purveyors of fine buzz
602.330.1996
Beth McRae
Public Relations Strategist, Founder & CEO of The McRae Agency
Beth McRae is a public relations strategist, entrepreneur, author, and founder of The McRae Agency, an award-winning public relations and marketing firm based in Paradise Valley, Arizona.
About Beth
With more than 30 years of experience, McRae has helped companies, executives, entrepreneurs and nonprofit organizations build visibility, strengthen their reputations and earn media attention through strategic public relations, media relations, thought leadership, brand storytelling and community engagement.
McRae founded The McRae Agency in 1995. Today, she advises organizations in Arizona and across the country on how to become better known, better understood and more trusted by the audiences that matter to their businesses.
Her philosophy is straightforward: Publicity follows purpose.
The strongest public relations does more than generate attention. It identifies what makes an organization valuable, turns that value into compelling stories and builds the relationships and credibility that create long-term reputational equity.
Public Relations Experience
Throughout her career, McRae has developed and executed public relations programs for companies ranging from entrepreneurial businesses and nonprofits to nationally recognized brands.
Her experience includes work involving organizations and brands such as Google, Red Bull, CBRE, KB Home, Solatube International, The Phoenix Symphony, and numerous real estate, construction, building products, technology, professional services, and nonprofit organizations.
Her work has included national product launches, corporate positioning, executive visibility, media relations, thought leadership, community relations, special events, brand introductions and reputation-building campaigns.
McRae and her agency have worked to secure media exposure across national, regional, local, and industry outlets, helping clients translate complex products, services, and missions into stories audiences understand and remember.
Areas of Expertise
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Public relations strategy
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Earned media and media relations
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Executive positioning
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Thought leadership
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Brand storytelling
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Corporate communications
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Reputation building
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New product and company launches
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Community relations
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Special events
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Public relations for commercial real estate and development
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Public relations for architecture, construction and building products
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Nonprofit communications
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AI visibility and generative engine optimization strategy
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PR measurement and return on investment
Throughout her career, McRae has developed and executed public relations programs for companies ranging from entrepreneurial businesses and nonprofits to nationally recognized brands.
Her experience includes work involving organizations and brands such as Google, Red Bull, CBRE, KB Home, Solatube International, The Phoenix Symphony, and numerous real estate, construction, building products, technology, professional services, and nonprofit organizations.
Her work has included national product launches, corporate positioning, executive visibility, media relations, thought leadership, community relations, special events, brand introductions and reputation-building campaigns.
McRae and her agency have worked to secure media exposure across national, regional, local, and industry outlets, helping clients translate complex products, services, and missions into stories audiences understand and remember.
Building Brands Through Earned Authority
McRae believes visibility is most valuable when it is earned.
Advertising can buy exposure. Public relations builds credibility by giving other people reasons to talk about a company, leader, product, or cause.
Her approach begins by identifying the stories within an organization that are genuinely interesting, useful or important to others. Those stories may come from innovation, leadership, community impact, customer results, research, expertise or an unconventional solution to a common problem.
The objective isn't simply to get a client's name into the media. It is to establish a reputation that compounds over time.
PR in the Age of Artificial Intelligence
As people increasingly use artificial intelligence platforms to discover companies, experts, products and services, McRae's work has expanded to include AI visibility and generative engine optimization, or GEO.
The principles behind AI visibility are closely connected to traditional public relations.
Companies that have clearly defined expertise, credible third-party coverage, authoritative content, consistent information and strong reputations give both people and AI systems more evidence to understand who they are and why they matter.
The McRae Agency helps organizations build that authority through a combination of earned media, thought leadership, digital content, entity development and reputation strategy.
McRae's perspective is simple:
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The next evolution of public relations isn't just being found. It's being trusted enough to be recommended.
Industry Experience
McRae has particularly deep experience in industries where complex ideas need to be translated into compelling stories, including:
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Commercial Real Estate and Development
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The McRae Agency works with developers, commercial real estate companies and executives to create stories around development, investment, economic growth, placemaking, leadership and changing communities.
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Architecture, Construction and Building Products
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McRae has extensive experience communicating technical products and concepts to architects, engineers, contractors, facility professionals, developers and consumers.
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Nonprofit Organizations
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McRae works with nonprofit leaders to increase awareness of their missions, demonstrate community impact, elevate executive leadership and turn individual stories into broader conversations about important issues.
