Whit PR

I’ve always been a creative person and storytelling has been a creative outlet that has come naturally to me. In tandem with my passion for social justice, a career in communications became a vessel for me to merge the two and do so at an agency that centers voices like mine.

I currently lead our Social Impact team which works with organizations and advocates leading social advancement across civic engagement, higher education, small business and entrepreneurship and more. As the lead, I’m responsible for spearheading development and execution of strategic plans tailored for each of our clients. In my time in this role, I’ve learned that creativity, attention to detail and adaptability are traits that allow you to flourish. The ways in which we communicate are constantly evolving, so it takes someone who has an eye for identifying innovative ideas and ways to translate them to their audience. Attention to detail plays a major role here as the details can be the difference between effectively communicating your message and missing the mark altogether. Lastly, while we always hope to see through a successful campaign or initiative from start to finish, marcoms professionals must anticipate things not going according to plan and be ready to adapt in any situation.

WhitPR is an integrated strategic communications agency committed to shaping and amplifying culture-driven narratives that drive measurable success. With wit and determination, our talented team of communicators, marketers, and strategists merge Public Relations, Marketing, and Creative strategies to authentically tell brand stories that reach the right audience. At WhitPR we are champions of cultural creators, moments, and movements. As a result, we have mastered connecting brands to multicultural audiences. Through our work, we aim to move the needle in shaping and amplifying stories that not only celebrate Black culture but also support the advancement of marginalized communities.

I’d define marketing communications as a culmination of methods we use to transmit different messages and narratives to a target audience. Whether it's Public Relations, digital marketing or another avenue, each of these channels is used to efficiently communicate a specific narrative or value.

I would say my style is a storytelling-first approach. I enjoy finding unique narratives and finding ways to insert them into the current news cycle. A big part of being able to identify those stories is having a clear understanding of your client’s brand story and those proof points that differentiate them from others in similar industries. However, my favorite part of this process is actually writing the stories. We often have very limited space to convey a story, so trying to tell them in a clear, concise and impactful way can be a challenge but also rewarding.

Our team process usually starts with getting a sense of what’s happening in the news cycle throughout the calendar year that we can leverage as opportunities to insert stories. Next, we gather any important brand moments that are coming up for our clients and try to identify the story or hook there. Once we’ve identified the stories, our next step is to figure out how and through which mediums would the stories resonate the most and create the most impact. From there, we start developing the stories and the only next step is execution.

We’re thrilled about this honor! We’re a small team that is dedicated to telling impactful and often untold stories like Bobbi’s. It’s a privilege to be able to ensure that Bobbi’s story and experience received the attention it deserved and to be recognized for our efforts to do so.

Winning this international award helps bring visibility to the work that our team does and the types of stories we tell.

The main challenge we faced was navigating an uncertain and ever-changing news cycle. Since the news cycle changes so frequently we were tasked with going into execution mode almost immediately, vigorously crafting our pitches and conducting outreach to local and national media, with Good Morning America being one of our primary targets.

Our media landscape in the U.S. is so vast. That in tandem with the growing number of platforms to tell stories gives us room to be intentional about our targets and ensure we’re serving an audience that resonates the most with the story we’re telling.

I’m most excited about how our industry will continue to evolve with a growing digital sphere and how we adapt our storytelling to align.

My favorite things about the marcoms industry are the growing reliance on collaborative storytelling, creating immersive experiences for audiences, and the convergence of video and written storytelling.

I would recommend reaching out to peers and those you admire in the industry. First-hand experiences and insights are extremely valuable and can allow you to develop relationships that nurture your growth.

We are already on the trend, but I see the entire communications industry becoming even more reliant on thoughtful storytelling. With the growing reliance on virtual interactions and the ongoing effects of the pandemic, consumers of all sorts are looking for individualized authentic connections more than ever - and that includes the brands they support. Beyond connection, consumers are also much more clear and vocal about the things they care about and have built an expectation that the brands they support share aligned values. Consumers are looking for brands that go beyond virtue signaling and focus on telling and amplifying stories that are reflective of their experiences. As expert storytellers, comms professionals are going to carry much of the lift of not only crafting these stories but strategically integrating them across the expansion of digital and virtual platforms.

I draw different forms of inspiration from many people in my life, however, my parents are the greatest inspirations in my life. They’ve always been extremely supportive and encouraged me to hone in on any ability I displayed growing up. I’ve also often emulated my work ethic and commitment to my role after them. As I’ve blossomed within the communications space, they’ve been my biggest supporters.

There are so many ways to find success in this field, however, I would say one key would be to continue to be a student of your industry. You can never have too many skills in communications. Each one just makes you more of an effective communicator. Take every opportunity you can to learn from peers, other professionals, etc. to develop new skills or sharpen old ones.