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Stop Shrinking. Start Showing Up: How Women Founders Can Get the Media Spotlight They Deserve · Serious Lady Business

• Leslie Youngblood (00:00) Welcome back to Serious Lady Business. I'm Leslie Youngblood, your host, feminist and founder of Youngblood MMC, a marketing media and content agency. And with us today is Jenny Bares. Jenny is the co-founder and president of Pink Shark PR, an LA based PR agency that focuses on innovative tech companies and founders with a specialization in fintech while empowering female leaders to take control of their public narrative and embrace visibility as their greatest business and life. Jenny, welcome to Serious Lady Business. Jenny Beres (00:35) Thank you so much for having me! Leslie Youngblood (00:37) my goodness, I am so excited to have you here and what we're going to talk about today, Jenny, which is essentially stop shrinking and start showing up and how women founders can get that spotlight they deserve. So I want to start, you know, at the very beginning here with that elephant in the room. Why do so many women founders not pursue media opportunities? Jenny Beres (00:45) Yes. Yes. You know, that's such a great question because... You know, I've been in business myself for myself for almost, you know, almost 20 years now, and I never thought that PR itself was going to be so loaded that PR was going to bring up so many feelings of inadequacy or rejection or things that the patriarchy has just beat into us. And, you know, the real issue is women really struggle to own their superpowers. They really struggle. Leslie Youngblood (01:26) Mmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Jenny Beres (01:35) struggle to have their own back, to be comfortable being visible, to say, no, I'm really awesome at X, Y, and Z. And I always tell female founders especially in order to be an objective observer of your life, to really be able to say, hey, I need to improve in these areas, you need to be able to also say where you are bomb. You also need to be able to say where nobody does it better. And so we've been trained to just Leslie Youngblood (02:03) Bye. Jenny Beres (02:05) shrink in every single arena, even in our core competencies, even when we're truly geniuses. And that's just because that's where men have liked to us. Leslie Youngblood (02:18) Right, sure. Right. And it's like you should maybe just feel grateful to have that opportunity for, you know, a lot of people, not just women, like you should be grateful to just be here. And then on top of then advocating for yourself and using your voice, like we certainly are not taught that. And so I and I know we talked at a previous conversation when male founders are asked what's special about you, they just go off. when women founders are asked that, it's a totally different scenario. So tell me a little bit about Jenny Beres (02:23) Nice. Leslie Youngblood (02:48) that because I can't. can't. Jenny Beres (02:48) It's wild. So. I will meet, you know, with, I work just for the, just to put it out there, I work with both men and women. I love all of my clients. They're all really amazing. My criteria is to, you have to be just a wonderful human being. So I have wonderful human beings across the board, but there are some differences in how men see themselves in the world and how women see themselves in the world. So when I ask a client who is a man, what is special about you? We go all the way back. We go back to kindergarten. Leslie Youngblood (02:59) course. Mm-hmm. Jenny Beres (03:22) back to grade school, we go back to what mama said, you know, we go back. And I can have that same conversation with a woman who is, you know, Ivy League educated or, you know, has had multiple successful businesses or whatever it is that they've done that is remarkable, that runs circles around other people. And they'll be like, well, I don't know, I don't really have, I don't really have, I don't have an interesting story or I don't really have that much. Leslie Youngblood (03:28) Wow. you Thank you. Jenny Beres (03:52) And then you look at their resume or you look at their credentials and you are like, lady, get it together. Leslie Youngblood (03:59) Sure. Like, this, that's not what this tells me, ma'am. Like, what is going on? Wild, wild. So I'm trying to think, like, okay, so men go way back, like, I'm special. And so I wonder if it's almost like too... Jenny Beres (04:02) Yes, yes, yes. Leslie Youngblood (04:15) I feel like I had this conversation earlier today with somebody where I was like, oh, I need to be braver. I'm not brave. And they're like, what are you talking about? Like you're brave just by doing X, Y, and Z. And I'm like, yeah, like, oh yeah. You know, like I do need that. Like I don't think about that, you know? And I know that we're hardest on ourselves as individuals. And especially as we're trying to pave a way as a female founder, you're most likely doing something different. You're most likely considered, I don't want to say odd, but like it's a very unique Jenny Beres (04:31) Yes. Yes. ⁓ Leslie Youngblood (04:45) position to be in as a female, whether you're a business owner or a professional in your industry, et cetera. Right. And so it already makes you feel sometimes like, uh, am I crazy? mean, I am crazy, right? Like we all have a little crazy to make a difference. Yeah. All the good ones are crazy. And so then it's like on top of that to embrace that and own that is also like an additional step, not only to own your crazy and be like, yes, I am. But then to have that voice to advocate for Jenny Beres (04:47) Yeah. All the good ones are. Leslie Youngblood (05:15) yourself outside of that and to say, yes, I'm special. And you know, and it becomes so powerful, not just as an individual, but have that success of your business. So tell me, Jenny, too, like how does or why is visibility such a powerful catalyst for a female in business? Jenny Beres (05:35) Yeah, they can't buy from you, they can't fund you, they can't support you if they can't see you. Leslie Youngblood (05:40) Mmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Jenny Beres (05:41) And it is that simple. And ironically, a lot of larger companies and a lot of men, they're so busy with a lot of other things that sometimes PR actually takes a backseat. And women are inherently better storytellers. We're better at nuance. We're better at subtleties. We're better at connecting the dots. And so this is a real area where women can, you know, put the pedal to the metal. Leslie Youngblood (05:56) Mm. Mm-hmm. Jenny Beres (06:11) so to speak, and really make up some lost ground, like make up for the fact that maybe you don't have as many investors interested or maybe you are struggling to raise money or. Leslie Youngblood (06:12) Okay. Jenny Beres (06:23) you're not really sure how to authentically connect with your customer base, etc. etc. There