It was the summer of 1996 — the Summer Olympics were held in Atlanta, Independence Day and Twister were box office blockbusters, the song Macarena dominated the airwaves — and on a sunny hot July day, Goldman Communications Group opened its doors!
I remember that day so well. I was so proud to start the agency and ready to jump into working for our first client project – we were hired to handle the industry and statewide media relations for the 25th anniversary of Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals doing business in the United States. I was full of pride, energy, confidence, and, yes, trepidation, at the same time. Had I made the right decision to start my own agency? Would we be successful for our first client and the many more to come?
The answer, thankfully, was a resounding YES! For Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, we were able to get coverage in most of the newspapers in Connecticut, a great wire service story, and the cover feature of Pharmaceutical Executive magazine. Whew!
Goldman Communications Group was off and running! Soon after, I was able to land a few new clients – Olsten Health Services, First Brands Corporation, and OhBaby Toys. And, while I’ve looked back a few times, it’s been a ride.
The past two decades have seen so many changes — and public relations is more of a 24/7 business than ever before. We’ve seen traditional broadcast and print media undergo consolidations and epic changes; social media creating new communications channels needing to be navigated, leveraged, and managed, as companies and executives needed to directly engage disparate audiences simultaneously and often before they really want to.
We’ve had to ride the waves, adapt to the times, and master the ever-changing communications channels. One thing that has stayed constant is the need for companies, brands, non-profit organizations and their executives to create, communicate, and control their messages and value propositions effectively, convincingly, and in ways that will impact their business success. I’m proud to say we’ve been doing that for our clients since we opened our doors and we still do that today. That’s one of our key strengths — and we know our clients appreciate that.
A big giant THANK YOU to all the clients, colleagues, media, and industry people who have worked with us, recommended us, partnered with us, and helped make these past 20 years a success. It’s been a roller coaster ride, but an exhilarating, fun, and enjoyable one.
We’re still on that ride – and we’re going for more. So, join us for the ride, work with us, watch what we do, and recommend us, if you can. We know it’s going to be a great next decade.
