Episode #106: The Power Of Telling Your Unique Toy Story with Cher Hale
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How can you weave your own personal story into your product and make a powerful connection? Telling potential buyers the reason behind your product or idea can increase interest and ultimately, success. Today’s guest, Cher Hale, founder of Gingko PR, shares her experience in helping diverse clients do exactly this. She also shares how she diversified her network and started working with the types of clients that she wanted to help to get their stories out there.
Cher shares her moving story about why she wanted to help people facing systematic barriers tell their own stories. She also shares how adding diverse voices to the mix through PR helps to create social change, why many people from a minority background feel uneasy about telling their stories, and some of her ideas on the future of PR. This is a must-listen if you’re interested in learning about the importance of your story, and how telling your story can increase diverse representation in the media.
EPISODE CLIFF NOTES
Learn the inspiring story behind the name Gingko PR [00:02:03]
Find out why PR can be so powerful, not just for businesses but also for social change [00:06:34]
Learn how connecting your story to your product helps with marketing [00:09:26]
Find out why it’s common for people who are minorities to feel uneasy telling their story [00:12:28]
Learn how telling your own story can help other people feel more comfortable with their own [00:13:41]
Find out how telling your story helps you get the interviews and opportunities that are a better fit for your product[00:17:07]
Learn what it takes to diversify your network [00:19:21]
Find out the value of LinkedIn for creating a diverse network [00:20:36]
Learn why keeping your face or story out of your brand can be a disadvantage [00:25:45]
Find out about forward-thinking PR opportunities to consider in 2022 [00:30:15]
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This episode is brought to you by www.thetoycoach.com
Learn more about Cher Hale by visiting her website here.
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[00:00:00] Azhelle Wade: You are listening to making it in the toy industry episode number 106.
[00:00:04] Well, Hey there toy people Azhelle Wade here and welcome back to another episode of the toy coach podcast, making it in the toy industry. This is a weekly podcast brought to you by thetoycoach.com. We are getting closer and closer to the end of the year, toy people. I hope you all had a wonderful holiday for those of you that celebrate, but as we inch closer and closer to the end of the year, I wondered what type of podcast episode would bring you the most value that you could take into 2022?
[00:00:39] And I looked in my vault and I had the perfect episode for you, an episode all about PR. Today we are going to talk about the importance and power of PR and how your story, the reason behind why you created your toy company, your toy business, your product, how that story needs to be deserves to be shared with your ITM or your ideal target market, so that they can connect with you and want to invest in your toy product. Let me tell you why your story is so important to share.
[00:01:13] Number one, it helps you feel more connected with your brand and your business, and that connection will keep you moving forward even when times get tough and they will. They always do in business. Number two, it helps consumers feel more confident that they're buying the right product from the right place, because it showcases the authenticity of the creator behind it. Yep, you. Now today's conversation is with PR agency owner Cher Hale. And Cher gives lessons that can be applied to all people. However, our conversation is focused on elevating minority groups through PR. Now buckle up. Cause you're going to learn a whole lot from today's interview. Let's dive in.
[00:02:02] So today we're going to welcome to the show Cher Hale, who is the founder and director of Ginkgo PR a boutique agency that believes in using public relations to help historically excluded authors and entrepreneurs take back their narratives. As a Taiwanese black American woman Cher is passionate about leveraging the power of media to tell diverse stories through online print, TV and podcasts mediums. So she can play a role in reshaping, how our society views, social justice, feminism, and multiculturalism. Cher welcome to the show. I'm so glad that you're here today.
[00:02:39] Cher Hale: Azhelle I'm so happy to be here.
[00:02:42] Azhelle Wade: I should have asked before we started, did I pronounce Ginkgo correctly?
[00:02:47] Cher Hale: You did.
[00:02:47] You did. Okay. I could tell
[00:02:49] that you were not sure.
[00:02:50] Azhelle Wade: I, you know, I,
[00:02:52] I do want to talk about the name a little bit because you mentioned that Ginkgo actually held a strong meaning. It kind of was reflective of the fight that the people who you represent put up to be seen, but I didn't really make the correlation. So I would just love you to start there, explain where this name came from.
