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Accolades PR is a strategic marketing public relations firm committed to gaining your company the recognition it deserves.
We work with companies to align their messaging and manage their corporate image. Our team works creatively to discover the best balance of public relations, advertising, and marketing strategies to gain visibility in the press and online. Whether your desire is regional or global exposure, our team can create a dynamic, and yet, practical strategy to increase market share.
Cynthia A. Baker, President and Founder
Cynthia A. Baker creates business-to-business public relations initiatives for small to mid-sized companies. She garners strategic media coverage for her clients by ensuring their value proposition reaches target audiences.
Cynthia founded Accolades Public Relations to be a progressive PR firm committed to being on the forefront of innovations in the public relations industry. The firm focuses on providing results for their clients in the form of standard media coverage which is leveraged further into online news. The Accolades team specializes in understanding how to blend traditional public relations and marketing communications with social media campaigns to maximize effectiveness for their clients. Accolades PR also provides core marketing solutions, including tactical internet marketing strategies designed to synch public relations initiatives to B2B agendas.
With experience serving Fortune 500 companies, Cynthia currently handles public relations campaigns for high-tech, real estate, education and business companies on both regional and national levels. The agency has served clients from the architecture, employer services, homebuilder, commercial real estate, interior design, management, and franchise sectors.
Cynthia is a co-founding member of the Austin Social Media Club. She is a member of the Austin Corporate Growth and Bootstrap organizations.
Lauren Churchin, PR and Social Media Specialist
Lauren brings over seven years of public relations, social media, marketing, political, journalism, and non profit expertise to Accolades PR. An accomplished writer and PR specialist, Lauren has secured coverage and written articles for numerous publications including the Austin Business Journal, Austin Chronicle, Austin American-Statesman, SoftwareCEO.com, Nation’s Restaurant News, Texas Home and Living Magazine, Community Impact, Texas Monthly, About.com, Tribeza and many others.
Lauren also specializes in developing and implementing targeted public relations, marketing, social media and branding plans for a diverse clientele, including local and national restaurant chains, architecture firms, municipalities, and professional service corporations.
Richard Cole, B2B Marketing Writer
Richard Cole is founder and president of Richard Cole Communications, a business writing and online media agency serving clients in the U.S. and Europe. He offers more than 20 years of experience as an award-wining writer for B2B technology, financial services, healthcare, energy, and other industries.
In New York City, Richard was senior writer for the IBM account at Saatchi & Saatchi Advertising. Since moving to Austin, he has provided a growing range of services as an independent writer, marketing consultant, trade magazine editor, and communications leader for several hi-tech companies. In addition, he has taught writing and marketing communications at the University of California at Berkeley, online at New York University, and at workshops across the country.
Kimberlie Dykeman, Emcee/Host & Multi-Media Consultant
Kimberlie Dykeman provides a powerhouse of exposure for her clients. With a colorful career path, rich in business development, multimedia creation, broadcasting, marketing and public relations, motivational communications and expert coaching, she offers a broad spectrum of skills for forwarding the image of her clients and their companies.
Her strengths suit her to expertly coordinate public relations campaigns, in particular, for real estate clients, corporate executives, authors, and thought leaders. She manages marketing, advertising, and media initiatives with attention to every detail and can further leverage these efforts into multi-platform PR, community networking, speaking opportunities, and radio and television exposure.
Kimberlie’s ultimate proficiency is providing non-exclusive contract talent as Expert Lifestyle News Correspondent, TV Personality and Host, and International Spokesperson for multimedia marketing campaigns, corporate communications, and interactive websites. Kimberlie is experienced at developing hosting/interviewing initiatives in such a way that the client’s unique value is highlighted and showcased to an even broader audience. Her production, scriptwriting, and voice over skills also benefit client promotional efforts across multiple platforms. She maintains production and media connections on all four coasts. Kimberlie graduated from Binghamton University of New York with a Liberal Arts degree in Literature and Rhetoric.
Shea Eddins, Public Relations Specialist – Dallas
A dynamic communicator and proven public relations expert, Shea Eddins, has lead many companies into the spotlight with her impactful campaign strategies.
