Kevin has worked in network television for over twenty years and worked in two major U.S. markets Dallas, Texas and Atlanta, Georgia before retiring a few years ago. He was much too young to retire from working altogether, and still felt he had much more to offer to society, but this time round on his own terms. He didn’t not want to work for anyone.
That’s when (by chance), he met a friend who was running direct marketing campaigns for a locally owned financial services firm. Kevin was hooked from that moment on, and his passion for all things marketing, led him to where he is today. Let’s listen in to what he had to say.
PBI: What’s your official business name and when did you get started?
KEVIN: My official business name is Executive Media Consulting. In its present inception I started this business approximately six months ago.
PBI: Why did you decide to go down the road of self-employment?
KEVIN: I worked in the network television business for over twenty years. In that time I held several supervisory positions from on-air director to floor director to graphics supervisor. I left the business several years ago after I decided that I did not want to spend my entire life having someone else determine my ultimate destiny and job satisfaction.
PBI: How did you actually get started? Did you start full-time, part-time or build up to it while working a full-time job to tide you over?
KEVIN: I started out doing part-time freelance graphics work from connections I had established while working in the television business. After establishing a friendship with an individual who was very successful at direct marketing I started to research how I might use some of these methods to help local business owners with their marketing and promotional campaigns.
It was from there that I decided that I was not going to rely on someone else for a pay check. I solicited business owners and became a consultant in their promotions and marketing. It was a reality check and a new way of life. It took some time to adjust to the ups and downs. But I could not imagine going back to working for someone else.
PBI: How have things developed since business day one? Have you diversified, or have your services remained the same?
KEVIN: It’s funny you should ask that, I have completely changed direction since I first started. I pretty much started doing direct marketing campaigns for local business. I enjoyed the relationships I had established but just felt I had really not hit my stride as far as doing something I was passionate about.
Then I was introduced to the authority marketing and positioning concept. After some exploration and education I became very excited. Here was something that I could apply my extensive media experience to. I’m now working with established professionals and positioning them as expert educators for the success of their customers and clients.
All of the media that I work with to accomplish these goals are things I have always loved doing. Writing feature articles, producing radio interviews and promoting authorship are the things that top the list for me.
PBI: What area of your business would you like to see improve within the next 6 months and why?
KEVIN: Just like any business owner I always strive to improve my performance. I always set a goal to realize business growth over a given period of time.
With that said, I think the area that I am looking to make the most improvement in is selling this service on a local level to business professionals. I’ve started to make movement in that direction with a mastermind/networking group I helped recently establish with two local business owners here in the Prescott, Arizona.
I’m also planning on using a local media publication I am editor of to help promote interviews and media pieces on a local level. I see a lot of potential growth by introducing the authority positioning concept to local attorneys, mortgage brokers, medical professionals and others.
The why would be that I really enjoy meeting in person with my clients and getting out in the community. There is nothing that replaces the feedback you can get from a business owner while meeting in person.
PBI: How are you improving on that area?
KEVIN: By starting conversations in the local community. Attending networking meetings, letting people know of my service and its value. One of the goals I have is to have a set number of conversations with people per day. It does not matter if it’s something that I have planned or not. If I can tell a good number of people who I am and what I offer every day then I feel I have done my job to start the energy flowing in the right direction.
Something else I am starting to arrange on a local level is giving presentations. This is something that I will have to work on as far as skill procurement is concerned but I feel there is a tremendous opportunity in giving group presentations. I have contacted several business groups in my area exploring this possibility.
PBI: What’s your best tip for someone considering starting a business in your industry?
KEVIN: Be patient. Things will not happen overnight. It takes time to get your message out to your marketplace. The hard effort you put in today may not pay off for months but it will pay off if you are persistent and driven. Depending on what your background was prior to starting your business be aware that there will be fluctuations in cash flow and investments made. I came from a much more structured background and becoming an entrepreneur took some adjustment in my way of doing things.
This is also a time to be very excited about future possibilities. If you are involved in the authority positioning and marketing niche like I am it is a very exciting time. We are just seeing the emergence of this as a full-fledged micro-specialization. The possibilities for future growth and the emergence of new ideas for business integration make this a very exciting time.
PBI: What’s the most popular misconception that prospective clients have about your industry and what’s the correct answer?
KEVIN: The biggest misconception from prospective clients is that the service you are offering is no different from what they have already tried in the internet marketing realm and gotten very little in the way of results from. It comes more out of having a bad past experience and not understanding or being introduced to authority positioning and how it will benefit them. So the correct answer is to explain how what you do is different in concept and results than what they have been previously introduced to.
PBI: Who is your ideal client?
KEVIN: My ideal client is the business professional who is already well established and is looking for an advantage over their competition based on factors other than price. The medical professional, attorney, real estate professional or business owner who wants to separate themselves from their competitors with strategically placed media pieces and promotions that position them as the expert educator and advocate for the success of their clients and customers.
PBI: If you had a chance to say one thing to a brand new client, before they met you in person, what would it be?
KEVIN: I would say it would be to put away your preconceived notions about what is possible in your promotions and marketing. A well-integrated campaign focusing on your expertise in a way that suits your personality and business mission can reap multiple benefits for your business.
When you are viewed as a sincere educator and advocate not just for your present clients but for future clients and in the public in general then your business can elevate itself in ways you hadn’t even realized.
PBI: Thank you for a great interview Kevin.
Executive Media Consulting can be found at ExecutiveMediaConsulting.com
CONTACT DETAILS:
Tel: 928-493-0715
