Susan Bass

DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC RELATIONS

Contact Susan Bass, Director of Public Relations, at Susan.Bass@BigCatRescue.org or 813-431-2720.

Susan Bass has been the Director of Public Relations at Big Cat Rescue since 2011.

Susan’s primary role is expanding the reach of the sanctuary’s advocacy work and developing strategies and initiatives to bring the issues of big cats in captivity and in the wild to the forefront of the public and media.

Susan has 17 years of public relations experience and has worked at major PR firms in New York City, Miami and Tampa.

Hear and Interview with Susan Bass

Hear Briar Lee Mitchell interviewing Susan Bass

Article by Susan Bass http://www.just-do-something.org/our-blog-by-just-do-something-org/guest-blogger-susan-bass-bigcatrescue-org/

Susan Bass quoted in USA Today

My Superpower is: Writing to Make People Care

I’ve been a strong writer since the sixth grade, when I finally grasped the concept that every sentence must have a noun and a verb. It was a light bulb moment for me and I’ve enjoyed expressing myself and getting information across to people through the written word ever since.

Whether I’m crafting a press release, drafting an appeal for donations or social media post about our newest rescue, or explaining to a corporation why they should not use real big cats in their advertising, I know how to write so readers quickly and clearly understand the information and concepts I’m trying to convey. I inherently know when I have the words just right so people will not only understand what I’m saying but care and want to take action, when it’s warranted.

A good example happened in 2014 when Porsche was coming out with a new car called the Macan (which means tiger in Indonesian). I learned Porsche dealerships around the country were planning to introduce the car to their customers with much fanfare…and live tiger cubs. My heart sunk and I knew I could not let this happen; I needed to use my superpower to stop it! So I emailed Public Relations executives at Porsche North America’s headquarters in Atlanta and was able to succinctly explain that Big Cat Rescue as well as all other accredited big cat sanctuaries and reputable animal welfare groups around the country would be highly opposed to the cruel exploitation of tiger cubs for entertainment, PR and shock value. I’m thrilled to say that Porsche immediately understood and notified all of their dealerships asking them to NOT have tiger cubs or adult tiger cubs at their dealerships for the Macan launch.

Meet the Big Cat Rescue Team. See a typical day at the sanctuary.