Latest / Chatting with The Experts with Paula Okonneh / Storytelling for Entrepreneurs: How to Get Your Message Out with PR

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Storytelling for Entrepreneurs: How to Get Your Message Out with PR · Chatting with The Experts with Paula Okonneh

• 0:03
  Hello everyone and welcome to yet another episode of Chatting with the Experts TV
• 0:09
  show with me Paula Okonneh as your host.
• 0:12
  Every week I bring to you fantastic women, professional women, entrepreneurial
• 0:17
  women from Africa, from the Caribbean and in the diaspora and our mission
• 0:24
  is to empower women, to educate women, and to encourage women globally.
• 0:35
  Sometimes I have some men join me to do, and they share the same mission as I
• 0:40
  do, but today it's going to be a woman.
• 0:45
  Her name is Sandy Arnette, and we'll be talking about seizing
• 0:50
  every opportunity to tell your story and get your message out there.
• 0:56
  We're going to dive into the power of storytelling and
• 0:58
  why it's essential for build.
• 1:00
  I don't know, I can't speak today.
• 1:02
  Why it's essential for building a strong personal or business brand.
• 1:07
  I'll tell you a bit about Sandy.
• 1:09
  Sandy Arnette is an accredited public relations strategist with over 30 years
• 1:16
  of experience in media placements, message development, event planning, and
• 1:22
  coordination, writing, as well as copy editing, and she's managed some big names.
• 1:31
  Some Fortune 50 companies including Comcast and Verizon.
• 1:37
  In 2019, she launched her own business called Arnette Media Strategies, LLC,
• 1:43
  which is a public relations consultant firm that helps clients tell their
• 1:47
  story, build brand awareness, and reach new audiences while gaining
• 1:52
  visibility through media placements.
• 1:55
  I could tell you a lot more about Sandy, but why don't I let
• 1:57
  her just join us on the show.
• 1:59
  And so with that, I want to welcome Sandy Arnette to Chatting with the Experts.
• 2:05
  Hi, thank you for having me Paula.
• 2:07
  I'm honored to be here today.
• 2:10
  I always get the best.
• 2:11
  And I know you are the best in what you do.
• 2:15
  I'm so happy.
• 2:16
  Thank you.
• 2:16
  I'm so happy that you said yes.
• 2:19
  And you know, what we're going to be talking about is something that a lot
• 2:22
  of us need to know, which is Seizing Every Opportunity to Tell our Stories
• 2:27
  and Get Our Messages Out There, because some people don't know this, but I
• 2:31
  don't like being in front of the camera.
• 2:33
  And you do such a wonderful job of it.
• 2:39
  Thank you.
• 2:40
  So tell me, or tell us, how can we get our stories out there?
• 2:45
  Why is storytelling so crucial for building our business brand?
• 2:51
  Well, you know, I think a lot of it is that people are doing
• 2:54
  some great work out there.
• 2:55
  And honestly, you really do need to be telling your story,
• 2:59
  not sitting on your good news.
• 3:01
  And as someone has often told me, you can't be a secret agent.
• 3:05
  You know, if you want to grow and scale your business, you really need to get
• 3:08
  out there and start talking about it, letting people know what you're doing what
• 3:12
  you've accomplished, where you're going.
• 3:14
  So with PR, with public relations, it can help you do that because, you know,
• 3:20
  like part of what I do, I may work with a client to help them develop that message.
• 3:25
  So how can we tell your story?
• 3:28
  You know, how will it resonate with your target audience?
• 3:32
  So just kind of working with them on developing the message, maybe creating
• 3:36
  a strategic communications plan, and then kind of following that path.
• 3:41
  How can we get you in front of, you know, on TV, on radio in
• 3:45
  the, you know, newspapers or on print, you know, online media?
• 3:49
  How can we set you up for doing podcasts?
• 3:51
  You know, it shouldn't just be your traditional media either.
• 3:54
  But like, you know, your social media, your podcast, your blogs.
• 3:58
  These are all avenues to get your messages out there.
• 4:02
  So why storytelling?
• 4:03
  You know, last week I had a guest on and she was based in Africa.
• 4:09
  We were talking about the sustainability of agriculture in Africa and she said
• 4:14
  one of the things we discussed was that everybody likes to hear a story.
• 4:19
  Yes, and I think it's important with storytelling because it kind
• 4:23
  of humanizes you and your business.
