We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Gina Smith from GLS Entertainment. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Gina below.
Gina, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. 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.
Well, working in Hollywood can be challenging when it comes to integrity – it seems that morality and doing the right thing always tends to take a back seat to the all mighty dollar, which is sad. My Christian beliefs lead me down a different path, and when I founded GLS, I made my mission statement declare my intent to serve all my clients with excellence and integrity.
There was a time when a new client approached me about working on quite a prominent campaign, and after reviewing the budget and target goal, I told the client that he would be better off going in a different direction. “Wait, let me get this straight,” the client said. “You are telling me NOT to spend my money with you because it would be better spent in another marketing area?” “Yes,” I replied, “I can take on your project but I don’t believe you would achieve the same return on investment that you would gain if you went in this other direction.” “Wow,” said the client, “I don’t think I’ve ever met anyone like you. You’re turning down my money so I can spend it with a competitor to better my chances and achieve the project goals. Crazy. I’m never going to forget you.” And he went on his way. I wish I could say that the client later returned and followed up with offers of new amazing projects but alas, no. But that’s ok. That’s how I roll.
A second story revolves around a cable channel promotion that required the purchase of an immense amount of tech equipment from Best Buy. As we wrapped the promo, I discovered that the cost of a digital camera had been left off the receipt. So over a year later, the client (I was acting as a sub-contractor) and I went back to the same Best Buy location, asked to speak to the manager and explained the situation. He was literally speechless. “You are coming back a year later to pay for an item that was left off the receipt?” he asked. As word got out, employees began coming up to the front of the store to witness the exchange. “But why?” the manager asked. “Because it’s the right thing to do,” replied the client, and I nodded in agreement. “In all my years of working in retail, I’ve never experienced anything like this.”
One of my favorite quotes is: Be the Change You Wish to See in the World. And so I try to initiate change one step, one story, and one act of integrity at a time.
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.
My boutique agency, GLS Entertainment Services, was born our of a lifetime of experience and adventures…
I always knew I wanted to work in Hollywood, probably since the age of five. When most teenagers were out at parties or sporting events, I was home writing TV scripts on a manual typewriter. I even bought a TV for my bedroom with funds from my first job so I could watch the Academy Awards with no interruptions. Needless to say, I was bound and determined to get to LA and push my foot in the door.
I landed my first industry job at MGM Studios – back when the dinosaurs roamed Wilshire Blvd. and before Al Gore discovered the internet. From there it was off to RPMC, a travel promotion agency where I oversaw a variety of promotions and events including working with Budweiser 2-years in a row backstage at the Reading Festival in London; coordinating 60 live radio broadcasts during the Atlanta Olympics (yep, I was there for the bombing) and wrangling 100 contest winners to appear as extras on The X-Files in Vancouver, BC.
The GLS journey has been a great adventure: from various radio promotions; to research for an X-Files feature film special, (I got my first on-screen credit); promotion and sponsorship efforts on a few indy films; publicity for local theatre productions; joining Liz Shaw-Stabler at the Center for Lupus Care to work on a lupus documentary; coordinating a wrap-party / convention event for the television show, Highlander, which boasted 18 cast members including the Who’s Roger Daltry, 5,000+ attendees, three days worth of event programming, and a concert by Daltry and cast member Jim Byrnes; and my all-time favorite project: MTV’s Fly2K – where I traveled from LA to Lapland Finland, to Rome, to Paris and lastly to London to prep events for the lucky program contest winners traveling a day behind on a private plane.
In 2010, I joined forces with my friend and client, audiobook narrator Scott Brick, to grow his production company and enhance his brand. Together we launched a workshop series focusing on the Business of Audiobooks with events held in LA and NY (and coming soon, London) as well as teamed up with author Michael C. Grumley for my first Comic Con programming panel. Fun times.
Most recently, I started designing websites (16 and counting!) and managing additional audiobook narrators. Honestly the leap into bigger waters was a game changer. So much that I had to update the company name to GLS Entertainment Services, and I haven’t looked back. Who knows what arena I’ll dip my toe into next.
Now if I could just find some time to travel… London is calling and I HAVE to answer.
We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.
