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Vance Meyer used to be a corporate communication executive. He is now promoting and advocating for mental wellness and acquiring skills to be of service to others in the future.

Five things you’ll learn from this episode:

1. What marketing communication leaders need to think about in terms of guiding their team on how to communicate, externally and internally
2. The strategy and tactics that corporate marketing professionals can begin to take, whether that’s communication tactics or as a trusted advisor to leaders
3. The importance of self-care and self-acceptance not just for the sake of your health, but for your effectiveness as a communicator
4. How coming out of COVID can help individuals be more considerate of others and make an impact, not only today but for future generations
5. Crisis management from someone with extensive experience in employee communication, media relations, executive communication, social media, crisis management, and corporate branding 

Quotables

• “All the strategic work that we do to prepare for a crisis, unfortunately, goes out of the window during the crisis.” – @middle1dweller
•  “Sometimes, leaders get so ambitious about focusing on growth and expansion to the point of sacrificing their integrity.” – @jasonmudd9
•  “I didn’t realize that I wasn’t capable of handling the stress that comes along with PR jobs without treating myself better and having more self-care.” – @middle1dweller
• “Take care of yourself. Take time to revive yourself because it’s not just important for your health, but for your effectiveness as a communicator.” – @middle1dweller
• “Sometimes, people find themselves working for a company that’s in a bad spot and they end up inheriting the problem.” – @jasonmudd9
• “Everybody has mental wellness needs.” – @middle1dweller

About Vance Meyer

Vance Meyer was a former corporate communication executive who is now promoting and advocating for mental wellness and acquiring skills to be of service to others in the future.

These efforts are inspired by 30 years of personal and family experience with chronic depression and anxiety, as well as recent significant progress in managing his symptoms through lifestyle change. Vance has extensive experience in employee communication, media relations, executive communication, social media, crisis management, and corporate branding.

If you enjoyed this episode, would you please share it with others and leave us a review?

Vance Meyer’s contact info and resources:

• Twitter: https://twitter.com/middle1dweller
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/vancemeyer/
• Website: https://namijax.org/board-of-directors/

Sponsored by:

• On Top of PR is produced by Axia Public Relations, named by Forbes as one of America’s Best PR Agencies. Axia is an expert PR firm for national brands.
• On Top of PR is sponsored by

Support the show

• On Top of PR is produced by Axia Public Relations, named by Forbes as one of America’s Best PR Agencies. Axia is an expert PR firm for national brands.
• On Top of PR is sponsored by ReviewMaxer, the platform for monitoring, improving, and promoting online customer reviews.

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Kate Yandoh Harris is a born storyteller who helps businesses realize results by creating compelling content. She an optimist, island lover, and “word person”.

Five things you’ll learn from this episode:

1. How to get started in PR and marketing without a PR or marketing degree
2. Why hospitality might be a great starting point for marketing and PR professionals
3. How you can learn the most from less desired positions 
4. How to educate your audience instead of just selling them your product or service
5. How to pivot and be creative in your PR efforts 

Quotables

• “In order to connect with your audience, you have to quickly jump in and live in their world for a little bit.” -Kate Yandoh Harris
• “The experiences that I’ve had that helped me get better have been the jobs that nobody really wants.” -Kate Yandoh Harris

If you enjoyed this episode, would you please share it with others and leave us a review?

Guest’s contact info and resources:

• Kate Yandoh Harris on LinkedIn
• Stan’s website: https://stanphelps.com/

Sponsored by:

• On Top of PR is produced by Axia Public Relations, named by Forbes as one of America’s Best PR Agencies. Axia is an expert PR firm for national brands.
• On Top of PR is sponsored by ReviewMaxer, the platform for monitoring, improving, and promoting online customer reviews.
• Burrelles has a special offer for On Top of PR fans. Check it out at burrelles.com/ontopofpr.

About your host, Jason Mudd

On Top of PR host, Jason Mudd, is a trusted adviser and dynamic strategist for some of America’s most admired brands and fastest-growing companies. Since 1994, he’s worked with American Airlines, Budweiser, Dave & Buster’s, H&R Block, Hilton, HP, Miller Lite, New York Life, Pizza Hut, Southern Comfort, and Verizon. He founded Axia Public Relations in July 2002. Forbes named Axia as one of America’s Best PR Agencies.

