We recently connected with Tiara Sanders and have shared our conversation below.

Tiara, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Alright, so you had your idea and then what happened? Can you walk us through the story of how you went from just an idea to executing on the idea

While working towards my Masters in Public Relations from Southern New Hampshire University, I took on an internship at a PR agency which I thoroughly enjoyed. While working under the guidance of my mentors at the agency, I had more of an urge to start my own PR agency known as Alpha Stride PR which caters to businesses within the music, fashion/beauty, and mental health industries in need of overall brand enhancement, social presence, and media coverage. It was just until recently I extended my services to businesses in other industries as they may need immediate PR assistance in certain areas depending on their urgency.

My story is more unique than anything. I had my first client before actually making Alpha Stride PR official, which happened through networking. Just from a casual conversation at a social event, my first client, Anesia Renee, trusted my abilities to help push her art and brand to the next level, which I was able to execute. Public Relations is one of my passions because I get to help others take their artistry/business to the next level through brand exposure and enhancement. PR is a never-ending journey when representing clients, and coverage does not come easy. As a PR professional, you can pitch as many journalists as you want, but in reality, maybe a small handful of those journalists may be interested in your client, which is why it is crucial to represent clients that are extremely unique in their own ways and are serious about standing out from others in the same industries. I’ve secured coverage in Voyage magazines, Blavity, Raleigh Magazine, The City Insight, A&R Factory, and a pending story under Good Morning America. This did not happen overnight, but I will say after about 2-3 months I started to see small wins, which began with securing some media coverage and then blossomed into developing relationships with some celebrity management.

Tiara, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

While earning my Bachelors in Journalism at North Carolina Central University, I became curious about PR when an instructor tried to sway me into switching my focus to Public Relations. She truly had a passion for it and had a booming career as far as doing some work for Beyoncé and being featured in Forbes magazine. After earning my Bachelors in Journalism, I researched Public Relations. I truly became interested in exploring a career in this field which led me to earn my Masters in PR from SNHU and Public Speaking Cert from Harvard University.

I provide a variety of services under Alpha Stride PR agency, such as the complete PR package to clients who are ready to commit to investing in themselves to reach success on a 6 month – 1 year contract, and options to those who are interested in specific services as a start such as brand enhancement, website development, social presence, develop press releases/crisis communication plans, etc. Also, I recently just launched a “Master Your PResence program” for those in the curiosity stage of trying to learn how to secure media coverage for their business(es) on their own terms. I view it as Alpha Stride PR’s DIY guide to exposure. I built this program to help business owners zone in on their “WHY” on starting their business and to take time to think about how they want their brand(s) to be perceived by others on a deeper level.

I did not jump into Public Relations for the money; I genuinely love helping others position themselves in the best light to create a brand that is interesting and appealing to their audiences, which is why I provided a free session and worksheets that will help position artists/business owners for success. Those who are interested can sign up on the last page of the worksheets: https://alphastridepr.com/diy-guide-to-exposure

My expertise has successfully led to the singer Tank from “Tank and the Bangas” to support my client’s Plush Boutique business by wearing the popular “Little Black Dress”, Lil Nas X, and his team supporting my client, Code.Edge’s jewelry business, momentum around The Real Art Monk’s business, and other successes.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

Working as a PR professional, I meet many people with unique personalities, which may become challenging when encountering someone difficult. Resiliency comes with making hard decisions; in relation, I’ve had to make some tough decisions as a CEO to void contracts with difficult clients that became disrespectful to my business and my team. I’ve also had to turn away those who wanted to jump right into PR without taking the time to establish their business a little more. When clients onboard with us, they must understand that we reserve time for each client to ensure we produce quality work for them. We are not the agency for you if you are looking for quick media coverage, such as wanting consistent press releases produced without pinpointing and defining your business’s unique traits. We are not fans of wasting time nor wasting clients’ money on efforts that will not produce the results they are looking for, as coverage can take time to trickle through. But we will definitely refer other PR businesses/professionals that would help. If we turn prospects away, we still want to point them in the right direction of where to go and also promote our fellow PR professionals!

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

The lesson I had to unlearn while working in a related industry was just listening to those who thought the following and unfollowing strategy to audience building was efficient. I think that is one of the most inorganic ways to build your audience, and honestly, disrespectful. My strategy to organically build an audience develops over time, but you get the most interaction from those who are genuinely interested in your artistry/brand that way versus those you unfollowed getting upset and putting you on blast. This just avoids any bad blood when it comes to true support and genuine connection with the right audience. It is not just about numbers but about attracting quality supporters when building your brand.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://alphastridepr.com/
• Instagram: @alphastridepr – https://www.instagram.com/alphastridepr/?hl=en
• Facebook: @alphastridepr – https://www.facebook.com/alphastridepr
• Other: Direct link to ASPR’s “Master Your PResence” program: https://courses.alphastridepr.com/courses/your-first-course PR DIY: https://alphastridepr.com/diy-guide-to-exposure

Image Credits
Tarriona Tank Ball Alpha Stride PR