Leadership
Photo Credit: Missy McLamb
April Starling
Starling has nearly 20 years of communications experience and brings to her work a true love of the craft. She was drawn to public relations through a passion for story-telling and a desire to help forge connections. She has seen first-hand the difference a strong public relations strategy can make, how consistent key messages can help build a brand identity and how focused media training can transform a spokesperson. Starling considers herself a PR generalist – meaning she enjoys, and has experience in, every aspect of communications. This includes development of strategy, press materials, key messages, online content, marketing materials, video scripts, internal communications, speeches, fundraising materials, as well as media training, social and traditional media outreach, third party liaison, third party development, vendor coordination and more.
Throughout her career, Starling has created and executed targeted communications plans to connect brands to communities – internationally, nationally and importantly, in her local community. She has deep experience in healthcare and education – two of her passions. Through these fields, she’s been able to raise awareness of little-known diseases, shepherd valuable new medications to market, de-stigmatize special education and help elevate brand identities. Her love of education stems from being the daughter and sister of amazing teachers who worked so diligently to give each of their students an opportunity to learn about the world beyond their small communities.
Starling has extensive communications experience having worked at top healthcare PR agencies in New York City, including WeissComm Group and Cohn & Wolfe, as well as a high-profile, non-profit special education school called Stephen Gaynor School. She also understands marketing from the inside of a company, having served as a sales representative for Hershey’s Chocolate, as well as the strong link many organizations see between earned media coverage and a boost in sales from her days as a book publicist with ABC’s Hyperion. At the end of the day, it’s about making connections: determining what is important to your customer or target audience and finding a way to connect with them meaningfully.
A North Carolina native, Starling moved back to NC in 2016 after spending nearly 20 years in NYC and created Link Communications. The company focuses on providing individualized attention to help customize communications strategies that work seamlessly for its clients. Link Communications offers the specialization of a big PR agency, without the price tag or drawn-out process.
When she’s not helping her clients build their brands, Starling can be spotted with her husband chasing their two young daughters around Chapel Hill. But do not be fooled, her blood runs Duke blue.