Support the show

• On Top of PR is produced by Axia Public Relations, named by Forbes as one of America’s Best PR Agencies. Axia is an expert PR firm for national brands.
• On Top of PR is sponsored by ReviewMaxer, the platform for monitoring, improving, and promoting online customer reviews.

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Learn the ins and outs of starting your own podcast with our host, Jason Mudd. Jason is the managing partner of Axia Public Relations.

Five things you’ll learn from this episode:

1. The four questions to ask yourself before you start your own podcast
2. The steps to building your own podcast
3. The three steps to launching your podcast
4. How to monetize your podcast
5. 10 podcast pro tips to those just starting out

Quotables

• “Podcasting builds awareness, understanding, trust, and decision.” -@jasonmudd9
• “To monetize your podcast, there are three steps. The first one is promotions and conversions. The second one is guest relations, and the third is sponsorships.” -@jasonmudd9
• “Consciously or subconsciously, people know that if a podcast has not produced 10 episodes, it might not make it, or it might already be dead upon arrival.” -@jasonmudd9

If you enjoyed this episode, would you please share it with others and leave us a review?

About Jason Mudd

Jason Mudd, APR, is a trusted adviser and dynamic strategist for some of America’s most admired brands. Since 1994, he’s worked with American Airlines, Budweiser, Dave & Buster’s, H&R Block, Hilton, HP, Miller Lite, New York Life, Pizza Hut, Southern Comfort, and Verizon. He founded Axia in July 2002.

Clients love Jason’s passion, innovation, candor, commitment, and award-winning team. In an increasingly tech-forward world, Jason’s grasp of technological demands on companies provides his clients in multiple sectors a unique advantage toward reaching their top audiences. After teaching himself HTML in 1994, Jason helped pioneer internet marketing strategies as an early adopter of e-commerce, SEO, and social media, inspiring tech giants like Yahoo.

At Axia, Jason attracts, develops, retains, innovates, and leads top PR talent and clients. He oversees strategic communications for the firm’s national clients and provides high-level consultations to client leadership teams at billion-dollar global brands, both business-to-business and business-to-consumer, including spokesperson training, crisis communications management, analytics, social media, online reputation management, and more. He also speaks frequently to corporations and industry groups and writes about public relations trends and best practices for American City Business Journals and other national businesses.

Contact info and resources:

• Twitter: @jasonmudd9
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasonmudd/
• Website: https://www.axiapr.com/
• Have a question for Jason?  Email: [email protected]

Additional Resources:

• PodcastValet
• Three steps when starting your podcast: Build, launch, and monetize

Sponso

Support the show

• On Top of PR is produced by Axia Public Relations, named by Forbes as one of America’s Best PR Agencies. Axia is an expert PR firm for national brands.
• On Top of PR is sponsored by ReviewMaxer, the platform for monitoring, improving, and promoting online customer reviews.

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Learn how your brand can achieve competitive separation with our guest, Stan Phelps, founder of PurpleGoldfish.com. He is a Forbes Contributor, IBM Futurist, and a keynote speaker.

Five things you’ll learn from this episode:

1. Why only 3% of people and brands are able to think and operate their business differently
2. The two main ways you can stand out and achieve competitive separation  
3. Why you need to be very clear with who your company is for
4. Why being middle of the road could be the downfall of your company
5. What benchmarking is and why it’s a hindrance to thinking different  

Quotables

• “Every weakness has a corresponding strength.” — @StanPhelpsPG
• “Be very clear who you're for and the customer that you serve and don't be afraid to push off the ones that you're not for.” — @StanPhelpsPG

If you enjoyed this episode, would you please share it with others and leave us a review?

About Stan Phelps

Stan Phelps is the founder of PurpleGoldfish.com. He is a Forbes Contributor, IBM Futurist, and a keynote speaker.  His award-winning books focus on the little ways to drive differentiation, increase loyalty, and promote positive word of mouth. He has spoken at over 200 events in 11 countries.

