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INTERVIEW 🎙️

Emilie Gerber, Founder & CEO at Six Eastern

Emilie Gerber is the founder and CEO of Six Eastern, a strategic public relations agency that specializes in high-impact PR programs for startups and venture-backed companies. Since its founding in 2019, Six Eastern has collaborated with over 100 tech companies, ranging from stealth startups to publicly traded firms, including notable clients like Perplexity, Nextdoor, Ramp, Webflow, ClickUp, and Nubank. Prior to establishing Six Eastern, Gerber worked at Uber, leading PR for the business development team and B2B programs. Before that, she was at Box, focusing on product launches and partnership announcements.

Gerber is recognized for her pragmatic and results-oriented approach to PR, emphasizing the importance of building credibility and trust through media coverage. She has shared her insights on PR strategies in various platforms, including Lenny Rachitsky's podcast, where she discussed topics such as crafting compelling pitches, understanding media priorities, and the long-term benefits of effective PR.

Tell us about the problem you're trying to solve? And what is your North Star?

I started Six Eastern after my time at Uber, where I worked closely with the business development team and regularly met founders we were exploring partnerships with. I saw firsthand that many of them needed far more strategic support than I could offer in my role.

I wanted to build an agency that operated more like a consultancy—working with only a handful of clients at a time so we can go deep, truly understand their business, and act as an extension of their team. We only take on companies and products we genuinely believe in, which allows us to deliver work that’s grounded in trust and focused on meaningful results. For early‑stage companies, that level of care and precision isn’t just nice to have—it’s essential.

As for our North Star, success isn’t just measured in how many press hits we get. It’s whether the work actually builds credibility. If it helps a company start to be seen as a leader in its space, that’s what matters.

We pay attention to what happens afterwards—if investors are bringing it up in meetings, if candidates mention it in interviews, if the right people in the industry start talking about it. PR takes time, so we focus on outcomes that make a difference, not surface‑level numbers.

What’s the number one benefit for startups & scaleups when doing PR well?

The biggest benefit is credibility. When you’re a young company trying to break through the noise, third-party validation from respected media can be transformative. It’s not just about getting your name out there; it’s about being seen as legitimate.

When should a company start thinking about a PR strategy?

I’d break it down into two categories. Funding announcements are separate—they’re one-off projects. If you want to get press around your seed or Series A round, you can usually hire a consultant for something like $10k to handle that. But if we're talking about an ongoing comms program, then Series A or sometimes even Series B is a good time to start having conversations with potential partners to see if it’s the right fit.

One of the biggest blockers we see is when executives aren’t willing to put in the time. These are the key spokespeople, and if they’re not up for talking to reporters, going on podcasts, or speaking at conferences, it’s going to be an uphill battle. You can’t really rely on secondary spokespeople when you're still small. So it’s important that the team is actually ready to engage.

Sometimes it just comes down to timing—maybe you’re still heads-down building your product and can’t allocate the bandwidth. That’s fine. A lot of companies wait until Series B to really invest in PR, and that can work well. Beyond that, traction can come in a few different forms. Yes, it helps to have customers and some growth stats, but even more important is having a unique and pointed perspective. We love a strong, original take. The more a founder is willing to push the envelope and stand out from the noise—especially in saturated spaces like AI—the more successful we tend to be.

What’s the anatomy of a killer startup story?

A lot of people—and even PR professionals—make the mistake of pitching the company as the center of the universe. It ends up sounding overly promotional, and that’s just not what appeals to media. Journalists want to see the company as a lens through which to understand a bigger industry trend.

For example, I love calling out a major competitor right in the subject line: ‘This tiny startup is taking on Microsoft.’ Founders sometimes push back, saying they don’t want to be compared to a giant like Microsoft. But that contrast actually helps your story land; it makes it more compelling.

As companies mature, sharing revenue milestones—like hitting $100 million—can validate the business in a way few other things can. For instance, we once pitched Bolt. New when they hit $40 million in record time. That stat became the entire angle and it worked.

Customer names can help, but they’re rarely the main hook unless it's an exceptional use case, like the U.S. military using your product. And finally, the investors behind a company can be powerful. If someone like Sam Altman backs you, you can bet we’re putting that front and center in the pitch. It’s all about finding the angle that gives your story broader relevance and credibility.

