Amanda Berlin believes she was born to make sure we all are heard and seen and appreciated for our unique genius. And she does just that as a publicity strategist and content consultant. After studying journalism at George Washington University, she interned at CNN, wrote for a local paper, and ultimately became an expert in the creation of publicity strategy and content writing products and programs. For a decade, she has written media pitches for companies like Disney and Dove, Brawney, Baskin Robbins, Colgate and Gamble. And now as a communications consultant, she’s the host of the Empowered Publicity Podcast, which is devoted to delivering publicity, AHA’s insider secrets and the dish on what it really takes to build buzz, become a trusted authority and get the media to say yes.
In this episode we discuss:
- The term public relations and what that encompasses.
- Honing your story for the public to hear and get to know you.
- The perceived boundaries between being professional versus being personal.
- How a powerful story is memorable and can set you apart in the marketplace.
- The importance of mindset in achieving what we desire.
- Key roadblocks that hinder the effort to seek publicity.
- Getting past the tendency toward over-preparation.
- Preparing your story and tailoring your message to your audience and goals.
Allison Williams: [00:00:11] Hi everybody, it’s Allison Williams here, your Law Firm Mentor. Law Firm Mentor is a business coaching service for solo and small law firm attorneys. We help you grow your revenues, crush chaos in business and make more money.
Allison Williams: [00:00:25] Amanda Berlin believes she was born to make sure we all are heard and seen and appreciated for our unique genius. And she does just that as a publicity strategist and content consultant. So after studying journalism at the George Washington University, she interned at CNN, wrote for a local paper, and ultimately became the creator of publicity strategy and content writing products and programs which are a part of the website pitch dot school. For a decade, she has written media pitches for companies like Disney and Dove, Brawney, Baskin Robbins, Colgate and Gamble. And now as a communications consultant, she’s the host of the Empowered Publicity Podcast, which is devoted to delivering publicity, AHA’s insider secrets and the dish on what it really takes to build buzz, become a trusted authority and get the media to say yes.
Allison Williams: [00:01:19] All right, Amanda Berlin, welcome to the Crushing Chaos with Law Firm Mentor podcast.
Amanda Berlin: [00:01:24] Allison, thank you so much for having me. I’m thrilled to be here.
Allison Williams: [00:01:28] Yes, I love that we get to talk again because I had the pleasure of appearing on the Empowered Publicity Podcast and we talked about publicity at that time, but we didn’t talk about it in quite this context. So I love that we’re going to be able to bring this to our community of lawyers. And we’re going to be talking about publicity in the context of growing a business, how you can use publicity to grow your law firm and some of the considerations that I think a lot of lawyers just don’t think about. So thank you so much for being here.
Amanda Berlin: [00:01:56] I’m thrilled to be here. Thank you for having me.
Allison Williams: [00:01:58] All right. So let’s dive in. So we know that… I shouldn’t say we know. OK, you know, and I’m sure that there are a lot of other lawyers that would love to know what are the keys to publicity. And I’ve heard it said before that that is the message in the story. But can you elaborate on that for our audience, please?
Amanda Berlin: [00:02:16] Yeah, absolutely. So publicity really in my mind, is a kind of holistic look at how you’re being visible to your audience. And I love to, you know, kind of back up into the term public relations, which is sort of like the overarching blanket term for publicity and media outreach and strategic partnerships and all of these different ways that you create relationships with your public. Hence the term public relations. And the way that I come at visibility and publicity and public relations is through that holistic lens that we need all of these different means of being visible in order to elevate our brand, in order to be more known, in order to engender trust from our audiences, and in order to elevate ourselves to a subject matter expert. And the way that, the way that I sort of came to this was because I worked in the New York City PR agency world where we really did all of these things on behalf of our clients. We set them up with collaborations, strategic partnerships. We created marketing events and speaking engagements and conferences on their behalf. And of course, we positioned them in the media and got them media placements to help them articulate their message and get in front of the right people. And that’s really how I approach visibility for my clients, and that’s really what all of us are tasked with doing.