are usually wide open gaps for every woman in any industry that they can really take advantage of through storytelling and visibility. So if we would just put ourselves out there, Leslie Youngblood (06:31) Mmm. Yeah. Jenny Beres (06:42) we're going to get, we're going to see the gains very, very quickly. It's just the, this idea of visibility, the idea of rejection really, really holds people back. Now the visibility issue I see definitely more with women. I feel like the men have a harder time with what they perceive as rejection. So if I have a client who is a man and a woman and I go to, let's say I go to the female founder and I say, I'm sorry, is going to pass for right now, but we'll keep them know, abreast with what you're doing in your business. They're cool. They roll with it or they problem solve. Well, we have this announcement coming up. We have this announcement coming up next year. Like, let's figure out what they're interested in. If I go to a male founder, typically not all. I don't want to stereotype, but I usually will get more ruffled feathers like, well, forget them. Take that reporter off your list. We're not sending them anything. You know what I'm like? Well, it's not personal, you know? And so that really shocked me. You know, when I started the agency where I was like, people take this very personally just across Leslie Youngblood (07:37) Yeah. Jenny Beres (07:45) the board. felt very personal. But truth be told, it really is so important because we're great storytellers. Stories are what sell. Stories what gets investors interested. It's what gets customers on board. It's what lands media coverage. It's what expands your business. It's what gets you exciting partnerships that you wouldn't ever dream of having. They have to see you. Otherwise, you you don't exist. the reality, actually it's worse than that. Because if you're a business online, Leslie Youngblood (07:45) Yeah. young. Mmm. Jenny Beres (08:15) You do exist, but then that means that the internet is in full control of your public narrative. So you kind of don't have a choice. You have to either shape your public narrative or you have to be cool with whatever jumbled mess the internet is putting out there for you. And so do the other one. Get over your shit and do the other one. Leslie Youngblood (08:32) Mmm. That is so like simple yet so profound, feel like Jenny, where whether you are, you know, just starting your professional journey, like you just graduated college and you're going on LinkedIn and it's like you or you've in it for 20 years or you're a founder, it's like. Do you want other people telling your story or talking about you? Or do you want to be driving that conversation and you should be driving that conversation or others are going to and it's not going to be the story that you want to tell. And it might not even be the correct story, right? Like it may not even be true. And so I think that is so important to know. Like you not saying anything takes your power away and like you need to own that power and empower yourself to take control of that narrative. have to mean that you have to go and do a Ted talk or, you know, go on Good Morning America. But it could be just like post starting to post on LinkedIn or like starting to dip your toe in the visibility waters, right? Because you're never going to get over that fear until you lean into it and you work through it. And then you realize, oh, what was I so scared about? It's just TikTok. It's just right. Like, I feel like that, too. It's like, oh, I can't go on TikTok. I don't know what to say or I don't or I'm cringy. God, which makes me crazy too. It's like, yes, we will be cringy. Let's get over it. Right. Because every single human that ever made an impact in this world was cringy and was considered cringy. And so what are we doing? Why do we get up in our heads? And I think to Morris women, because we're so cerebral, because we're so like emotion based and like we, you know, are just more in that way, like in that zone where we just get up in our heads and just talk ourselves out of it and allow other people to control our narratives. Jenny Beres (10:17) Yeah. Leslie Youngblood (10:26) and our stories. Jenny Beres (10:27) We do, and I think that the best thing that you can do for yourself is really give yourself a lot of grace during this period because we are hard on ourselves, but we're hard on ourselves because everybody is super hard on us. Leslie Youngblood (10:34) Mm. Wow! Jenny Beres (10:42) I'll give you an example. Think about when somebody you don't know for a while, and you don't mean to be judgmental, you don't mean to be judgmental, but it's what society has put on us as women. You're thinking about, haven't posted in a while, and maybe someone I know will see this, but maybe I'm older, maybe I look different, maybe I haven't had the best year, maybe like what? Because as humans, as human beings, we are constantly judging and evaluating our surroundings, including the people we used to know. Leslie Youngblood (10:53) Mm-hmm. Yeah. Sure. Jenny Beres (11:12) care. Men have a few more crow's feet or they have gray hair or they've gotten older because God forbid we age in this world and that doesn't cross their mind as a reason why they shouldn't be doing media or they shouldn't be you know on doing a TED talk or being somewhere where you know people could find them online. God forbid someone in their Instagram feed you know sees what they're doing. Leslie Youngblood (11:20) Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Right. Mm-hmm. Jenny Beres (11:37) As women, we think about all of that. We think about how we're perceived before we're perceived. And the great thing is for PR, that is a superpower to think about how you're going to be perceived. But it can't tip the scale into overthinking it so much, then we're paralyzed. know, like we're 10, maybe we're 10 years older than the last time we had a public facing gig or whatever. Girl, you got older. That's fine. That's great. That's a blessing. But we're so aware of everybody. Leslie Youngblood (11:43) Hmm. Yeah. Yeah. Right. Jenny Beres (12:07) judgments. So I think if you can keep it in that nice middle where yes be aware of how you're perceived because I mean that is what makes a baller like PR mind is understanding perception but not so much where it paralyzes you. Leslie Youngblood (12:18) Sure. Yeah, no, I think that's a great point. Jenny, tell me, is there any example of a founder that you worked with who went from hidden to highly visible that is an example of this? Jenny Beres (12:31) that is such a good question. So I'll give you an example of one of my favorite female founders that I have worked with that I've always really admired because she has always operated and I mean this in the best way. She's always operated with like, like if a white man's going to do it, she's going to do it. You know what I mean? Like