How do you think about traditional media vs new media?

Traditional media still matters, especially for moments like funding announcements, where you might land a full feature in The Wall Street Journal, TechCrunch, or Business Insider. But in terms of consistent value and reach, podcasts and newsletters often deliver more impact, particularly in the early and growth stages. Newsrooms are shrinking. If you rely solely on traditional outlets, you might land one big story a year; then what?

Podcasts and newsletters give you a cadence, a drumbeat of visibility, and they let you speak directly to a niche, high-intent audience. That kind of momentum builds on itself. We’ve seen clients get inbound interest—real customers or big partners—from tiny podcasts that reached exactly the right people. So while we still chase top-tier media for milestone moments, the smartest PR strategies today are multi-channel, with newer formats often pulling more weight than legacy press.

Would you prefer a mention in the Wall Street Journal or an interview on Lenny’s Podcast?

I’d take the one-hour podcast with Lenny. And here’s why: founders think they want the Wall Street Journal because of the prestige. It looks great on the website, right? But unless it’s a full feature, that one-sentence mention usually doesn’t move the needle. With a top-tier podcast, you get a real platform. You get 60 minutes to tell your story, explain your product, talk about your journey, and connect with the audience on a human level.

What’s an underrated comms or PR tactic startups can use today?

Writing your own content. It sounds basic, but founders often ignore the power of building their own voice and narrative early on. I don’t just mean tweeting; I mean putting out thoughtful blog posts or newsletters where you talk about your perspective, your product, the market, anything where you’re owning the narrative.

Even just doing one piece per quarter helps. It gives reporters something to reference, adds credibility, and shows that you have a point of view. Another underrated play? LinkedIn. It’s kind of cringey sometimes, but you need to lean into the cringe because it works.

Consistent posting, even once a week, builds a track record and makes it way easier for journalists, investors, or customers to understand who you are and what you’re about. You don't need to go viral. You just need to show up.

What does great outreach to journalists look like?

The biggest thing is to not make it feel like a marketing email. The best outreach feels like a natural conversation, not a salesperson or template email. This doesn’t need to be on email, get creative and try an X DM or a LinkedIn request. Reach out when you see something interesting, not just when you’re asking them to write a story.

If you can work in credibility naturally—like a past role at a notable company or something you’ve built—that helps. But don’t lead with ‘Can you write about my startup?’ unless you have actual news like a funding announcement (and even then, it’s a reach). Most journalists are way more receptive to someone who seems informed, curious, and collaborative than someone who’s just trying to get press.

And above all: never make yourself the center of the universe. They want context. They want a trend. They want a story that speaks to something bigger than just you.

Who do you think is doing well in PR today?

This is such a hard question. I feel like I’m so deep in my own client roster. One company that’s historically done really well and that we worked with in the early stages is Ramp. They continue to get press for things that other companies can’t. Talk about momentum. They’ve built so much of it that they can now get coverage for almost anything they do. Early on, they had strong PR support, a steady drumbeat of good stories, and consistent news. They also had multiple funding rounds.

In the midsize range, Fireworks AI—a current client—is a great example. It's a really complex and technical space, but the founder is incredible. She was previously at Facebook and behind PyTorch. It was an uphill battle at first given the complexity of the tech, but now she’s getting lots of media interest and speaking opportunities. We’ve definitely seen an inflection point.

How do you get the best out of yourself on a day-to-day basis?

That's so interesting. I have ADHD, but the kind where I love bouncing between things and can do a lot at once, and still do them well. I used to judge myself for not structuring my day the ‘normal’ way. But now, I let myself work in the rhythm that works best for me. For example, I love starting work the moment I wake up—even before I brush my teeth—and I work straight through until around 10 a.m. Then I do my morning routine and have breakfast. It used to feel weird, but it turns out that’s when I’m most productive.

I used to feel like I had to follow a traditional routine, but now I just go with what gets the best out of me. My most productive hours are definitely from about 7:30 a.m. to 10 a.m.

And that’s it! You can follow and connect with Emilie over on LinkedIn and Twitter, and don’t forget to check out Six Eastern’s website.

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