Strategic communications for startups, scale-ups and the venture capitalists that back them.

We help tomorrow's leading technology companies tell their story today - to the media, customers, investors, employees and other stakeholders.

Our team of experienced communications specialists includes operators and journalists previously at Google, Zapp, The Times, Reuters and the UK Government.

With global connections and experience delivering and executing world-class strategies in Europe, the US and the Middle East, we offer the full suite of communications services - from initial storytelling to landing top-tier media coverage.

Our services

Strategy

High-level narrative, positioning and key messaging, underpinned by the right communications strategy.

Proactive and reactive 'always-on' press office, covering company announcements and media relations.

Owned media

High-quality owned content for relevant audiences, including company blog posts and LinkedIn.

Change Management

Change management communications for transitions, including company pivots and re-organisations.

Internal Communications

Supporting in-house teams to deliver effective internal communications, from all-hands to internal newsletters.

Crisis Prevention

Reputation management and issues mapping to reduce the risk of crisis events and their impact on the business.

Our team

Rachael Brown

Co-Founder & MD

Rachael is an experienced operator at startups, big tech, and corporates. She was Senior Communications Manager at Zapp, responsible for internal and external communications. At Google, Rachael worked in the corporate press office and on various consumer campaigns. At John Lewis, she worked in corporate communications and supported the tech and home teams with consumer PR.

Zapp, Google, John Lewis

Dominic Smith

Managing Partner

After nine years as a journalist, writing, editing and commissioning stories for regional and national daily newspapers, Dom joined the UK government to advise prime ministers, cabinet ministers and permanent secretaries on communications. He served as Head of News at DCMS and as press secretary to seven secretaries of state for technology - leading, managing and delivering multi-channel communications strategies.

UK Government, Newsquest

Sophie Tran

Senior Account Executive

Sophie started her career in human resources, before choosing to focus on internal and owned channels communication. At Zapp, she was responsible for internal communications, all-hands programming and newsletter creation. As an intern at edtech company MathSpire, Sophie supported marketing and business development.

Zapp, MathSpire

John Downes

Senior Account Executive

John worked in journalism for ten years, beginning his career as a broadcast writer and video producer for Thomson Reuters, before writing and sub-editing for the likes of the MailOnline and The Times. He was also a senior associate for AI company Dataminr, who monitor real-time events and breaking news, before helping to set up Meta’s curated UK news service during his time with Upday.

The Times, Upday, Dataminr, MailOnline, Reuters

We act as partners for the companies we serve.

Laura Tyrylytė

Head of Public Relations

Nord Security

(Company behind NordVPN)

"O'Hear & Co was instrumental in helping Nord land the right messages with our target audience for our recent funding announcement. They undertook this strategically important project with expertise and professionalism, working seamlessly with our internal press team to secure high-quality coverage."

Ludwig Ensthaler

General Partner

468 Capital

"O’Hear & Co has consistently delivered for 468 and independently for our portfolio companies. They have not only secured high-quality media coverage that aligns with our strategic goals but also possess an exceptional ability to convey complex, deep technology and business topics in a way that resonates with journalists and other relevant stakeholders."

Ngoc Chu

COO

Zapp

"OHC has delivered effective comms to stakeholders across the business, from customers and employees, to investors and partners. It is unusual to find an agency that operates as a fully invested team member, but that is exactly what OHC does."

Jochen Doppelhammer

COO

Voicemod

"O'Hear & Co is not just an agency, but akin to having our own VP of Communications. Delivering strategic positioning, press office, owned channels, and internal comms, OHC is our trusted partner."

Kathleen Ong

Global Communications

Cleo

"We've been consistently impressed with OHC's ability to secure targeted media coverage that aligns with our strategic and business goals, while operating with the agility that is rare among outside agencies."

Alexander Heller

Co-Founder & CEO

HyperSpace

"Steve and his team are strategic in their approach and have the connections and experience to create amazing results for their clients. I could not recommend them more highly."

O’Hear & Co (OHC) was co-founded by Steve O’Hear. Steve believed great storytelling wasn’t about making noise, it was about making people care. He set up the company to be the communications partner he wished he had as a founder.

As a former reporter for TechCrunch, Steve had an instinct for uncovering the narratives that made innovation resonate. He didn’t just report on technology, he translated complexity into clarity, ensuring groundbreaking ideas were understood by the right audiences. His approach was rooted in clarity, strategy and a sharp instinct for what made a company stand out in a crowded landscape.

OHC runs on these principles, with Steve’s pragmatic and low-ego approach at the core of everything we do. We have sharp thinking, deep industry knowledge and an unwavering belief in the power of a well-told story.