Guest’s contact info and resources:

• Stan Phelps on Twitter
• Stan Phelps on LinkedIn
• Stan’s website: https://stanphelps.com/
• Books:
  • Purple Goldfish 2.0 – 10 Ways to Attract Raving Fans
  • Green Goldfish 2.0 - 15 Keys to Driving Employee Engagement
  • Golden Goldfish – The Vital Few
  • Blue Goldfish - Using Technology, Data, and Analytics to Drive Both Profits & Prophets
  • Purple Goldfish Service Edition - The 12 Ways Hotels, Restaurants & Airlines Win the Right Customers
  • Red Goldfish - Motivating Sales and Loyalty Through Shared Passion & Purpose
  • Pink Goldfish - Defy Normal, Exploit Imperfection And Captivate Your Customers

Sponsored by:

• On Top of PR is produced by Axia Public Relations, named by Forbes as one of America’s Best PR Agencies. Axia is an expert PR firm for national bra

Support the show

• On Top of PR is produced by Axia Public Relations, named by Forbes as one of America’s Best PR Agencies. Axia is an expert PR firm for national brands.
• On Top of PR is sponsored by ReviewMaxer, the platform for monitoring, improving, and promoting online customer reviews.

Send us a text

Learn why following up is your most powerful tool when pitching news reporters with our guest, Marjorie Comer, news consultant for Axia Public Relations. Marjorie is an award-winning public relations professional. Clients love Marjorie’s work ethic, speed, and diligence.

Five things you’ll learn from this episode:

1. The power of following up to get more media coverage for your brand
2. How to use follow-ups to get in front of media, clients, and contacts
3. How to stand out when pitching the news media
4. How to build a media list for your company
5. How to build relationships with reporters

Quotables

• “Without following up, media pitches tend to just die or get buried.” -@Marjorie_Comer
• “One thing I’ve done is ask my clients for three times they may be available or ask the reporter to give me three times they would be available to speak to my client because company executives aren't always on-call when a reporter may be.” -@Marjorie_Comer
• “Put things in your calendar because that's how you're going to remember to follow up with them.” -@Marjorie_Comer
• “From industry research, we’ve seen that 2:00 or 3:00 p.m. on Thursday is the best time to follow up with somebody for an end of the week deadline.” -@jasnmudd9

If you enjoyed this episode, would you please share it with others and leave us a review?

About Marjorie Comer

Marjorie Comer is an award-winning public relations professional. Clients love Marjorie’s work ethic, speed, and diligence. She has worked at Axia Public Relations since October 2011.

At Axia, Marjorie serves as a public relations consultant for the PR firm’s national clients. She’s a skilled writer and works hard to ensure the firm’s clients receive the white-glove experience. She also blogs about public relations trends and best practices.

Marjorie’s contact info and resources:

• Marjorie Comer on Twitter: @Marjorie_Comer
• Marjorie Comer on LinkedIn 

Sponsored by:

• On Top of PR is produced by Axia Public Relations, named by Forbes as one of America’s Best PR Agencies. Axia is an expert PR firm for national brands.
• On Top of PR is sponsored by ReviewMaxer, the platform for monitoring, improving, and promoting online customer reviews.
• Burrelles has a special offer for On Top of PR fans. Check it out at burrelles.com/ontopofpr.

About your host, Jason Mudd

On Top of PR host, Jason Mudd, is a trusted adviser and dynamic strategist for some of America’s most admired brands and fastest-growing companies. Since 1994, he’s worked with American Airlines, Budweiser, Dave & Buster’s, H&R Block, Hilton, HP, Miller Lite, New York Life, Pizza Hut, Southern Comfort, and Verizon. He founded Axia Public Relations in July 2002. Forbes named Axia as one of America’s Best PR Agencies.

Support the show

• On Top of PR is produced by Axia Public Relations, named by Forbes as one of America’s Best PR Agencies. Axia is an expert PR firm for national brands.
• On Top of PR is sponsored by ReviewMaxer, the platform for monitoring, improving, and promoting online customer reviews.

Send us a text

Our episode guest is Tru Pettigrew. He connects brands with consumers and builds bridges across generations. Tru has also established a strong reputation for helping organizations build bridges across racial, cultural, social, and relational lines.

