Off the Record w/ Bill Cramer, Public Engagement & Communications Director, HNTB
The first in a recurring LUNA+EISENLA series where we hand the mic to the sharpest minds we've worked for and alongside.
Bill Cramer, Public Engagement & Communications Director for architectural and infrastructure design firm, HNTB
For the debut of our Off the Record series, we sat down with Bill Cramer, a communications leader whose four-decade career runs from the Democratic National Committee to the National Association of Counties to the National Governors Association. Bill’s career also includes stops as a PR firm managing principal and, for a stretch, an independent consultant. For a decade, Bill led the toll industry's national communications effort, and it's where our own partnership with him began.
We talked about shrinking newsrooms, the politics of infrastructure, the evolution of public engagement, and the one piece of advice he'd give anyone stepping into a high-visibility role today.
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The media landscape keeps shifting — new platforms, AI tools, shrinking newsrooms. What's the biggest change you're seeing in how stories break and spread, and how should communicators adapt?
One of the biggest changes over the past ten years is that as the industry shrinks, it's harder to build that critical relationship with reporters who were once experts in the areas they covered. Today, most reporters are writing about topics they have no background in and certainly no deep expertise in, instead it's all about how fast they can write a story and get it posted.
That makes our job as communicators more important than ever: we have to educate reporters so they understand the issue well enough to write their best story. Done right, that's a win-win both for the storyteller and for the reporter. What you provide may even be copied directly into the piece.
One caution: information on your website or an old press release can be used without your knowledge. So make sure your website always carries your best, most accurate information.
Toll roads, bridges, and tunnels often carry political baggage before a single message goes out. What's your approach to building public trust around infrastructure people already have strong feelings about?
Again, it starts with educating the media so they understand how major infrastructure gets built and paid for. There are really two ways and it’s either taxes or tolls. No one likes paying either, but tolled roads, bridges, and tunnels provide an alternative funding option, and they can often be built faster than projects that rely on state and federal taxes.
When I connect with reporters, I stress the benefits to drivers: the congestion relief that new tolled roads and their general-purpose lanes provide, and the time savings for drivers who choose to use them. And there's a simple truth people need to hear that if you don't use a toll road, you don't pay for it.
How has the role of public involvement evolved as infrastructure funding and priorities have shifted at the federal and state level?
In the past, it was more about reporting on a project as it developed or was completed. Today, to succeed, you have to be transparent with the public from day one — the planning stage. You have to ask what the community wants, listen carefully, and learn what's important to them.
There are many tools to measure public opinion: in-person and virtual town halls, public opinion surveys, geo-targeting, community event participation, and simply meeting people where they gather. Some are old school, some embrace new technology, but all of them matter.
What's a project or campaign you're proud of that changed how a community understood a piece of infrastructure in their own backyard?
At the International Bridge, Tunnel and Turnpike Association (IBTTA), I was hired to lead a public relations campaign called Moving America Forward, aimed at raising the voice and visibility of the toll industry and promoting the benefits of tolling. That's where I began a decade of working with the extraordinary team at LUNA+EISENLA.
When we started, the media wasn't writing about tolling, and when it did, it wasn't positive. The public didn't understand its complexities. Brad and Kris pushed us to be proactive (something the association hadn't been) and we inserted the industry into the media conversation, getting IBTTA's name out there and sharing the facts. The media loves facts and data, and after a year or so we gained real traction and built lasting relationships with reporters at The Washington Post, The New York Times, and USA Today.
Years into the campaign, when COVID-19 struck, we held a worldwide virtual press event to inform the media in the U.S. and around the globe on how tolling was being impacted — from moving critical medical supplies and household deliveries to the steep loss of revenue as commuters shifted to remote work. Getting those facts and messages out proved to be a huge success. Those are just two of many highlights from a decade-long campaign.
Over a four-decade career — the DNC, the National Association of Counties, the National Governors Association, a PR firm managing principal role, and your own consulting shingle — what's the first thing you'd tell someone stepping into a high-visibility comms role today?
First, be a good writer. So much flows from that. If you're not there yet, practice — it will come.
Second, loyalty, honesty, and the ability to build relationships with the media while playing an educational role are all key. Be persuasive, and persevere. Don't give up.
Third, develop strategies for both your short-term and long-term goals. Stick to the plan, adapt as needed, and stay focused.
Finally, build metrics that measure results and successes — and be sure to share your findings with your CEO and Board of Directors.
About Bill Cramer
Bill Cramer is currently the Public Engagement and Communications Director for HNTB with more than four decades of communications experience spanning politics, government, and the transportation industry. His previous positions, include leadership roles at the Democratic National Committee, the National Association of Counties, the National Governors Association, and the International Bridge, Tunnel and Turnpike Association. For the past 25 years, Bill has served as senior staff reporting to Executive Directors and CEOs.
Connect with Bill via LinkedIn
Off the Record is a recurring feature from LUNA+EISENLA because we don't believe we have all the answers but between us, and the smart people we've surrounded ourselves with, we can usually find them.
