Press Hook, a Brooklyn based, tech-enabled, public relations platform, has announced $1.5 million in venture-funding after a successful year of growth. Funding was led by Emergent Ventures, The Fund and TnT Ventures.

Founded in October 2020 by Michelle Songy, Press Hook was created in response to an industry she considered inefficient and cost prohibitive for most startups and small businesses. Filling the gaping hole for businesses that were previously unable to afford public relations, Press Hook connects brands with the media in an efficient and cost effective way. Press Hook’s clients range from consumer packaged goods to up and coming tech brands.

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“With the media publishing a greater amount of content, and more frequently, getting a pitch noticed can feel daunting,” says Songy. “Press Hook adds to a reporters preferred communication method by creating a platform that connects journalists directly with their sources, cutting out the back and forth between publicists and editors, in a way traditional PR has shied away from.”

Highlights of the platform include a searchable database of digital press kits, the ability for journalists to connect with press contacts to request interviews or product samples, and places products into guides for journalists. With publications seeing a 30% or more increase in articles published in the last decade, according to a report by The Atlantic, Press Hook is helping to simplify the PR process on both ends – for brands and editors.

Press Hook’s vision is to build the next-generation digital newsroom, designed to automate and streamline workflow between businesses, publicists and journalists.

“Press Hook’s unique market network is bringing transparency and efficiency to a space which has historically been very opaque – how brands get covered by media,” said Ankur Jain, founder of Emergent Ventures. “We are very excited to partner with Press Hook as it will level the playing field and change this industry forever.”

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