[00:03:10] Cher Hale: Yeah, no one actually ever asked me this before in an interview. And I'm so happy to share the story. So during World War Two. When we bombed Japan, they had obviously a ton of terrible effects from the radiation, but one of the bright spots was that scientists told them that they would never see like a plant grow in like 50 years because of the radiation poisoning. But a small set of trees, the ginkgo trees near this monastery not only survived the blast, but began to thrive the very next year. And when I heard that story oh my God, how cool is it? Like, first of all, how cool is nature? What a beautiful symbol to remind people of the resilience. That can be inside of us after a tragedy and how as a black woman, you know, too, we've been rejected by the system for generations, but we continued to thrive and be resilient. And that symbolism just rang so true for me with what I believe we can do with public relations.
[00:04:17] Azhelle Wade: I love that story. That's a great name for your PR agency. And I also saw that you said you actually shifted away from your name to this. And was that a hard transition for you or did you feel like it was more empowering.
[00:04:32] Cher Hale: It was a really natural and strategic transition because my intention was to go away from being a freelancer or a consultant to being an agency owner that could have worked with midsize companies and corporations. So I just wanted to position myself true to my publicist roots as a more viable option when working with those kinds of people.
[00:04:55] Azhelle Wade: All right. So let me share a little bit about why I wanted you to come on today. So I was listening to you be interviewed by Rick Mulready and you started sharing your story about how you transition from helping your upper middle-class white customer to helping more people that look like you. And you touch on both sides of yourself with a majority of your clients Asian and black. So I would just love to hear you retell that story. I want to be a part of the telling of the story, and I want my listeners to hear this transition that you went through. How did your business begin and how did it evolve to being this more niche focused business that is helping minorities elevate themselves and their stories?
[00:05:37] Cher Hale: Yes, definitely. It began because I was very bored. So I had a really strong referral based business. And the issue with that is that the white woman who were upper-middle-class would tell all of their network who looked just like them and thought just like them about me and my work, and while it was paying the bills. And I was very happy to have the business. I couldn't tell the same story over again. It was that standard. I was unhappy, so I hired a life coach and then realized that I could help others with the same skill sets. I became a life coach and I'm selling life coaching. The trope was just so tired to me, but I didn't know what to do about it. I didn't know how to change the business then. I just felt stuck and, you know, happy honestly that I was making money. And then unfortunately my mother passed away out of the blue at 49 from a heart attack.
[00:06:32] And, you know, of course death or moments of tragedy always helped you stop and reflect on how you were spending your time. And so I couldn't help, but think man, my mother, who, by the way, in her forties had this new desire to become a romance novelist. I had the skillset to help her with the books that she wanted to write and sell and promote which were unique blend of her immigrant perspective and her love of Italy and her love of romance novels. But I wasn't able to help her establish that platform or to publish those books. I couldn't help, but think about the all the systemic barriers that were in her way from helping her get from point a to point B, which was her ultimate dream of being a published author. Wow. I have the skillset to help people like her, people like me and like you make a difference in the media to take the narratives back.
[00:07:32] That have traditionally been told for us on our behalf. So that we can tell it with our own voices so that we can reverse all those negative stereotypes. We can show a nuance or rich perspective that people need to hear from a media that influences so much of how we live, right? How we raise our children, how you vote, the kinds of products we buy. And if we don't have enough diverse voices in the media telling our perspectives, we aren't getting the whole story. People aren't getting the whole story. And I think that also weeds some others, not seeing minorities as whole people. PR does have the power to affect social change, both on an individual and a systemic level.
[00:08:16] Azhelle Wade: Yes. So this is why I wanted to have you on the show, because w what you brought to my mind is a student of mine who has this great doll concept. And it's based on her culture within Africa. The dolls are all named after days of the week too, because it's part of their culture. And they have these specific outfits that are designed for there days of the week. And when she brought it to me, I said like, this is great. How do you promote this? And she's like, well, you know, I just have like a name for the dolls and I'm not really involved.
[00:08:44] And I thought, well, how can you not be involved? The story is your story. You need to be involved. I mean, the people that she did sell them to first were friends and family. And I was trying to explain to her, they're buying it from you because they know your story. And if more people knew your story, you might be able to sell more. But there is this uncomfortability for a lot of minority women, to feel that their story is important is interesting is valuable, could change someone's perspective. We go through struggles and we don't even oftentimes realize that there are struggles.