Amanda Berlin: [00:03:53] So publicity is really about. I think it’s about utilizing the media in particular, but that’s just one piece of the visibility equation. And yes, as with, in the media, it’s especially important to really hone in on your message and your story, the brand story and kind of the very specific way that you solve your client’s problems. But it’s also really important to have those elements nailed down in whatever manner you’re going to be putting your business out there. So whether you’re approaching strategic partners, whether you’re hosting some kind of roundtable or a workshop or you’re speaking at a conference or speaking in the media, your message, your story needs to be honed so that you feel great putting it out there.
Allison Williams: [00:04:45] Yeah. So I love the fact that you’re talking about message and story, because I think so much of what a lot of lawyers will express is a resistance that they have around marketing is the idea that they feel like there’s almost too much intimacy in telling a story about themselves, like they want to kind of keep themselves as the professional, separate and apart from the human that they are marketing. And we know that marketing is really moving in the direction of much more of a humanistic side of it. So can you speak to us about what you would, what you would say to a person that might have some resistance around telling their story or how much of their story they should actually tell when they are promoting themselves in their.
Allison Williams: [00:05:26] Yeah, absolutely, and I hear this all the time, this is a totally natural inclination, particularly from people, I think in in regulated professions there’s an element of behind the scenes, sort of like, you know, staying under, not under the radar necessarily. I don’t mean it in like a sneaky kind of way. But but really maintaining that boundary between the personal and the professional or even the personal to to the extent that we would even want to be personal, even the tiniest bit personal. I hear this a lot with with the attorneys. I hear it a lot with mental health professionals that they are behind the scenes people. And the the problem with that or the benefit, I should say, on the flip side of actually venturing to share your story, is that it is the thing that distinguishes you from everyone else doing something similar to what you’re doing. So especially in the in the in the legal profession, there are many lawyers out there and many different many lawyers operating in your specialty as well. The thing that’s going to distinguish you, and Alison, you know this because you shared your story with me on my podcast is this is your story, your trajectory, the things you did, the accomplishments you you made and, and even the things from way back in your past that are relevant to what you’re doing today.
Amanda Berlin: [00:07:01] So there’s like, there’s an interview that I heard with a woman in, who grew up I think, she grew up in Texas and her mom was incarcerated when she was 16, I think it was. And she has gone on to take up the cases of people seeking clemency for drug offenses. And she’s gotten clemency granted for like probably, you know, I want to say like 20 people over the last couple of years appealing to the past administration. And her personal story is really what made me remember her. I mean, she’s doing incredible work. But the fact that she was driven by this personal experience was was what made me remember her. And I heard that interview on Fresh Air or something on NPR. And and she had recently written a book. But I can’t even remember what her name was and I can’t remember what the book was, but I remember her story.
Allison Williams: [00:08:03] Yeah. Well, you know, I love that you said that because you’re right that there is something about a story that just chemically we remember a story more than we remember facts and data. And so if you make yourself into a story, if your brand becomes who is this person, what is it unique about this person that’s not only going to keep people remembering you, but it’s also going to draw people that are your people. Right? The people that are designed to work with you.
Amanda Berlin: [00:08:27] Absolutely. Yes, it is the thing that brings the right clients to your door.
Amanda Berlin: [00:08:33] Yeah. So let’s talk about positioning yourself when you get those right clients to the door, because, you know, you talked about our being, our profession, being a regulated profession. One of the things that we have to be very cautious about in terms of what we say is that we want to make sure that we are not misleading the public and we have those concerns that are kind of our ethical bailiwick. So I I really want to talk about how we can make sure that we position ourselves as the expert, the authority, the person that is designed to help the prospect and also at the same time doing that in a way that makes sure that we’re not over, overselling the case or overstating who we are.
Amanda Berlin: [00:09:13] Yeah, absolutely. And so you’ll have to tell me, you know, sort of how this fits in the regulations applied to your profession. But one of the things that I think is so effective is telling, however possible, and however much you need to redact or keep sort of anonymous is telling other, telling stories, telling success stories, telling, telling clients’ stories in a way that obviously is respectful of all privacy that’s necessary. But if you’re able to contextualize your work by telling a story about the work, then that’s a really effective way to bring people in. So, again, coming back to this idea of story telling clients’ stories is a great way to talk about what you do. Another really great way to frame a story is by using a traditional structure that we all know probably from our study of like Shakespearean literature is the three act narrative. So the beginning, the middle and the end. And the middle is really in our story. So. Let’s say we’re framing our own stories in this in this arc. We would tell sort of like what was the beginning? What was your before? What was that epiphany moment that changed everything for you? And then what did you do with that that makes you the professional that you are today?
