Astonish Media Group

What Astonish Media Group does

Astonish Media Group is a New York City-headquartered strategic media and public relations firm operating as Astonish Media Group, LLC. Founded in 2000 by Paula Conway and John Conway, the company delivers earned media coverage, branding and messaging, content creation, media training, speaking engagement placement, and strategic partnership work for clients across four core verticals: healthcare and health technology (the largest segment, including health systems such as Michigan Medicine and AI-driven startups such as Xsolis, Canary Speech, Videra Health, Babyscripts, RxWare, Caremerge, WINFertility, and Illume Fertility); food and beverage (Bake Me A Wish!, Sioux Honey Association Co-op, Latitude Food Allergy Care); personal branding (author and artist engagements such as Everett Raymond Kinstler); and marketing and communications agencies seeking national visibility (ddm marketing + communications). The firm is paid as an agency of record, via project-based engagements, and through media training services, with retainer-style economics typical of mid-size professional services shops.

The company is purely a services business with no software product, SaaS platform, app, or API offering (api_exists: false; no products listed). Its 'product' is the bench of senior practitioners: a former Broadway press agent and five-time best-selling author as President, an entertainment/intellectual-property attorney as CEO and General Counsel, a former Sony Pictures director of East Coast Field Operations as SVP, a former Fox News Channel senior health producer and Emmy-award winning television producer leading media training, and a tenured print journalist/MLB writer as Executive Editor. Differentiation rests on the founders' combined 25+ years of experience, the dual NYC/LA footprint, and a deep roster of placements in top-tier consumer, trade, and broadcast outlets including the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Forbes, CNN, NBC News, BBC, TechCrunch, Modern Healthcare, Adweek, and Glamour.

Commercially, Astonish runs a sales-led go-to-market with direct enterprise engagement, project-based work, and a referral/network channel. The firm is entirely founder-owned and privately held, with no disclosed institutional investment, parent company, or external funding. Pricing is not publicly disclosed and there is no subscription or productized offering beyond its media-training service line. Office footprint is a single headquarters at 101 Park Avenue (16th floor), New York City, with additional senior presence in Los Angeles.

Name

Astonish Media Group

Legal name

Astonish Media Group, LLC

Website

https://astonishmediagroup.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2000

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Astonish Media Group is a New York City-based strategic public relations and media firm providing earned media coverage, branding, content creation, and media training to enterprise and startup clients in healthcare, food and beverage, technology, and personal branding.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Public Relations Services

NAICS

Public Relations Agencies (541820)

SIC

Services-Advertising (7310)

akta.pro primary industry

Media Relations & Press Office Services (BPAFADAF)

Keywords

• Public relations services
• Media training
• Strategic communications
• Brand strategy
• Earned media placement

Headquarters

HQ city

New City

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Professional Services: PR and strategic media services delivered as agency of record, project-based engagements, and retainer arrangements for clients across healthcare, food & beverage, technology, and personal branding sectors.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Astonish Media Group is a strategic media and public relations agency that provides earned media services to organizations and select individuals. It delivers these through agency of record retainers and project-based engagements covering PR campaigns, media representation, branding and messaging, content creation, strategic partnerships, speaking engagement opportunities, and media training. The firm is also a publisher of news- and lifestyle-oriented web properties (e.g., Conway Confidential, AllPuck.com) that complement client publicity work.

Product overview

Astonish Media Group is a strategic media and public relations company, not a technology product company. It does not offer a software platform, SaaS product, or named digital products. The company provides professional services including public relations, branding, content creation, strategic partnerships, and media representation across sectors including healthcare technology, fertility services, senior care, marketing, food and beverage, and personal branding.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Public Relations and Strategic Media Services Full-service PR and strategic media representation including media placement, thought leadership campaigns, product launch PR, and trade plus consumer media relations for enterprise and mid-market clients in healthcare, food and beverage, technology, and personal branding.
• Media Training One-on-one and group media training programs that help experts, authors, and entrepreneurs prepare for traditional and digital media appearances, including positioning and on-camera coaching.
• Branding and Content Creation Strategic branding, messaging development, content creation, and book publishing support for clients seeking thought leadership visibility and brand assets.
• Strategic Partnerships and Speaking Engagements Development of strategic partnerships and placement of clients in speaking engagements, conferences, awards, and grant opportunities as part of integrated PR campaigns.