Sure. When the previous writer’s strike happened in 2007, everyone working in the industry thought it would be a blip and we’d all get back to work in no time. Although the strike itself lasted only a few months, it created a city-wide economic decline, which was then followed by the national recession. By the end of 2008 I was beyond struggling – my usual clients weren’t spending on giveaways and contests; social media was exploding and pushing out traditional media with cheaper advertising options; and the internet was now providing online alternatives to my promotion efforts. I was broke and up to my neck in debt. Time to look WAAAY outside the box.
The answer came from of all places, Riverside. My cousin offered me the opportunity to live with her family and look after her three tween girls while she finished nursing school. Talk about a pivot. So off to Riverside it was.
My time as a live-in nanny lasted for 18 months, and let me tell you, it was HARD. And humbling. No work. Limited funds. There were times of doubt, but I was determined not to let this detour discourage me, and I used the time to grow my skills and expand my expertise. A glimmer of hope shined in mid-2010 when client Liz Shaw-Stabler from the Center for Lupus Care reached out and asked me to edit her new book, Living with the Wolf and Surviving Lupus. That venture was soon followed by a few small projects and then in July 2010, old friend and client, Scott Brick asked if I was ready to return to LA and manage his newly formed production company… oh, was I ever!
It was a slow and steady journey, but now here it is 2024, and I’m debt free and my business is thriving. I look back at all the invaluable lessons learned, and honestly, I’m grateful. To persevere, to be humble and never to lose hope. Oh and to be transparent. Project success is great and all, but helping someone who’s facing similar life struggles is so much more important. And impactful.
Can you share one of your favorite marketing or sales stories?
Ok I’m going to date myself here – there was a TV show back in the 90’s called Highlander and I was the dorkiest fan. Anything Scottish is always on my radar, but the fantasy meets historical fiction just really sucked me in. Anyway, a friend and I attended a local Highlander convention and rather than being excited about seeing the actors in person, I was distracted by the way the event was managed… and how I could do it better. The idea kept nagging at me for months, but I had no link to the producers and no way of presenting a pitch, so I just forgot about it. Fast forward to a year later – I’m in my hotel room in Atlanta while working at the 1996 Olympic Games and I see a random movie commercial on TV. I stopped and stared at the screen, realizing the movie was produced by the same company as Highlander and distributed by my alma mater, MGM. It just clicked into place. Literally right there, I called a friend, who called another friend and a few weeks later I was meeting with the show’s exec producers and pitching my event plan. I think they were skeptical at the start but when they looked over my business plan and sample convention t-shirt, they hired me on the spot. I had six months to plan, coordinate and execute one of the biggest fan conventions outside of Comic Con. I quit my day job at RPMC and my life as a freelancer began.
Highlander The Celebration was held the weekend of April 10-12, 1998 and featured over 5,000 excited attendees; 22 cast and crew member panelists; multi-level registration and seating; a charity prop auction; and wait for it… a concert headlined by Roger Daltry. Yep that Roger Daltry. The event was a smashing success. Not to say there weren’t hiccups along the way (like learning about having a project agreement that defines all duties and perks in writing) but I look back on that project and smile. In fact, I’ve stayed friends with a good many of the cast members over the years and it’s great to catch up and hear about the projects they’re working on.
But the story doesn’t end there… last year I was speaking at a writer’s workshop with an author friend of mine and this lady approached me. “Are you the same Gina Smith that organized the Highlander convention in Anaheim?” Completely taken aback I answered, “uh yea, that was me.” She thought for a moment and said, “I wasn’t sure if I should say anything because it was such a long time ago. But I just wanted to say thank you because that was one of the best times of my life…” Wow. Now that is what I call career affirmation. And scene.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.glsentertainment.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gsmithgls/?hl=fr
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/gina.smith456/ and https://www.facebook.com/GLSentertainmentsvcs/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gina-smith-b532347/
- Other: *My Disclaimer: I’m kinda crap at social media. I try to keep up but I’m so busy with my clients that it mainly falls to the side. Except for when I’m traveling, I do enjoy using it as an online photo journey. Fear not, I have designated 2024 the year I will try and expand my presence… we’ll see how I get on.
Image Credits
b/w image: Rachel Sessions all others are mine