Leslie Youngblood (12:52) ⁓ yeah! Jenny Beres (12:54) And that Leslie Youngblood (12:54) Boom! Jenny Beres (12:55) she was never, would say, afraid of visibility, but she definitely has grown a lot more in her PR trajectory. And she has like the best story. ⁓ So her name is Christy Kim and she is from a company. She's founded a company called Tomo Credit. And Christy had a really fascinating ⁓ journey. She immigrated to the United States from Korea when she was like 11 years old to start her American dream. Went to UC Berkeley. worked in finance, was a VC, and she had a great job and she could not get a car loan. She could not get a car loan. She was like, I love her story. just got her featured in Success Magazine actually. She has like a two page glossy. It's so cool. I know it's so cool. And she talks about how she went to a Lexus dealership feeling super good about herself because she's finally made it, right? She's like made the American dream work. And they're like, you have no credit. Leslie Youngblood (13:51) us. Jenny Beres (13:53) So she realized that even though she had done all the right things that you're supposed to do in American society, she was invisible. So she founded Tomo credit as an alternate way to get credit for immigrants and underserved groups that is FICO independent. Now, Leslie Youngblood (13:54) How? Wow. Wow. Jenny Beres (14:11) when you are going up against and not even against because she works with everybody but you're shaking up a system it is very scary to shake up a system publicly and she has done her media and her partnerships and her relationships just like just flawlessly, just absolutely flawlessly. And so one of the reasons I'm super proud that she is in this episode or in this ⁓ edition of Success Magazine is because it really shows the full circle of where she started to somebody who was like, can't get credit to now being an example in one of the leading business publications as a leader in FinTech and helping people like her who come to the States cannot get credit. Leslie Youngblood (14:29) music. Mmm. Yeah. Thanks Jenny Beres (14:58) ⁓ And credit is not really a nice to have, it's kind of an essential thing, like you need it to live. So she's one of my favorite examples of somebody that leaned in hard to media and she's gotten some beautiful coverage as a result. Leslie Youngblood (15:02) Right. Right. Sure. Was she hesitant or timid about like having to lean into it at first? Did you have to do any coaching with her, Jenny? Or was she like, no, you're right, I'm pissed. And now I'm disrupting this dang industry that I bought into and that I played by the rules and now I'm not playing anymore and ⁓ I'm game, Jenny. Or was there like coaching and coaxing? Jenny Beres (15:36) that everybody obviously wants to do a good job, right? So there's always coaching in like, it's like per feature, per thing, know, every reporter, every outlet wants different things. Everyone has different expectations, but I really feel like she just gets the job done. And it's really beautiful to see. So I think I use her as an example because she's somebody who just... goes straight ahead with the mission. She's not, she doesn't get very caught up in her head. She's a great example for like if you're like, listening to this, you're like, I need to beef up my press. She is like someone to go follow because she does such a great job and she makes it look like, okay maybe I don't have to be so scared about it. Leslie Youngblood (16:07) Mm. Right. No, I love that. That's a great lesson for all of us. Everybody listening, go and find her and follow her. then two, you know, we've talked before where we have women that will say, ⁓ I don't want to call myself an expert. I'm not the expert where we will see more likely with men. They'll say, yes, I'm the expert here. They'll, they'll deem themselves an expert, even though, right. And I will often tell myself that are out when I have pep talks with fellow business owners, females, primarily, I'll be like, listen, do you know how many? Jenny Beres (16:26) Yes. Sure, sure. Leslie Youngblood (16:51) What's like, ⁓ not like the words like escaping, but like ill equipped or like men that don't have half the experience that you have that are out there doing a bad job doing the same thing you're doing right now when they're doing it poorly and you actually have the chops, you know how to do it and you're not going to lean into that and embrace that. But so I know that you we've talked before and you hear that like women were hesitant to say, I don't want to call myself an expert. What do you say to her when she said stop it right now? Jenny Beres (17:08) Yeah. I say knock it off. It drives me nuts and I will tell you why. For everything you just said, obviously it's loaded, it's emotional, it's psychological, it's all of those things. It's also impractical. So if I'm pitching Forbes and Fast Company and Inc. and success, I have to tell them you're an expert or else why the hell are they going to feature you? Leslie Youngblood (17:32) and Right. Jenny Beres (17:41) So you also can't straddle the line. You also can't be like, I don't want to say I'm an expert, but here, let's see if I can get my story in all these places. It doesn't work that way. You either are an expert, and that's what reporters are expecting. There's an expectation when I reach out to reporters and say, hey, I've got some thoughts about, et cetera, et cetera, from this expert. If you're not an expert, Leslie Youngblood (17:44) you Mmm. Yeah. Jenny Beres (18:06) Why are they gonna, they're not gonna publish. Your opinion then is as good as anybody in a comment section online. So again, it's kind of what I said in the beginning, where you have to be able to look at yourself objectively. So this whole thing of like selling ourselves short and saying, well, we're not an expert when we are, or we're not great at something when, you know, we're actually like the best in the room at it or whatever that is. We have to stop doing that because that impairs our ability to really look at ourselves Leslie Youngblood (18:19) Mmm. Jenny Beres (18:36) our business objectively. have to say what we're good at. We have to be able to say what we're not good at. You have to be able to look. And if one is so skewed, then you can't possibly also be giving practical like advice on the other end either. So I just say, knock that off. It's actually, it's not professional. Like I know a lot of people probably don't want to hear that, but it's not professional. If this is your business, if this is your profession, if this is what you've studied or, you know, in my case have put almost two decades of time into, Leslie Youngblood (18:38) Mm-hmm. Mmm. ⁓ Jenny Beres (19:06) Yeah, I'm an expert and it's insufferable for me to say that I'm not, you know? Leslie Youngblood (19:11) Yeah, it's true. It's like false, like false, some humbleness or right leg. It's