Sneak Preview: A Chat With Steph Hadas About the New PR

Steph Hadas is a Vice President at 5WPR, one of the largest independently owned public relations firms in the U.S., and will be one of our featured speakers at Street Fight LIVE on November 7th at Meta’s Chicago headquarters. The firm was founded in 2003 and has an incredible roster of clients — from major consumer brands to cutting-edge technology companies.

As we all know, the lines between public relations and other marketing tactics have blurred since the company’s founding and 5WPR has kept pace with that transformation. We sat down with Steph to “pre-game” before her November 7th talk.

What prompted you to build a career in PR?

“To be completely candid, working in PR was a complete accident at the start!

I was a business major at The George Washington University in DC with a concentration in marketing management, so I knew that finding a role in the marketing industry in general was what I wanted to do.

The last two summers of college, I was a brand management intern at a fragrance licensing company and loved everything about that experience. Unfortunately, they were not hiring when I was ready to begin my career, but I did not let that defeat me.

A close friend connected me with the owner of a boutique PR agency in New York City and the agency hired me over the phone with a start date two days after graduation. I packed my college apartment, spent the first month of New York life on my grandparents’ couch until my apartment lease started, and dug my heels in to learn everything from media list building to pitching to client communications. After several great years, I moved on to join 5W and have never looked back.

Growing up, I was a performer and have always loved writing. Working in public relations allows me to lean into my people skills (the fact that I love to talk!) and to spend a lot of time writing, which really feeds the interests I’ve had since a young age.

Beyond that, because of the way 5WPR is built, I have been able to explore and fall in love with communications work for several industries, act as a strategic partner to comms teams at companies of all sizes, and develop skills that have been essential to my professional development. I love to be challenged and stretch my mind, and a career in Public Relations gives me the opportunity to learn about new sectors and trends every single day.”

How has the role of a full-service PR agency changed over the past decade?

“Full-service agencies have evolved from simply generating earned media coverage to offering a more integrated approach that includes creative content, storytelling, and digital media. Agencies now offer expanded services such as crisis communications and digital marketing, reflecting the shift from traditional media relations to include strategies like social media management and influencer partnerships, even in sectors where these tactics might not seem obvious but are critical to strong 360 plan.

While adapting to modern public relations and communication methods is essential, it’s equally important to stay true to what you do best. At 5WPR, we understand the value of these new approaches but remain committed to media relations—it’s what we’ve always done and have always done well, setting us apart from others in the industry.”

5wpr works with a wide range of clients — from consumer brands to highly technical service businesses. What are some of the common threads? Differences?

“Regardless of the industry the clients fall into, our clients often share similar objectives – to elevate their brand and connect with target audiences. We achieve this by leveraging media connections to secure coverage to amplify their stories, while also crafting tailored messaging and focusing on reputation management.

From day one, we dive in deep with our clients to feel like part of their internal team and execute strategies that meet their communications goals – whether it’s making a big splash in a particular market area, prioritizing business and consumer media, digging into industry trade outlets, or a combination,

5W is a results-driven agency with a diverse client portfolio, targeting a broad spectrum of outlets and audiences. Our advantage is that we can tap into each other as internal resources. If a technical client is branching out into a consumer or general interest campaign, we have the internal resources and contacts to make that happen. We connect across teams frequently to brainstorm and share ideas to ensure we always bring new ideas to the table for our clients.”

PR professionals sometimes have a reputation as being “smile and dial” (or mass e-mail deployment) squads. How does your agency differ?

“5W takes pride in the strong media relationships we’ve built and maintained over the years —  something that wouldn’t be possible if we were viewed as a ‘smile and dial’ agency.

We prioritize personalized and targeted communications that emphasize our interest in building genuine, long-term relationships rather than mass emails and one-off interactions. This dedication to building true relationships is part of why I’m speaking at Street Fight Live! Nancy and I have worked together for a while, and she brought me on to join the event because of the connection we’ve established and the trust we’ve built with one another.

Another piece that stands out to me is that at 5WPR, our senior staff is involved in the client work from day one to year three (and beyond) of a relationship. Public relations isn’t just about earned media coverage and numbers, but it’s also about being strategic, providing counsel if/when a crisis arises, and ensuring our clients are at the forefront of important conversations. We can’t tell the same story repeatedly, and I’m talking to my clients every day – just as I was when I joined 5W as an Account Supervisor several years ago.”

Although we all know that AI will play a broader role in all forms of marketing in the future, the ability to speak with a human about new products, breaking MULO (multi-location) news, or a subject matter expert’s perspective on a topic will always be valuable. We hope you’ll join Steph in November and learn how to build awareness and preference  for your brand in an increasingly cluttered media world.

The photo of Steph was taken during her recent trip to Alaska. As with the above story, you’re just seeing the “tip of the iceberg” and Steph’s talk promises to give you a comprehensive look into what sits below the surface of PR!