands CEO Richelieu Dennis, and an award to Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh. For more information, and to register, click here. 

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Sincerely,

 sandy   wendy

Sandy Lish             Wendy Spivak

Principal/Founder   Principal/Founder