Allison Williams: [00:10:44] Yeah, so the epiphany, I love that. And you know, so much of the stories that you’re that you reference, they are the stories of our clients. Those are the, if you think about it, that really makes you the humanistic side of the profession that you are in, because most people don’t seek us out as lawyers when they’re having a grand old time. Right. I mean, every once in a while, they’ll be the adoption attorney who helps put families together or solidify families that are already together. That’s a happy practice area. Maybe you’re helping someone get into their dream home, but even then, you’ve got the stress and the agita of the potential of not having the sale go through. But when people are looking to us and they see us through the lens of our clients and our clients are saying, this person kept me out of jail or this person helped me build my first business or incorporate my first business, or this person was able to steer me out of harm’s way with a merger that I was contemplating. We really become much more than just a lawyer. We become the the the bridge, if you will. I talk about this in sales, the bridge between the problem and the solution on the other side. Right.
Amanda Berlin: [00:11:54] Yeah, I that’s that’s a great way to put it. You become the bridge. And I think also our work, no matter what we do, is, is very conceptual to anyone who hasn’t experienced it yet. So when you’re able to contextualize it with a story, it makes it real. And it goes back to what you were saying earlier about this sort of like chemical, this alchemy that happens when we hear a story. We begin to relate to the person in a different way. I remember writing a piece a long time ago for I think it was a career website that I used to write for. And I did research around the power of story. And I found a study that indicated that the brain chemistry. So it is literally a chemical reaction. The brain chemistry of the storyteller starts to mirror the brain chemistry of the listener and vice versa. So you literally are creating that bond by by telling a story. The other thing that it does is that it makes the work much more specific and much more relatable. So as you provide an example in the context of a story of the work that you do, we begin to be able to relate it to our own lives, our own experiences in a way that we hadn’t been able to do before. You gave us that context.
Allison Williams: [00:13:17] Wow. So that’s really interesting. I had never heard that before about the mirroring of the brain chemistry between the storyteller and the listener. But I can definitely see how that happens because we do by by the power of our words, we do connect with people through that through that form of communication. So I want to talk to you now about one of the things that I know, we talk a lot here at Law Firm Mentor about our mindset, and we know that our mindset is so critically important to being able to achieve what we desire. And I know that there are some lawyers that are out there that hear what you’re saying and are like, oh, my God, this sounds like something that I ought to be doing. I ought to be putting myself out there so more people can know about my service, can be attracted to my service, but I’m not quite certain why. I just I feel a resistance around that. So, like, what are some of the key roadblocks that you would have experienced when you’re working with different, different professionals, and their desire to seek publicity somehow gets thwarted by their own, their own headspace?
Amanda Berlin: [00:14:16] Yeah, absolutely. So I love talking about mindset as well. That’s a huge part of what I do. And, you know, there are, there are like practical things that get in the way in terms of, you know, readiness for, readiness for your close up. But then there are also, there are also esoteric, mindset things that get in the way. So I’ll name a couple in both of those categories. The first thing that comes to mind on the practical side is do you have, is your house in order? Is your you know, are your is is your presentation of what you do for clients? Are you ready for the clients to be coming in? Are you ready to have the sales conversations? Are you ready to do the intake? Are your processes ready?
Amanda Berlin: [00:15:06] So like a lot of times when women come to me and they’re ready to be or clients come to me and they’re ready to be more visible, quote unquote, they end up kind of shying away from visibility because they get scared about whether or not they’re ready for, on a practical level, for all of this attention that they’re anticipating they will get. So that’s the first thing is we need to make sure that your house is in order so that you feel ready to take on whatever comes your way. The the reality of that is you will handle it whether your house is in order or not. It’s just a matter of you feeling like you are ready to put yourself out there? So my goal is always for my clients to feel really confident and ready to put themselves out there. The other thing that comes up sort of on the mindset side is worthiness. It’s like, who am I? Who am I to be putting myself out there? There’s so many more people who are more senior than me or who have more more experience or have handled more difficult cases or are whatever fill in the blank.
