We were lucky to catch up with Alison Maloni recently and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Alison , thanks for joining us today. So, naming is such a challenge. How did you come up with the name of your brand?

It took me a long time to pull the trigger and start my public relations agency. But coming up with the name did not take much time at all.

I lost my mom at the age of four to Cancer. I have very few memories of her, but the ones I do have are that she was strong, smart and never gave up. As a business owner you have to be all of those. When I decided to launch my agency, I knew that I wanted to have a part of her in my business.

The decision was the easiest one I made since opening my business. My mom’s middle name was May and I thought that it would be the perfect fit for a portion of the agency name. On February 1, 2014, Alison May Public Relations was born. Whatever the inspiration may be, naming your business is one of the most important parts of starting your company. Having a name that you love and a story behind it can make all the difference in the world.

Alison , before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

At the age of nine, I decided that I wanted to be a journalist. I would come home from school, dress up in my aunt’s clothes, write news scripts and pretend I was broadcasting the news from my bedroom. I was fortunate enough to find a mentor, a local news anchor who I was able to do an internship with and still speak with today. I got a job right out of college as an assignment desk editor and worked my way up the ladder by moving to various television stations and doing everything from producing to anchoring. After several years in the industry I was burnt out and decided to go into marketing and public relations. I loved it and applied what I learned as a journalist to the PR world. Years later I opened Alison May Public Relations and it was the best decision I could have made. I have the opportunity to work with the best clients and help them make a difference in their business. We have given clients a local and national platform to tell the story and provide value to readers and viewers. We have taken business owners who have never spoken on camera to being comfortable doing live interviews on national television. To say that my job is rewarding is understatement. I know that it’s just public relations, but we truly have been able to change the direction of companies simply by helping them tell their story.

A few years ago I was given the opportunity to get back in the news industry. It was something that I missed, but I still wanted to be able to run my business. Ask and you shall receive. I began as a contributor and then started hosting shows. This was a win- win for me and my clients. I had spent years in local television stations, but never made it to the national media. I knew what was entailed in national news, but seeing it first hand made a world of difference. I am able to take everything that I have learned from producers, bookers, and other journalists and bring it to my clients. The news industry is constantly changing and to right in the middle of it, while advising clients is such an asset for our company. I am blessed with the best team, clients and job.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

Things were going great for my business. Then COVID came. My story is similar to many. We lost clients and had to shift the way we were doing business. Companies did not have the monthly retainer to pay for public relations, but they still wanted to get their message out. And since we were all watching the news while home to get the latest on COVID, being front and center was important. But how to we help businesses, while still paying our bills? We came up with a project based fee that was less then a monthly retainer for companies that just wanted to get a few news stories. And as more news outlets were conducting Zoom interviews we began doing media training and consulting. We helped business owners create their home studios with lighting, a background and audio. We did mock interviews via zoom and helped them feel comfortable in front of the camera. Before COVID, media training wasn’t even on our radar. But now, it’s the most requested service and I have to admit it’s my favorite form of coaching.

Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?

Social media is one of the best ways to build your business. But you have to do it right. And by doing it right, I mean be authentic. The audience can see right through fake. Your social media should let your audience in to your business, your team and you as a business owner.

When I started my business my friend said that I had to start blogging. He suggested that I start writing advice for business owners about public relations, branding, social media and crisis communications. I began writing on my website, posting the article on LinkedIn, then took pieces of the article and made quick video blogs for social media. I would film a bunch of thirty second videos in my car and post them each day. People began looking for my tips of the day and they were well received. I followed a lot of what Gary Vaynerchuk did with his videos. He paved the way for real videos without the frill.

Don’t sell! Of course if you have a promotion or a sale, you want to your followers to know about it. But social media is all about providing value. If you follow a chef, what are you looking for on their page? You want to see what they are making and their recipes correct? That is what you should be thinking about when posting on social media.

The key with social media is to be consistent and engage with your audience. Ask your followers questions and respond to their comments. I know it’s a lot of work, but when you as the business owner responds, it speaks volumes.

My number one piece of advice is to have fun with social media. Don’t take it too seriously. Film behind the scenes with your team. Show your audience what happens at your company. And introduce them to your staff. But the key is to make it enjoyable for your audience and give them something to walk away with when they leave your page.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.alisonmaypr.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/alisonmaypr/?hl=en
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/alisonmaypr/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alison-maloni-374aba8/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/AlisonMaloni

Image Credits
Andi Grant