Entrepreneur Interview: Tonilee Adamson and Bobbye Brooks, Media 4 Women

Business Name:
Media 4 Women Enterprises

Website URL:
http://www.media4women.com

Year Founded:
2009

Business Partners:
Bobbye Brooks & Tonilee Adamson

Number of Employees:
6

What does your company do?
Media 4 Women Enterprises is a marketing company that specializes in developing both business and marketing plans for individuals, small businesses and corporations. We have utilized our  expertise in marketing and media to create a service that is especially attractive to first-time business owners and entrepreneurs unfamiliar with the steps needed to launch and maintain a successful business.

Was there a specific turning point when you realized your business was moving to the next level?

In light of the current economic situation, when thousands of people are unemployed and seeking a career change, Media 4 Women is poised to offer much-needed assistance to women and families hoping to launch a new business of their own rather than search fruitless for an increasingly scarce position at an established company. Word of mouth through satisfied customers brought in a variety of businesses to assist with an online presence. 9 out of 10 of the free consults sign with M4W to become our clients.

What processes or procedures have you implemented that have helped grow your company?

Media 4 Women offers free consults to anyone who is willing to answer our 5 question information sheet. This sheet allows us to determine if the potential client is ready to take the first step in developing an online (and/or offline) business. Next, a consult is scheduled with the founders.

Media4Women offers free inhouse or phone consults with the founders to bring clarity as well as focus to the potential client. We also provide a personalized tangible step by step plan to launch their business successfully, alleviating their fears. Media 4 Women provides different turnkey packages, ranging in price from $1500 to $10,000 but we are willing to work with any budget.

What is most rewarding about running your business?

I love the variety of businesses and even hobbies represented by our clients. We have helped a grandmother start an online business with wheelchair and crutch covers to the Lexus Center launch an event center in their dealership. We have been able to remain personally involved with the people.

What challenges have you faced and how have you overcome them?

We have had to improve our contracts so the expectations of the client can remain grounded. We now write well written, clear and concise contracts of the services we provide. These projects tend to grow once the dream becomes a tangible reality. We frequently refer back to the contract when dealing with change orders.

If you were starting over today, what would you do differently?

Media 4 Women started with the mission to help the women (who tend to be over 35) to start an online business. Many of us were not raised with laptops on our school desks. People get to the age that they finally have something to say or sell, but the online world has intimidated most of us from moving forward. Even though we can help any business have an online presence and be successful, we still need to train the business owner to be independent and confident online. We would have educated the potential client first instead of attempting to teach them after their business is up and running. We are actually backing up now and doing this very thing.

What advice do you have for other business owners?

Our advice is clearly communicated over and over: Do Not cut the marketing and advertising budget. 90% of small businesses fail in the first year because they run out of money. But what good will their business do if no one knows about it? M4W helps business owners have a minimal 6 month plan with marketing included.

Please list any favorite books, tools or resources (software, website, etc.) you would recommend for others:

We use a numerous online programs and we give away a lot of our free online sources. M4W developed a 7-DVD package called “How to Build Your Business Online” that gives amazing free online resources and educates anyone at any level to start a business. We have had wonderful testimonials from people of all ages.

What is something that people might be surprised to learn about you:

M4W started from a women’s nonprofit. Bobbye and Tonilee teach and train women through events and seminars to go the next step and stay educated. It is a “You Can Do It” message. Many women embraced the message and asked us to help them. Media 4 Women became a business to help them apply the message.

Is there anything else you would like to add?

I believe we are so successful in this hurting economy because we care. We listen and really want to help people. We keep our prices low because we know that people are struggling and fearful of failure. We not only offer a service but we tend to do a lot of coaching through the process to allievate the fears and clarify the clients thoughts.