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Propel, a PR software startup closes a $4.5 million seed round that brings the company's total funds to $6 million. CEO Zach Cutler told Business Insider that the funds would be used to hire marketing and salespeople in New York, Florida and London. He also plans to implement more machine learning to help the platform determine which pitches resonate the most with journalists. Propel counts Real Chemistry, Google and Antenna among its clients. Its media database includes more than one million journalists and 50 million influencers. The lead investor in the deal was NFX.
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The Public Relations Society of America National Capital Chapter introduces their Early Career Fellowship for Professionals of Color. The program, which is sponsored by global marketing, communications and digital transformation agency ICF Next, will provide four fellows with benefits that include a one-year mentorship with a PRSA NCC member, a three-month 2022 summer internship with ICF/ICF Next, payment of PRSA and PRSA NCC chapter dues for one year, and a $500 stipend for PRSA NCC events. The fellowship will run from July 1, 2022, to June 30, 2023, and applications will be accepted online through April 30. "This fellowship provides diverse young professionals the opportunity to learn, grow and gain early traction in the field, and inspires us to continue to make positive change," said ICF Next senior partner, multicultural communications Vickie Gogo.
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| Andrew Graham |
Bread & Law is launched by Clear founder and PRSA New York's immediate past president Andrew Graham. The new PR agency is "designed to help companies thrive either despite or because of the erosion of trust in institutions and expertise." The firm will provide counseling and advisement to heads of communication and marketing, with a focus on helping them realize their agendas. Bread & Law will also serve as an incubator of specialized agencies, starting with a practice for start-to-finish thought leadership campaigns with fixed pricing and guaranteed results and an influencer marketing practice that targets micro-influencers. "Competition for attention is absolutely fierce today, and I've spent a lot of time coming up with a blueprint for what works," said Graham.
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My Code, a digital media company that connects brands, agencies, publishers and storytellers with diverse audiences, starts up W Code, which focuses on delivering authentic messaging and content to female audiences. W Code joins My Code's other platforms, which include H Code (directed at Hispanic consumers), B Code (which targets Black audiences), and A Code (which delivers messaging to the AAPI community). Its offerings include high-impact media across audio, CTV, video and display, robust creative content solutions, and first-party data from My Code's Intelligence Center. W Code is targeting brands within lifestyle, cooking, health and wellness, beauty and fashion, wedding and parenting verticals. "Brands must put in the work to understand the nuanced differences across female audiences and mold their messaging accordingly," said My Code COO Jennifer White.
Brunner, a Pittsburgh-based integrated marketing agency, acquires AdSkate, an AI-powered creative analytics and marketing intelligence platform that helps brands and agencies optimize advertising performance... Augustine Agency launches Flavor Theory, a foodservice marketing practice aimed at helping restaurants, food manufacturers, distributors and institutional dining organizations grow their brands and businesses... The Acceleration Community of Companies releases a report finding that almost half (49 percent) of Gen Z sports fans say they have become interested in a new sport or athlete because of fan-created content or something entirely outside the sport. 
VPE Communications, which helps organizations authentically connect with diverse audiences, celebrates 38 years in business and announces a new ownership structure... Praytell expands into the Asian market with the opening of a new office in Singapore... The International Public Relations Network unveils a new visual identity and redesigned website. 
SourceCode Communications launches SourceCode Germany, establishing the agency's first office in continental Europe... Clario Group acquires Ted Miller Group, a Miami-founded agency focused on clients in the technology, travel & leisure and financial services sectors... Global Situation Room’s Global Risk Advisory Council is hosting a July 23 webinar that will go over the results of its new Reputation Risk Index.
Havas acquires MUT, a Barcelona-based firm focused on experiential marketing and sustainable events... IPREX lauches its AI Task Force...D S Simon Media, one of the first companies to produce a satellite media tour, celebrates its 40th anniversary... Washington Women in Public Relations is sponsoring an event that shows communications pros who work with associations how they can get their messages across clearly, credibly and courageously. “How Associations Lead with Strategic Storytelling,” at 6 p.m. on July 16.
TEAM LEWIS starts up its AI Practice... Thunderly launches a year-long storytelling campaign focused on how franchising can provide a pathway to business ownership... JIN, a European communications consulting group, introduces "AI Campaigning", a corporate offering designed to model and anticipate stakeholder behavior.
