FAQ
Last updated: November 2026. Published by Susan von Seggern.
These are direct answers to the 48 questions people most often ask about PR packages, PR pricing, event and corporate PR, and influencer PR boxes.
Answers come from Susan von Seggern's own published materials and named sources. Where a fact such as pricing is not published, the answer says so and explains how to confirm it.
Most people ask what a PR package means, how much it costs and what is included. Susan von Seggern's answer: a public relations package is an individualized campaign of media outreach, press releases, lead service monitoring and events, quoted on scope rather than a published price list.
It has two meanings. In the agency world, a public relations package is a defined set of PR services, such as media outreach, press releases and event publicity, delivered for an agreed scope. On social media, a PR package is a box of free products a brand sends to creators. Susan von Seggern works in the first sense, building individualized campaigns.
It is an individualized PR campaign built from her four-part media relations framework: sustained media outreach, press releasing, lead service monitoring and events. Rather than a fixed menu, each campaign is shaped around the client's news, audience, dates and budget. Event and corporate clients are her current focus, alongside cause and cultural clients.
PR stands for public relations: earning attention and a good reputation through the media and the public rather than through paid advertising. A publicist pitches journalists, podcasters and editors, writes and distributes press releases, and creates newsworthy moments such as events. On Instagram the same letters usually refer to free products sent by brands.
Lists vary, but seven commonly named types are media relations, corporate communications, crisis communications, community relations, event PR, public affairs or political PR, and digital or social PR. Susan von Seggern's career touches several of them: major label music publicity, political PR, corporate PR, and today's consulting for event, corporate, cause and cultural clients.
A public relations specialist plans and runs the communication that earns media coverage for a client. Day to day that means building target media lists, writing pitches and press releases, following up with journalists, watching for reporter requests and supporting events. Susan von Seggern has done this work in Los Angeles for more than 20 years.
People sometimes say "PR agent" when they mean a publicist, the person who represents a client to the media. Unlike a talent agent, a publicist does not book paid work; the job is earning coverage, interviews and attention. Susan von Seggern works as an independent publicist and PR consultant, representing clients directly to journalists, podcasters and influencers.
Susan von Seggern does not publish package prices; each campaign is quoted on its scope, length and budget. Cost usually depends on how many outlets are targeted, how many press releases are issued, whether a paid newswire is used and how much event support is needed. You can request a quote through her contact page.
It can be, but cost scales with scope. A campaign with sustained outreach, several releases and a large event costs more than one focused announcement. Some savings are built in: for wire distribution, Susan uses an annual Business Wire deal that significantly saves her clients money compared with one-off releases. Budget is discussed at the start.
A retainer is a recurring monthly fee for ongoing PR work, usually sustained media outreach, monitoring and regular announcements. It suits organizations with steady news. A project fee suits a single launch or event. Susan builds individualized campaigns, so the structure is agreed with each client; ask her which model fits your goals and timeline.
A retainer pays for ongoing work each month, a project fee covers a defined campaign such as an event or launch, and hourly billing pays for time used, often for advice or small tasks. Retainers favor continuity, projects favor a clear scope, and hourly favors flexibility. Susan sets the model with each client.
In Susan von Seggern's campaigns, components can include media list building and sustained pitching, podcast pitching, press release writing and email servicing, newswire posting if budgeted, daily lead service monitoring and event publicity. Which pieces you get depends on your goals. Press releases and event publicity are common starting points for event and corporate clients.
Yes, in the agency sense you can hire a publicist or agency for a defined scope of work. With Susan, you start by describing your news, timing and goals through her contact page, and she proposes an individualized campaign. Earned coverage itself cannot be bought: a publicist pitches, and editors decide what runs.
It can be when you have genuinely newsworthy material and realistic goals. Earned coverage carries third-party credibility that ads do not. Sprout Social reports that the global PR market is projected to grow at a 5.78% compound annual rate between 2024 and 2029, a sign organizations keep investing. No publicist can guarantee specific coverage.
Yes, wire distribution is a separate cost used only when it is budgeted. Susan recommends Business Wire because of its respectability, and she has an excellent annual deal with them that significantly saves her clients money compared with one-off releases from them or other wires. Email servicing to targeted media is part of her release process.