Five things you’ll learn from this episode:

1. The difference between diversity, equity, and inclusion
2. The difference between equity and equality
3. How to set up your team for success by figuring out what they need to be successful
4. The three different types of diversity
5. How to have courageous conversations about diversity, equity and inclusion

Quotables

• “A lot of agencies are responsible for helping their clients craft appropriate and relevant communications for a lot of the challenges and issues that are going on, but they’re also being challenged on how they are stepping up and reflecting the diversity within the agency world.” -@truaccess
• “Diversity is a state of being, it’s static. Equity and inclusion require us to take action and leverage the richness of diversity that is available to us.” -@truaccess
• “Equity is giving people what they need to succeed. Oftentimes it’s confused or transposed with equality. Equality is treating everyone exactly the same. But the reality is we don’t all need the exact same thing because we’re at different places on our journey.” -@truaccess

About Tru Pettigrew

Tru is a celebrated author, an engaging speaker, a committed community leader, and an award-winning marketing executive with close to 20 years of experience at the nation’s top advertising & marketing agencies. 

Tru founded Tru Access to serve as an inspiration and empowerment consultancy to help individuals and organizations bridge gaps across areas that cause division, dysfunction and separation.

Considered one of the country’s top Millennial Empowerment experts and cross-generational thought leaders. His first book, “Millennials Revealed” serves as a guide for countless individuals and organizations across the country to help them build meaningful connections across diverse generations.

Tru has shared his marketing talents and expertise to help contribute to the success of brands such as Nike, State Farm, Heineken, Hennessy, Unilever and Ford just to name a few. 

Tru’s contact info and resources:

• Website: tru-access.com
• Tru Pettigrew on Twitter: @truaccess 
• Tru Pettigrew on Instagram: @truaccess 
• Tru Pettigrew on LinkedIn

Additional Resources:

• George Floyd business mentorship program
• The three forms of diversity: identity, experiential, neurodiversity 

Sponsored by:

• On Top of PR is produced by Axia Public Relations, named by Forbes as one of America’s Best PR Agencies. Axia is an expert PR firm for national brands.

Support the show

• On Top of PR is produced by Axia Public Relations, named by Forbes as one of America’s Best PR Agencies. Axia is an expert PR firm for national brands.
• On Top of PR is sponsored by ReviewMaxer, the platform for monitoring, improving, and promoting online customer reviews.

Send us a text

Our episode guest is Adam O’Daniel, director of marketing and communications at Movement Mortgage. He leads marketing, communications, public relations and corporate events.

Five things you’ll learn from this episode:

1. How to use social media and web content to directly reach your audience
2. How to stop relying on only news coverage for PR
3. How to attract the best audience relevant to your company
4. How to make your social media more engaging
5. How to figure out who your real audience is

Quotables

• “A few years ago, business was slowing down and we knew the news cycle was changing and we weren’t getting the type of news coverage we were used to getting, so we decided to build our own content machine.” -@Adam_ODaniel
• “I looked at sports teams for inspiration for social media content. I asked, ‘What are they doing to stay relevant and interesting on social media? And how can we use some of those principles in our social media content?’” -@Adam_ODaniel
• “As a natural extension of us sharing ourselves so transparently on social media, we attracted the people that we wanted.” -@Adam_ODaniel

If you enjoyed this episode, would you please share it with others and leave us a review?

About Adam O’Daniel

Adam leads marketing, communications, public relations and corporate events at Movement Mortgage, a top 10 retail mortgage lender and six-time member of the Inc. 5000 list.

His background includes 15 years of experience in marketing, communications, public relations, content strategy, financial journalism, writing, and editing.

 Adam’s contact info and resources:

• Adam O’Daniel on LinkedIn
• @Adam_ODaniel on Twitter

Additional Resources:

• movement.com/careers

Sponsored by:

• On Top of PR is produced by Axia Public Relations, named by Forbes as one of America’s Best PR Agencies. Axia is an expert PR firm for national brands.
• On Top of PR is sponsored by ReviewMaxer, the platform for monitoring, improving, and promoting online customer reviews.
• Burrelles has a special offer for On Top of PR fans. Check it out at burrelles.com/ontopofpr.