Amanda Berlin: [00:16:18] There’s so many of those kinds of of stories that we might tell ourselves about our worthiness of being seen and some of the things that that have been so stark for me. Are, are… And really like are kind of like my call to arms is when I see brilliant people stifling themselves because they think that someone else could say it better or, oh that podcast they already interviewed someone that talked about this or I’m sure that person is already connected to someone who does what I do. I want no more of that. I want you reaching out no matter what, because you just never know. You never know what someone is looking for and they may see it in you.
Allison Williams: [00:17:03] Yeah. So you just dropped a mouthful there. So I love that you talk about this idea about feeling ready, because one of the things that I know that lawyers have a great tendency toward is over preparation, like the idea that, you know, OK, so there’s five hundred and eighty seven things that I could do before I’m one hundred percent ready for this activity. And I’ve got to get at least five hundred and eighty six of them done before I can step in the direction to even place the phone call, to seek out someone with your level of expertise to give me publicity. And we have to work so hard on our lawyers, with our lawyers here in Law Firm Mentor to get them past that mindset of waiting until you’re ready, because frankly, you’re never, ever going to be ready. Right? There’s always something else you can do to be more ready. So how do you coach, how do you coach people through that that feeling of I’m not ready. Like what are some of the things that they can do to push themselves in the direction to know that they’re ready enough? Right. They’ve got the processes in place to get those inquiries taken care of, but they’re not necessarily as psychologically ready as they might otherwise like to be.
Amanda Berlin: [00:18:05] Yes, exactly. So we can put this readiness into two categories. We can put it into, like, OK, actual concerns about readiness and excuses about readiness. And so what I help people to discern is like, OK, what is sort of what is falling in the category of, like the mind trick that you’re playing on yourself that’s convincing you you’re not ready and let’s address that. But also like let’s address the things that that are practical concerns about being ready and make sure you’re ready. Let’s do the work of getting you ready, making you feel prepared, because that’s what makes the biggest difference. And I’m a, I’m a huge proponent of, my mom always reminds me that I have said to her, action relieves anxiety. And so I’m a huge proponent of doing the mindset work. But if there is an action, you need to take like like brushing up your web content or creating a better story that you feel confident putting out, putting out there, then we need to do that so that you feel more confident putting yourself out there. So what are the actions that we can take? And then what is the ancillary, you know sort of those lingering gremlins that are convincing you that you’re not ready? And then let’s look at the mindset stuff.
Allison Williams: [00:19:27] Yeah. So I know that your experience is in TV, so you have had a lot of a lot of opportunity to prepare people, both their physical presence as well as some of the messaging, the story, all of those pieces that fit so nicely together that create a message for people. When when somebody comes to you and says, you know, I don’t even know where to begin, to like figure out what is going to be my signature speech or the thing that I’m known for, how do you help someone get to that place of deciding that this is going to be the thing that they stand for? That’s the composite of all those experiences that they may have, like too much difficulty to kind of weed them into a one singular point.
Amanda Berlin: [00:20:03] That’s such a good question. And the answer is like, I need to meet with them. You know, we need to get I need to get all of the information, the whole story, the whole sort of landscape of how they work with people, what their history has been, what they’re passionate about, so that we can create that alchemy of their kind of signature signature talk, their signature method, their their approach, you know, the thing that makes them unique and as you know, as sort of like unscalable and like even maybe even a cop out. The answer may sound like because it’s not a silver bullet, it’s not really something you can do on your own. That’s really the truth of it, is you need the outside perspective in order to pinpoint what is it about you that is that unique distinguishing factor that is going to attract the right people to you? And we all we all need that outside perspective. I can’t even do that for myself. And this is my expertise. And I’ve been in this industry for God, like over 20 years. So this is something that that you need outside perspective on, because our work is so personal to us. It’s so meaningful. It’s so important for so many of us. We would say this is our life’s work. And so being able to take that step back and see like, OK, this is what makes me good at what I do it we’re too close to it.
Allison Williams: [00:21:36] Yeah, you’re right. And it does take someone looking from the outside in to the person to really help pull out not just what they should be saying, but also how they should be thanked. Because I think there’s so much that can be done with writing speeches and orchestrating and tweaking and twisting your words in a way that fits the different audiences that you’re going to be in front of. So is that something that you do when you’re when you’re talking to someone about their signature speech, like once you kind of get it out there? Is that something that you do to try to help them refine it to the various different media that they’re going to be in front of?
