Strategist

I am in the business of building, growing and sustaining brands.

As an executive at major consumer PR & advertising agencies, not-for-profits, academic institutions and now as a senior-level consultant, I have worked with not-for-profit organizations and major corporations to build, grow and sustain brands. From reputation management issues to creating strategies to rebuild a brand going through internal, growth or PR challenges, I provide senior-level counsel for companies, large and small, and individuals, to elevate their brands in a world cluttered with mediocrity. LeslieWrites has the insight and the expertise to create profit-building strategies, shift thinking and assist organizations in delivering exceptional engagement experiences and value to their clients and partners.

Brands I’ve represented:

Create, create, create.

Clearly writing is an important part of everything I do, but the creative process is a significant part of my business portfolio. I work with clients and partners to create PR strategies, marketing ideas, advertising copy, consumer engagement concepts and even newsletters. Even before clients fully understand their needs, I’m already in the lab beginning the ideation process.

Listen & ask the right questions.

One of the many things my University of Chicago graduate studies taught me was to listen. Listen and ask the right questions. Okay, I actually learned these valuable lessons in kindergarten. Nonetheless, they are skills that have served me well throughout the years. Clients enlist my services and peers come to me for guidance often because I am constantly working to master the art of listening and the art of critical thinking. These skills give me a place at the table when it’s time to solve complex business problems. I listen, I think critically, ask the right questions and come to the table with valuable solutions.

Nurture and mentor marketing and PR talent.

Because I love this industry and believe strongly in the power of marketing and PR, not as a necessary evil to keep a brand alive, but as a integral part of the strategic communications mix, I get a great deal of satisfaction from assisting up-and-coming talent and peers in reaching their full potential. I am called on when a small entertainment business is in crisis, when a young account executive needs advice to help manage an issue at their agency and when a marketing executive is beginning a job search. Many professionals call on me to help guide their careers or talk them off the ledge when things go awry. It all goes back to those listening skills and the fact that I am genuinely interested in people and want to see those with real talent succeed in business and in life.

Avoid mediocrity at all costs.

Avoid mediocrity at all costs. I can’t stand it and won’t have any parts of it. When it comes to my work and my writing, I can’t tolerate mediocre thinking, half-assed effort, or average talent. I fully embrace the cliché, “Go hard or go home.” If your business is based on mediocrity, please allow me to escort you to the door.