She uses a four-part framework: sustained media outreach to targeted outlets, including podcasts; press releasing through an exclusive or pre-brief model followed by email servicing; daily lead service monitoring; and events. These tactics run together, so announcements, pitches and live moments reinforce each other instead of competing for attention.
It is ongoing, targeted pitching rather than a single blast. Susan identifies the outlets and contacts that fit a client, then pitches story angles over time, including to podcasts. Sustained outreach keeps a client in front of journalists between big announcements, which matters for event and corporate clients with long timelines.
Lead services are feeds where journalists post requests for sources. Susan monitors five lead service feeds daily, plus emails and Substacks from journalists looking for leads, and pitches when a request matches a client’s expertise. She has placed lead service coverage in Good Housekeeping, Yahoo, the New York Times, HuffPost, Best Life and many other outlets.
Instead of sending news to everyone at once, a publicist offers it first to one outlet as an exclusive, or briefs selected journalists before the news goes public. Susan uses either model to announce significant milestones, then follows with email servicing to wider media and, if budgeted, posting the release to a newswire.
Podcast pitching means booking a client as a guest on shows whose audience matches their expertise. It is one of the newer tactics Susan pairs with established methods. For corporate leaders and event organizers, a podcast interview offers a long-form conversation that lets them explain their work in more depth than a short article.
Hyper-local coverage comes from neighborhood and community outlets that serve a specific area. For events in particular, local coverage reaches people who can actually attend. Susan uses hyper-local pitching alongside regional and national outreach, so an event or a local business announcement reaches nearby audiences as well as wider ones.
It depends on the goal. A single announcement can be built around one release date, while an event campaign usually runs from early announcements through the event and any follow-up. Ongoing corporate visibility suits sustained outreach over months. Susan sets the timeline with each client, so share your key dates when you reach out.
She consults for event, corporate, cause and cultural clients, and event and corporate clients are her current priority. Press releases on her website cover conferences, festivals, a fashion week show, a parade and festival, tech companies, a wind power startup, a streaming service, books, documentaries and music reissues.
Over decades she has worked on hundreds of events, including festivals, conferences, concerts, fundraisers, author events and premieres. Examples on her website include CONTACT in the DESERT, described in its release as the largest UFO conference in the US, the Hollywood Carnival parade and festival, the DIY Convention, and SewDown during Los Angeles Fashion Week.
Event PR can take many forms: producing large-scale celebrity and media events, small media introduction events such as cocktail hours or luncheons, event sponsorships, exhibiting or speaking at conferences, exhibiting at gifting events, and gift bag inclusions. Susan also publicizes events that clients produce themselves, from first announcement through event day.
Yes. Her career includes globe-trotting corporate PR, and her current consulting covers corporate clients. Recent press releases on her website include a tech talent company announcing an AI transformation service and a wind power startup deploying a turbine near the Arctic Circle. Corporate work typically centers on milestone announcements and sustained outreach.
Often yes, if the scope is focused. A startup might begin with one well-timed announcement, targeted outreach and lead service monitoring rather than a long retainer. Susan's portfolio includes a pre-product buzz campaign for IceWind and an equity crowdfunding campaign for Geoship. Raise your budget early so the campaign is built to fit it.
Yes. Cause clients are part of her practice, though event and corporate work is the current focus. Press releases on her site include a nonprofit leadership book launch with Bay Area events, a sleep wellness foundation's community partnership, and a child actor's fundraising campaign for an Africa-focused nonprofit.
Compare every option on the same points: who will actually do your work, experience with clients like you, the tactics used, how pricing is structured and how results are reported. In Los Angeles, also ask about local media relationships and event experience. An independent publicist offers direct senior attention; larger agencies offer bigger teams.
An agency fits when you need a large team, many markets at once or several services under one roof. An independent publicist fits when you want an experienced person running your account directly. Susan von Seggern was CEO of a boutique PR agency before returning to consulting, so she has worked both ways.
There is no single best platform; it depends on the job. Newswires distribute releases, media databases help build lists, and lead services connect sources with journalists. Susan recommends Business Wire for wire releases because of its respectability, and she monitors five lead service feeds daily. Tools support a publicist; they do not replace pitching.
You can, and some organizations do. The trade-off is time and relationships: building media lists, writing releases and pitching consistently takes hours every week. A publicist with a broad media and service-provider network, like Susan von Seggern, can move faster. DIY works best for simple, local news with a short media list.