• 4:25
  It also helps you to connect with your clients, with your audience.
• 4:29
  And like you said, everyone loves a good story.
• 4:32
  And the interesting thing is that a lot of times, especially when we're
• 4:35
  moving into starting businesses or doing other things in our lives.
• 4:40
  It's usually something that prompted us to do it right to step
• 4:43
  out there on faith and to kind of take that risk and get it going.
• 4:47
  So your story is unique and sometimes it helps to tell what got this all motivated?
• 4:54
  What got you motivated to move in this direction?
• 4:57
  So, yeah, I think a lot of it is that it will help it.
• 5:00
  It's something that will resonate possibly with your clients, with your
• 5:03
  customers, and then it just kind of puts that human element on it as well.
• 5:09
  I agree.
• 5:10
  I certainly agree.
• 5:12
  I know it's so much more interesting to hear like facts wrapped around
• 5:17
  in a story than to just hear it.
• 5:21
  You know, boring to me, statistics or facts, but when someone humanizes it, like
• 5:28
  say, you know, I was not always someone comfortable, like I could talk for myself.
• 5:33
  I wasn't comfortable being in front of the camera, but I've seen my life change in
• 5:37
  a way that it impacts people positively.
• 5:41
  And that's what I do.
• 5:43
  And then you get to meet amazing people like you and so many of my other guests.
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  And
• 5:49
  it's wonderful.
• 5:50
  And honestly it's just really, like you said, it just, I think it helps you grow.
• 5:54
  You know, sometimes when we stretch and we step out of that comfort
• 5:57
  zone it really helps you to grow.
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  And I think people limit themselves sometimes.
• 6:04
  And it's like, because maybe a fear, you're not sure how you'll be perceived.
• 6:08
  You're not sure, you know, if you'll be successful, but if you just
• 6:12
  step out there you'll be amazed.
• 6:14
  Yeah.
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  Just how, you know, you come out on the other side and how much
• 6:19
  better and how you'll grow, you know, into your purpose, right?
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  And so that's a really wonderful thing.
• 6:27
  Yeah.
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  So can you tell us like some ways that we can craft and craft our messages
• 6:34
  so that it comes out in a way that it's authentic and people actually
• 6:38
  want to lean in and listen to it?
• 6:40
  Mm hmm.
• 6:42
  Well, when you think about your messages, especially when
• 6:44
  you're working with reporters.
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  You know, your media outlets.
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  A lot of it is to look at why does their audience care?
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  So why does their why do their viewers, their listeners, their readers care?
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  And I know sometimes people will think because they are doing
• 7:00
  something, it's newsworthy.
• 7:02
  And it may not be like, just say, if it's a conference, I'll use that as an example.
• 7:08
  People do conferences every day.
• 7:11
  So if you want to have a reporter cover your conference.
• 7:15
  You really might have to look at what issue is your conference addressing?
• 7:20
  How do we tag that to what's trending in the news?
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  Do you have specific speakers who are like, you know, well known
• 7:28
  or they're telling things that people really want to hear about?
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  You know, that it's impacting a large group of people.
• 7:35
  These are all things that you can work with in developing your messaging and
• 7:38
  helping to get your story out there.
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  But it really has to kind of boil down to, what would a reporter deem newsworthy?
• 7:47
  So that's what I try to help people work on, developing those messages.
• 7:51
  And just seeing, you know, maybe it might be you know, just say if
• 7:54
  it's Women's History Month, you know, I will work with people.
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  How do we highlight women in your businesses that are
• 8:00
  doing some wonderful things?
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  Have they created?
• 8:03
  You know, done some inventions, whatever it is, how do we work
• 8:06
  with that and get that message out?
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  So that's like an example of how you just try to see what's
• 8:11
  trending in the news as well.
• 8:13
  And just, you know, kind of develop your messaging around that.
• 8:17
  Wow, you know, I never thought about that.
• 8:19
  And maybe I specifically haven't thought about that because I haven't done
• 8:24
  the conference yet that I want to do.
• 8:27
  I mean, I know that I've been talking about forever.
• 8:30
  Mm hmm.
• 8:31
  That's a great point.
• 8:32
  What is trending out there?
• 8:34
  And what do people care about?
• 8:35
  You know, because it could be trending and people don't care, right?
• 8:38
  Right.
• 8:39
  That's true.
• 8:40
  That is very, very true.
• 8:41
  So you just have to kind of look at the impact.
