Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Ava Medina. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Ava, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. One of the things we most admire about small businesses is their ability to diverge from the corporate/industry standard. Is there something that you or your brand do that differs from the industry standard? We’d love to hear about it as well as any stories you might have that illustrate how or why this difference matters.

Many PR firms connect dots and outsource the mechanics. I do both. Many PR firms hire me to flush out ideas, designs, pitches, press kits, sponsorship and marketing decks. My creative services department is a pretty popular resource for many.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

My initial goal was to publish a comedy magazine and really build out a comedy based media empire. I had flushed out everybit of it in the early 90’s and really had very little help or support. I began to read, study…I offered to work for free in publishing circles, but I was denied those opportunities. I moved back home to New York to absorb the culture. I realized quickly that I had to learn the presentation of it all. Art direction, layouts, typography…things that were foreign to me. Needless to say I ‘gorilla-taught’ myself and tried to push forward with a vengeance; and then life happened and everything stopped. I had my second and last baby and even then, I kept flushing out ideas and had no idea what the ideas would be used for. I shared them with Marketing Executive Tiphanie Watson Johnson and she educated me on how I could be useful and hired me at Pulse Marketing. A pivotal moment in my life, I began to feel my way through until things began to make sense. Through a series of unlikely events, I was introduced to industry heavy weight Oronde Garrett, who hired me as a type of internal media support for Idris Elba. Simultaneously, I jumped on the team with Comedian Earthquake as an assistant of sorts, and he said out loud, ‘You’d make a great publicist. After that very statement, the duties, responsibilities and the dynamics that give life to the inner makings of this world knocked open the flood gates. This life ultimately chose me, I never really chose it….but thank God. It works.

How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?

Well, I think my greatest attribute is the abiity to creatively and in the written word, sell ideas and concepts. For some reason, I am able to sell and see things for the value I know they have. Deck design, ghost writing, all of it has to have a soul. I think one of the things that keeps my clients coming back is my ability to bring the soul of the person, place or thing I am selling. I think my personal touch works as well. Nothing is perfect, but success rates seem to be better when you connect with the client in a way that builds trust in the work process and a shared vision.

Can you talk to us about how your side-hustle turned into something more.

I will say that my interest in concept development (official title I would have if I worked for another firm), did kind of turn into a hustle. It certainly was an additional income stream that has now become a full-fledged agency. I attribute this to my ‘learn as I go’ process. Every client teaches me something and sharpens my sword. Every client challenges me to perfect something that I may not have originally known. My network of resources and outlets have grown over the years. My relationships have been golden. I have been able to share these opportunities with my clients which has increased my value in the market.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.medinamediacreativ.com
• Instagram: @avamedina
• Facebook: Dish Dialgoues
• Linkedin: @avamedina
• Twitter: @dishdialogues

Image Credits
Images of the clients submitted to Medina Media Creativ for creative services use.