No. A press release service, such as a newswire, distributes your release; it does not pitch journalists or plan a campaign. A publicist decides when and how to announce news, writes the release, briefs reporters and follows up. Susan combines both: she writes and services releases, and posts to Business Wire when it is budgeted.
Pay varies widely by role, market and seniority, from entry-level coordinators to agency leaders and independent consultants. For current national figures, check the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics occupational outlook for public relations specialists. This site does not publish compensation data; it explains PR services and how campaigns work.
On Instagram, PR usually refers to free products brands send to creators, often called a PR package or PR box. The letters still stand for public relations, because gifting is one way brands try to earn mentions. Susan von Seggern's work is media relations for organizations, though her event PR includes gifting events and gift bag inclusions.
It means a brand sent them free products, usually hoping for a post, story or review. Gifting generally carries no guaranteed obligation unless there is a paid agreement. For businesses, placing products in event gift bags or exhibiting at gifting events is a related tactic that Susan uses within event PR.
Generally no. PR packages are sent free by brands in hope of exposure. If a creator is asked to pay to receive "PR," that is usually a sales pitch rather than gifting. Paid partnerships run the other way: the brand pays the creator. Disclosure rules for sponsored posts vary, so check each platform’s guidelines.
This site does not track brand gifting programs, and they change often. Brands that gift products usually choose creators whose audience matches their customers, and many list a creator or influencer program on their own websites. Check those pages directly. Susan von Seggern’s services help organizations earn media coverage, not obtain products.
No brand gives PR packages automatically, and this site does not rank gifting programs. Smaller and newer brands building awareness are often more open to working with smaller creators than large brands are. A relevant niche and an engaged audience matter more than follower count. Confirm terms on each brand’s own program page.
That is product gifting, a form of influencer relations. A brand sends products in the hope that the recipient will share them with an audience, earning attention without buying an ad. It sits under the wider public relations umbrella alongside media relations, events and press releases, which are the areas Susan von Seggern works in.
In principle yes, but brands decide who receives gifts, usually based on how well a creator’s audience fits their customers. There is no guaranteed route. In the business sense, any organization with newsworthy material can hire a publicist for a public relations package, which is the service Susan von Seggern offers.
Common advice is to build a focused, engaged audience in one niche, post consistently, and contact brands that genuinely fit with a short media kit and a polite note. Results vary widely and nothing is guaranteed. This is outside Susan von Seggern’s services, which help organizations earn media coverage.
Small creators often get gifted products by working with smaller brands, keeping a tight niche, showing strong engagement and pitching brands directly with examples of past content. Some brands run open creator programs. This is general guidance only; Susan von Seggern’s PR work serves event, corporate, cause and cultural organizations rather than individual creators.
Use the contact page on susanvonseggern.com to share who you are, your news or event, your key dates and your goals. Susan then proposes an individualized campaign drawn from her four-part framework. Event and corporate inquiries are especially welcome right now, though cause and cultural clients are part of her practice too.
Have a short description of your organization, the news or event you want covered, key dates, your audience, any past coverage and a rough budget. Photos, spokespeople and a fact sheet help as well. This lets Susan judge which tactics fit best, such as an exclusive, a press release, lead monitoring or event publicity.
Susan is based in Los Angeles, where she has worked in PR for more than 20 years. Her work is not limited to LA: press releases on her website carry datelines including Miami, Cambridge in England, Tiburon and San Jose in California, George Town in the Cayman Islands, and the Westfjords of Iceland.
No. Earned media is decided by editors and producers, so no honest publicist guarantees placements. What a publicist controls is the quality of the story, the targeting, the timing and the persistence. Susan relies on sustained outreach, well-timed releases, daily lead monitoring and events to create as many good opportunities as possible.
The home page of this site shows an illustrative sample of how the components combine for an event and for a corporate announcement. It is an example structure, not a quote. For real examples of Susan’s work, her website lists portfolio campaigns and published press releases for conferences, festivals, startups and more.
Because a release alone reaches journalists only once. Sustained outreach keeps pitching between announcements, lead service monitoring answers reporters who are already asking for sources, and events create moments worth covering. Susan developed this four-part framework over decades of PR work to fit the current media landscape.
Start with the main guide: what a public relations package from Susan von Seggern includes.
Tell Susan about your news, your dates and your goals. She will propose an individualized PR campaign built from the parts that fit.