• 8:44
  If it's something, you know, dealing with health, if it's something, it
• 8:49
  could be a number of different things, but yeah, just kind of keeping mindful.
• 8:52
  And then as the PR professional, like with my agency, for instance,
• 8:57
  you know, you have public relations.
• 8:59
  I try to explain to people that it is from advertising or marketing.
• 9:04
  I think they're all important.
• 9:07
  But when you think about PR, PR is more of your earned media.
• 9:10
  So it's the relationships that people like myself, like I would have with
• 9:16
  reporters, the connections that I make with them, that when I come to them
• 9:20
  with a pitch, a media pitch to cover a story, they are looking to work with
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  me, or I can sell them on what your business is doing and the importance
• 9:30
  and the significance of this and why it's important to their readers or
• 9:34
  to their listeners or their viewers.
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  Then we have an opportunity for coverage.
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  So, you know, that's why it's important now with advertising you, it's guaranteed
• 9:43
  you pay for it, but it can be whatever you want because you've paid for it.
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  Sometimes we always look at your earned media as generating a little
• 9:52
  bit more credibility because a reporter doesn't have to write about
• 9:55
  you or to, you know, tell your story.
• 9:58
  But when they do, it's obviously because they found some value in
• 10:01
  what it is that you do and how it's going to impact their audience.
• 10:08
  Earned media.
• 10:09
  Never thought about that.
• 10:10
  I did.
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  That's why I have you here.
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  And it's free.
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  So that mean, you know, it's for the most part, it's free.
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  But, you know, that's what the earned media is.
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  You just working on the relationships that you have, the connections that you have
• 10:21
  with media to help get stories placed.
• 10:25
  All right.
• 10:25
  So now that we live in a world where there's social media, you know, we have
• 10:29
  the traditional media and we have social media, how can you kind of figure out who
• 10:36
  would be that because it's done media.
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  So who would be that right person, you know, because there's so
• 10:42
  much to choose from these days that it can get overwhelming.
• 10:48
  No, that's very true.
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  And.
• 10:50
  So, like, in my role, you know, what you do is that you really try to follow some
• 10:56
  reporters, see what they're covering, or, you know, you can, we have some of the
• 11:00
  tools that you can use that if you need to create a media list, for instance,
• 11:06
  there's a database that, you know, I can access to see who's talking about XYZ.
• 11:12
  Who's been covering this story, and I can create a list of reporters and start,
• 11:17
  you know, developing those relationships and talking with them that, you know,
• 11:21
  I have a client that's doing this.
• 11:23
  I know you've been covering this issue, you know, I just wanted to keep you
• 11:27
  looped in that this is happening.
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  Maybe we can set up an interview.
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  If you're doing something, even going forward, maybe you can use
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  them as a subject matter expert.
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  Because they've been in this arena doing whatever it is that they're
• 11:40
  doing, you know, for a while.
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  And they can be a good source for you.
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  So, yeah, it's just, you know, using all the tricks of the trade and, you
• 11:48
  know, just the relationships as well.
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  It helps.
• 11:51
  Yes.
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  About relationships so relationships really matter in
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  the public relations world, right?
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  Yes, most definitely.
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  And even with that, I'll just, you know, on sort of the PR side.
• 12:06
  When you're working with reporters, you want to have that credibility.
• 12:09
  So if you're pitching them on a story, you want to make sure that you're
• 12:14
  giving them everything that they need.
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  Reporters are busy.
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  So I know a lot of what I do.
• 12:19
  I try to do a lot of the handholding.
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  I try to think, line things up for them just where they don't have to
• 12:25
  go trying to research what this is.
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  I provide all the information.
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  You try to make their jobs as easy as possible because they're busy and
• 12:34
  they're getting pitched all the time.
• 12:36
  People are always reaching out to cover this, cover that.
• 12:39
  So if you want them to consider your client to help tell your story, Then
• 12:44
  you really need to try to make it as easy and really look at, again,
• 12:48
  what are the newsworthy nuggets that they could be interested in, and
• 12:53
  then just really trying to make sure that you get them that information,
• 12:57
  connect them with that client.
• 12:59
  Now, I've heard some reporters complain where, you know, someone
• 13:04
  will say this event is happening.
• 13:06
  On Saturday, then the reporter reaches out that Saturday morning because now
• 13:11
  they want to cover the event and the media contact person is not available.