Amanda Berlin: [00:22:08] Yeah, so they’re so the way we position your content, once we figure it out, what your content is, it totally depends on where you’re delivering it and what the goal is in your delivery. So actually, earlier today I was working with a client on a talk that she’s giving at an interior design conference. And the goal of this talk is, yes, to provide a valuable experience to the list, to the listeners. But it’s also, in her business, the goal is to drive them into an offering inside of her business. And so that talk needs to have a different tone and different different different content than a talk that would simply be a, not simply… It needs to have different content than a talk that would be given as kind of like a TED talk or a thought leader talk or a big idea talk. So this this talk that that she and I were working on was a marketing talk meant to bring people into the business and do further work with her. So it’s the same ideas as her big idea, her thought leader talk, but presented in a different way because we can’t give everything away in those marketing talks. We need to give people a sense of why they need to do what we’re saying they should do. We need to give them a sense of what they could do to start to move in that direction. But we’re not going to tell them how to do it all, because that’s what they need to come in and dig deeper and and get guidance with. And as far as a a thought leader talk, we may take like her signature method, which we’re touching on in this marketing talk, but we would maybe dig into like, why is this, why is this a trend? Why is this changing the paradigm? Why is this something that’s new and innovative and being contrary to the way things have been done in the past is a great way to kind of design that part of your content.
Allison Williams: [00:24:10] Yeah. So even though we’re now talking about publicity, so much of what you just said harkens on sales. Right, because if you’re, if you’re thinking about if your goal is to try to attract people into your funnel or to buy your program or to just to work with you at a deeper level, there’s different language that has to happen with that. And I know so many lawyers that have resistance around that when they get on stage and they just want to give the story. They just want to tell everybody whatever it is that they came to tell you, they don’t necessarily want to have to see their conversation with all of the different things that are going to remind people this is the expert that I need to choose. So, you know, is there is there coaching that you do around that when you’re trying not to distract the message, but also fit it to different places that people are going to go?
Amanda Berlin: [00:24:54] Absolutely, yeah, that’s I mean, that’s a huge aspect of, again, public relations really relating to your public. There are so many different places where your public will be and so many different things they need from you in whatever place they might be in. So if they’re relating to you from behind a television screen, then you need to get that message down to two point five minutes and really be able to drive the point home in a very short period of time and also make it relatable to as many people as possible because the television audience is super general. You know, general consumer. If you’re speaking on a podcast, then you’re going to do a content deep dive and you’ll be able to really dig into who you are, what you do, why you do what you do and give some real substance to the answers. So the content might be similar, but it’s the the the big ideas might be similar, but the way you deliver the content is entirely different.
Allison Williams: [00:25:57] Yeah, well, that’s one thousand percent true. And of course, I know that as somebody that works in PR, you’re used to kind of taking a person from one medium to another. But since we’ve talked about, we talked about TV, we talked about podcasts, what are some other ways that you would help someone to become more visible in today’s day and age?
Amanda Berlin: [00:26:14] Yeah, absolutely. So attorneys in particular, I, I believe, are they’re regionally licensed. Right. So, like, you can practice, you have a practice geographical area, right. That you can practice in different states. So one of the things that I think is important to pay attention to is the media that will that will that will give you visibility in the right geographical areas. Like that’s kind of obvious, but it’s not something that people are always thinking about because there are so many options to be visible, especially online. It’s not going to be as practical if your desire is to bring, if your goal in in publicity and visibility is to bring in more clients, it’s not going to be practical for you to employ a strictly online visibility effort because you’re not honing in on that geographical area that you’re sort of beholden to serve.
Amanda Berlin: [00:27:09] So looking at local media is really important and local media goes beyond just local television, which for you and I in New Jersey is super challenging because it’s the New York City market. It’s the number one media market in the country. It’s really cluttered. Local media in different parts of the country could be much more accessible. So that’s one thing to look at, or local television in different parts of the country could be much more accessible. So that’s one thing to look at. But there are hosts of local magazines, local newspapers, even hyper local television. So we have a smaller local TV, TV conglomerate, the news Twelves of New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, that would be accessible or more accessible. So looking at local media, I love local magazines because they’re always looking for interesting local people to cover. And especially, you know, someone who’s doing something that is beneficial to the community or, you know, putting, giving something back in some way or doing something innovative they’re always looking for. That’s always good content for a local magazine.
