Episode #6: Media Exposure and Inclusive Marketing for Business

In this episode we chat with special guest Jennifer Singh a TV reporter turned PR Strategist, Media Coach and entrepreneur, and founder of She's Newsworthy Media, about 'Media Exposure and Inclusive Marketing for Business'.

Jennifer’s Story

I was taking a look at what’s happening in the world and found an ongoing trend where the majority of experts were older white males, and if these are the only experts being represented in the media then that’s only one one side of the story that we’re hearing. So it was a real epiphany to see that the female voice wasn’t being represented. So I launched She’s Newsworthy Media and I was really determined to figure out how to work from home, as the commute was sucking the life out of me.

How Media Exposure Can help Elevate Your Brand

Real media exposure can set you apart from others in your industry. I always say that we don’t have competition, but there are going to be people who work in the same industry as you that are going to have similar products and services. So putting yourself on a media platform almost gives your brand a stamp of approval, gives you authority. Media is interesting because it’s something you can take and pop into your website, pop into a newsletter or blast it across your social media and it kind of has a ripple effect that leads to other opportunities. The strategy I use with my clients is kind of the same thing I do with myself in business and I’m in a really great situation where opportunities are coming my way. So the reach especially now with COVID and interviews being done virtually provides an endless amount of opportunities because you don’t have to stay in the market that you live in you can pitch to places across Canada.

How do you know if you have a story worth pitching?

This is the number one issue or challenge that business owners have. I would honestly say you won’t believe what the answer is for this, I would say the first thing is mindset. I would say that so many women I work with don’t believe that their voice matters and that translates into their brand and their business. So they are convinced that they don’t have a  newsworthy story. And it blows my mind because sometimes I’m chatting with women and I’m hearing about their experience and I’m literally checking all the boxes in my brain as to why I could pitch this to any one of the big networks. But they actually don’t believe it, they don’t believe that they are Newsworthy and I think as women we are conditioned to believe that we should be secondary, so if our voice doesn’t matter and think about it.

If you are only seeing voices of people that don’t look like you and are not represented like the older white male, then you won’t believe you are newsworthy. The tangible answer is really about looking at what is happening inside of your business, what your expertise is and connecting it with the news cycle. And the news cycle is really just what they are talking about at the time. So right now, we are still in the middle of a pandemic, so whether you are a designer or somebody who specializes in education, whether you are somebody who specializes in gender equality, whether you are somebody who specializes in digital marketing, all of those industries and expertise all have newsworthy stories now that can be tied to the pandemic.

So it’s just about thinking like a reporter, because that’s what happens in newsrooms. Thinking about what the media is talking about, and that means, reading , listening and watching, or hopping onto twitter to see what’s trending. Before that pandemic we could plan stories ahead of time, but right now that has changed, because everything is changing week by week month by month. 

What media formats do you recommend?

I personally recommend TV because that’s where I have the most experience. I will tell you that when you are doing a print interview or a magazine interview you don’t actually have final say on what the final published product is going to look like. You don’t know how they will quote you. And I’m not saying that all media will misquote you, but you don’t have as much control on how the final product is going to look. And for someone like myself, especially doing PR you want to make sure that the right message is out there. Verses when you do a live TV interview no matter what question comes to you, you still have control over the conversation, because you can choose how to show up, and you choose how you want to answer your question.

There’s not going to be any surprises when you watch the clip because you were there live! You know what happened, so I am a big proponent of live interviews, although this sounds scary because you actually have more control. She’s heard stories of people in print where people don’t like how they were portrayed. And a media interview that’s only 3-4 minutes can have more reach as you can share it in so many different ways.

Focus on how your story is going to make an impact on others, helping others, and if you focus on that it takes your mind off of how you look, or how you sound or your inner critic. 

Tell us more about inclusive marketing how it relates to your business

There are two pandemics, COVID19 and the one against black lives. There is more attention being placed on police brutality. The death of George Floyd shifted the conversation online, to not only the fight for justice and equality but also unleashed something on social media for BIPOC to speak out against other discrimination. The inclusive marketing track I went off on is really part of the fabric of who I am and what I stand for. So I started speaking up about BIPIC not being included and being marginalized. I was getting flooded with DMs from people thanking me for putting out this kind of content. For the BIPOC community this is how some people live everyday of their lives.

Tips for inclusive marketing

Education on diversity and inclusion training. If you are being asked by someone to sit on a panel for example you need to ask who else is on the panel, so you don’t end up agreeing to be part of something that’s not inclusive. Education is key not only around the content you push out but also what you participate in and associate your brand with. Ask questions around inclusivity and compensation. Statistically BIPOC are not compensated financially as much as their white counterparts.

Last Piece of Advice

I just recently celebrated 5 years in business and I think the reason that I got this far and stabilized is because I see everything as an exciting opportunity and if I make a mistake and I fail there’s always tomorrow and there’s always a chance to redo something. Get rid of the fear and intimidation of failing, because failing is not a bad thing. I have 2 small kids and my husband is unemployed right so it’s not to say that I don’t have the family stress that everyone else has. But I choose to see this as an opportunity and not 2020 as doom and gloom.

Get in touch with Jennifer at:
Website - www.shesnewsworthy.com/
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/shesnewsworthy
Instagram- https://www.instagram.com/shesnewsworthy/

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