Last week, my client, Ebeth Johnson, known as the Breastfeeding Chef, launched a website featuring Beads by Ebeth, a line of men’s and women’s bracelets. Profits from the sale of each item help fund the creation of events, courses, consultations and resources that improve the health and wellbeing of breastfeeding mothers and their families. She explains that she launched her beads line because, “I know that not all mothers and families can afford my services. I want to always have an income stream that allows me to offer things like workshop scholarships, discounted pricing and free information.”
That’s pretty incredible. I felt immensely proud to play a role in helping her share her story, and empowering her to benefit women around the country.
It is extremely rewarding when PR practitioners can help people help people, as is the case with Ebeth. In this instance, it was immediately clear how Breastfeeding Chef enhances the lives of those she serves.
Sometimes PR practitioners need to do some digging to realize the extent of the benefits of their clients’ offerings. For example, a B2B company may be manufacturing authentication technology to prevent tampering of pharmaceuticals, potentially saving thousands of lives in the process. Alternatively, a client may be marketing long-term care insurance to be sure families are protected financially when they need it most. Perhaps a commercial real estate association devises a program to improve safety, security and energy efficiency in prominent commercial buildings nationwide. All of these are real-life illustrations and I have been gratified to help these companies tell their stories.
With the launch of Succession Communications, I have a unique opportunity to help other individuals and organizations build their brands, optimize their messages and get in front of the right audiences, ultimately leading to greater awareness and helping boost sales. This allows them to reinvest in programs that have a profound impact on their customers and consumers.
When I’m asked why I entered this field a few decades ago and never looked back, I consider the exceptional work of Breastfeeding Chef and the others I cited, and realize that I derive incredible satisfaction from taking hidden gems and helping them shine for the world to see. How is that for a valentine?