Elzie Flenard engages in a dynamic conversation with Tonya McKenzie, Founder of Sand and Shores, a leading communications and leadership firm. They delve into the pivotal role of PR and podcasting in business success.

Tonya emphasizes the importance of crafting a compelling brand narrative, drawing inspiration from challenges, and aligning business values for growth. She provides practical insights into PR budgeting and consistent branding.

Tonya also shares her journey in launching the Empowered Podcast Network, creating a platform for meaningful conversations. She highlights the therapeutic and educational power of podcasting, especially for survivors of challenging experiences. So, tune in for a transformative discussion on storytelling, PR strategies, and seizing opportunities in business.

Episode Highlight:

05:19 - I think it's really just a lack of understanding the importance of that. And then there is, particularly with women, not understanding your value and what who you are brings to the business. That is a part of the story–how you got here, how you founded this organization. But even the story behind that. What led you to solving this problem? Whether it's jeans that fit a different shape of woman, like where did that idea come from? Talk about that. It was probably some failure. It was probably some lack of ability to be able to find it somewhere else for yourself. And those are the things that connect people to your brand.

10:40 - Let's be fair. Everybody is not good at what they say they're good at these days. It's like, "I'm amazing," but you're not. So, we have to be cognizant of that and be very diligent about where we're spending our money. So, I would suggest if you have a marketing coordinator, a marketing director, that you invest in training them, getting them some training on PR strategies. Because the truth of the matter is, an integrated strategy is the best. You need all of it. You need PR, you need marketing, you need advertising. You need it all.

19:37 - My podcast network is really just another way of giving my clients and my business partners opportunities to find spaces where they are seen as credible. Every time we open our mouth and someone hears what we have to say, that elevates your brand. Everything you say these days, or type, or tweet, they become a part of your brand. So, allowing for these spaces to be used to elevate people's brands, their message, their stories, I think it was very important. It's called the Empowered Podcast Network. You'll learn something new. You'll have the opportunity to have a discussion about some difficult stuff. And it just feels good sometimes to be able to get it off your chest and have thoughtful conversations about things that everybody ain't ready for. But if you're subscribing to the show, you clearly like what they're delivering, and you're trusting that podcast host to continue to deliver you quality content.

21:28 - You don't think people have gone through what you've gone through. I think everybody feels kind of isolated in their stuff until you start talking about it, and then other people that you're talking to will be like, "Oh yeah, well let me tell you what happened to me." So, it was mind-blowing to me because I thought the things that had happened to me were isolated to me. Well, why is that? Well, because we never talked about it, especially when things happen in Black families. We aren't supposed to talk about it. But I realized once I wrote this book, listen, you gonna have to talk about it. So, I started to talk, and that made others feel like they had a safe space to talk about some difficult things.

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Sand & Shores