SunStar, the mutual fund PR and marketing firm, has made it onto the Inc. 5000 list of the fastest growing private companies in America. Dan Sondhelm, partner and vice president at SunStar, took some time to discuss what it means to be on the list and how his firm got there in the first place.

Sondhelm says SunStar helps asset managers attract investors, strengthen distribution and build brands through structured news generation programs and smart marketing.

"Our clients often want assistance determining what makes their firm and funds stand out from the competition. Then they want positive news coverage on a regular basis in the most influential news publications. This allows them to tell their story and leverage the third party endorsement in their other sales and marketing efforts," Sondhelm says.

Sondhelm says he credits company founder and CEO Kathryn Morrison with the vision and determination to drive our growth.

Sondhelm said his firm focuses on three important things that drive business, credibility, hiring the right talent, and constant innovation.

"We hire people with business backgrounds and experience. Our account executives know the lingo and what clients want, " Sondhelm told the MFWire. The background the executives have adds to their credibility, he added.

SunStar has also uses innovative techniques to communicate its client's messages, Sondhelm said. Recently SunStar has used pod-casts to communicate portfolio managers calming messages to investors in light of recent market volatility. Sondhelm said that SunStar has also experimented with webcasts to add a visual element.

According to Sondhelm, all this has helped SunStar build business.

"We have great clients, we enjoy our clients. We get many referrals (of new business) by clients, " Sondhelm said.

SunStar is not only growing its bottom line; it is growing it's operational scope as well.

"We have just opened our new office in New York City," Sondhelm says.

The new office at 330 Madison Ave. will be run by Tony Kono, whom Sondhelm uses as an example of what SunStar looks for in a senior account executive.

"Tony was a longtime anchor and producer with Bloomberg News," Sondhelm explained. "He knows the industry."

Also going on at SunStar this month is registration for the Lipper Leaders Press Briefing. At this event Lipper brings together the portfolio managers of funds who are Lipper Leaders in Consistent Return and Total Return for either 3 or 5 years for the period ending August 31, 2007. At the press briefing, portfolio managers have the opportunity to get their funds' story out and build relationships with reporters that may come in handy in the future. Visit Sunstar's website to see if your fund qualifies.  

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