CEO Talks — Building A Business During The COVID19 Pandemic Part 3

 

I’ll be honest, it has been from word of mouth and social media. The more information we got out and stayed active on our outreach efforts, the more prospects we’ve had reach out for assistance. I’m also very actively involved in civic and professional groups so I’m always up to date on what members are needing my specific services or know someone that is that I can pitch.

The most important thing is to not give up or lose your passion. It took me 12 years to have the confidence to successfully start and run my own business during very uncertain time. Taking that leap of faith and staying passionate about the PR field keeps me motivated each day.

 

Brandi Sims

Founder + CEO, Brandinc PR

   

 

How to Improve Your Company’s Reputation

Whether you’re just starting out as an entrepreneur or you’ve been in business for decades, your company’s reputation is of the utmost importance to its success in the marketplace and in the public eye. Your company’s reputation rests on a variety of factors—from how you and your employees interact with one another and with clients to how effectively you handle crisis situations—and it should be treated with utmost care and concern if you want to ensure that everything goes smoothly. Here are some tips on how to improve your company’s reputation and ensure your success in the long run.

1) Understand PR

The first step to improving your company’s reputation is to understand what public relations (PR) really means and how it can benefit your business. PR isn’t just about making waves in national or local media; rather, it refers to a wide range of communications tasks that help strengthen your company’s reputation. In fact, some companies choose not to handle these tasks internally and instead hire an outside PR agency or consultant.

2) Write Press Releases

If you’re serious about improving your company’s reputation, one of your best tools is a press release.

Press releases are an excellent way to inform local and national media about newsworthy events for your company or business. Journalists read press releases, which gives you a chance to let them know what’s going on with your business. The first thing they need is a story—and if that story is compelling enough, it could end up on their site.

3) Share Information Regularly

People love hearing from their favorite companies and brands. They want to know what they’re up to, what new products they have, what kind of promotions they’re running—the list goes on. Social media gives companies a great opportunity to share information with their customers and fans. If you manage multiple social media accounts, make sure you rotate out your updates among them. That way, people who follow multiple pages will see some variety in their feed every day—and will keep coming back for more!

4) Partner With Media Outlets

As a company, you probably know what you’re doing. But that doesn’t mean others do—and it certainly doesn’t mean those others will share that opinion with their large audience. The key is in partnering with media outlets (newspapers, blogs, magazines) and having them share your knowledge with their readership base. By helping write positive stories about your brand, they’ll not only be sharing expert knowledge but also building positive sentiment around your business.

Schedule a consultation and learn how we can help you.

 

CEO Talks — Building A Business During The COVID19 Pandemic Part 2

 

Benefits to starting a business during the COVID19 pandemic. The benefit of starting my business during the pandemic is the overwhelming support for black owned business and small businesses. There have been numerous free business directories, free marketing opportunities that have popped up in support of pushing our businesses into the spotlight whereas in the past we have not been.

Learning to adapt to new consumer needs.  I’ve developed both custom packages and ala carte services for businesses looking for public relations and marketing services. Following the pandemic, I recognized that the requests from businesses were becoming much more slimmed down and specific to what the business lacked and needed, rather than wanted.

Brandi Sims

Founder + CEO, Brandinc PR

   

 

CEO Talks — Building A Business During The COVID19 Pandemic Part 1

 

I took a leap of faith after working in a corporate position for two years and learning that I was severely undervalued, both monetarily and professionally. After working for businesses for the 12 years in PR and marketing, I bet on myself to use the tools and knowledge I gained to apply it directly to the business owners how needed my services.

I’ve worked and represented nonprofit organizations, government sectors, public figures, corporations as well as small, boutique businesses. One of the specific challenges I faced was access to COVID19 small business financial assistance due to the time frame that I started my business.

While these financial assistance programs are great, for those of us that started our business after the pandemic, we don’t qualify because we are new businesses and don’t have the minimum time qualifications requested. Thankfully, I was able to find through personal references some grant programs that allowed new businesses to qualify but it was limited.

 

Brandi Sims

Founder + CEO, Brandinc PR