Breanna Suden

Breanna is President of SUDEN PR, LLC and a seasoned public relations professional with over eight years of industry experience. Beginning her career in consumer technology, Breanna has continued to build up her expertise which currently spans consumer, lifestyle, food & beverage, healthcare, wellness, sex & intimacy, fashion, beauty, travel & hospitality, making her a highly sought out individual within the industry.

Prior to establishing her own successful media relations firm, Breanna worked at some of the top global public relations agencies, including Golin, Edelman and Weber Shandwick. While there, Breanna was responsible for securing coverage within top-tier media outlets, frequently traveled the nation for client events, and assisted in the management of global media and influencer campaigns and activations.

Breanna is a graduate of the University of Connecticut and holds a degree in Communications and Psychology. She currently resides in New York City with her boyfriend and kitten, Larry.

Where did the idea for Suden PR come from?

Other than Suden being my last name, the way I chose the name for my company is a funny story. At one of the previous agencies I worked at, one of my duties was to apply for awards on behalf of our clients. When you apply for an award, the account is created under the name of the person applying. In this case, my name. I’d sometimes submit multiple clients for the same awards under the same account, and one client in particular, ended up winning two or three awards during the award ceremony, of which they were in attendance of. The next morning, a few of my coworkers came up to my desk in hysterics. The award show had made a mistake and instead of writing the agency’s name on the award (they typically write the award winner – the client – and the agency who assisted them on the project on the award), they had put my last name on it instead. So, the award read the client’s name, the award they won and SUDEN (which didn’t exist, at the time). Luckily, everyone thought it was funny and the agency I worked at, at the time, temporarily re-named the agency to SUDEN PR and put it over the current sign. This ended up leading to rumors from other agencies on the floor that we were rebranding to SUDEN PR, but it was all in good fun. So, of course, when I ventured off on my own, I had no choice but to name the agency SUDEN PR!

What does your typical day look like and how do you make it productive?

While my typical day is fairly busy, everything is a bit different since everyone is working remote. But, in short, upon waking up, I scroll through my phone to take a look at the latest news – I subscribe to The Skimm and New York Times daily emails as well as checking CNN and other media outlets. I then get ready and move to my home office where I’ll go through my inbox to answer any emails that may have come in while I was asleep. The rest of my day consists of a lot of pitching – and I mean, a lot – as well as materials building, reporting, coverage and trend monitoring. Some days, I’ll staff interviews for my clients or have to travel to staff a broadcast interview, but most of my day consists of the above.

I try to stay productive by making a to do list and blocking off certain times of the day to dedicate to a specific client. Owning my own business means I am solely responsible for making sure each client gets the proper attention, so blocking off time in my calendar helps me to do that. I also try and take an actual lunch when I can to step away from my computer and get a fresh perspective – even if it’s for 10 minutes. Staring at a computer screen all day can sometimes be tedious, so I find it helps to take a break for a few minutes whenever I can.

How do you bring ideas to life?

Creativity is the number one trick that I use to bring ideas for life. I don’t think it’s possible to succeed in PR without creativity; it’s what allows you to think outside the box and push the boundaries of what’s doable.

What’s one trend that excites you?

Travel trends have always excited me. I love learning where people are going – where the new “hot spot” is and how they’re getting there. It’s an industry that’s constantly changing and improving, especially now that it’s been and is currently being affected by the current pandemic.

What is one habit of yours that makes you more productive as an entrepreneur?

I’ve always been really organized which I think has given me an advantage. I always make sure to write out everything I have to do and cross it off as I go; or if something comes up, rearrange my entire schedule so everything gets done in time. PR can get very hectic very fast, and I’ve found that less things fall through the cracks if you can stay as organized as possible.

What advice would you give your younger self?

Not to stress over the little things and never to become discouraged if something doesn’t go my way career-wise. PR is such a fast-paced environment, and I struggled a bit when I was just starting out. Right out of college I landed an amazing entry level position at a global agency and I was so intimidated by how smart and experienced everyone was and how quick they were to react in a crisis. What I didn’t take into the account was the years’ experience they had on me, and that I would eventually be that experienced myself and learn how to handle certain types of situations properly. Now, eight years later, I still get stressed, but I know how to handle each situation a bit better than the last.

Tell us something that’s true that almost nobody agrees with you on.

That pink and orange Starbursts are the best flavors and red and yellow are the worst.

As an entrepreneur, what is the one thing you do over and over and recommend everyone else do?

Constantly seek out new clients and go on new business meetings. Even if you don’t get the business, it’s still a valuable experience you’ll learn from for the next time.

What is one strategy that has helped you grow your business?

Networking – I owe a lot of my initial success to networking. When I was first starting off, I wasn’t really sure where to begin obtaining clients, so I decided to reach out to my network to see if they had any leads or if anyone they knew was in need of PR support. I also joined a ton of freelancing groups and constantly responded to people in need of support. And before I knew it, my client roster was slowly starting to grow, and I was being connected with all of these amazing people within the industry. Even if a connection didn’t directly lead to a client or a job, it led to another conversation with another person who was able to connect me. To this day, I’m still constantly engaging with my network to see what’s out there and who needs help with what. It’s very beneficial to keep conversations going, you never know what’s out there or who you’ll meet.

What is one failure you had as an entrepreneur, and how did you overcome it?

I feel lucky enough that I haven’t had any major failures – yet. Of course, there are clients who I’ve had to pivot based on new wants and needs as well as feedback I’ve had to take into account in order to improve, but that comes with the job. I just take it day by day and try to do the best I can for each and every client.

What is one business idea that you’re willing to give away to our readers?

Good question, I’ll have to think on this one for a bit and get back to you.

What is the best $100 you recently spent? What and why?

It wasn’t a full $100, but I recently bought an automatic laser pointer for my cat – which he’s obsessed with. Working from home can be difficult with an animal, especially a kitten, they constantly want attention and to play. The laser pointer helps distract him when I’m on important video calls or am on a deadline. Money well spent!

What is one piece of software or a web service that helps you be productive?

I work with journalists every day, so it’s important for me to know what they’re writing about and if they’ve moved jobs recently. I subscribe to a service that helps me monitor that, as well as provides me with their contact information to outreach them when I’m sending them a client pitch I think may be of interest. I use it every day and couldn’t imagine doing my job without it.

What is the one book that you recommend our community should read and why?

I’ll admit, I don’t read as often as I should, but one of my favorite books is ‘A Fairytale Interrupted’ by RoseMarie Terenzio. It follows the story of John F. Kennedy Jr. and his personal assistant – their relationship and the man John F. Kennedy Jr. was behind the icon. It’s a really interesting read if you’re looking to get into the public relations or publicist field – it’s an honest account of her day to day workings with the man, the highs, the lows and crazy tasks she had to perform. Really interesting read.

What is your favorite quote?

I wouldn’t say I have a favorite quote, but I tend to gravitate towards quotes that are inspirational about succeeding in life and career; something motivational.

Key Learnings:

• Success comes from experience, whether it be a positive or negative experience.
• There will always be a need for public relations, no matter what disaster is going on within the world.
• Public relations is a small industry, you never know who you’ll run into or be connected to. It’s important to keep in touch with colleagues and clients and foster positive relationships because you never know when you’ll run into them next.