About your host, Jason Mudd

On Top of PR host, Jason Mudd, is a trusted adviser and dynamic strategist for some of America’s most admired brands and fastest-growing companies. Since 1994, he’s worked with American Airlines, Budweiser, Dave & Buster’s, H&R Block, Hilton, HP, Miller Lite, New York Life, Pizza Hut, Southern Comfort, and Verizon. He founded Axia Public Relations in July 2002. Forbes named Axia as one of America’s Best PR Agencies.

Support the show

• On Top of PR is produced by Axia Public Relations, named by Forbes as one of America’s Best PR Agencies. Axia is an expert PR firm for national brands.
• On Top of PR is sponsored by ReviewMaxer, the platform for monitoring, improving, and promoting online customer reviews.

Send us a text

Learn how to effectively work with influencers with our host, Jason Mudd. Jason is the managing partner of Axia Public Relations.

Five things you’ll learn from this episode:

1. Mistakes companies make when working with influencers
2. The difference between an influencer and a spokesperson 
3. The slippery slope of working with influencers who buy followers
4. Why influencers are relevant to B2B brands
5. The value of micro influencers

Quotables

• “Every major influencer and many household brands buy fake (or real) followers.” — @jasonmudd9
• “If you have a million social media followers and half of them are fake, then half of your audience isn’t going to engage with your content at all.” — @jasonmudd9
• “If you’re not getting authentic engagement on social media, the social media algorithm won’t place posts as often.” — @jasonmudd9
• “The more followers an influencer has, the less credibility they can have with their audience.” — @jasonmudd9

About Jason Mudd

Jason Mudd, APR, is a trusted adviser and dynamic strategist for some of America’s most admired brands. Since 1994, he’s worked with American Airlines, Budweiser, Dave & Buster’s, H&R Block, Hilton, HP, Miller Lite, New York Life, Pizza Hut, Southern Comfort, and Verizon. He founded Axia in July 2002.

Clients love Jason’s passion, innovation, candor, commitment, and award-winning team. In an increasingly tech-forward world, Jason’s grasp of technological demands on companies provides his clients in multiple sectors a unique advantage toward reaching their top audiences.  At Axia, Jason attracts, develops, retains, innovates, and leads top PR talent and clients. He oversees strategic communications for the firm’s national clients and provides high-level consultations to client leadership teams at billion-dollar global brands, both business-to-business and business-to-consumer, including spokesperson training, crisis communications management, analytics, social media, online reputation management, and more. He also speaks frequently to corporations and industry groups and writes about public relations trends and best practices for national businesses.

Jason’s contact info and resources:

• Twitter: @jasonmudd9
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasonmudd/
• Website: https://www.axiapr.com/
• Have a question for Jason?  Email: [email protected]

Additional Resources:

• www.axiapr.com/influencers
• Check a Twitter account for fake followers: Follower Audit
• Check an Instagram account for fake followers: FakeCheck.co

Sponsored by:

• We are thrilled to have Burrelles sponsor our solocast episodes. Thanks to Burrelles for its support. Burrelles has a special offer exclusively for On Top of PR fans. Check it out at

Support the show

• On Top of PR is produced by Axia Public Relations, named by Forbes as one of America’s Best PR Agencies. Axia is an expert PR firm for national brands.
• On Top of PR is sponsored by ReviewMaxer, the platform for monitoring, improving, and promoting online customer reviews.

Send us a text

Learn how to build a team that will improve a brand’s damaged reputation with our guest Mark Sherwood, Deputy Executive Director of Marketing at Detroit Public Schools Community. He develops and manages annual marketing and communication strategies, staff, budgets, research, competitive analysis and surveys.

Five things you’ll learn from this episode:

1. Why outsourcing work can be more efficient for your marketing department 
2. What it’s like to market a public school district in Detroit 
3. The value of marketing partnerships 
4. How to adapt to several different audiences 
5. The challenge of building a brand  

Quotables

• “As a marketer, if someone tells you they're gonna give you the worst brand possible to turn around and you don't think that that's a challenge that you would want to undertake then, you're probably in the wrong field.” — Mark Sherwood
• “One of the things that I've learned over the years is how to surround myself with key individuals that have unique talents or skill sets.” — Mark Sherwood

If you enjoyed this episode, would you please share it with others and leave us a review?