• 13:16
  They're not answering the phone or they're not, you know,
• 13:19
  and that's not a good thing.
• 13:20
  So, you know, you just want to make sure you're always accessible and that
• 13:23
  you're there to provide the information that you, you know, that you say you're
• 13:27
  going to provide that will help them tell the story to their audience.
• 13:32
  So you're kind of in between because I'm listening to you say that, you
• 13:36
  know, you need to see what's trending.
• 13:38
  You need to create relationships with the reporter, the media person, also
• 13:44
  have to help out the person who wants that story or event publicized and make
• 13:49
  it as easy as possible for them to give you that information so that you in turn
• 13:53
  can give it to the media or the reporter.
• 13:56
  So that...
• 13:56
  You hit the nail right on the head.
• 13:58
  That's exactly right.
• 13:59
  And yeah, so we are, you know, at the PR professional, you are in the middle,
• 14:03
  so to speak, you're working with the client, you're working with the media,
• 14:06
  and you're trying to have it be a win-win.
• 14:09
  The media gets a good story.
• 14:11
  Your client gets the visibility and the exposure, right?
• 14:14
  So that's definitely something that you want to you, that you want to accomplish
• 14:18
  and then what's helpful for the client as well, people are busy, right?
• 14:22
  You're running a business.
• 14:23
  You're trying to manage maybe the day to day operations.
• 14:26
  So when they know your client knows that they can trust you to kind of take this,
• 14:33
  keep our messaging out there, help with our, you know, reputation management,
• 14:38
  you know, our credibility, you know, if there's a crisis, step in and help manage
• 14:43
  that crisis provide media coaching.
• 14:45
  So a lot of times when clients are ready to do interviews, sometimes it's just
• 14:50
  giving them a little coaching on what to expect, the questions they may be asked.
• 14:54
  How they should respond, how much time they have, so that means you can't just
• 14:57
  stay on one answer, especially if you have more things that you want to talk about.
• 15:03
  So you know, just giving them coaching, you know, your backdrop, everything.
• 15:06
  So yeah, it's just helping people to just not have to worry about certain
• 15:10
  things because they know you've got it.
• 15:15
  You know what?
• 15:15
  Sandy, this is really good to know because we're in an age where
• 15:19
  everything's quick, you know, social media, take a picture, you post it
• 15:23
  out there, you comment, you know,
• 15:27
  Trying to constantly engage people.
• 15:29
  Mm hmm.
• 15:30
  What I'm hearing from you is almost like, alright, now we've done all of those.
• 15:35
  This is now the more mature, almost, you know, way of approaching
• 15:40
  publicity for your business.
• 15:42
  You know, yes you can really social media posts, et cetera, but sometimes
• 15:46
  you still need to have someone who's looking out for you on both ends.
• 15:51
  Right.
• 15:52
  So making sure that it's easy for you to connect with the reporter with the
• 15:57
  relevant media sources that you need.
• 15:59
  And you said something that I think is really important that small business
• 16:03
  owners don't always think of, and that is keeping your reputation intact.
• 16:09
  Yes, it is very, very important.
• 16:11
  And so just thinking, I use the example, like with the
• 16:14
  crisis communications, right?
• 16:16
  So a situation arises with your business.
• 16:19
  It helps to have someone who can kind of guide you through.
• 16:22
  So making sure that you know what your messaging is going to be in
• 16:26
  the crisis, that you're trying to be transparent as much as you can
• 16:31
  and definitely conveying the message that whatever the issue is, you're
• 16:34
  working to get it resolved right away.
• 16:37
  And then depending on how involved the crisis is, who are you
• 16:42
  positioning to be your spokesperson?
• 16:44
  Would it be the head of your business?
• 16:46
  Would it be someone else, you know, that might be close to the
• 16:49
  issue, but it may not be the person who actually owns the business.
• 16:53
  So just looking at all of that, because you know, a lot of times if
• 16:57
  you don't provide information and they know there's a story, there's
• 17:01
  something going on out there.
• 17:03
  It's almost like people start to fill in the gaps, right?
• 17:06
  They start to assume must be this going on, or we heard this from
• 17:10
  someone, you know, so it's just like you want to control your message.
• 17:14
  Yeah.
• 17:14
  So you just want to make sure that you're out there and you're not kind
• 17:18
  of like hanging back or dragging your heels, like try to get on it right away.
• 17:24
  Find out what's going on, what happened.
• 17:26
  What do we need to do to fix it?