[00:09:23] We go through things that maybe inspiring to others or challenging or just harrowing and we think that's just life. But there's actually a really strong PR message that you can build with your whole story that could help you achieve if you want to like launch a doll line, if you want to launch a speaking career or a book or whatever you want to do. So that is why I really wanted to have you on the show because I want you to help convince my listeners that their story is valuable and that their story can get attention in a way that could help them propel their dreams. What do you have to say about that?
[00:10:03] Cher Hale: So what many things, all the things in fact. First, I think that you make a great point when you emphasize that identity has to be a part of the product. I think you mentioned this in your episode, on PR and also in your one on like the puzzle of you. It's so essential to what can make you different in a very saturated marketplace, right? So many of these target clients for your toy makers are parents, right. Or people who are adjacent to kids, right. Or their uncles, their aunts or friends. And we also as a parent to a five month old we are competing with attention for a ton of other products, too. I'm considering what high chairs to buy when to size up for, you know, infant car seats all of these other products that aren't toys that are out of my purview.
[00:10:54] So if I'm buying her a toy, it really has to stand up. And aligned with my values as a parent. So your toy maker, client who has like a culturally rich doll, I would love that for my child. And I also want to know that it is representative of her culture and who she is as a person. Right. Because in an age where appropriation it's happening on a massive scale, I want to know that she's walking her talk. Right. I don't want this to be any person selling African culture dolls. I want it to be an African person instead of African cultural doll. Yeah. And so telling your story is not only going to help you feel more connected to your brand and your business when things inevitably get tough, but it's also going to help you tell a unique story that positions you as a front runner in a very competitive marketplace.
[00:11:50] Azhelle Wade: Yes, okay. I love that. I am glad that you agree. I actually feel like it's becoming more important to parents that their toys have that story, have that meaning behind them. Now, because of you speaking, this is showing me maybe why. Maybe because there is so much vying for their attention, that when they do finally take the time to look at the toy products there, you know, if their kid's not begging, like I want that LOL like giant thing, then it's a parent's decision.
[00:12:18] They're looking for something that connects with them. And a toy product that will make them feel maybe like a good parent, like, oh yeah, this toy has like value and now I'm giving value. I'm not just giving a thing to distract them. Right. Okay, that's fantastic. So now the biggest thing that people worry about when they are saying like, okay, fine, I will dive into my story and I will share my story with the world, but where do I start? How do I pick out what parts of my story are interesting to tell?
[00:12:50] Cher Hale: Yeah. And I actually want to go back to a point you made earlier, which is that we minorities, especially will feel uncomfortable sharing their story. So even before they consider like, okay, I'll tell my story, what points do I say? There's like the sense of unease inside of us. And I don't want to diminish that feeling. Okay. Others will tell you that you just have to fight through the fear and, you know, become resilient and get over the rejection because that's what makes a solid entrepreneur. And while I agree on some fronts historically, minorities especially have been marginalized to the point where it was unsafe to be visible, where it was unsafe to be heard. And generationally that makes an impact on all of us. So when you think back to what our families have been through, right? We can't minimize that being safe meant being quiet. And so I want to always shift the blame from the individual feels like they have to fix themselves to the system which has created this problem.
[00:13:57] Azhelle Wade: Yes. Yes. That is so good.
[00:14:00] Cher Hale: Because of this, usually when someone hears this who is a part of a historically included group, it helps them feel comfortable with the idea of, oh, I didn't create this problem, I was born into this problem. And so knowing that there's more of a permission, I think, to move forward with telling your story. It helps you center what this is, where does this come from so that you can. Pinpoint it and keep going with what your goals are. And so to answer your question, your original question, when you decide to tell your story, it can be tough to figure out what points you tell. And what pieces do you keep for yourself? Yeah, because we don't have to tell all of our stories.
