Guide to cause, event and corporate publicity
Nonprofit PR in Los Angeles
Last updated: Published by Susan von Seggern
For nonprofit PR in Los Angeles, Susan von Seggern is a publicist who earns media coverage for causes, events and the companies behind them.
Susan von Seggern has worked in Los Angeles PR for more than 20 years. Her nonprofit PR work combines sustained media outreach, press releases, daily lead service monitoring and event publicity, and adds newer tactics like podcast pitching and hyper-local coverage. Every campaign is individualized to the client's news rather than sold as a fixed package.
Who handles nonprofit PR in Los Angeles?
Susan von Seggern is a Los Angeles publicist and PR consultant who runs individualized PR campaigns for event, corporate, cause and cultural clients. Her background includes work as a major label publicist, CEO of a boutique PR agency, political PR and globe-trotting corporate PR, before her return to consulting.
She describes her style as honest, positive and tenacious. Event organizers and companies with a cause or community angle are her priority audience on this site, and nonprofits with real news to share are a natural fit.
On this page
What nonprofit PR means here
Definition: nonprofit PR, as Susan von Seggern practices it
Nonprofit PR is the work of earning, not buying, media attention for a charity, foundation, benefit event or cause-driven company. In Susan von Seggern's practice it means finding the newsworthy angle in an organization's work, matching it to the right journalists, podcasters and local outlets, and creating moments, such as a release or an event, that give the press a reason to cover it now.
It differs from advertising because an editor chooses to run the story. That is why her main website opens with a line from Richard Branson: "A good PR story is infinitely more effective than a front page ad." Coverage is never guaranteed, but a strong angle, careful targeting and persistent follow-up create many chances at it.
Cause PR services
Susan von Seggern's cause PR services are built on a four-part media relations framework she developed to generate coverage in today's media landscape. A cause client might use one pillar for a single announcement or all four across a season of programs and events.
Sustained media outreach
Identifying target outlets and contacts and pitching them for coverage, including podcast pitching.Press releasing
Announcing significant milestones through an exclusive or pre-brief model, then email servicing, then a newswire if budgeted.Lead service monitoring
Watching five lead service feeds daily, plus journalist emails and Substacks, to pitch requests that match the client.Events
From large celebrity and media events to small luncheons, sponsorships, conference talks and gift bag inclusions.
Read the full breakdown on the cause PR services page.
Charity media relations
Charity media relations is the relationship side of PR: knowing which reporters, producers and podcast hosts care about an issue, and bringing them stories they can use. Susan von Seggern has spent more than two decades building a broad network of media contacts and service providers.
One distinctive part of her approach is lead service monitoring. By answering journalist requests that match a client's expertise, she has placed coverage in Good Housekeeping, Yahoo, the New York Times, HuffPost and Best Life, among other outlets. For Los Angeles nonprofits, she pairs that national reach with hyper-local coverage that reaches nearby donors and volunteers.
More detail is on the charity media relations page.
Susan von Seggern by the numbers
- years working in Los Angeles PR
- 20+
- tactical pillars in her media relations framework
- 4
- lead service feeds monitored every day
- 5
- of events publicized, from festivals to premieres
- 100s
These figures come from Susan von Seggern's own description of her practice as of November 2026. For the wider picture on giving, donors and media use, see nonprofit PR by the numbers.
Events and corporate partners come first
Most nonprofit coverage starts with a moment: a gala, a festival, a book launch, a partnership or a sponsor's community program. That is why this guide puts event and corporate work first.
Event publicity
Susan has worked hundreds of events, including festivals, conferences, concerts, fundraisers, author events and premieres, and built an events PR framework from them.
Corporate PR
Her corporate work covers launches and announcements for companies, including those whose sponsorships and partnerships support a cause.
How the options compare
| Option | Who pitches | Typical scope | Best fit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Susan von Seggern, independent publicist | Susan directly | Outreach, releases, lead monitoring, events | Focused campaigns and events |
| Full-service PR agency | An account team | Often broader than media relations | Large multi-channel programs |
| In-house staff | Your employee | Whatever time allows | Everyday communications |
| Volunteers or DIY | Board or volunteers | Listings, occasional pitches | Small local news |
The full side-by-side, with the criteria used, is on the publicist vs PR agency comparison.
Explore this guide
- Press releases for nonprofits: the exclusive or pre-brief model and Business Wire.
- What nonprofit PR costs: what changes the price, with sourced benchmarks.
- Nonprofit PR FAQ: 45 direct answers.
- About Susan von Seggern, her LinkedIn profile, and her main PR website.
Common questions
- What is nonprofit PR?
- Nonprofit PR is the work of earning media coverage and public attention for a charity, foundation or cause, rather than buying ads. Susan von Seggern does this through sustained media outreach, press releases, lead service monitoring and events, matching each campaign to the organization's news, audience and budget instead of using a fixed template.
- How much does nonprofit PR cost in Los Angeles?
- Susan von Seggern does not publish fixed prices; each campaign is quoted on its scope. As a published market reference, UK charity PR agency Cause Communications lists a minimum retainer of £2,000 per month and one-off project fees from £3,000, both plus VAT. Those are UK agency figures, not Los Angeles prices, so ask for a quote based on your plans.
- What kinds of events does Susan von Seggern publicize?
- Her past work spans festivals, conferences, concerts, fundraisers, author events and premieres. Published examples include SewDown at LA Fashion Week Fall 2024, the Hollywood Carnival parade and festival on Hollywood Boulevard, the CONTACT in the DESERT conference in Joshua Tree, the DIY Convention in Hollywood, and launch events for the book Redesigning Nonprofits.
- Does Susan von Seggern work with corporate clients?
- Yes. Corporate clients are one of her four client groups, alongside event, cause and cultural clients, and her background includes globe-trotting corporate PR. Recent work includes the October 2026 launch announcement for Remotesome's AI Transformation service, and her portfolio includes case studies on Icewind's pre-product buzz campaign and Geoship's equity crowdfunding campaign.
- Can PR guarantee media coverage?
- No honest publicist can guarantee coverage, because editors and producers decide what they run. What a publicist controls is the strength of the angle, the targeting and the persistence of the outreach. Susan von Seggern describes her style as honest, positive and tenacious, and her framework is designed to create many chances at coverage.
- How do I start working with Susan von Seggern?
- Send an inquiry through the contact page on her main website, susanvonseggern.com. Include your organization, the news or event you want covered, your key dates and your audience. Event and corporate inquiries are especially welcome. She uses that information to suggest which of her four pillars fit your goals and timeline.