• 17:28
  And what do we need to communicate?
• 17:29
  So people know we're not ignoring it, that we're on top of it.
• 17:34
  We hope to have it resolved as quickly as possible.
• 17:38
  Love it.
• 17:39
  I really love it.
• 17:40
  Yeah.
• 17:41
  A small business owner, sometimes you don't think about that part.
• 17:44
  You think more of the online.
• 17:45
  You don't.
• 17:46
  It's tuition control.
• 17:47
  Don't have your SEO and but there's that spokesperson, as you
• 17:52
  said, who may have to be in front of the camera, the right thing.
• 17:58
  Right.
• 17:59
  And what are you sharing, you know, maybe you're not ready to go out with everything
• 18:03
  yet, you have to make sure or maybe it's something where you have to talk with
• 18:06
  your legal team, you know, on messaging.
• 18:10
  So, you know, it's just kind of working with them and, you know, making sure
• 18:13
  that what we're saying Is approved, but it's also something, you know,
• 18:18
  that lets people know you're working on getting things taken care of.
• 18:23
  And you're doing that as quickly as possible
• 18:25
  As quickly as possible.
• 18:26
  Yeah.
• 18:27
  Mm hmm.
• 18:28
  So what I didn't share in your bio is that you are the president of the
• 18:32
  Baltimore Public Relations Council, and a member of the Relations
• 18:36
  Society of America, Baltimore.
• 18:39
  Yes.
• 18:39
  Also, you're part of the Baltimore Association of Black Journalists.
• 18:45
  So you had a lot of experience in this.
• 18:50
  Well, you know, I've been doing PR so long.
• 18:52
  Like I said, you know, I guess even working in corporate,
• 18:56
  it's been over 30 years.
• 18:59
  But I absolutely love it.
• 19:01
  And I'll tell you, Paula, it was just, you know, I had a little fear at first
• 19:06
  when I decided I was going to step out there and really just do the business
• 19:09
  full time, but I have not regretted it, you know, and so it's what I enjoy doing.
• 19:16
  I love that, you know, most of my clients have been referrals and repeat business.
• 19:22
  So that's been a blessing, but you just never know what you can do
• 19:26
  until you step out there and try.
• 19:28
  And, you know, I always say that even with this, there's a piece
• 19:32
  of, you know, there's a piece of pie for everyone, right?
• 19:35
  There's enough out there for everyone.
• 19:37
  And and our good friend Betty Hines always says that, you know, that
• 19:40
  there's enough out there for everyone.
• 19:42
  You don't have to feel like, you know, you have to just keep it all to yourself.
• 19:47
  I think some of my PR colleagues that have been involved with the organizations
• 19:52
  that I'm in, that when I first started, they gave me some excellent tips.
• 19:56
  You know, on handling clients on what I should be looking
• 20:00
  to do, you know, just things.
• 20:02
  Good business tips.
• 20:03
  And so it's just been helpful.
• 20:06
  And then when they were busy, you know, sometimes referring clients
• 20:09
  over to me, which was a help as well.
• 20:12
  So, you know, you try to pay it forward.
• 20:14
  When you know someone else is kind of moving in and thinking to start their
• 20:17
  own and so we just kind of keep it going.
• 20:20
  But our PR groups, yeah, we're just so much like family.
• 20:23
  It's just been wonderful.
• 20:25
  It's just been wonderful and we do a lot of professional development.
• 20:29
  So we, talk about trending topics in the industry so that
• 20:32
  we can stay on top of things.
• 20:34
  It could be AI.
• 20:35
  It could be PR tools that will help make our jobs more
• 20:40
  effective or, you know, easier.
• 20:42
  It could just be a number of different things.
• 20:44
  A lot of times we network with media, you know, we will, we just
• 20:48
  recently went to 1 of the TV stations in Baltimore, sat down and talk
• 20:52
  with their whole team pretty much.
• 20:54
  A number of their team members.
• 20:56
  And then did a tour, but our members like that, but it's also a chance to network.
• 21:01
  To, you know, pitch a story, you know, while you're there at the
• 21:03
  station and things like that.
• 21:05
  So it's just been wonderful.
• 21:07
  I do enjoy it a lot.
• 21:09
  It's written all over your face and even your mouth, I can tell.
• 21:12
  I do.
• 21:14
  I just, I love what I do.
• 21:16
  I really do.
• 21:16
  And it just really makes me happy.