[00:14:45] We don't have to share all the details. Think about the moment, I would say, make a list of all the pivotal moments in your life and think, do any of these connect with the product that I'm currently crafting or the mission behind the product that I'm crafting? And if they do, I would circle those and actually write out the story for each of them. So once you start writing, or even if you're speaking into like an audio know on your phone, whatever method works best for your processing you can begin to hear yourself figure out, oh, this is actually a, speaks a sense for this story, or this is how I actually considered
[00:15:23] You know, adding this feature or this is my inspiration initially. And so you can take those pieces of the story and craft it into what I call your origin story. And that's something that you would tell in a podcast or to a journalist. And I say, you know, what was your inspiration behind this? You can plug and play different pieces depending on the outlet, because you don't tell the same story over and over again. You want to consider who is a person who's listening to this podcast or reading this article and what pieces of my story might resonate most with them?
[00:15:53] Azhelle Wade: Yes, and I have to say what you're reminding me of also is to sell your product on media and with PR your story is valuable, but even establishing your business. Having clarity on what, your reason and your story and where you came from and how you even got here is so important. I was sitting with a client and for the longest time we had, like, we had about like four meetings booked for the month. And she was like, I really want you to help me figure out my website and my product and everything. And we're working together. And after about two calls I remember saying to her, this all just feels so disjointed, like, what is your reason? We were going through your copy, we're going through your images. And there seems to be this resistance or this gap, or there's something missing.
[00:16:36] And then we sat down and we talked about her reason when she first created her very first product. And as we unpacked it, we found. What would totally be her PR pitch story? It was what drove her creation of her very first product. Was so much more than just, oh, I had an idea for a toy. It was trying to create a movement within the kids that were like bullying my child, for example because they didn't understand and I wanted them to understand. And then every product she created was then to help somebody understand the plight of another. And that moment for her, I remember seeing her face just completely changed because just knowing your story is going to help you develop your business, develop your pitch.
[00:17:18] And once you get into the interview, this is something people don't tell you.
[00:17:21] You can always get an interview, but when you get the wrong interview and you get in that interview and you realize you're in the wrong place, it is the most awkward thing. You want to be in the right place. You want to be telling your story in the right space.
[00:17:32] So, I want to know about that transition that you made from working with your middle-class white clients to going to these minority clients. I'm sure there had to have been some type of a price adjustment for you that you had to either swallow or figure out a new system for. But then I also see that you probably at the same time had to fight with your clients to be like, let me tell your story. And they were probably like, no, no, no. That's like, don't tell that. So I want to hear a little bit about that.
[00:18:00] Cher Hale: Yeah. So before I transitioned my business from this existing client to my new ideal client, we always do take a look at what's happening at home. So I live in Spokane, Washington, which is a dominantly white area. It's right on the border of Idaho. You can imagine. And at this point, I moved in Las Vegas four years prior. So coming from a very diverse city to a very white town was a culture shock for me. And as a result, I made mostly white friends. There wasn't a lot of option I thought to recreate a diverse network. But when this started to tug on my heart, I thought, you know, there's a way there has to be a way for me to meet people with culture who have a diverse background, like my own that I can resonate with.
[00:18:51] And so I made a serious effort to start getting out of my comfort zone and meeting new people would a preference for those of minority background. And it took me, I would say maybe a year or year and a half, but now I have the most wonderful group of friends. Who are all of diverse backgrounds and we're able to have like those deep, rich, global conversations. And I just could not have with my friends previously. And I think making that shift on a personal level, Was the alignment that I needed to make this shift on a professional level.
[00:19:27] Because then I felt definitely in my integrity to start reaching out to women who looked like me in our business spaces and saying, Hey, like, would you just want to have coffee over zoom so we can chat and like, get to know each other. And that was really the first action I was able to take to start building that. And I would say I had to also convince myself to be more visible in the process. So I kept saying, I want to like highlight these amazing entrepreneurs of color in the media. And it wasn't lost on me that I was not doing it myself. Yeah. So I had to, again become aligned with this new mission and be the color that I wanted to be in the world.
[00:20:09] Azhelle Wade: So I have to say when I heard that part of your story elsewhere, At the time had no idea that you were Asian and black and I thought you were white. And I was like, oh my God, I love this woman. Look at her doing the work, you know, get out there. I love the story because it just tells people. Like, it's okay if your network isn't diverse because of the area that you're in, but you have to want to do the work to try to diversify that network. It's not going to be easy. And that's what I tell people a lot of the time they're like, oh Azhelle we want to be a more diverse organization. We want to have more diverse communities.