Shea has over 25 years experience in public relations as a Dallas-based PR practitioner. She has worked with a broad spectrum of clients in Dallas, oil and gas clients in Houston, and technology clients from Austin. She has also served franchise organizations, restaurant chains, and small to mid-sized businesses on statewide, national, and international levels.
A true PR diva, Shea has been featured in USA Today, PR Week, and the Wall Street Journal as well as numerous other publications. She also served as the PR Director of NAWBO (National Association of Women Business Owners).
Following attendance at San Jose State University in the Silicon Valley, and prior to her PR establishment in Dallas, she was an editor for the Johnson County newspapers in Kansas City.
Keith Elkins, Public Relations Specialist and Media Relations
Keith Elkins has spent more than 25 years as a working journalist, primarily in the trenches of the fast-paced world of television news anchor and reporting. He brings a wealth of experience and a unique communications perspective as someone who knows firsthand what it’s like to be on both sides of potential news-making events and situations.
Keith’s media assignments have provided him a front row seat to the flood waters of Hurricane’s Katrina and Rita, the legislative halls of power at the State Capitol and the day-to-day operations of almost all Texas state agencies and many of Central Texas’ businesses.
Keith is a veteran TV news journalist and has served as an anchor-reporter in Austin, San Antonio, Beaumont and Huntsville, Alabama, as well as providing communication freelance services to CNN, CBS, NBC and the FOX television networks.
Keith has also served as communications director for the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts and Texas Lottery Commission, worked as public relations director for a national video syndication company and served as a legislative assistant in the United States Senate. As a member of the Accolades PR team, Keith provides a full range of communications and public relations services for clients.
Cathy Hale, Public Relations Specialist
Cathy Hale is a nationally recognized writer and blogger who has been actively involved in marketing and public relations for over 12 years. She has worked with clients in the financial, technology, retail and real estate industries. She has spent the majority of her career working for small companies that embrace the entrepreneurial spirit.
Over the years she has pitched her clients into the pages of BusinessWeek, Marie Claire, USA Today and Wall Street Journal, as well as many industry publications and daily newspapers. Cathy is a versatile writer who can capture the attention of any audience. She has written speeches that have been presented at international anti-fraud conferences, ghost-written articles that have been published nationally and collaborated with other professionals on a book published in 2007.
In addition to her formal marketing and public relations training, Cathy has a keen understanding of social media and how to use it to maximize all marketing efforts. Cathy gained this knowledge first hand as she is also a successful blogger.
In May 2008, Cathy became the voice of MommyQ, a parenting blog dedicated to helping moms navigate the wild world of motherhood. Today MommyQ is a top-ranked parenting blog, and Cathy has been quoted as a mom blogger on iparenting and MSN as well as in Parents Magazine, Pregnancy & Newborn and the Austin American-Statesman. Her success in the blogosphere landed her a job as a freelance writer for Babble.com, the online community for parents. Cathy has strong connections in the parenting community, which is extremely beneficial for clients who offer products and services to this thriving industry.
Cathy received her Bachelor of Arts in English and a German minor from Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Virginia. She also studied German at Klagenfurt University in Austria. Cathy currently lives in Austin, Texas, with her husband and two young children.
Monica Hampton, Public Relations Specialist
Monica Hampton made her official career jump into the PR realm when she joined the Accolades team in April of 2008 as a public relations specialist. She brings a wide array of business, marketing and event planning experience to her public relations work. Her strong organizational skills were honed in a corporate environment working with executive management teams. Monica owns the responsibility for managing and completing projects within deadlines, as well as her communication and media relations skills make her a strategic and valuable addition to the Accolades Team.
Originally from the Dallas/Ft. Worth area, Monica has been in Austin for almost 18 years. She graduated Summa Cum Laude from St. Edward’s University in August of 2003 with a degree in Marketing, but soon discovered that PR was her passion. She worked for more than 11 years in the corporate process control industry, but relished her leadership roles with special events and project management. She now leverages these past professional experiences while taking an active role in the creative planning processes on behalf of her PR clients.
Monica has successfully managed several non-profit campaigns to achieve exceptional results in increased fundraising through social media campaigns, strategic communications strategies, and effective account management. She has grown online communities for her clients and brought media attention to their efforts, demonstrating her ability to blend social media skills with traditional PR.
