Former News Limited spinner Toby Hemming launches Bold Media: ‘Lots of PR agencies have no idea’
Former News Digital Media head of corporate affairs Toby Hemming has launched a B2B-focused PR agency targeting the media and marketing world.
Foundation clients for Bold Media include the Asia-Pac operations of digital agency Profero, research agency Edentify and design and copywriting agency The Make Room.
Hemming spent two years with News Limited, heading communications for Nationwide News which includes Sydney’s The Daily and Sunday Telegraph and then for News Digital Media. He lost his role in as part of the company’s restructure in June. Hemming also previously worked for UK pay TV operation BSkyB.
His new company – Bold Media – will inititially target companies in the media and marketing space. The move puts Bold Media in competition with a number of individual PR consultants and most notably PR agency Access, whose clients include SBS, Fairfax Media, Fremantle Media, The Newspaper Works, JWT, BWM, Amnesia Razorfish and Starcom.
In a video interview with Mumbrella’s Tim Burrowes, Hemming said that many PR’s had “absolutely no idea” when it came to trade press PR.
Hemming said: “I’m out there to challenge the market. I’m out there to try and shake it up a little bit. I’ve been the client for a long time. I had a lot of people coming to me from PR agencies over the years who had absolutely no idea.”
He added: “Strong partnerships with some really talented people in other disciplines mean Bold Media will be flexible enough to not be tied down to the traditional PR agency model.”
Tim Burrowes founded Mumbrella in 2008. He worked on Mumbrella until 2021. At various points he was editor, content director and editor-at-large.
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Good luck Toby, sounds like a great idea.
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yeah that’s true Toby, but launching with a negative as a shallow means of generating publicity is also a little clueless.
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Working in enterprise marketing, i can echo what he is saying – so many PR agencies have no idea when it comes to B2B .
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Best wishes from all of us at Access PR to Toby in his new venture.
Simon Lloyd
Head of Consulting
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hehe nice ambush from Access PR!
the only problem with saying your competitors have no idea while not giving examples is that you just sound like a conceited wanker
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All the best Toby.
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My mother always said ‘if you have nothing nice to say……’
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having worked inhouse for a media entity and then launched an agency, there is a lot to learn about running your own business successfully before you go shooting your mouth off about how its done.
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I like the notion.
Golum’s idea that one can sound like a “conceited wanker ” is all well and good, but sounding like a wanker is fine so long as you don’t prove to be one.
The whole interview reminded me of a couple I have heard in the past, in fact,the overall effect took me back to the old days in a garage in Bermondsey and one or two other venues south of the river.
I like the cool determined approach, I like the idea of someone who obviously knows and is confident enough to claim that he wants to, not do it exactly, but “try to shake it up a little bit. ” I hope he does, and I hope he does well.
Don’t worry about launching with a negative, don’t forget that the Titanic was launched with a huge positive.
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