[00:20:42] But the black people just aren't around and I'm like, okay, you got to do the work to find them. I tell people one of the simplest things is like connect with black people on LinkedIn, the way there's a black Twitter, there's a black LinkedIn. You connect with one person. LinkedIn is the still the most organic social platform of them all. So you connect with one of us. You're going to start to see, like, there are like black community leaders on LinkedIn. Like people that focus on hiring black, you connect with one of those people. You will start seeing black people in your feed. That is the easiest way you want.
[00:21:16] And you did it like the real, like feet down to the grindstone type way. Like you actually met shook hands, got to know. And I really commend that. I think that is fantastic. Okay, let's talk about you a little bit more. I know I'm just like picking out your brain now because you have so many good things to share, but when you work with clients, what do you do? What can you possibly do for some of the minorities that are listening that might be ready to take the leap and work with someone like Ginko PR?
[00:21:44] Cher Hale: Yeah. The first thing we do is evaluate if you are at a stage where PR does make sense for you, right? You do have to have that origin story nailed down. You do have to know your product inside and out. I need you to be meeting you're ready. I can help you get there, but I needed to be willing to be visible. So if there's some inner stuff you got to work on before we ended up doing crew together, I completely understand. And there are other stages that I can help you out to get there. But initially I help my clients take what they've been telling their potential customers and clients. So like whatever's on the website, their product pages, and I help package it into a media ready brand.
[00:22:28] Okay. And so that might look like altering their messages slightly to say, okay, what's happening right now, culturally in our conversation. And how does your product relate to that conversation? How can your expertise be of service or value to people who are grappling with this specific problem or issue. And so we just go through the brand entirely. I go through all of your content, all of your story. I get to know your really well. And I packed all of that into something that is media ready. And then we curate a list of publications or podcasts that would be a good fit for you, where your target customer is hanging out. And then we actually began pitching.
[00:23:08] Azhelle Wade: So tell me, like one of the biggest publications you've gotten one of your clients?
[00:23:13] Cher Hale: Well, it depends on who your target client is. Right? So I have some clients like health and wellness and for them, goop is like the premier publication. And goop for some reason, it just converts really well. You can have your own thoughts about GP, but it just does really well for conversion.
[00:23:28] Azhelle Wade: Interesting. Okay.
[00:23:30] Cher Hale: Or if you're in the business space, I would say like fast company or business insider. Those are really premiere publications, the New York times. Of course, it's huge. And then like, I guess if you're in the toy industry, maybe a great place for you would be like the every mom. I haven't gotten anyone in, O I don't have a lot of clients. They're mostly informational or consulting clients, but yeah, it's always on the radar.
[00:23:51] Azhelle Wade: So that was my next question for you. What are your clients mostly?
[00:23:55] Cher Hale: Yeah, so I would say their health and wellness, some of our coaches and our consultants, and I do have one like lifestyle expert person who has a product line of planners and productivity tools.
[00:24:07] Azhelle Wade: So these people really have to dial into their personality because if they're selling a service they really have to sell themselves. So do you have a memory of a time where you had to like really get a client to dig deep and get out their story? What was kind of, I don't know, your biggest moment where you realized I'm doing important work here. Like this is something that needs to be done. This is something that our community just won't do because of fear. Baked into us for years. Did you ever have those moments?
[00:24:35] Cher Hale: Yeah. So a few come to mind where my client was very comfortable selling their expertise. So you know, four ways to do whatever. But didn't realize that all of the other human parts of them were compelling and important to the entirety of their brand. Because beyond selling or buying products. We love humans. We want to resonate with a human story. So the stroke that you had that changed your perspective on how you work or what's important to you, that's a critical element to your story. What it was like to become a parent for the first time, huge for your story. You were divorced, and it had a huge impact on you. I want to tell those stories too. And most clients just don't think that they're relevant. If it doesn't directly sell the service or the product, I think why should I tell it? But the truth is that again, we want to know you and when we know you, we feel much more comfortable giving you our money.