Stephanie Johnson, Public Relations Specialist – Houston
Houston-based Stephanie Johnson handles media relations, crisis communications, internal communications, Web development, intranets and extranets and marketing communications for a variety of energy services and other clients in Texas and Louisiana. A graduate of the world’s oldest School of Journalism at the University of Missouri-Columbia, Johnson is a former newspaper reporter who understands how to shape public perception using tactics ranging from “old-fashioned” press releases and relationships with reporters to sophisticated marketing materials and the best of social media. Johnson has worked with most of the major energy companies, including Shell, Amoco, BP, and Marathon, as well as many energy services companies. Two years ago, she helped BP build, write, and launch its first U.S. website, www.bp/us.com.
John McElhenney, Social Media Strategist
John McElhenney has been working and playing in interactive marketing and advertising for 15+ years. Most recently Mr. McElhenney completed a two year run as a Sr. Social Media Strategist for Dell Computer Corporation’s Global Online Team. In addition to design and marketing Mr. McElhenney is an avid musician, tennis player, wikipedia editor and dad about town. You can find him writing at http://uber.la and tweeting as @jmacofearth. “And sitting silently if I can remember to do it.”
Exemplary clients include: Apple, Dell, Motorola, IBM, Artisoft, HP, Compaq, CSC. Former employers: Dell, SicolaMartin (a Y&R agency), MediaForum | UK, Powered, Tocquigny, ActiveMedia.
Areas of keen interest: open source communities and development, enterprise 2.0, virtual teaming, collaborative platforms, WordPress, visual thinking, user-centered design, social music discovery sites, Apple’s upcoming iPhone launches, brainstorming best-practices, agile thinking, hybrid technologies, solar, eHealthcare.
Current writing project Getting Real with Twitter is being live posted and will be available as an eBook and a physical publication in the near future.
John is a thought leader and public speaker on a wide-range of SE0, SEM and SMM topics.
Beth Ranson, Public Relations Specialist
Full of energy and always with a positive mental attitude, Beth Ranson has an eye for developing stories and pitching stories that the media finds appealing. Beth’s expertise lies in the areas of major event planning; managing local, national and international media relations; speech writing and niche marketing.
Previously, Beth has been a Public Relations Specialist for the United States Virgin Islands Department of Tourism, Gameplan Marketing and Event, and Emmis Radio Group.
Beth began her media career as a Producer and Reporter for Fox News at Ten in Richmond, Virginia. From this experience, Beth gained knowledge of what stories are of interest to the media and of all the technical aspects of the media, such as video-editing and camera operation.
Finally, Beth has extensive experience with interactive marketing, to include Search Engine Optimization, Analytics (i.e. Hitbox, Coremetrics, Google Analytics), project management of Web design and development, as well as creation of Web content. Beth’s interactive clients include LG Electronics and Inc-Marketing.
You can also find her sometimes on Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook.
Jennie Whitaker, Public Relations Specialist
Learning about the behind-the-scenes stories and sharing them with others makes Jennie’s heart beat fast, because she loves pinning clients with media coverage. Growing strong brands and educating the public is just one side of the public relations business, but it’s her favorite part.
She is passionate about improving the communication plans of organizations that help others live better lives. With her experience in media relations, she secures local and national media opportunities for external communications, editorial coverage in national trade and business publications and manages public relations plans so that ideas and events get seen and heard by the right audience.
With a keen ability to develop media opportunities and identify public relations tactics, her work focuses on learning about the clients’ goals and successfully executing their plans. Jennie tags herself as somewhat of a generalist, having experience with clients in healthcare, non-profit, education, consumer, tourism, technology and energy. She is always ready to tackle a new industry.
Living in Austin, Texas with her husband and their dog, Jennie loves helping in the community. She is currently volunteering with the Ronald McDonald House Charities and is V.P. of Programming for the Delta Gamma Alumnae Board. Jennie earned a master’s degree in advertising and public relations at Texas Christian University in Fort Worth, Texas and a bachelor’s degree in public relations at the University of Texas in Austin, Texas.