like, stop it. Stop doing that. Like, not yet. Like, knock it off, I think is the best way to say it. Like, it off. Get serious. Jenny Beres (19:16) What? I'll it up. What is that? Yeah, and people don't trust that, and I know it's not fake humility in a sense. I know it comes from a place of like, you know, I have a lot of empathy for where it comes from. Leslie Youngblood (19:35) Sure. Jenny Beres (19:35) But that is one of the things that we just have to pull that weed out by the root because it's insufferable, it's confusing. It's also confusing to say that you know something but you don't really know something. You know, it's not, you have to just, if you're gonna give an opinion, then you have to back it up. Leslie Youngblood (19:40) Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Yes. Mm. Yeah, for sure. And like you said, like people are looking to them to be that expert and that meter and to not be like, well, sort of maybe I might know when do you want to listen? It's like, no, who wants to hear from somebody like that? And like, why you have all these guys out here getting quoted because like they just act like they know everything and then believe them. And it's not true. Jenny Beres (19:58) Yes! Yes. Yes. Exactly. That's why you have so much misinformation because you can say almost anything with confidence. ⁓ Leslie Youngblood (20:18) Mm-hmm. 100%. It's I really think that so much of it comes down to audacity sometimes. And it's like, these fools like are running their mouths with like garbage coming out and people are following in line behind these people. What? Hello. But it's like because people want to look to an expert, right? Like no matter what it is, whether it's in politics or in business or you're pitching a client or trying to get somebody featured in a magazine, like we want the best. You want the people that know what they're doing so you can share that. So Jenny Beres (20:26) Yeah. Yes. Yes! Yes. Leslie Youngblood (20:52) It's just so, it's like maddening, but it's like so ⁓ true where you like just knock it off and lean into it. Jenny Beres (20:57) Yes. Yeah, like if they can do that, you can share about your 15 years of sales experience. You know what I mean? Like, right, right. Leslie Youngblood (21:05) Right, right, right, 100%. 100%. What are like two to three other like media myths you feel that like women might buy into Jenny that you've experienced in your work? Jenny Beres (21:18) that's interesting. Like media myths. Okay, so the first media myth that I think everybody buys into is that, you know, it's just you send out a couple pitches and if you don't hear back right away, that's it, right? It is. Leslie Youngblood (21:31) . Jenny Beres (21:34) It is a chess, it's a game of chess. You build relationships, you have to stay on top of things, you have to cultivate relationships with reporters that are going to champion you and champion your business. A lot of times people will send out a couple pitches and they don't hear anything and then they just go running from the hills and say that it didn't work. I want to flip that and say, imagine if you treated your business that way. Leslie Youngblood (21:38) game. Bye. Mmm. Jenny Beres (22:00) You built one product, you launched one course, you did one thing, and then you said, well, no one bought. You did one post on Instagram. No one bought. I'm going to shut down the whole damn thing. Right. PR is an ongoing, will never end, can't ever end. Leslie Youngblood (22:11) Cheers. Yeah. Jenny Beres (22:19) relationship that you are building, not just with reporters, but you're building that relationship with the public. PR is a bridge between your reputation and the public. You communicate what you want them to know. You are building that trust bridge. And I think so many people think it's as easy as just sending a couple pitches and then being done. I've seen so many people quit when it's working. Leslie Youngblood (22:25) Mmm. Mmm. in here. Jenny Beres (22:46) because they don't have the patience for long haul. And it is so frustrating to see people throw in the towel when you're just finally starting to see them get the attention of the people that they're trying to build relationships with, or they're starting to get interviews, and then they're like, well, this isn't working. Leslie Youngblood (22:49) Wow. Mmm. Jenny Beres (23:06) And throwing in the towel then does nothing because bad news for you, you have no choice but to continue with the public narrative of your company. So you may as well keep going. So the first myth is that it's a short term. It's not. It is it's just like building relationships. It's just like telling stories. You have to be able to continuously generate stories. If you think you're going to get away with one story, then then you have to go back to the Leslie Youngblood (23:17) Ready, run. night. ⁓ you Thank Jenny Beres (23:36) of drawing board. ⁓ You have to keep showing people why your company is relevant. And if you can't do that, I'm also going to guess that you have a sales problem too, because PR is sales. So I started actually with sales. is like my, you know, sales is like my number one, you know, thing. I've had two businesses in my adult life. Every single dollar that has passed through Pink Shark PR, I have personally shaken hands on. So sales has always been my thing. And PR is interesting because Leslie Youngblood (23:37) Yeah. Yeah. Uh-huh. Uh-huh. Wow. Jenny Beres (24:06) PR, even though it's not like direct sales where I can't sell your service in the article, you are selling your story to a reporter and that reporter has to go sell your story to an editor and then that editor gives them the green light to sell that story to an audience. And so if you can't think of anything interesting in a value beyond one pitch, I'm going to also guess you have a revenue problem as well. Leslie Youngblood (24:11) Mm-hmm. No, no, no, no, Fascinating. Gosh, that is so... I love that so much because you think, oh, yeah, I just need to get placed. Like, I just want to be featured on Forbes.com and then like I'll be all set and my business will be great. But it's like, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, It's a comprehensive plan and it's an ongoing plan because it's not just a one and done much like exactly like your business. You have to treat it like your business. And then if you stop, you lose that momentum. Right. And it's like all this like cache we've like built up and you want to stop right now. Like how could you? Why would you? ever do such a thing? Why would somebody like want to stop at that point, Jenny? Like are they getting freaked out or like what do you see keeps people from continuing with the plan if and when that happens? Jenny Beres (25:16) I think a lot of people run their businesses this way too. I don't think, I think people give up too soon. And the reality is I don't think business ownership is for everyone. I think that we're in an era where everybody says, ⁓ just start a business. Leslie Youngblood (25:33) Yeah. Jenny Beres (25:33) Okay, just start a business. And I think that's fine. for me, for example, I had no choice but to have a business. I am completely unhireable for someone else's organization. Completely. I have, you know, I have to be in, I have to be in control of my own company, my own schedule, the way things are run, the way I like to do things. I don't, I work very, very differently than a lot of my colleagues. It's been an amazing, rewarding experience. Leslie Youngblood (25:43) Yeah Yeah. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Jenny Beres (26:04) But I have gone up to the line of hell and back to make it work. And there have been very rough periods in business. There have been things that are world events that you cannot control. Obviously, FinTech is one of my largest clientele bases. I'm sure you remember that FinTech had a really rough time a couple of years ago. know, Pink Shark PR was newer during the pandemic. That also Leslie Youngblood (26:10) Hmm. Hmm. Yeah. you Mmm. Jenny Beres (26:33) was, you know, being a pandemic, we weren't a pandemic baby, but we were a pandemic toddler, you know, and navigating your navigating those stressors while your clients are having the same stressors. Also, it takes a lot of grit. You have to be able to show up every day and trust that there are results even when you are not seeing them. So I think that people give up on their PR and I'm sure you see this in marketing. People give up on their marketing strategies because they give up on their business too soon. Leslie Youngblood (26:39) Mmm. Yeah. Jenny Beres (27:03) ⁓ And I think that we need to be honest as business owners. I wouldn't have it any other way. I Pink Shark Art is my baby. I love it and and I have I am so proud of where we are. But if someone sat down with me and they were like, do you think I should start a company? I'm going to need to learn a little bit more about you first because if you're somebody that can't you know, I have a very high risk tolerance and having a business is super rewarding because it is Leslie Youngblood (27:16) Mm-hmm. Amen. Mm-hmm. Jenny Beres (27:33) also super risky. So if you can roll with stuff, if you don't lose sleep at night because sales are down or you can like jump in and problem solve or you believe that you can make anything happen no matter what, okay we're gonna roll but if you're somebody who thrives on routine, who really needs to know that there is you know that all the responsibility doesn't fall on you, Leslie Youngblood (27:35) Yep. Yeah. Yeah. Jenny Beres (27:59) I know, maybe not. You when I was little, so my dad got laid off like six times when we were kids. And so the lesson that I learned early and it fit my personality was nothing is really safe, right? Like you could get laid off. At least I'll never fire myself, you know? But as I've gotten older and I have now been a business owner for a really long time in a lot of different seasons, I really think that we tell people to start businesses too fast. Leslie Youngblood (28:14) Yeah. Jenny Beres (28:29) We show the glamorous side of it, but we do not show that when something goes wrong, it is you that has to deal with it. You are the liability. So I'm getting to this point in my career where I still want to encourage people to have their freedom and have their businesses, but to also be very realistic that if you can't handle that no one's responding to your PR pitches for a couple of months. Leslie Youngblood (28:38) Mm-hmm. sure. Yeah. Yes. That is so, it's so true. It, it sucks like a lot of times, right? Like it's not easy and you think, and it's easy and it's great when it's great, but then when you inevitably go through those. Jenny Beres (28:56) Girl, you got a much bigger problem probably in the business. Yeah. Leslie Youngblood (29:14) difficult times you lose a client or there's a pandemic or a recession or all the things or you know, or your clients not paying or all the things that could go wrong, right? Like there's so many things and it is so inherently stressful and it feels also too lonely because. your spouse probably doesn't understand, right? And your friends don't understand because they probably, unless they're business owners, and if they are, then that's great. You have your family doesn't understand because they're like, why do you keep doing this to yourself? You're so stressed and this you're like, but I can't help it. I. Right. And so it's just so true that and we don't show those dirty, unglamorous tears, the clawing and the scratching. And so and I think that is important. And there are people that are more put out for it. And those are generally the ones that do stick with it right and do find success because they just are that stubborn enough to not quit and so I love that that comes into play with PR too like it's not you know everybody and I think I love social media because I'm a marketer but I think also too it's exacerbated this um what is it like get rich quick like proverbial in a way where it's like yes you can go viral on TikTok and then become a millionaire in like a day or something and like yes like TikTok is almost like playing the lottery or lot of creators will say it's like playing the lot Jenny Beres (30:06) Yes. Leslie Youngblood (30:30) You could have a video go viral and it change your life overnight But you know how many people win the lottery not a lot, right? And that's just but you know who you have a greater some chance of success is just getting up and grinding it out like every day and doing like the dirty things and like keeping going when you feel like This is tough. And and so I think that and then that just makes a better story For your PR team to then share for you when you're out there and I have had clients Jenny Beres (30:37) Yeah. Yes. Yes. Leslie Youngblood (31:00) that we created great marketing and it was working and then they wanted to stop. And I'm like, why are we stopping? I think that's a horror, like, but they stopped and it did not go well for them after that. Like I will say, and I'm sure you've seen that too, of course, when they stop and it's like, It's working. This is what you need to do. So. Jenny Beres (31:10) No. No. Yeah. Yes. I know it's very, it's very, very frustrating. And, know, so I'm very lucky. So I have a co-founder who is also my best friend, you know, so having a co-founder who is your best friend can helps you really ride out a lot of waves. But I am, I'm stubborn as fuck, you know, like I'm going to, I was going to win or die trying, you know, that's just, but I also have a very different philosophy about it. Like I believe that sales especially, and I do think PR sales are different, but PR does help generate Leslie Youngblood (31:24) That's wonderful. Yes. Yes. Jenny Beres (31:46) It Leslie Youngblood (31:47) and cure. Jenny Beres (31:47) really is a top of the funnel situation where you want those organic pieces, Sales to me. So one of the things that I loved to do is I loved to cold email. That was like my favorite thing ever. I have made a ton of money throughout the years cold emailing. It's how I ran my first business. I did a lot for Pink Shark PR in the beginning. Like cold email was like my jam. And the reason that I loved it is because it was a winning lottery ticket, except you just didn't know when it was going to hit. So it was literally like me giving you a winning Powerball ticket and just saying this is a Leslie Youngblood (32:18) right. Jenny Beres (32:24) winning ticket, I just can't promise you when the money's going to hit. I can't promise when they're going to roll it on TV. Would you throw that ticket out? No, you would hold onto it and you would show up every single day to check the numbers. Leslie Youngblood (32:37) Yep. Jenny Beres (32:38) Sales are a lot is a lot like that. And so I really like female founders to treat their PR and treat their sales like a winning lottery ticket that they have in their hand. They just don't know when it's going to hit. And that's part of why I have the patience to end that grit to keep going no matter what, because I always feel like a winner. It just I'm not sure what date that certain one is going to hit. And I started that in my early 20s. That's how I did my got my first business off the ground. ⁓ Leslie Youngblood (32:40) Mmm, I love that. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Jenny Beres (33:08) And it has never failed me. I am my early 40s now and it has never failed me. Leslie Youngblood (33:13) Yeah, I feel like that's also to like a cornerstone of manifestation and energy work where it's like you embody the energy of a winner. You like you have to be it before you see it. Right. And so you feel like I'm a winner already. I have this winning lottery. It's a matter of time or I love myself and I love love and that partner is going to show up because then they'll be attracted to you in that space. And so and I just love that, though, because you don't think about that when it comes to your business. You think more of like manifestation, be this or that was like imagine that your business, whether it's PR or sales, like it's that winning lottery. Jenny Beres (33:20) Yes! Leslie Youngblood (33:43) ticket and it's coming. You just gotta wait for that day where your numbers are red. Like I'm guaranteeing to you this is a winner. You got the winner. You just have to be patient which is the easy and tricky thing of it all but Jenny Beres (33:43) Yes, yes. you Yeah. And then that brings me full circle of do you have what it takes then to run a business? Because you have to be able to ride it out. And so if you can ride it out and you can do those things, you can't ride it out without sales activity. But if you can ride out the sales and PR activity, you will win. You will win. And I just think that people have to have a little bit. And I think maybe what you said is true. You know, we're in an era where people think that business ownership is Leslie Youngblood (33:59) Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Jenny Beres (34:24) synonymous with being an influencer or synonymous with social media. I am barely on social media. Like I post on LinkedIn and it's a real struggle for me to post on LinkedIn. Like I do it. know, and I'm always, it's one of those things like going to the gym. I'm always happy I did it afterward. I'm like, ⁓ this was great, you know, but like getting me to do it. I'm like, I'm so busy, ⁓ you know what? But it's, one of those things where it's not business and social media are not synonymous. Like you have to run your business first and you have to commit to the fact that Leslie Youngblood (34:26) We're move on. I'm leaving. Thank you. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Right. Mm-mm. Jenny Beres (34:53) You're going to see this thing through no matter what. And it is amazing when you don't give yourself an out. Like when you are just like, no, this is going to be successful and I'm going to figure it out. It is incredible how resourceful you are. And then guess what? You become the most confident person because after you have survived whatever it is you've survived in your business and you're on the other side and things are amazing. There is like nothing that can get to you. There is nothing that can bring you down. There is nothing that can scare you. Leslie Youngblood (35:03) Yeah. Jenny Beres (35:23) you are literally, you know, like unfuck with a ball. Like that's it. Like that is what you are. And so it is worth it, but you have to be prepared mentally that that's what it takes. Leslie Youngblood (35:24) Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, for sure. And I think you're right. Like people aren't generally prepared or you think you'll be different. Your experience will be different. It'll be easier for you. Like, no, it comes for us all. And so I love that like fortitude of just knowing and holding onto that. And so I want to come back to like the media landscape today for women. Do women have an edge in today's media landscape, Jenny? Tell us about that. Jenny Beres (35:59) Absolutely. Absolutely. So like I said, men are typically more comfortable being visible, but we're better storytellers. So we tend to prioritize marketing that has a storytelling element. ⁓ And so if we go out there and actually do it, if we go do the damn thing, we do win. We do get the edge. There are also, you know, reporters really do a great job uplifting women. Now, I don't like, for example, like my clients, I don't like for them to just be, I have an issue with just like female focused media. I think some of that is okay. I think some of that's okay. But I think to really break barriers, we just want media. Like we don't want it all to be female focused media. I do think that there is a lot of female focused media to also take advantage of because reporters really do like to hear from women. ⁓ There have been a few times where I have felt and it has been rare where I Leslie Youngblood (36:36) Mm-hmm. Sure. Right. Mm-hmm. Jenny Beres (37:00) I have felt like I have submitted commentary from female clients that was just superb. And then when the article came out, they didn't use it and they use kind of like a mediocre dude's comments. And I have. Leslie Youngblood (37:13) Mmm. Jenny Beres (37:14) You know, you know, obviously you don't want to you don't want to destroy the relationships you have with people, but also asking meaningful probing questions. You know, hey, I noticed you didn't use so and so's, you know, comments while I understand like nobody's comments are guaranteed. I'd love to know what was the why did you choose, you know, Brad, you know, over this person? And sometimes they'll come back and say that was an