As we entered the new year, one of the trends that caught my attention was the resurgence of the ten year challenge on social media. This got me thinking about who I was ten years ago and what I would tell that version of myself if I had the chance. In the absence of that kind of technology and know-how, I wrote an article on what millennial women want Gen Z to know for Black Ballad- outlining my advice to the younger generation coming up after me as well as the advice of 10 other women that I interviewed. While that article features general life advice, here’s what I would tell my younger self about getting started with PR:
#1 “If you build it; they will come” is only true in Hollywood
When I first launched my blog in 2016, I believed the phrase “if you build it; they will come”. It took me a year to realise that, that is only true in Hollywood- a literal field of dreams, if you will. The truth is, sis, that people don’t flock to things if they don’t know that it exists. So, every day that you spend waiting for clients or customers to come to you (like I did) is a day that you miss out on creating more impact, helping more people and ultimately making more money. If you want to rise above the sea of other experts in your oversaturated niche, you’ll need to attract more attention to you and your brand by becoming more visible.
#2 PR is not only for people that are already poppin’
I think that one of the things that kept me from putting myself out there for so long was the belief that PR was only for an elite. In other words, I believed that “they” weren’t coming to me because I wasn’t a celebrity in my industry. Here’s what I learned by making the decision to go after PR rather than waiting for it to come to me:
You don’t have to be a mainstream star or one of your industry rock stars to get press coverage.
Once you know how to get the ball rolling with pitching yourself to the media, that kind of authority, credibility and visibility will be yours.
#3 You don’t have to be perfect
John Maxwell once said that “we live in a culture that rewards image- often over integrity. We promote people who appear to have their act together, and encourage others to do the same”. With this in mind, it makes sense that I thought that I needed to be perfect when preparing to put myself out there with PR. However, contrary to the cultural beliefs alluded to by Maxwell, research shows that when leaders at the top of their game are transparent and vulnerable by “revealing that [they] aren’t perfect, it makes [them] more relatable” and therefore more likeable. This is known as the pratfall effect and is especially important in business because, as the old adage says, people will only do business with people that they know, like and trust. So, if you’ve been letting perfectionism hold you back from PR success- stop it! I’m a living witness that your authenticity is what will ultimately win your ideal client over.