• 21:19
  When I deliver for my clients and I really do try to go the extra mile to
• 21:23
  make sure that they get the exposure that they deserve, you know, especially when
• 21:27
  they're out there doing some wonderful things, you know, because you can turn
• 21:31
  in on the news and always hear about all the tragedy that's going on around us.
• 21:37
  But it's wonderful to hear that, you know, people are out there
• 21:40
  doing some wonderful things as well.
• 21:42
  So trying to get those stories out there.
• 21:44
  Mm-Hmm.
• 21:45
  . So true.
• 21:48
  So, you know, you mentioned that when you launched your own
• 21:52
  business on that media strategies.
• 21:56
  Mm-Hmm.
• 21:57
  Some trepidation and fear and that made me just think about what
• 22:02
  you mentioned at the beginning.
• 22:04
  When we were talking about helping people to, you know, get over their fear and
• 22:09
  hesitation when sharing their stories.
• 22:12
  How do you help people do that?
• 22:13
  Because I know you have experienced it.
• 22:15
  I know I've experienced it.
• 22:18
  How do you help people?
• 22:20
  Yeah, I think well, I know for myself, when I talk about the fear, it was a lot
• 22:24
  of prayer and just really having faith that you know what you bring to the table.
• 22:30
  And then, you know, not trying not to doubt yourself.
• 22:33
  Now, when I'm working with clients, a lot of it is just really trying
• 22:37
  to make them feel comfortable.
• 22:39
  I think for the most part, they're comfortable when they're prepared.
• 22:42
  So, you know, sometimes if it means let's do a mock interview, you're going
• 22:46
  to talk with a reporter tomorrow, let's do a mock interview, and I'm going to
• 22:50
  toss questions and make sure that you're comfortable, that's kind of part of some
• 22:54
  of the media coaching I was talking about.
• 22:56
  So, doing something like that, you know, maybe giving them an idea of
• 23:00
  the questions that they may be asked.
• 23:02
  So that they aren't blindsided, you know, also doing a little research
• 23:07
  on the reporter or the media outlet that will be talking to them.
• 23:12
  So you can kind of see the stories that they've covered.
• 23:15
  You know, is this going to be, you know, kind of a feel good,
• 23:18
  like a nice interview, or is it something that might be a little
• 23:22
  controversial, you know, and how are you going to be prepared to respond?
• 23:26
  If it's something in person, I am usually right there.
• 23:30
  I try to make sure that I'm showing up with my client and get there
• 23:33
  early just to make sure they're good.
• 23:34
  I always tell them to arrive early so they have a time to just get a feel for the
• 23:39
  lay of the land, you know, be comfortable if they have to use the restroom, get
• 23:44
  some water, coffee, they can do that and then be ready to go into the interview
• 23:48
  because the last thing you want is to be rushing from the parking lot into the
• 23:53
  chair where you're going to be doing the interview and you're being, you know,
• 23:56
  you're all flustered and everything.
• 23:58
  You just want to get there early and have time to relax.
• 24:02
  So, I think really getting over the fear is just being prepared.
• 24:06
  And a lot of the time these people know their subject because this
• 24:10
  is what they do on a regular.
• 24:12
  So you just try to tell them you've got this, you know
• 24:16
  exactly what it is that you do.
• 24:17
  So.
• 24:19
  You know, you'll be fine.
• 24:21
  That's a real big part of it.
• 24:24
  That's why I call my show Chatting with the Experts, because, you know, as
• 24:28
  you say, there's fear of the unknown, you know, what am I going to be asked?
• 24:32
  But when you are comfortable with your subject, what you're passionate about it,
• 24:36
  when you know it, it's so easy to talk about, you know, you could talk for hours.
• 24:40
  It is and I have to tell you too, Paula, a lot of it is you know, sometimes
• 24:45
  the person doing the interview, like talking with you, it's so easy.
• 24:50
  You make it, you make your guests very comfortable, you know?
• 24:54
  And so if a reporter is able to do that, I think, you know, the person they're
• 24:58
  interviewing will automatically relax and, you know, it'll be a conversation.
• 25:04
  It won't be, you know, an interview or like an interrogation or
• 25:08
  anything, it's a conversation.
• 25:10
  And so, you know, you just really try to create that atmosphere so that, you
• 25:15
  know there's a lot of good information that will be shared and kind of
• 25:19
  hopefully, you know, knock off some of the nervousness that a person may have.