About Mark Sherwood

Mark Sherwood is a Senior Marketing Executive who brings over twenty years to the table, performed and served both B2B and B2C industries, and has been tasked with establishing in-house agency services in each role throughout his career. Mark believes every decision boils down to creating, establishing, growing, and protecting the brand. When not deep in a "how can I make it better" mindset, Mark enjoys spending time with his wife, enjoying his daughter's artwork as she pursues her degree at NYU, golfing whenever he can, and is still a closet gamer nerd.

Guest’s contact info and resources:

• Mark Sherwood on LinkedIn

Sponsored by:

• On Top of PR is produced by Axia Public Relations, named by Forbes as one of America’s Best PR Agencies. Axia is an expert PR firm for national brands.
• On Top of PR is sponsored by ReviewMaxer, the platform for monitoring, improving, and promoting online customer reviews.
• Burrelles has a special offer for On Top of PR fans. Check it out at burrelles.com/ontopofpr.

About your host, Jason Mudd

On Top of PR host, Jason Mudd, is a trusted adviser and dynamic strategist for some of America’s most admired brands and fastest-growing companies. Since 1994, he’s worked with American Airlines, Budweiser, Dave & Buster’s, H&R Block, Hilton, HP, Miller Lite, New York Life, Pizza Hut, Southern Comfort, and Verizon. He founded Axia Public Relations in July 2002. Forbes named Axia as one of America’s Best PR Agencies.

Support the show

• On Top of PR is produced by Axia Public Relations, named by Forbes as one of America’s Best PR Agencies. Axia is an expert PR firm for national brands.
• On Top of PR is sponsored by ReviewMaxer, the platform for monitoring, improving, and promoting online customer reviews.

Send us a text

Learn how communicators can be a trusted advisor to their company’s executive team with our guest John Herbkersman. John is a semi-retired senior communications executive who has served as a senior counselor for numerous Fortune 500 executives/companies.

 Five things you’ll learn from this episode:

1. How Jack Welch changed business operations and transparency 
2. Why communications has evolved to be so prominent in the workplace
3. Why transparency with employees creates a better work environment for everyone 
4. How to properly use a communicators’ toolbox 
5. Being a trusted advisor to leadership as a communicator  

Quotables

• “Communications has been prominent at most companies because communicating information to employees allows them to become active in the communities they serve.” — @JohnHerbkersman
• “Communicators have a toolbox of things, but before we take action we need to understand what's the goal, what's the objective? What do we want to accomplish?” — @JohnHerbkersman
• “Always be prepared. Understand what the short term business goals are for your company and the financials.” — @JohnHerbkersman
• “Prepare yourself and write down the 10 to 15, most likely crisis scenarios that can occur at your business. Have talking points ready.” — @JohnHerbkersman
• “If you have an opportunity to meet with your CEO, make sure it's a good meeting.” — @JohnHerbkersman

If you enjoyed this episode, would you please share it with others and leave us a review?

About John Herbkersman

John is a strategic communications and marketing leader with demonstrated, results-driven experience in all facets of corporate communications and strategic planning - including public relations, media relations, reputation management, crisis communications, social media, investor relations, marketing communications, event planning, public affairs, government affairs, community affairs, and more.

Guest’s contact info and resources:

• John Herbkersman on Twitter
• John Herbkersman on Linkedin

Additional Resources:

• Fortune The Greatest Business Decisions of All Time: How Apple, Ford, IBM, Zappos, and others made radical choices that changed the course of business 
• Jack: Straight from the Gut

Sponsored by:

• On Top of PR is produced by Axia Public Relations, named by Forbes as one of America’s Best PR Agencies. Axia is an expert PR firm for national brands.
• On Top of PR is sponsored by ReviewMaxer, the platform for monitoring, improving, and promoting online customer reviews.
• Burrelles has a special offer for On Top of PR fans. Check

Support the show

• On Top of PR is produced by Axia Public Relations, named by Forbes as one of America’s Best PR Agencies. Axia is an expert PR firm for national brands.
• On Top of PR is sponsored by ReviewMaxer, the platform for monitoring, improving, and promoting online customer reviews.