Connecting Plots hires first-ever head of PR
Independent agency Connecting Plots is expanding its comms offering, appointing a head of PR for the first time to create earned-led campaigns.
Katie Eastment takes on the role after nine years at The Impact Agency, where she was most recently group account director. Now joining Connecting Plots, she will lead an integrated comms offering to help brand earn consumer attention and go beyond the agency’s existing creative output.
She told Mumbrella she was drawn to the agency because of its “insights-led approach” which she said lends itself nicely to PR.
Katie Eastment
Connecting Plots has already executed some earned-led campaigns in recent years.
“Something that could be challenging from the PR side is not being in the room with the creative and strategy upfront, so having that opportunity to be there while creative is being briefed, being able to provide feedback within that process around which ideas have earned legs or not, it really excites me,” she told Mumbrella.
“Having that opportunity to be in the room early, to help shape those free range ideas, I just saw a big opportunity there.”
She said the agency’s PR offering will stretch client budgets further, and provide them with one touch-point — which will “make the client’s life a bit easier”.
Eastment acknowledged that this will be a challenge, but she said that too is exciting.
She said Connecting Plots’ clients had been asking the team for earned creativity “for years”.
“We’re still working out exactly what the process looks like, it’s going to be fluid, but the vision is it’s going to depend on the client’s needs and what job needs to be done,” Eastment told Mumbrella. “If PR is the right fit, then it will be in the room early. But it really depends on the brief.”
Connecting Plots PR will also work closely with the agency’s social and influencer offering, A Glo, which is led by Kent Pearson.
“In the same way that Kent’s in the room early with creators and strategies, I will be too. The point is, clients can come just for social, they can come for social and creative, they can come for PR and social, they can come for just PR, or really they could come for the whole lot. It’s not a one-size-fits-all.”
Three weeks into the role, she said she’s having conversations with clients about integrating PR into their future strategies.
Tom Phillips, CEO and co-founder of the agency, said in a media release: “In today’s world, brands can’t just buy attention, they have to earn it.
“Katie’s energy, smarts and experience will be instrumental as we introduce Connecting Plots PR,” he said.
Phillips told Mumbrella the focus for the first six months is getting Connecting Plots’ existing clients and campaigns “punching above their weight”, before he and Eastment start building out a dedicated PR team in due course.
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Lauren McNamara is the associate editor at Mumbrella, covering the agency beat. She joined in November 2022 as editorial assistant, after completing a Bachelor of Communications (Journalism) at UTS.
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