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Professional Services and B2B Companies
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For companies whose value isn't immediately obvious to the public, McRae specializes in translating expertise into understandable, relevant stories that establish authority and differentiate the organization.
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Consumer Brands and Product Launches
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Her career includes product introductions, experiential campaigns, media events and consumer public relations designed to generate attention without relying exclusively on paid advertising.
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Career Highlights
McRae's career has included campaigns and experiences that demonstrate the range of ways public relations can build brands.
Her work has included supporting market and product launches, developing educational programs for first-time homebuyers, creating media campaigns around natural daylight and building products, positioning executives as industry authorities, promoting major commercial real estate developments and helping nonprofit organizations turn their missions into stories capable of attracting community and media attention.
A recurring theme throughout that work has been finding the larger story behind the organization.
A company may sell a product, but the story is often about how that product improves people's lives. A developer may construct buildings, but the larger story may be economic development and community transformation. A nonprofit may provide services, but the story is ultimately about people whose lives have changed.
That distinction has shaped McRae's approach to public relations for more than three decades.
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Author of Build Some Buzz
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Beth McRae is the author of the forthcoming book, Build Some Buzz: How Great Leaders Earn Trust, Tell Better Stories and Build Reputations That Last.
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Drawing on lessons and case studies from more than 30 years in public relations, the book explores how organizations and leaders can earn attention rather than simply purchase it.
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Among its central ideas:
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Publicity follows purpose.
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Visibility is earned.
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People can't value what they don't understand.
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Every organization has a story.
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Trust is built in the delivery.
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Reputation compounds.
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Relationships matter more than transactions.
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The book examines how organizations ranging from startups and nonprofits to major national brands have used creativity, community, relationships and storytelling to build lasting reputations.
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Founder of The McRae Agency
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McRae founded The McRae Agency in 1995 with a commitment to providing clients senior-level strategic counsel combined with hands-on execution.
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The Paradie Valley-based agency provides public relations, media relations, marketing communications, thought leadership, strategic planning, content development and AI visibility services.
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Rather than applying the same communications formula to every client, the agency looks for the distinctive idea, expertise, story or opportunity that can make an organization relevant to its audiences.
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Beth McRae on Public Relations
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What makes a company newsworthy?
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Being in business isn't news. A company becomes newsworthy when what it is doing connects with something larger: innovation, an industry trend, economic impact, community need, useful expertise, compelling data or an interesting human story.
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What is the difference between PR and advertising?
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Advertising purchases visibility. Public relations works to earn attention and third-party credibility. The two can complement each other, but they perform different functions.
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How does a CEO become a thought leader?
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Thought leadership begins with having something worthwhile to say. Executives should develop clear perspectives based on their experience, consistently share useful knowledge and participate in important conversations within their industries.
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Can public relations help a company appear in AI search results?
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Yes. Public relations can contribute to the signals AI platforms use to understand organizations and experts. Authoritative content, earned media, third-party references, consistent entity information and recognized expertise can all strengthen a company's digital authority.
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How should a company choose a PR agency?
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Look beyond promises of media coverage. Evaluate the agency's experience, strategic thinking, senior-level involvement, understanding of your industry, ability to identify stories and evidence of long-term client results.
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Speaking and Media Topics
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Beth McRae is available to provide expert commentary, interviews and presentations on topics including:
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Public relations and media relations; building corporate reputation; executive thought leadership; how to earn media attention; storytelling for business; PR for entrepreneurs and small businesses; PR measurement and ROI; AI's impact on public relations; AI search visibility and GEO; community relations; building trust and authority; and creating newsworthy ideas.
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About The McRae Agency
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Founded in 1995, The McRae Agency is a public relations and marketing agency based in Scottsdale, Arizona, serving clients in Arizona and nationally.
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The agency specializes in public relations, media relations, thought leadership, strategic communications, brand storytelling, content development, and AI visibility.
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Its approach combines traditional relationship-driven public relations with the emerging need for organizations and executives to establish authoritative digital footprints that can be understood by both search engines and artificial intelligence platforms.
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Media, Speaking and Business Inquiries
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For media interviews, speaking opportunities, public relations consulting, or information about working with Beth McRae and The McRae Agency, contact The McRae Agency through the agency's website.
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