We were lucky to catch up with Keya Crenshaw recently and have shared our conversation below.
Keya , thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. What’s the backstory behind how you came up with the idea for your business?
I came up with the idea for Black Chick Media, LLC in 2013 after many freelance projects I had from 2006-2012. While I was in college and for a couple of years after, I began interning with film festivals around the world to learn all about their production and direction. As a film major, this became the perfect career for me. I could travel, watch films, and work with art centric people like myself, as well as meet new individuals along the way. In 2008, when I landed my first solo client, The Women of African Descent Film Festival, who this year, will celebrate its 22nd year, it was at the time when social media was beginning to be used for marketing, promotion and business development metrics. I was so excited I found my niche, business strategy, and model, and as my client list grew, I knew it was time to make it official and map out my business plan. What I didn’t know at the time but quickly learned was that I was helping to highlight mostly unseen and change-making Black organizations, nonprofits, and creatives who were doing amazing work but did not have a steady following. I quickly realized a lack of support, resources, and guidance was a major sector-wide issue, and I was helping to solve that problem. At Black Chick Media, I offer the unique approach of tailoring the work specifically to each client. I don’t offer a mass marketing approach like many boutique agencies. I find this really helps clients standout and reach their goals, even if that goal is simply developing an online footprint or writing a marketing plan.
Being an entrepreneur isn’t for the faint hearted. It can be agonizing, lonely, stressful, and sometimes exhausting, but the rewards are so much greater. I personally love to see my clients thrive and see their return on investment after working with me. Emotions can run high, sometimes nonstop, but it is worth it if you have the drive, determination, and dedication. I will never forget what a dear friend of mine told me when I started. She, too, and recently started an arts organization based in London, England, of which I was a member. Her advice was, and I’m paraphrasing here because time makes memories fuzzy, “There will be days when you want to quit. Where you can’t stand it anymore. But those are the days where you must keep pushing. Those are the days that matter the most.” She has since become a wonderful mentor and I have shared this advice with every entrepreneur and self employed person I have had a conversation with, especially if they were debating their relevance and value. I’m excited about my work everyday. Every single day offers a new adventure, a new perspective, and new possibilities.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.
I am the Founder of Black Chick Media, and I am a Brand Consultant, Art Curator, and Writer with over 15 years in the industry. I have worked with The Kirwan Institute for the Study of Race and Ethnicity, The Brooklyn Arts Council, The Women of African Descent Film Festival and the Brooklyn Chapter of the Links, Inc, The San Francisco Black Film Festival, The Columbus Black International Film Festival, The Hollywood Black Film Festival, Americans for the Arts, and the Columbus Post Newspaper, just to name a few of my clients and positions. I hold degrees with honors in Film Studies and Women’s Studies from The Ohio State University, and I have a love of everything creative. As an actor, published poet, and film and theater critic, I am trained in the craft of film and performance studies theory as well as acting and I bring extensive experience to my work. As a creative entrepreneur, I am currently or have been in the past, a member of numerous organizations including the League of Professional Theatre Women and New York Women in Film in Television, both based in New York City, the So and So Arts Club based in London, England, and Past Productions Columbus. My most recent book chapter, Unbought & Unbossed: Black Womanist Resistance and the Power of Holding Space, was published in 2021 by The University of Arizona Press in the anthology A Love Letter to This Bridge Called My Back.
At Black Chick Media, LLC, we are brand architects and our mission is quite simple: To give our clients everything they need. This includes a thought partner who will get the best results possible through a bespoke approach, precision, timeliness, a defined strategy, and loads of creativity. Oh, and in case you were wondering, because most people do, we do all we can to remain within budget. While we work with many clients around the world, we particularly support building positive ecosystems for businesses of the African Diaspora, BIPOC, and AALANA communities. As a historically disenfranchised group, Diaspora-owned companies tend to face hurdles many others do not. We hope to help mitigate or completely negate the effects of structural obstacles to business building for Black and Brown business owners as, due to structural and inequitable practices and policies such as discriminatory and predatory lending, and lack of access to capital, they are less likely given the opportunity to succeed.
