Member Spotlight: VoiceMatters, LLC

BY MELINDA RIZZO

Seasoned pros getting the job done – that’s the motto at  VoiceMatters, LLC

Michelle Kane knows how to make lemonade out of lemons.

Her business, VoiceMatters, LLC in Souderton, offers small business owners a way to parlay their message with the expertise of a public relations and marketing pro with more than 20 years in the business.

Born out of the Great Recession of 2008, Kane started her company in 2009 as a response to being an underemployed communications manager with two different non-profits.

“One of them began having financial problems shortly before the recession. I found myself half employed in a market that was bleeding jobs. My business is a ‘recession baby,’” she explained.

With a decade of agency experience as an account executive in Philadelphia Kane was armed with a solid network of creative professional connections. With this savvy combination of contacts and skills she felt prepared to strike out on her own.

Kane loves guiding clients through the creative process and helping her clients amp up awareness about their product or services.

The Juice:“I’ve always been an information junkie. I’m wired to connect people with one another, and that’s how I look at my clients. It excites me to make clients lives better, by helping them get the word out about how great they are,” Kane said.

She admits keeping pace with trends, tech and emerging parlance (language shifts and usage changes – think sick as something great) is a job in itself. Kane said while no one can possibly know everything, savvy professionals know how to build and maintain relationships to provide a whole package of services. “I don’t have to know everything about everything but I do build the relationships to have the resources.” It’s a best practices strategy keeping her business aligned with client interests. Marketing campaigns are fresh, fun and relevant.
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“One of my favorite client activities is to do an audit,” she said. Taking stock of what clients are doing, what works and what doesn’t, helps refine client goals and create doable actions steps to move their business forward.

“The scariest time in your business is if you’re looking at your bank account going down. That is not the time to drop your marketing,” Kane said.

“You have to spend the money. Invest in a $50 Facebook ad to promote a business page. Do whatever you can that works within your budget; don’t do nothing,” she said.

On the horizon: A newly launched podcast, titled “That Solo Life,” which explores solo- practicing public relations alongside the broader business world. The new program features Kane and Karen Swim APR, founder of Words for Hire LLC, and an owner or Solo PR Pro.

Checkout the podcast link at http://soloprpro.com/podcast/

“For those who already run a business it’s hard to do the marketing as well- I tell people ‘you already have a job,’ that’s why you should hand it off to someone else.”

Should “that keeps” be in here? It’s a best practices strategy that keeps her business…

Back to fighting the cheapskates – could we change this to something around what it’s like to work with me? Like:

“It’s so important to have a strategy. One of my favorite client activities is to do an audit, to see what a client has been doing, what worked and what didn’t, determine their current goals and create an actionable strategy to move them forward.”

For more information on VoiceMatters call 267.236.3607 or log onto ​www.voicemattersllc.com.