oversight. You know, I had a lot of I had a lot of things that, you know, and I just kind of went with Brad, you know, sometimes they get mad. Leslie Youngblood (37:20) Mm-hmm. Jenny Beres (37:44) and they don't like that. But that's pretty rare. the most part, the media is on our side. The media really wants to see women excel. ⁓ And I also think, you know, leverage female reporters. know, don't just write to white men, right? Like, write to female reporters, because female reporters are going to want to highlight female voices. So we absolutely have an edge. We just have to take advantage of it. Leslie Youngblood (37:49) Hmm. Mm, okay. Mm-hmm. Right, right. What is one thing a founder could do this week to make themselves more visible and to take a step towards being in that direction, Jenny Beres (38:23) I love it. So if you're not posting on LinkedIn, I know it's totally complained about LinkedIn, but I do it. So everyone else needs to do it. ⁓ Leslie Youngblood (38:29) Right, right. And it's easy, right? I mean, it's not like... It's easy, really. Jenny Beres (38:34) It's so easy, but I will also say in media. several years ago, so LinkedIn always had media, but when Twitter was Twitter, most of the reporters really lived on Twitter. But then when Twitter became X and all of the fallout that happened there, you had a lot of reporters leave Twitter and leave X in droves. So LinkedIn has really picked up speed in media. So like I will pitch, for example, clients And then I will find out that the reporter or the host or whoever is already they go to the LinkedIn. They connect on LinkedIn. They start talking. They already go to LinkedIn to see what I'm talking about. Or they'll ask me. They'll be like, sure, we're going to check out their LinkedIn ahead of time. So LinkedIn and media coverage are directly connected now. ⁓ A lot of my clients, I have them posting their media coverage and then that kind of comes full circle. They get invited to speaking events. They get invited to all kinds of things. So do that. Leslie Youngblood (39:24) Thank Jenny Beres (39:34) The second thing is figure out your founder story. Figure out what really makes your story sing. Pick a reporter that covers your beat. Let's say if you're in fintech, find a fintech reporter. Find a female fintech reporter that covers your beat, that covers your founder stories and write a hyper personal email. Introduce yourself. Don't ask for anything. Don't pitch yourself. Don't ask for anything. Don't be like, I want you to cover me. Just be like I wanted to introduce myself. I'm in this space I read your you know and please read some of their stuff before you do this, you know, I read your column I read whatever just letting you know I do this this and that you know, if you're ever in need of a source I'd be happy to happy to you know You know provide information. I would just love to stay connected then follow them on social media engage with their things That is how you start one at the time one of like one at a time getting those relationships built and getting Leslie Youngblood (40:12) it. Mm-hmm. Jenny Beres (40:33) that ball rolling. Leslie Youngblood (40:35) Yes, I love that. And what I love the most about it is that it's strategic, but in the most like authentic way. And it was just, I just did a TikTok today where I was talking about like networking and I made two new connections today or I talked with two new people in my network today. And it was so lovely. networking gets such a bad rep. She's like, I have to go network. My network is my net worth. And he's like, can't make it all these coffee things or these cocktail events or whatever. Jenny Beres (40:45) . Leslie Youngblood (41:05) That's the missing, like the essence of networking is like truly connecting with somebody that you're interested in and that you connect with and likes you enough to go and say your name in a room that when you're not around and like be like a friend, a great advocate to you. And it's not that you're connecting with them to be like, hello, I'm Leslie and please go and talk me up. It's like, no, we're friends and we're connecting. And like, if I come to mind and you go out there and do that. And so that can be a strategy for getting press and earning that media in an organic and important Jenny Beres (41:19) Yes! Leslie Youngblood (41:35) way in building those relationships because maybe not that reporter too. Maybe that reporter has reporter friends that are working on something and then you come to mind for that particular reporter and it's all about those relationships and I love it so much because also to AI and tech and all like the things that's like that's such a human to human aspect to being a business owner. That's a really beautiful thing. You know, and you just never know how those connections will lead. Jenny Beres (41:59) Yes, yes. I also think, kind going back to one of your original questions that this made me just think of, you you asked me about myths that people buy into and thinking about networking, because I don't think about it in terms of networking. I just talk to people. I just make friends. I just want to make friends. Leslie Youngblood (42:19) I'm a yapper too. Yeah, I just want to make friends. Jenny Beres (42:21) some weird like I don't want some weird exchange or interaction like if I wouldn't have dinner with you I'm probably not gonna work with you and that's sort of how I how I see things but a lot of times people think PR is for them it's for their company if you go into thinking PR is for your company and PR is for you you are going to fail PR is for your audience. It is for the other people. It is for the people you help. And so when people pitch or they connect with reporters, the biggest mistake they make is talking all about themselves. Like, yes, you have to show why you're qualified for certain things. But most of the time, your company announcements aren't that interesting. Leslie Youngblood (42:50) We love you. Yeah Jenny Beres (43:02) Most of the time, right, like the things that you think are really interesting about you are not that interesting to the media or to your audience. But if you flip it and you think about what is interesting to the audience, what is interesting to other people, what is helpful to other people that you know, and you approach your PR from that point and you make your PR about them. Leslie Youngblood (43:10) Mm-hmm. Jenny Beres (43:25) you'll never have a shortage of media opportunities. You will be asked all the time to contribute on different timely topics. You will always be top of mind for reporters. Leslie Youngblood (43:32) Yes. I love that and to it's so again, it's so simple yet So many people don't get it and it like at the end of days like people want to know what's in it for them like we're like inherently selfish in that way, but From both sides right like an audience wants to know what's in it for them But as a business