I wish potential clients and all entrepreneurs and businesses owners in general understood how important it is to have a strong business plan that includes marketing. Marketing should be one of the largest line items in your budget. I can’t stress this enough. I see companies and brands that could have been amazing fail all the time due to a lack of preparation and knowledge. Studies have shown that humans have a 4-6 second attention span, and it is dwindling every year. Also, the internet is a very noisy and unpredictable world where you have to make sure you’re breaking through all of the chatter from over a billion people to be seen. Before I started BCM, I took as many business classes as I could, connected with a lawyer, met with other business owners, and mapped out a marketing plan. If you want to last, these are steps that cannot be ignored. I understand we live in a culture of instant satisfaction, but vital steps shouldn’t be missed. Especially with the advent of multiple robust social media channels, business owners tend to think that posting on socials is marketing, but it’s not. Social media is a tool we use in marketing, but it embodies so much more, like metrics, data, search engine optimization, brand management, conversions, and so much more. So, if you aren’t seeing your business grow across the board, not just socially, it might be time to contact an agency like mine so we can get you on track to success. Additionally, don’t be afraid of change. Sometimes when we start a business, it ends up being something completely different from what we originally imagined, and that’s not necessarily a bad thing. I still constantly look for ways to improve my business model and my skills. I look at what’s trending for websites, how to remain competitive, and what to consider for the future.
I am most proud of my current and former clients and their personal commitment, growth, and continued dedication and confidence in me. I wouldn’t be who I am without my supportive tribe.
We’d love to hear about how you keep in touch with clients.
I keep in touch with clients and foster brand loyalty by sending out a quarterly newsletter, writing on my blog, and reaching out to them periodically to check on them to see how they’re doing. There’s almost nothing I dislike more than receiving multiple emails a day, or even a week, from the same company, so I always want to make sure I don’t encroach on people’s time. Plus, marketing wise, I find quarterly emails reduce the rates of unsubscribes and increase clicks and readership.
As a writer, it should come as no surprise that I like to write, and my company blog allows me to do that as much or as little as I want. Those who follow the blog can stay up-to-date with Black Chick Media, LLC happenings as well as purchase business materials from our e-book library like our grant writing guide and our small business planner. The blog also serves to share articles, news, as well as small business, entrepreneur, and art related information.
Additionally, maintaining and growing my personal and professional networks, attending events, and remaining relevant in an ever changing sector also sets my company up for success and client loyalty. Clients know that when they work with Black Chick Media, LLC, not only do I have the credentials and years of experience behind me to guide them down the best path, but also I help them with future planning and future business development.
What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?
A hard lesson I had to unlearn was that, not everyone is the perfect client for you. I know that when we step into the world of entrepreneurship we have a big dream of helping our niche, but sometimes, it doesn’t go as we plan. For example, oftentimes, no matter what we do and even when we approach a client with the best intentions, it doesn’t workout in our favor. Additionally, some people may just come to you pretending they need help but they’re really trying to see how you do what you do, infringe on your work or networks, or simply to gain insights without ever intending to actually pay you for your skills or to work with you. For example, I once had someone setup a meeting with me requesting a new website for her company, but even though I asked her a lot of questions and went through my client interview process, I discovered she had no idea what she wanted. However, she found herself insulting my company website and offerings. I found this interesting because when I started Black Chick Media, LLC, 2013, although I had been doing the work in a freelance capacity since 2007, I was the only Black woman in the country with a company that solely focused on Black arts organizations and small businesses with regards to marketing. Fast forward to 2025 and there are now countless organizations and businesses who help the Diaspora, hers being one of them, but I would never insult another business, especially when I am unsure of what I want and am unable to articulate my needs. I wished her well and recommended other companies I know that I felt could better assist her with her goals. Another example was a Black woman film director who was referred to me by one of my other Black woman film director clients. I was honored to work with her and did so a few times until she told me that she didn’t understand why I was interacting with her followers on socials even though that’s what she paid me to do. I again explained the process and why, and showed her how it increased her followers, grew her social reach, and expanded her national presence. I was able to highlight her as a beacon in the sector to those who did not know about her or her reach. I am, thankfully, still connected with the person who recommended me to her, but both of these instances showed me that everyone may not be the right client for you or your business, and it’s okay. That doesn’t mean you lack value, won’t find other clients, or don’t have talents to share with the world.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://Www.blackchickmedia.com
- Instagram: @blackchickmedia
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/blackchickmedia
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/black-chick-media-llc/
Image Credits
All images by Keya Crenshaw