Hidden Gems: Meet Dr. Pam Perry of PamPerryPR

Today we’d like to introduce you to Dr. Pam Perry. 

Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
Detroit inspired a lot of dreamers besides Berry Gordy, founder of Motown. I was born and raised in the Motor City during the 1960s—I learned at a very young age about the necessity and power of public relations and marketing in fulfilling a dream. 

My natural gift of writing led to my love of writing to promote positive people and publications – especially books. So, after Cass Tech, I headed to Wayne State University were majored in journalism and public relations. After graduation, I embarked immediately on a media career. 

I worked at the Detroit Free Press, several radio stations, and I won a local Emmy for producing a TV talk show. My knack for PR came naturally because I loved telling (and selling) inspiring stories in the media. It’s my superpower. That’s why I started Speakers Magazine – it’s five years old – and already it’s won industry awards. It spotlights Black speakers and comes out monthly – digital and print. 

I remember when I was worked at a public relations agency on the Black McDonald’s owner/operators account in Detroit. I met one of the owners who told me about his dream of writing a book and speaking on stages with other famous speakers like Dr. Dennis Kimbro, Les Brown, and George Fraser. 

That was the beginning of my own agency, PamPerryPR. I worked with that owner, Ken Brown, and his dream came true. I walked him through every step – from naming his company, creating his branding materials, scripting his videos, getting his ghostwriter to write his book, handling all his PR, and helped him get on stages with those speakers I previously worked with. He was even featured in Ebony magazine and many other media outlets. He eventually sold his McDonald’s franchises – and began a new career as a motivational speaker, author, and life coach. 

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
This journey of running a business has not been easy. No, not at all. I was very intentional from the very beginning on serving the African American market but the publishing industry didn’t see value in promoting our voices. I experienced a lot of pushback for about five years – a lot of my clients could not get the shine they deserved. Since I started my company in 2000 (before social media), I had to push up against the media “gatekeepers” to get clients any press. Thank God for social media and digital media – it’s a new day. 

It was tough early on too because a lot of the publishing houses, who hire freelance publicists, didn’t return my calls because I was Black. But eventually, it changed because I was relentless. I showed up at their industry trade events and brought my Black author clients with me. We were not going to be ignored. 

One client, Kim Brooks, ended up getting a three-book deal with a major publisher and eventually, the Publishers Weekly (which first published in 1872) called me a “PR Guru” for the African American Christian market. I have worked with all the major houses and my clients included TD Jakes, Dr. Cindy Trimm, Myles Monroe, Fred Price, Bill Winston, Bonnie St. John, Valorie Burton, Michelle McKinney Hammond- plus hundreds of other great inspirational speakers like Dr. Dennis Kimbro. 

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about PamPerryPR?
My PR firm has been in business for more than two decades and we’ve won several business awards – including the Top 10 Business Award from the National Association of Business Women (NAWBO). 

PamPerryPR.com helps speakers and authors grow their brand and “get out there and get known.” That’s the name of my podcast too, Get Out There and Get Known. We’ve published almost 100 podcasts so far. It’s in all the podcast directories from Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon to iHeart Radio. We’re going to be published in the Ebony Podcast Network too – with a new podcast for Speakers Magazine. 

My secret sauce helping those who are overwhelmed to get clarity and focus so they can start making money in their business. I show them how to build their platform and establish their brand. I get my clients publicity through media and social media exposure. 

As the publisher of Speakers Magazine and host of the podcast, I position and promote my clients to get paid speaking opportunities, product sales (books and programs), by attracting their right target audience – and building a tribe. 

I strongly believe we are not to hide our light under a bushel – publicity is not about “ego marketing” – it’s about sharing your message to change lives for the good. 

We’re always looking for the lessons that can be learned in any situation, including tragic ones like the Covid-19 crisis. Are there any lessons you’ve learned that you can share?
When speakers could no longer travel and speak “live” – a lot of those who had not been paying attention to their online brand basically were having “meltdowns.” Our company stepped up to help and began doing free weekly trainings via a podcast, Digital Business Acceleration. Our mission was to share with authors and speakers how to build their digital brand and not miss a beat. We published 52 episodes; you can still get them here: www.TheDBApodcast.com 

Pricing:

• www.ReadySetGoSpeak.com ($127 a month)

Contact Info:

• Email: staff@pamperrypr.com
• Website: http://www.pamperrypr.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pam_perry
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pamperryprpage
• Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/pamperry
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/pamperrytv
• Other: www.PamPerryPodcast.com