and a company like no mean I'm gonna tell you about me, but it's not about you. It's about them and That is just like like what a incredible Incredibly profound thing to keep in mind. I love that so much and so another thing that I think is profound Jenny is that when it Jenny Beres (43:54) Yes. Leslie Youngblood (44:06) comes to PR and being seen, doing it not only changes how the audience perceives us in our company, but it changes how we see ourselves. So I will go for you to expand on that too. Jenny Beres (44:13) Yes ⁓ You know, it's funny, you would think that the credibility piece is just for the media, the investors, the clients, but it really does also, especially at this stage with how women feel about themselves, really does. The credibility piece works on us too. When you see an op-ed come out that you wrote, when you see, you know, that now you're a Forbes contributor, when you see that you just, you know, were invited to speak at an event in San Francisco or wherever, that's Leslie Youngblood (44:35) Mmm. Jenny Beres (44:48) solidifies in your own brain that you belong there, that you are getting that, you know, and I don't think we need external validation. I think that that's actually extremely tricky of a topic. But when you are building your business and you are putting things out there and the thing I love about earned media is that it is earned. You know, you didn't pay. I only work in earned media. I don't do pay for play. I understand its role in the advertising ecosystem, but it might Leslie Youngblood (44:57) you Jenny Beres (45:18) opinion it has no place in the PR ecosystem because the value of media is that it's earned. It's that you didn't pay for it. You didn't bribe somebody. They chose you on merit on your expertise on merit on the story you have to tell and then they put that out there. That is such a confidence boost and then you start racking those up and suddenly you start realizing. I do belong here. I do belong here and so Leslie Youngblood (45:21) you Mm-hmm. Jenny Beres (45:48) So I think that PR, ironically, is getting out there more and seeing those pieces come into fruition, those articles get published. It is the cure to the visibility dilemma. Leslie Youngblood (45:53) you Yeah. Yeah. Do you think that there's any, I feel like as we're talking, like women have such a difficult time like owning it and like, how do you balance humility with visibility? But I kind of don't think that that's even like a thing. Like it's like, no, I feel like you should just think you're the shit. If you think you're the shit, like lean into it, especially as a female, because we can hold ourselves back. Is there any like, I don't know, like truth behind that, balancing humility with visibility, Jenny? Jenny Beres (46:28) think that confidence and arrogance are different words in the dictionary for a reason. Leslie Youngblood (46:36) Ooh, I love that quote! Love it. Love it. Jenny Beres (46:42) And why are we confusing them? Why are you and I having this conversation? But I can guarantee that like, I don't know, some dude podcaster and his guests aren't talking about that. But why is that relevant to me and you? That's the issue, not the definition. Confidence and arrogance are not the same. Leslie Youngblood (46:44) Mmm. Right? ⁓ Yes. Jenny Beres (47:01) So, like, yeah, if you're a big jerk, like, okay, everyone, don't be a big jerk. And honestly, the most arrogant, arrogant people are not actually confident, because people who are confident have no reason to treat other people badly. They have no reason to hold their expertise or their education over other people's heads. The loudest, meanest people are the most insecure people. And so I guess I could tell like everybody Leslie Youngblood (47:08) Yeah. Jenny Beres (47:31) Like let's channel kindergarten. Like don't be a raging jerk, but confidence arrogance aren't the same. So I don't think that there's an issue there. Leslie Youngblood (47:39) Yes, no, I love that. What a fantastic reminder. That's so true. ⁓ Thank you for that. And that's like, I'm like, ooh, let's put that in lights. That's such a good quote, right? There's episodes where some, like, Gess will say certain things, I'll be like, my God, let's embroider that on pillows, on marquees. That's so true and so profound. And again, we, in our lives, just don't realize it or we forget or we get confused or down. And that is just, amazing like a moment for that. I love it. So as we wrap up here, Jenny, I would love for you to fill in the blank with this. If you're a woman founder and you're not being seen, you're... Jenny Beres (48:25) that's great. If you're a woman founder and you are not being seen, you are not being fulfilled. Leslie Youngblood (48:33) Jenny! Oh my god! Yes! Oh my god, tell us more! Keep going! Jenny Beres (48:41) There is so much fulfillment. And again, I'm not saying that we, I'm a very private person. You know, I'm not on social media, like airing, you know, my life. ⁓ But my business, you know, I put my business out there. I want my business out there. How are you going to be fulfilled if you're not giving your business, your dreams, your relationships, your chance for friendship, your chance for wealth? If you're not giving it the air and the legs that it needs to grow, to thrive, you know, your best life is, and I'm not just talking about dollars in the bank account, though you need that too, is on the other side of being seen. When you are seen, you are supported. Leslie Youngblood (49:16) you Jenny Beres (49:21) All of those little magical moments that somehow come together to make a business work, to make friendships work, to make relationships work, they are on the other side of visibility. Leslie Youngblood (49:21) Mmm. Yeah. Oh my gosh. I have nothing more to say to that. Everybody listen to this every day and remind yourself that that I mean, yeah. 100,000,000%. I have nothing. And I feel like that's the perfect. Jenny Beres (49:48) That's so funny. Leslie Youngblood (49:53) punctuation mark on this fantastic episode and all the incredible insight that you shared with us today, Jenny. ⁓ I would love for you to share where our listeners can follow you and find you before we wrap up today. Jenny Beres (50:06) Yes, so LinkedIn, know, that's where I came out. I am very active, you know, as me, Jenny Baris. ⁓ You know, can check out my website, pinksharkpr.com, but LinkedIn is the best way to get in touch or, you know, comments, whatnot. I'm really active. I do check my inbox, you know, so that's probably the best. Leslie Youngblood (50:09) Lincoln! Fantastic. And we'll put those links in the show notes as well. Thank you so much, Jenny. What incredible conversation, incredible human leader, female founder you are. Thank you so much for joining us today on Serious Lady Business. Jenny Beres (50:42) Leslie, thank you. This has been a true honor. Leslie Youngblood (50:44) Likewise, cheers.