The MGP blog periodically features our global PR partners and journalists to give readers insight into both industries. Today we’re happy to share a Q&A with Remco Janssen, the founder of Proudly Represents, an Amsterdam based boutique PR agency serving high-growth technology companies. Proudly Represents is MGP’s PR agency partner in The Netherlands. Janssen is also the founder of Silicon Canals, a leading online publication in Europe covering technology and startups.

Can you tell us about your PR firm, the markets you serve, and what you do?

We design great PR and content marketing strategies that make our clients the market leader in The Netherlands, at least in terms of share of voice in our market. Our niche within the niche is working for scale-ups that use Amsterdam as a local hub for Benelux or EMEA. So all our current retainer clients are from abroad, ranging from Germany, Austria, and Denmark to France, the UK, and other markets in the past.

What made you want to start a PR agency?

I was a sports journalist with a knack for football – the real football, soccer as the Americans call it. But I wasn’t a very good one, to say the least. I got canned and reinvented myself as a freelance PR consultant for tech companies in 2008. That was the right moment as the tech industry started to grow in Europe. My first client was an Austrian people search engine when Google still allowed those. I learned a lot and started to operate as a small, hybrid agency named Proudly Represents in 2013. It was right when the Amsterdam startup ecosystem blossomed, and a year later I also founded Silicon Canals. Back then we irregularly covered the Amsterdam scene in Dutch. Now we’re the VentureBeat of Europe publishing in English.

What do you think is the most important factor to making a relationship with a client and PR firm work? 

An open line of communication. Once you have established it, you have set yourself up for success. I don’t believe in “the client is king.” We tend to be open and honest, very direct as we are quintessentially Dutch.

Can you tell us about one client story you were particularly delighted to see? 

Our longest-standing client at present is Trustpilot. Last year we secured coverage in FD, the Dutch Financial Times equivalent, in a four-page spread citing their Transparency Report. Hard to top that again this year, although it’s surely a highlight in our decade-long journey as an agency. 

Where is your company going next? What are your aspirations? 

That’s a tough question to answer. We’ve always been relatively small in size and that’s what we will remain to be, as it’s the best way to serve our type of clients. We’d like to specialize more in deeptech (such as AI and photonics) and fintech as we see those two categories emerging.

Looking to spread your PR message and tell your story in the Netherlands or another country? MGP and its team of global PR partners can help. Get in touch at hello@wearemgp.com.

The MGP blog periodically features our global PR partners and journalists to give readers insight into both industries. Today we’re happy to share a Q&A with Remco Janssen, the founder of Proudly Represents, an Amsterdam based boutique PR agency serving high-growth technology companies. Proudly Represents is MGP’s PR agency partner in The Netherlands. Janssen is also the founder of Silicon Canals, a leading online publication in Europe covering technology and startups.

Can you tell us about your PR firm, the markets you serve, and what you do?

We design great PR and content marketing strategies that make our clients the market leader in The Netherlands, at least in terms of share of voice in our market. Our niche within the niche is working for scale-ups that use Amsterdam as a local hub for Benelux or EMEA. So all our current retainer clients are from abroad, ranging from Germany, Austria, and Denmark to France, the UK, and other markets in the past.

What made you want to start a PR agency?

I was a sports journalist with a knack for football – the real football, soccer as the Americans call it. But I wasn’t a very good one, to say the least. I got canned and reinvented myself as a freelance PR consultant for tech companies in 2008. That was the right moment as the tech industry started to grow in Europe. My first client was an Austrian people search engine when Google still allowed those. I learned a lot and started to operate as a small, hybrid agency named Proudly Represents in 2013. It was right when the Amsterdam startup ecosystem blossomed, and a year later I also founded Silicon Canals. Back then we irregularly covered the Amsterdam scene in Dutch. Now we’re the VentureBeat of Europe publishing in English.

What do you think is the most important factor to making a relationship with a client and PR firm work? 

An open line of communication. Once you have established it, you have set yourself up for success. I don’t believe in “the client is king.” We tend to be open and honest, very direct as we are quintessentially Dutch.

Can you tell us about one client story you were particularly delighted to see? 

Our longest-standing client at present is Trustpilot. Last year we secured coverage in FD, the Dutch Financial Times equivalent, in a four-page spread citing their Transparency Report. Hard to top that again this year, although it’s surely a highlight in our decade-long journey as an agency. 

Where is your company going next? What are your aspirations? 

That’s a tough question to answer. We’ve always been relatively small in size and that’s what we will remain to be, as it’s the best way to serve our type of clients. We’d like to specialize more in deeptech (such as AI and photonics) and fintech as we see those two categories emerging.

Looking to spread your PR message and tell your story in the Netherlands or another country? MGP and its team of global PR partners can help. Get in touch at hello@wearemgp.com.