• 25:26
  You know, I also tell people, because I've had a few guests who are like, Oh, I
• 25:30
  want to do this, but I'm so scared to say, you know what the flip side to sometimes
• 25:35
  the interviewer is a bit worried too.
• 25:37
  I know, but you know, it's like practice makes perfect too.
• 25:44
  So like, if someone is really.
• 25:46
  interested or know that this is something that they need or want to
• 25:49
  do, try to do as many as you can.
• 25:53
  Because eventually you start to get more comfortable when you're doing it.
• 25:57
  You know your messaging.
• 25:59
  So it's almost like it's already in your head, right?
• 26:02
  You don't even have to really prep a whole lot because
• 26:04
  you've been talking about this.
• 26:06
  And And then you're just, you know, the more you do, the better you do.
• 26:09
  And like I said, practice makes perfect.
• 26:12
  It's just doing them often.
• 26:14
  Practice does make perfect.
• 26:16
  Oh, my Lord, I mean, we could talk forever.
• 26:18
  So you've got a business, you launched it in 2019.
• 26:22
  If someone is interested in doing business with you, how
• 26:25
  can they find you online, Sandy?
• 26:28
  They can go to my website.
• 26:29
  It's sandyarnettemedia.com and Sandy is with the Y.
• 26:34
  So it's S A N D Y M E D I A.
• 26:38
  So I'm sorry, Sandy, Arnette media, Sandy S A N D Y A R N E
• 26:42
  T T E media, M E D I A dot com.
• 26:47
  So that's where you can find me.
• 26:49
  Okay.
• 26:50
  And are you on any of the social media platforms?
• 26:53
  I'm on all of them.
• 26:54
  Yes.
• 26:55
  I'm on all of them.
• 26:56
  LinkedIn.
• 26:57
  Facebook, Instagram, TikTok.
• 26:59
  So yes, all of them.
• 27:01
  Mm-Hmm.
• 27:02
  X.
• 27:02
  Mm-Hmm.
• 27:03
  X.
• 27:04
  I have to get used to X.
• 27:06
  I know.
• 27:06
  We always wanna still say Twitter, but Yes.
• 27:08
  Right.
• 27:10
  X.
• 27:10
  Oh boy.
• 27:11
  Yes.
• 27:11
  And for those of you who have joined us, I wanna say if you would
• 27:15
  like to be a guest, like Sandy.
• 27:17
  Sandy was an audience member and she was
• 27:21
  Yes.
• 27:21
  Friend Betty Hines.
• 27:22
  She was a member.
• 27:23
  Mm-Hmm.
• 27:24
  . And at the end, I loved the questions she asked, and I reached out to
• 27:28
  her, and here she is as a guest.
• 27:31
  Yes, and I thank you.
• 27:32
  I thank you for having me.
• 27:34
  I'm honored to be on your show.
• 27:35
  Absolutely.
• 27:37
  So we know that we're going to have a Q& A afterwards, so everyone should
• 27:41
  stay behind and ask as many questions of Sandy as you are, and even ask me
• 27:46
  if you could be a guest on my show.
• 27:47
  And if you would like to be a guest, it's there.
• 27:50
  My website is chattingwiththeexperts.com.
• 27:53
  I am on LinkedIn.
• 27:54
  I tell everyone that's my favorite social media platform.
• 27:58
  Just...
• 27:58
  Me too.
• 28:00
  So we share that as well.
• 28:03
  It's Paula Okonneh.
• 28:04
  Just look for Paula Okonneh there.
• 28:07
  I'm also on Instagram.
• 28:09
  That took some time to get there.
• 28:10
  It's almost like pulling teeth because I was like, I'm fine with
• 28:13
  LinkedIn, but I'm on Instagram and my handover is at chat_experts_podcast
• 28:23
  and I'm on Facebook as Paula Okonneh.
• 28:26
  And yeah, it's always so good to have my guests and, you know, better sell is the Q
• 28:32
  and A that follows immediately afterwards.
• 28:35
  So don't go away everybody.
• 28:36
  I just want to say thank you right now to Sandy for being a guest and Chatting
• 28:42
  with the Experts and wait a few minutes.
• 28:45
  In fact, she'll be here to answer all questions afterwards.
• 28:49
  Yes.
• 28:50
  And thank you again.
• 28:51
  This has been wonderful.
• 28:52
  Awesome.
• 28:53
  Haha.