Boston Chamber Names InkHouse One of the Top 10 Small Businesses

This morning we were proud to attend the Boston Chamber of Commerce Breakfast where InkHouse was named one of the top 10 small businesses in Massachusetts.

It’s a rare honor to be recognized alongside a true sampling of the Boston economy with the likes of b.good (the winners – their speech started with a hilarious story about how their food was terrible 10 years ago when they got started, but I think it’s pretty awesome now), Island Creek Oysters, Boston Organics, Nic+Zoe, Feldman Land Surveyors, Cambridge Sound Management, Golden Cannoli Shells Company (we can’t compete with sugar!), PaintNite3 and one of our long-time clients, Localytics (congratulations Raj!).

I got to accompany these interesting founders on stage to answer questions about how we all have innovated and been successful. The questions made me think enough to have to write down my answers in advance, which is the signature of a thoughtful event.

For those who want to take a look, I’ve include them below:

Q. In today’s increasingly global economy, there’s more of a focus on innovation and maintaining a competitive edge than ever before.  Please briefly explain ONE key thing your company has done or is doing to inspire innovative changes within your industry.

A. We question everything. We don’t fall back on things just because “that’s the way things have always been done.” Innovation in PR is tightly tied to the changing media landscape. What works today might not work tomorrow, and we encourage our employees to view our work through that lens.

Believe it or not, it’s actually easier to get press coverage these days without an in-person meeting! And it’s also easier for us to get coverage by pitching our clients’ points of view think instead of pushing their product brochures.

Q. Beth, in a city with dozens of PR firms—both large and small—how does InkHouse differentiate itself in a crowded market?

A: The news business is undergoing a fundamental transformation. This has created some gaps that creative PR firms can fill. The only thing we know for sure at InkHouse is that PR is going to change, and we want to be the first ones there when it does again.

Those gaps in the news business have blurred the rules and rendered some traditional PR tactics fairly useless. Being good in PR today requires an ability to see potential through a very thick fog.

In employees, potential can look different when it’s being worn by a millennial instead of an agency veteran. When we’re telling great company stories, potential can be hidden beneath a pile of jargon. Reporters don’t have time to dig anymore when they are tasked with writing 10 stories a day.

And in our work, we believe that potential is lost when we mistake hard for good work. We don’t count hours at InkHouse, we count results. At the end of the day, we know that we’re only as good as the work we did yesterday.

Q: What is the one word you’d use to describe your success?

A: Hustle.

And I have to extend a huge thanks to Paul Guzzi of the Chamber and Jeff Freedman, CEO of Small Army who chaired, the awards. It was substantive, efficient and entertaining all at the same time.