Amanda Berlin: [00:28:19] The other, the other ways to be visible that I think are often overlooked because people are so drawn to media in particular, are this idea of creating strategic partnerships with other people who are serving the communities that you want to serve. So other professionals who are doing something different than what you’re doing, but for the same people and so doing some kind of collaboration with them, like a webinar or a workshop or a local event or some something where you can kind of bring each other’s communities together for mutual benefit. That’s always really powerful and speaking and hosting events and workshops like that, even with a collaborator or on your own, speaking in front of people is really valuable because it gives you that authority, but it also lets you confer with them in person and lets them get to get a sense for who you are and what you can, you know, creates that trust because they’re meeting you in person. And when you host something, it really also confers upon you this credibility because you’re putting yourself at the center of something. And it’s just this, again, sort of it’s all about perception. Right? So the audience perceives you as this authority figure as a or not an authority figure, but as an authority in your in your in your professional space who can provide something valuable to them.
Allison Williams: [00:29:48] Yeah. So there’s a lot that you gave us there in terms of the different places that people can go and different strategies that they can use to to make themselves more visible and promote their practices and one of the things that I always recommend to lawyers that are seeking out ways to grow your business is to consult with a professional like you, somebody who knows what the different ways are to kind of take a message and make it into something more than what is in the mind of the beholder. Because no matter how smart we are, no matter how many people we’ve served, if you don’t know how to package your message, you don’t get that messaging story just right. If you don’t know how to position yourself as the authority over that topic and you don’t know how to overcome those roadblocks that we talked about earlier, you’re never going to get there, right? It’s just going to be flat words that fall on deaf ears. So for someone that’s looking for help, Amanda, how can they get a hold of you if you were, if you would be able to advise them about these different topics?
Amanda Berlin: [00:30:42] Absolutely. Well, I welcome any and all interactions and forms of contact and communication, but the best way to reach me is at Amanda Berlin dot com. And you can go over to the the connect page. And that email form comes directly to my inbox. And I read every email that comes in and we can set up a time to have a one on one where we talk about what your biggest challenges are, where you feel like maybe or you’re having a couple of stumbling blocks and what your path forward might be. And that’s a complimentary conversation that’s just sort of lets us get a lay of the land and see what might be possible.
Allison Williams: [00:31:21] Ok, so Amanda Berlin, you have been, as always, a wonderful guest for our audience. I want to thank you so much for giving us your time. And I also want to give a special plug I mentioned earlier to your podcast, Empowered Publicity, because for anybody that really wants to learn about the different ways that they can make themselves more visible, just the golden nugget that I got from our very short conversation before it was just like a mind game. I’ve already shared it with some of our clients. So definitely everyone check out the Empowered Publicity Podcast and go over to Amanda Berlin dot com and find out more about the publicity and the way that you can connect with Amanda.
Amanda Berlin: [00:31:59] Thank you so much, Allison. Thank you for having me.
Allison Williams: [00:32:02] All right. So I just want to close this out by, again, telling everyone that your information is going to be in our show notes. So by all means, if you miss that url or you miss the podcast, they will be complete in the show notes. And we also want to just tell everyone one more time that we want to thank our audience for tuning into the podcast. One of the things that is kind of a personal love of mine is sharing information with lawyers. I really think that lawyers are underserved as a population of people because we are so often taught that we are supposed to have all the answers and we don’t have all the answers. So we need to have experts available to us, people like Amanda, to volunteer their time to share their golden nuggets of wisdom with us. And so, Amanda, again, thank you so much for being here and for all of our listeners. Thank you again for tuning in to the Crushing Chaos with Law Firm Mentor podcast. I am Allison Williams. Your Law Firm Mentor. Have a great day!
Allison Williams: [00:33:08] Thank you for tuning in to the Crushing Chaos with Law Firm Mentor podcast. To learn more about today’s guests and take advantage of the resources midship, check out our show notes. And if you own it solo or small law firm and are looking for guidance, advice or simply support on your journey to create a law firm that runs without you, join us in the Law Firm Mentor Movement Free Facebook group Fair. You can access our free trainings on improving collections at law firms, meeting billable hours, enjoying the movement of thousands of law firm owners across the country who want to crush chaos in their law firm and make more money. I’m Allison Williams, your Law Firm Mentor. Have a great day.