[00:25:36] Azhelle Wade: That's so true. What would you say for people that really just don't want to be the face of their brand? Like what would you say, they're like, you know what, I have a logo I don't want to be evolved.
[00:25:45] Cher Hale: I would say you can definitely run that race, but your sales and your visibility will suffer because of it. You know, it's a give or take. If you don't want to be the face of your brand, if you don't want to be visible that way the consequences that you will have a much harder time going mainstream. Unless you're Sia, right.
[00:26:04] Azhelle Wade: Right.
[00:26:05] Cher Hale: She's able to maintain a magnet, but you know, she is the exception, not the rule.
[00:26:09] Azhelle Wade: She still has an IP. I mean, she may not show you her face, but her hair, her bow, her glasses that's her look is, is the face.
[00:26:17] Cher Hale: And she has a story behind wanting to be invisible, essentially something that connects us.
[00:26:22] Azhelle Wade: Oh, interesting.
[00:26:23] Cher Hale: I think it's just because I don't even know what it was and this is an important piece to that, but she has a story and when I heard it, I thought, wow I get it now. And as long as the client has that aha moment. Oh, I get it. Now. It doesn't matter what the story is. It just matters that you connected with them at that moment.
[00:26:41] Azhelle Wade: Okay. All right. The little bit I wanted to get into, if you also, because you just you've shared this and I loved it is the way that you do outreach. And I, maybe I'm selfishly sharing this so that people reach out to me differently when they want to be on this podcast. But you shared a really personal just normal strategy for doing podcasts outreach. It is more labor intensive. I do have to say as someone who does pitch themselves to shows to what you described as the process for pitching yourself to shows is like super labor intensive. But will you share some of that right now. Like the way that you recommend connecting with people. If you're trying to pitch yourself just to podcasts.
[00:27:24] Cher Hale: Yeah. I would say podcast booking has become more competitive. Then I've seen it in the past five years. And so podcast hosts just have unlimited options for who they could have on their show, but limited slots for those guests. Many of which are doing sell episodes and guest episodes. And they might only a lot once a month, so 12 and a year to get, which is insane about it. They're also booking so far out in advance that even if you put all of your heart and soul into writing a beautifully personalized pitch, it might not even get considered. And that breaks my heart. I am a huge proponent of like the non stealing of time and energy.
[00:28:06] And I bake that philosophy of a stay out. Which is, stay is like one of the mantras and yoga of non-student energy. Into my philosophy of pitching. So what my idea was when I was trying to pitch for my clients and stand out in this space was why are we treating us like we have to immediately go in and buy someone dinner and just, or cold call them essentially when really we should be serving the conversation. Right. Getting a feel we're doing a vibe check essentially. And so I started listening to pod. And I love to learn. So the curiosity is very genuine for me. Let me find one takeaway from this podcast to mention my pitch and the very beginning of my pitch. And I say, Hey, I listened to this episode with Azhelle Wade, thought it was amazing for these reasons. While listening, I thought of a guest who might be a fit, but before I send a full pitch, I want to know, are you even considering guests right now?
[00:29:04] Are you open to guests for the next season of your show? If they're seasonal. Any guidance is appreciated. Thanks for your time. That's the literal pitch I send to for most of my clients. Once I have an established connection and I know they want the pitches, I will send those instead. When I don't know somebody and I want to start a friendship potentially, a connection. I will always come in with this much softer pitch so that they know that I am respectful of their time and energy. Content calendar. Right? I'm not ever going to assume that my client is a great fit for you. She might not be. So, you know, it lessens the presumptuousness so often associated with touching and it just helps create a solid foundation for us to move forward.
[00:29:46] Azhelle Wade: Yeah, I think it's really smart. You mentioned that podcast guessing has gotten much more competitive. I agree. What do you think is the next thing that is coming down the pipeline instead of people going to get on podcast.
[00:29:59] Cher Hale: Yeah, we're going to have to be much more flexible with the content that we're collaborating on. So I see things like Instagram lives, Instagram reels, perhaps Facebook lives, anything that has like that live component. Or on the opposite end, I find more than ever as like short form content explodes. I find a return to long form content really appealing. So maybe like those long form YouTube blogs are going to be another thing that comes back and helps us just create that relationship with a toy maker or with a a person who sells the service.