Quantifiable outcome

• MultiCare Health System cut case review times by half using Xsolis' Dragonfly platform
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers14 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Sioux Honey Association Co-opcoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 12 May 2026Astonish Media Group appointed agency of record for Sioux Honey Association Co-op, the nation's only beekeeper-owned honey cooperative. Partnership involves integrated public relations and media strategy for Sue Bee and Aunt Sue's consumer brands, accompanying the cooperative's $130 million expansion project in Sioux City, Iowa focused on domestic honey sourcing and supply-chain transparency.
• XsoliscoreGTM or Marketing PartnerPR support for AI-powered platform Dragonfly launch at XCHANGE '24, return as Platinum Sponsor of ACMA National Conference for 7th consecutive year, partnership with Beacon Health resulting in $95M+ savings for clients.
• Canary SpeechcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerStrategic collaboration with Microsoft providing growth opportunity for Canary Speech. Presence within Microsoft booth at HIMSS conference to set new industry standards for mental health and cognitive conditions.
• Illume FertilitycoreGTM or Marketing PartnerPartnership with Sunfish announced March 2025 to help make the journey to parenthood more affordable through IVF Success Program with all-inclusive bundle, guaranteed refund protection, and discounts on medication.
• Videra HealthcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerPartnership with North South Consulting Group to help prevent suicide-related deaths of service members using groundbreaking AI technology that recognizes verbal and non-verbal behavioral cues in real-time for immediate mental health interventions.
• Robert HerjavecminorGTM or Marketing PartnerShark Tank investor Robert Herjavec partnered with Bake Me A Wish for social media program in 2014 and again in 2020.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Edelman: Largest global PR firm offering integrated communications across healthcare, food, technology, and consumer — competes for the same enterprise AOR mandates as Astonish but at significantly greater scale.
• Weber Shandwick: Top-tier global PR network with deep healthcare, consumer, and technology practices — a primary competitor for mid-market and enterprise healthcare mandates where Astonish also plays (and where Paula Conway previously worked).

Direct peers

• RF|Binder: Independent, mid-sized U.S. communications agency with practices in health, food, and consumer brands offering earned media, content, and brand strategy — comparable in size and vertical focus to Astonish.
• Finn Partners: Mid-sized, independently held global PR firm with significant healthcare, technology, and consumer practices — closely comparable in size, vertical mix, and service model to Astonish Media Group.
• JPA Health: Healthcare-specialist communications agency focused on health tech, biopharma, and providers — directly comparable to Astonish's healthcare-heavy client base and media-relations-led approach.
• Peppercomm: Mid-sized integrated communications agency serving B2B, healthcare, and consumer brands with media relations and strategic storytelling — comparable boutique positioning to Astonish.
• Zeno Group: Mid-sized global communications agency with strong healthcare, technology, and consumer practices — comparable vertical mix and earned-media offering to Astonish.
• Rubenstein Associates: Long-standing U.S. PR and strategic communications firm where Astonish founder Paula Conway previously served as Vice President — comparable in media-relations strengths and senior-counsel orientation.
• M Booth: Independent, mid-sized U.S. PR agency known for consumer, lifestyle, and healthcare communications with strong earned-media capabilities and brand storytelling — directly comparable in scale and category focus.
• 5W Public Relations: Mid-sized, full-service U.S. PR agency with strong media relations across consumer, health & wellness, technology, and corporate verticals — closely comparable in size and offering mix to Astonish Media Group.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/astonishmediagrp
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/astonish-media-group

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Astonish Media Group