MARKETING AND PR
Your audience already has a shortlist. We make sure you're on it.
We build earned-first marketing and PR programs that start with what makes your brand credible: media coverage, thought leadership, and real stories. Then we amplify it through social, content, and influencer channels so your audience trusts you before they ever reach out.
What does earned-first mean?
Most marketing programs start with a content calendar and work outward. We start with earned media: the media placements, thought leadership bylines, and third-party credibility that your audience trusts more than anything you could say about yourself. Once that foundation is in place, we build your owned and social content strategy around what's already working.
This earned-first approach means your brand has proof of authority from day one, not a library of content nobody reads. Confluent Strategic Communications, led by Katie Hickman and based in Minneapolis, delivers integrated marketing and PR programs for B2B brands, B2C brands, and nonprofits with national and international reach.
5+
Year
Partnerships
18+
Annual Media
Placements
204k+
Trade Media
Earned Views
200+
Influencers
Engaged
WHAT WE DELIVER
Programs that connect brand authority to business results
From strategy through execution, we build integrated programs across every channel that matters to your audience.
Brand and communications strategy
Market analysis, messaging architecture, competitive positioning, and integrated plans that align every channel to your business goals. We build the strategic foundation that everything else runs on.
Media relations and thought leadership
Proactive media strategy, bylined articles, journalist relationships, and earned coverage in the publications your audience reads and trusts. We don't just pitch stories. We build the relationships that make stories happen.
LinkedIn and social media strategy
Executive visibility programs, company page strategy, content calendars, and engagement optimization. We focus on LinkedIn because that's where B2B decisions are influenced, but we build multi-channel when the audience calls for it.
Go-to-market launches
Entering a new market or launching a new product takes more than a press release. We build integrated campaigns across PR, social, sales enablement, and owned channels that create momentum and drive pipeline.
Influencer and ambassador programs
Influencer identification, outreach, relationship management, and activation programs that extend your reach authentically through voices your audience already follows and trusts.
EVP and internal communications
Employee value propositions, culture campaigns, and internal storytelling that strengthens your employer brand. Because the way you communicate internally shapes the way your people represent you externally.
WHO WE PARTNER WITH
We work with organizations that have something worth saying
You don't need a bigger megaphone. You need a strategic partner to make sure the right people hear the right message, at the right time.
Building authority in a competitive market
You have deep expertise but your brand isn't keeping pace with your reputation. You need a communications strategy that positions your leaders as trusted voices and your organization as the one to watch.
Launching into something new
A new product, a new market, a new audience. You need integrated communications that create momentum and credibility from the start, not a slow drip of disconnected tactics.
Amplifying mission and impact
Your work speaks for itself, but not enough people are hearing about it. You need media coverage, influencer relationships, and content that turns your mission into stories your community rallies around.
Scaling beyond what your internal team can handle
Your team is talented but maxed out. You need a strategic partner who can extend your reach without adding headcount, someone who integrates with your team and makes the work better.
MAKING HEADLINES FOR OUR CLIENTS
Clients in the news
A sampling of the media placements, personal stories, and activations we've driven for clients.
BRAND AWARENESS
Minnesota family raises $1M for St. Jude in honor of teen lost to brain cancer
KARE 11 / NBC
EMPLOYEE SPOTLIGHTS
Seeking Adventure: How Tyler Johnson became "The Boot Guy"
iHeartRadio
PERSONAL STORIES
Paige Lazorenko shares her stage three melanoma journey and St. Jude treatment
Red Wing Shoe Company
WHEN TO CALL US
You might need us if...
These are the moments our clients typically reach out. If any of these sound familiar, we should talk.
You're entering a new market and need to build credibility fast
You have a strong product or service but no presence in the market you're targeting. You need a strategic plan to earn attention, not just buy it.
Your brand has a great story but nobody's telling it
You know there's a compelling narrative in your work, your people, or your mission, but it's not reaching the audiences who need to hear it.
You've been doing marketing in-house but it's not adding up to a strategy
You're posting on social, sending some emails, maybe doing a little PR. But it's not connected, and it's not driving measurable results.
Your executives need to be more visible in the market
Your leadership team has expertise and insights worth sharing, but they're not showing up in the conversations that matter to your audience.
QUESTIONS WE HEAR MOST
Before you reach out
How is this different from hiring a traditional marketing agency?
Most agencies hand you a retainer proposal, assign a junior account manager, and start executing tactics. We start with strategy, work directly at the senior level, and build programs around what's actually going to move the needle for your business. You get a partner who understands your market, not just your brand guidelines.
Do you work as an outsourced marketing team or alongside an existing one?
Both. Some clients bring us in as their primary strategic communications partner when they don't have an in-house marketing team. Others have internal teams and bring us in for specific capabilities like media relations, thought leadership, or go-to-market strategy. We flex to what the engagement needs.
What industries do you work in?
We've partnered with organizations across technology, professional services, corporate preparedness, financial services, retail, CPG, food and beverage, and real estate. On the nonprofit side, we've worked with national organizations on territory-level communications spanning media relations, influencer engagement, and community activations. Based in Minneapolis, our work reaches national and international audiences.
How do you measure results?
We tie everything back to the business outcomes that matter to you: media placements and earned coverage, social engagement and growth, website traffic from earned and owned channels, lead generation, and brand awareness metrics. We set benchmarks at the start and report against them consistently.