Guest Bio:
After more than a decade in the New York City public relations world, Amanda Berlin now uses her pitch powers for good. She helps entrepreneurs step into their presence, create a story that inspires others, and spread their message in the media. Amanda has created a library of template guides and trainings and works one on one with clients to guide them to strategic story-telling and media relations based on her 12 years of experience guiding strategy for major brands in the corporate world. Amanda and her clients have been featured in all types of media — from Business Insider to Entrepreneur on Fire and from WNYW Fox 5 to Bustle.com. She’s the host of The Empowered Publicity Podcast and loves arming soul-powered business owners with the ideas and skill-set they need to go from hidden industry gem to recognizable trusted expert. Amanda has spoken on the topics of visibility, publicity, and entrepreneurship at BizChix Live, Style Collective Raleigh and New York City, Body Local, Hoboken Entrepreneur Group, and more.
Website: amandaberlin.com
Email Address: agberlin@gmail.com
Phone Number: (917) 345-2143
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/amandaberlin
Twitter: https://twitter.com/AmandaBerlin
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Allison Bio:
Allison C. Williams, Esq., is Founder and Owner of the Williams Law Group, LLC, with offices in Short Hills and Freehold, New Jersey. She is a Fellow of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers, is Certified by the Supreme Court of New Jersey as a Matrimonial Law Attorney and is the first attorney in New Jersey to become Board-Certified by the National Board of Trial Advocacy in the field of Family Law.
Ms. Williams is an accomplished businesswoman. In 2017, the Williams Law Group won the LawFirm500 award, ranking 14th of the fastest growing law firms in the nation, as Ms. Williams grew the firm 581% in three years. Ms. Williams won the Silver Stevie Award for Female Entrepreneur of the Year in 2017. In 2018, Ms. Williams was voted as NJBIZ’s Top 50 Women in Business and was designated one of the Top 25 Leading Women Entrepreneurs and Business Owners. In 2019, Ms. Williams won the Seminole 100 Award for founding one of the fastest growing companies among graduates of Florida State University.
In 2018, Ms. Williams created Law Firm Mentor, a business coaching service for lawyers. She helps solo and small law firm attorneys grow their business revenues, crush chaos in business and make more money. Through multi-day intensive business retreats, group and one-to-one coaching, and strategic planning sessions, Ms. Williams advises lawyers on all aspects of creating, sustaining and scaling a law firm business – and specifically, she teaches them the core foundational principles of marketing, sales, personnel management, communications and money management in law firms.
Contact Info:
Contact Law Firm Mentor:
Scheduler: https://meetme.so/LawFirmMentor
Snippets
00:11:22 Allison (1 minute total)
But when people are looking to us and they see us through the lens of our clients and our clients are saying, this person kept me out of jail or this person helped me build my first business or incorporate my first business, or this person was able to steer me out of harm’s way with a merger that I was contemplating. We really become much more than just a lawyer. We become the bridge, if you will. I talk about this in sales, the bridge between the problem and the solution on the other side. Right.
00:11:54 Amanda Berlin
Yeah that’s a great way to put it. You become the bridge. And I think also our work, no matter what we do, is very conceptual to anyone who hasn’t experienced it yet. So when you’re able to contextualize it with a story, it makes it real. And it goes back to what you were saying earlier about this sort of like chemical, this alchemy that happens when we hear a story. We begin to relate to the person in a different way.
00:13:45 Allison (1 minute total)
And I know that there are some lawyers that are out there that hear what you’re saying and are like, oh, my God, this sounds like something that I ought to be doing. I ought to be putting myself out there so more people can know about my service, and can be attracted to my service, but I’m not quite certain why. I just feel a resistance around that. So, like, what are some of the key roadblocks that you would have experienced when you’re working with different, different professionals, and their desire to seek publicity somehow gets thwarted by their own, their own headspace?
00:14:16 Amanda Berlin
Yeah, absolutely. So I love talking about mindset as well. That’s a huge part of what I do. And, you know, there are, there are like practical things that get in the way in terms of, you know, readiness for, readiness for your close up. But then there are also, there are also esoteric, mindset things that get in the way. So I’ll name a couple in both of those categories.