[00:30:35] Azhelle Wade: I think that's a good point. So with this podcast, I normally like to have on experts like you. I like to teach, but then I also have followers that I want to elevate. Right. So what I started doing is inviting them to an Instagram live. It's not a podcast, but it's a separate platform where we can get their products out on a regular basis. That is exactly so funny that you said that is exactly what I'm doing. So I'm sure other people are thinking the same. I'm even wondering if people will start saying, you know what, we're not going to have podcasts that are once a week and 40 minutes anymore. We're going to have one that's like three times a week in 10 minutes so that we can have more guests and more more coverage in that way. Do you think that might happen to?
[00:31:14] Cher Hale: That would be interesting. I would say that the production has to be. It's expensive. You know what I mean? So any kind of content creation is going to cost more. And so I'm not sure if everyone will do that, but for those that do, it could be a viable option to not only stand out in the marketplace, but also like, you know, have a great variety of guests on.
[00:31:33] Azhelle Wade: Okay, thank you Cher. Do you have any final words of wisdom for someone who maybe is just getting started on their PR journey and maybe they're not quite ready for you get, but they want to get there.
[00:31:46] Cher Hale: Hmm. I would say, make a list of those dream publications that you want to be featured on or in. And consider, just start reading them regularly, right? Subscribe to those newsletters. You like what they're publishing right now, because I guarantee you just organically. You're going to start noticing, oh, I could have spoken on that. Oh, my product should have been in that list. And it's going to compel you to want to be more visible. Just Naturally.
[00:32:15] Azhelle Wade: Thank you Cher. That was lovely. Well, thank you so much for being on the show today, Cher, this was a lot of fun. I hope that some of my listeners reach out to you because it's not just toy entrepreneurs that listen to this podcast, but it's also toy companies. So if there is a need for PR, I'm going to put your information in the show notes, where can people connect with you?
[00:32:36] Cher Hale: They can find me at gingkopr.com and that's G I N K G O PR.com.
[00:32:41] Azhelle Wade: Awesome. Thank you so much for being here. This is a great convo.
[00:32:44] Cher Hale: Happy to be here.
[00:32:45] Azhelle Wade: Well, there you have it toy people. That was my interview with Cher Hale isn't she so sweet. That interview was full of inspiration and actionable advice. Now, before I dive into the conclusion and your homework for the week, I want to dive into our listener shout out of the week. And this is a huge, huge, huge thank you to the toy companies that are coming to the TCA virtual pitch event in January. So huge shout out to PSI Publishers Services Inc, Hasbro, What Do You Meme? Huge shout out and a thank you to AlexGlobal Products, Mattel, Tinker Tini, and Kids Preferred.
[00:33:26] And our newest sign up Crazy Aarons looking forward to seeing you guys there as well. And of course our honored guests for the TCA virtual pitch event, who is also a sponsor for TCA this past year Learning Express Lake Zurich, Richard Derr. Thank you so much. Can't wait to see you there. If you are a toy company listening to today's episode, and you're interested in signing up for the TCA Virtual Pitch Event, just send us a message info@thetoycoach.com and we will get you the link and information packet. So you can snag yourself a spot.
[00:34:05] Okay, let's dive into the conclusion of today's episode. Cher came in and dropped so many valuable bits of information and inspiration, from the importance of identifying and sharing your story with your potential consumers, to trying to deliver a soft pitch when you're first trying to get your product featured on a podcast or gift guide, Cher gave reasons why it's important to share your true story. The real reason behind creating your product. Now, I want to give you homework for today and today's homework is for you to dream big.
[00:34:41] Just like Cher said, make a list of your dream publications that you would like to be featured on. And once you make that list, go and subscribe to their newsletters or subscribe to their podcast. You're going to start seeing what they're publishing right now. And organically, as Cher said, you are likely going to start noticing like, oh, I could have offered some advice on that topic. And that would be a perfect opportunity to promote your product.
[00:35:13] Now to learn more about Gingko PR to learn more about Cher, head over to thetoycoach.com/106, where we will have all of the links in the show notes. As always thank you so much for spending time with me today. I know there are a ton of podcasts out there, so it means the world to me that you tune into this one. Until next week. I'll see you later toy people.
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