PR that pays off
long after we’re done.
Tracy Samantha & Co. is a modern communications firm. Our publicists refine your message, then build you a complete PR system that gets you press, speaking gigs, and online momentum. You or your team runs it, with no retainer keeping you dependent.
Since 2015, the firm has supported more than 150 brands. Along the way, Tracy saw the problems with old-school PR agencies, and in 2022 she rebuilt the company around our unique model. It is our honor to help our clients get the attention they deserve.
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Since 2015, our team has advised on marketing and communications across these sectors:
Our team
Senior publicists, strategists, and producers behind both programs. Every engagement starts with Tracy.
Tracy Samantha Schmidt
Tracy has 25 years of experience across journalism, PR, and marketing. She covered the rise of Facebook for TIME, used social media to develop new reporting methods that are standard today, co-founded one of the world’s first influencer networks at the Chicago Tribune, and led global social media strategy for Crain Communications, a leading business media company. Additionally, she has trained hundreds of working journalists, including through the National Association of Broadcasters. Her ghostwriting has been published in HBR, Fast Company, and Business Insider. A frequent TV commentator on ABC and CBS, she taught marketing at the University of Chicago for a decade and has spoken at dozens of conferences.
Fikir Belete
With a background in software engineering, program operations, communications, and client coordination across global teams, Fikir partners with leadership to manage workflows, timelines, and deliverables, ensuring projects run smoothly and clients receive consistent, high-quality support. Drawing on experience across tech, media, and international programs, she combines technical knowledge with strong organizational, communication, and problem-solving skills to turn ideas into well-executed projects.
Eric Benderoff
Eric brings over 25 years of experience across integrated communications agencies and Chicago’s top-tier newsrooms. At BCW, a global Top 3 firm, he trained hundreds of Fortune 500 executives at companies including Accenture, Bank of America, and Ford. As a Chicago Tribune business editor and technology columnist, he covered the intersection of tech and culture, talked trends weekly on Chicago’s top morning radio show, and appeared regularly on public television. Today he runs Benderoff Communications, and in 2023, the Michigan State journalism graduate joined MSU as a professor of practice.
Collin Czarnecki
As the founder of NOBLE and a former journalist, Collin has spent 18 years on both sides of the inbox, pitching and being pitched. For nearly a decade, he worked in newsrooms as a journalist and editor, publishing over 2,500 articles with outlets like Gannett/USA Today Network. Since then, he has led the strategy and development of more than 400 digital PR campaigns that have earned 14,000+ media placements for brands across tech, food, finance, and beyond.
Cat McDevitt
Cat is a Chicago-based social media strategist and content producer specializing in one thing other creators rarely attempt: making complex ideas go viral. She has spent her career proving that audiences want to learn from people who actually know things and teaching subject-matter experts how to bridge the gap. Her work centers on translating dense research, science, and expertise into video concepts and content strategies that perform. She handles the research, the strategy, and the production, so her clients can focus on what they know best. Her clients regularly see record-breaking months for follower growth, and on average gain 20,000 followers across platforms after working with her.
Elizabeth Dycus
Elizabeth is a published author in the JCSTAND Vol. 36, and was a panelist speaker for Cultivating Belonging Amidst Restrictive Legislation at the 94th Southern States Communication Association Convention. She teaches Public Speaking and Intro. to Speech Communication at Austin Community College. Elizabeth resides in Austin, TX where she is involved in a local expressive arts community and is under constant scrutiny from her cats. You can probably find her at the Hideout Theatre or Cap City Comedy enjoying improv / stand-up.
Lauren Viera
Lauren Viera has spent more than two decades in journalism and branding, starting as a reporter at the Chicago Tribune before moving to Leo Burnett and eventually opening her own practice. She helps brands, businesses, nonprofits, and individuals tell their stories, no matter how big or wild, for clients including Airbnb, Walgreens, Google Workspace, Condé Nast, Square, and The New York Times Magazine. A Californian who’s called Chicago home for 20-plus years, she wrote a book about the city’s best spots, teaches professional writing at Columbia College Chicago, and recently started writing screenplays.
Heather Stumpf
Heather Stumpf is the photographer behind Margo Popio Studios, where she specializes in personal brand photography and commercial work that makes founders, executives, and entrepreneurs look like celebrities. She is also the founder of Vavoom Pinups, Chicago’s premier vintage pinup and boudoir studio, where she has photographed more than 3,000 clients since 2008 and earned features from numerous media outlets. She taught art in Chicago schools for seven years before turning to photography full-time.
Jon Tsourakis
Jon Tsourakis is a business advisor and entrepreneur with more than 20 years of experience in marketing, sales, and business leadership. He founded and grew Revital Agency for a decade before merging it with Oyova in 2019, where he now serves as President and co-owner. Under his leadership, Oyova has been recognized three times on the Inc. 5000 list of America’s fastest-growing private companies. Jon has also led the Digital Mastermind Group, a national peer network for agency owners, and served five years as President of CentralComp.
“Working with Tracy has been a game-changer for i.c.stars. We’ve gained visibility in all of our regional markets and on the national stage while also building the internal skills to tell our story with confidence.”
“Tracy’s methodological process helped me define my industry, service offerings, target clients, and long-term vision to create a comprehensive messaging system I could use to better position myself and my company.”
“As a John Hopkins University Provost’s Fellow, I spent over a year training in public-facing and media skills. I then had the amazing opportunity to work with Tracy, who transformed my outlook, presence, and messaging far more than what I learned during the year.”
“Not only did Tracy help me crystallize my ideas and make them applicable to all audiences, but she also helped me understand and anticipate journalists’ reactions. On top of that, she helped me leverage my SXSW speech to attract a ton of media coverage that was a game-changer for the growth of our business.”
“It is through this carefully orchestrated process of organizational inquiry that the messaging reveals itself, and it has proven to resonate deeply with both our internal team and external audiences, including funders.”
“Working with Tracy really helped me navigate what’s important by mapping out my methodology and fully leaning into what makes me different than others out there. Since collaborating with Tracy, I’ve seen a huge uptick in inquiries, sales calls, and new clients. Tracy is an investment that is worth every penny.”
