Leveraging expertise and artistic design flair to drive media coverage

I feel that in many ways, I am ahead of my time.

I was the first girl in my elementary school to wear contact lenses (which I DO NOT recommend regularly for kids now!). But a decade ago, when I was still running Conscious PR Inc., I knew something I couldn’t articulate back then: sometimes the secret to garnering media coverage for a company is to profile its leader.

I can look back on the time when we represented Vancouver-based marketing agency KIMBO Design as a great example. I’d first met Principal and Creative Director Kim Pickett sometime in the early 2010s through LOCO BC. Then she reached out around 2017 to hire our agency to help them get more media coverage and apply for awards.

The company has been around since 2001, so they’d already won awards for their branding work and been profiled in the news.

The first thing I learned is that there was no shortage of photos of Kim, which is a PR dream. Not only did she have professionally taken shots like the one below, she had a lot of fun ones taken in her bedroom that showcased her artistic personality. I’m not saying they should have all been used by media, but this told me she was underselling herself.

Photo: Kim Pickett

Kim also explained that she had a unique home, so we thought it could be a good showcase for interior design magazines and profiles. We landed a multi-page feature in Westcoast Homes & Design Magazine, which is distributed in the Vancouver Sun and The Province daily newspapers. (The article, without photos, is visible here.) I can’t tell you how satisfying it was to see that profile on her office dresser!

Another significant piece of coverage was a “My Digs” feature in the (now defunct) Westender newspaper. The article is oddly credited as coming from The Vancouver Courier on Vancouver is Awesome (VIA). This was on top of a VIA interview feature we got called “500 Coffees”. VIA is still one of the top lifestyle sites in Vancouver.

Photo: Dan Toulgoet

We also landed several radio and online TV interviews, guest blogs or articles, a panel expert feature in Business in Vancouver, and several online pieces including TELUS’s Business Blog, HuffPost, and Notable.

It’s actually super cool to see which online (or online version of print) pieces stood the test of time. I’m not sure if Kim ended up working with any other PR companies, but what comes up on the first page of Google are the coverage pieces we got for her in 2016 or 2017.

While we applied for several awards on Kim’s behalf, the big win was a Tammy Moyer Woman of Worth Award in 2017.

Photo: RGD.ca

I believe we had booked Kim on a few business podcasts, which were just blossoming then. I’m sure if we had continued our work with her, she would have been on all the Vancouver-based podcasts and business podcasts that were available.

A public relations colleague told me last month that AI is now valuing media coverage more than social media profiles/following. Since no one’s social followings are guaranteed to stand the test of time, this is an even more important reason to be profiled in media.

You can learn more about Kim and her team at KIMBO Design here (I love that she’s got a flamenco dancing photo up!).

While female leaders are just as busy as their male counterparts, it’s important for them to be visible not just for garnering business, but to blaze the trail for other women aspiring to reach that level.

I’m Sandra Nomoto, a personal brand manager for established ethical female leaders. Contact me if you need someone to manage and amplify your brand for the next 20 years.