Testimonials

As a Speaker

"As President of the Canadian Public Relations Society Toronto, I have had the occasion to attend two recent presentations featuring Susan Sommers - one at our National Conference in Halifax, the other hosted by our society as part of a panel of published PR writers.

As a presenter, Susan has an engaging and personable style and immediately connects with her audience - be it a new practitioner looking for advice on the industry or a seasoned professional looking to keep abreast of thought leadership.

Susan's book, Building Media Relationships (now in its second edition) provides solid insight into the nature of media relations with practical applications and case studies.

I wholeheartedly endorse Susan as a respected public relations professional and thought-provoking speaker."

Lawrence Stevenson, APR, President, CPRS Toronto

"Susan is one smart cookie! I got to know her when she served as a volunteer on my organization's marketing and communications committee. She knows her stuff and is well regarded in media circles. She is a sought-after speaker and published author. She is a true professional."

Elaine Fogel, President, Solutions Marketing and Consulting

Workshops and Presentations

“Just a quick note to thank you for your insights and imparting such great knowledge at your working with the media session in London. It reaffirmed what  I believed to be true, gave me great ideas, and the opportunity to build a robust communications plan for my company - thank you. Looking forward to your next session!"

Catherine Sharpe

"What a fabulous presentation! I really learned a lot and enjoyed your presentation style and all the insights you shared. Thank you! I will be reviewing our organization's online media room. Your point about it not being an "archive of press releases" is well taken. I will certainly be seeing what I can do to revamp our chapter's media room."

Tamelynda Lux, Executive Director
Canadian Association of Family Enterprise, Southwestern Ontario Chapter

YMCA Business Centre

"It was a pleasure having Susan on our team at the YMCA Markham Business Centre.

Susan is an amazing, high energy professional who was always willing to go beyond what was expected of her. Susan is one fo the best instructors and business coaches we had on our team. Our client's consistently looked forward to their coaching sessions, as well as attending her training classes that she developed and facilitated.

Susan was also very successful in launching and managing the PR functions and fundraising activities of our Business Centre. We couldn't have exceeded our targets without her expertise in building media and community awareness.

I am confident that whoever works with Susan will find her very professional and pleasant. She is truly a gem."

Maureen S. Catania
Learningmeasures Inc., Past Program Director, YMCA

About the Book - Building Media Relationships

“The book is extremely interesting; very comprehensive and detailed. I think that I will be using the book further on in my career and looking for more resources from the author.”

“Easy to read, very clear, great examples, good textbook.”

"The book was very practical and I will use it as a resource in the future."

“I liked the set up of the textbook. I found it very informative.”

Courses at University of Toronto

“I enjoyed the course very much. Even though I’m already working in this field, I was learning something every time in Ms. Sommers’ class. She is very well informed, articulate, and proactive in the class.

Just wanted to say thanks for the class. I can't believe the 10 weeks went by so quickly. I got so much out of it, I thoroughly enjoyed the group work and I've actually started applying a lot of the lessons to my current job. I'll certainly recommend your class(es) to others."

Duff McCutcheon, Associate Editor, Human Resources Professionals Association (HRPA)

“Susan is a dynamic and engaging teacher. She knows a lot about her field and is completely willing to help out newcomers and students. I'm already using the skills I learned in her course in a media campaign that I'm helping out with a community group. I would completely recommend her as an instructor.”

Carina Cojeen , Web Communications Specialist , Bank of Montreal 

“It was a pleasure to have spent the last 4 Saturdays in-class with you. The media relations course was an interesting and complex look at a global conglomerate and a lot of fun too!

Laura Borgo, student, U of T

Teaching at Schulich School of Business, Executive Development

“I found the Marketing and Corporate Communications course to provide a good "big picture" approach to developing an integrated program of communications. In particular some of the templates and "how to's" for creating and using the typical communication documents and tools was quite helpful. This course would be ideal for someone new to a communications role, or someone taking on additional communication responsibility who needs a broader understanding of the aspects of a communications practice.”

Kristen Ridley, Corporate Communications, ACNielsen Canada

“I took the Marketing Corporate Communications Course, part of the Schulich Executive Education program. This course is fantastic for people who are working at a corporation in the marketing department or someone who is starting in a PR role that has never worked at a PR agency before. It was rather rudimentary for people already working in an agency environment and more appropriate for someone new to PR. It examined basic tools from business cards to writing a press release. There was some group work and was a great opportunity for networking. The course instructor was highly knowledgeable in the field and has a wealth of experience in public relations.”

Julia Stein, Account Coordinator, Environics Communications

“Susan Sommers' "Building Media Relationships" course provides a unique and interesting perspective on the media landscape in Canada. Her interesting case-studies, strong presentation skills,  and amiable demeanor made the workshop both educational and enjoyable to attend.”

Adrienne Nestor, Manager, External Communications Corporate and Public Affairs, TD Bank Financial Group

“I enjoyed meeting PR colleagues from other companies and hearing their challenges and experiences.”

Stephanie Irvine, 3M Canada Company

“Materials and content were valuable.”

Carrie Sancartier, Corporate Communications Specialist, CNW Group

 “A very valuable course. It covers everything a PR person needs to know with great examples and resources. This mix of interactive participation and discussion among  participants was key.”

Teresa Forrest, Manager, Corporate Communications, Johnson & Johnson Medical Products

 “I would like to thank you for a very informative and well thought out course. I enjoyed it very much and feel that I came away with lots of food for thought.”

Cheryl , Manager, Product Development, Devrient (G & D)

 “Thank you very much for giving a wonderful presentation. It was very interesting, and we received lots of positive feedback from those who attended.”

Michele Wright, Marketing Manager, Cassels, Brock & Blackwell

 “If you write your organization’s newsletter, take this course before you publish your next issue!”

Dave Deeley, Marketing Manager, United Way of York Region

 “Very applicable content, good interacting with other participants, and lots of new ideas generated.”

Tess Laidlaw, Communications Assistant, Institute of Infection and Immunology, University of Western Ontario

“A very practical course for marketers considering media and public relations within their marketing mix.  The participant will leave the course with strong knowledge of the fundamentals.”

Michael Smith, Senior Product Manager, Spiriva, Pfizer Canada Inc.