MARCH 2022: PICK A NICHE
Contents
1
THE INDEPENDENT VIEW: WORK YOUR NETWORK
PIC Chair Arlene Amitirigala shares an experience that points out the value of having a niche, and letting your network know about it.
2
ALL ABOARD THE SPEED LEARNING EXPRESS!
Our March 22 event shone a spotlight on members Meredith Adolph, Patience Badze, Priya Bates, Eileen Chadnick and Catharine Heddle. Danièle Dufour shares the recap.
3
3x3: NARROW YOUR NICHE TO SPARK SUCCESS
PIC members Charlotte Davis, Nkiru Asika and Nancy Miller, PhD, answer three questions about niches posed by Sue Horner.
4
PIC PERSONALITY: MEET MEREDITH ADOLPH
New member Meredith Adolph tells us how her new business came about in a conversation with Maureen Hosein, ABC.
1.
The Independent View
Work your network
By Arlene Amitirigala
An interesting thing happened to me over the festive season. I had breakfast with a good friend whom I hadn’t seen for ages (thanks to COVID-19), so we had plenty to catch up on spanning family, life and work. I shared my new indie status and casually mentioned one of my clients.
My friend was surprised. “You’re doing that kind of work for them? But hold on, I could use your skills.” She runs a large marketing department and of course they contract content writers, but I’d honestly never thought of mentioning my communications services to her before.
Two things became clear to me as I reflected on that conversation:
- I had created a false separation in my mind between my friendships and my network. When I looked at my contracts, they had all come via relationships, and sometimes very close ones, yet I wasn’t embracing the full value of my network.
- In each case, the client had asked me, “Do you offer this particular service?“ In other words, they wanted to work with me, but they weren’t sure of my niche and had to ask me to clarify.
It may be tricky to niche down when you’re first setting up as an independent communications professional. I’m still navigating that space and getting closer to the answer as I’ve executed a variety of projects over the last several months.
However, as our experts point out in this edition’s 3x3, determining your niche is absolutely essential. There are many benefits – you can focus on what brings you the most joy, charge more, and build a really strong brand.
Telling your network your niche enables them to benefit from your services and also to float business your way. After all, as eight-figure Amazon seller Tim Sanders famously said, “Your network is your net worth.”
Now that you have your niche, what about networking? Well, you might be one of those who thrived with online socials and virtual coffees during this pandemic. But if COVID-19 rendered your skills rusty, here are seven tips to consider:
- Network with a clear goal in mind and ask for what you want.
- Set aside time and prepare – what’s your elevator pitch? What do you want to know about the other person?
- Network across diverse groups so you’re expanding your circle.
- Maintain a spirit of generosity; go into it to give.
- Be curious about others; you’re building a relationship.
- Sustain the relationship or intentionally let it go.
- Research and find places that will help your newfound niche.
On that last point, I’d like to shout it from the mountaintop that the IABC/Toronto chapter and particularly our very own PIC group is one of the places to help you thrive. The learning and networking opportunities are vast and set to get even more exciting as we gradually return to in-person events.
So I encourage you to reach out to fellow PIC members online and on social media, build relationships and stay connected with others in our LinkedIn group. There’s so much value here.
If you have any ideas for professional development topics, possible speakers, or any questions, concerns, or ideas about PIC, please don’t hesitate to reach me at toronto-sig@iabc.toronto. I would love to hear from you.
2.
All aboard the Speed Learning Express!
By Danièle Dufour
On The Move, PIC’s first virtual speed learning event on March 22, was a hit! Recognizing International Women’s Month, the event featured an all-female panel of PIC professionals. These accomplished women each shared a successful project with a series of small groups of participants…nine minutes at a time. If you missed it, no worries; we’ve got you.
Increase your impact
Meredith Adolph is a content marketing and communications strategist. Her case study showcased how she increased the impact of her services with both strategic counsel and execution support.
Her client was about to launch its e-commerce platform and had a strong execution team, but no experienced strategist. Meredith filled the expertise gap by helping craft an email marketing strategy, and helped the in-house execution team improve their skills in two ways:
- She created the first email copy so the execution team could learn how to design the right content.
- She coached the team during the project.
Thanks to this approach, Meredith developed a close relationship with her client and helped the team deliver a highly successful campaign. As she reminded PIC members, “a project doesn’t have to be big to be impactful.”
Expand your career and business
Priya Bates, ABC, SCMP, MC and IABC Fellow, shared her wisdom on ways to expand your career or business. She leads both Inner Strength Communications, her virtual agency, and A Leader Like Me, a company aiming at amplifying diverse voices. Priya had two messages:
1. Augment your career and business with IABC. Here’s how:
- Share the credentials you worked so hard to earn. If you achieved a designation, proudly showcase it on your business card, in your social media profiles, etc.
- Get involved. Priya has a long history of volunteering with IABC, which has allowed her to see and be seen. She met her A Leader Like Me business partner at an IABC event and recruits many of her associates from IABC’s pool of talent.
2. Augment your reach by moving from “I” to “we”:
- Amplify yourself by sharing your successes and that of others.
- Think big and do not limit yourself.
- Collaborate for success with your peers.
- Value diversity in your team and business partners.
- Expand your network into spaces you aren’t as familiar with to increase your audience.
Clients don’t always know what they need
Visual communicator Patience Badze demonstrated how she was able to bring more value to a client.
The non-profit organization wanted to develop an e-commerce solution to sell masks during the pandemic, but be sustainable beyond it. The initial need was for a website, but Patience and her team saw an opportunity to bring extra value to her client with a new brand. This meant first educating the client about the benefits of a new brand, and then showing how the brand could represent a better long-term solution.
It also meant the scope of the project had to be expanded, which the client accepted. With an aggressive timeline of three weeks, Patience and her team tailored their execution to focus on the key elements of the new brand: a logo, brand guidelines, an e-commerce website, and presentation templates.
In the end, Patience’s recommendation helped her client reach a new clientele, generate higher conversion rates, and achieve more sales than planned. It also increased engagement with their community.
A productivity tip you’ll want to know
Catharine Heddle is an independent corporate communications consultant. A few years ago, she started an accountability partnership with a friend (also an IABC member) after each struggled with procrastination.
They began with a Monday email in which they exchanged their work “to do’s.” On Fridays, they reported back on what was taken care of and what was pending. The approach proved useful – and delivered another benefit when Catharine realized that if something stayed on the list for more than a week or two, it was likely a strategic roadblock and not just procrastination. This enabled her to manage these roadblocks more efficiently.
The accountability partnership grew over the years to include:
- A monthly dashboard summarizing their business goals, which they review together over lunch.
- A yearly overnight retreat where they reflect on their business vision, review what’s working or not in their business, and help each other out with specific challenges.
The initiative has helped both Catharine and her accountability partner be more strategic, bring more focus to their work, and have someone who understands their business and with whom they can celebrate their successes.
If you decide to try the accountability partnership, Catharine says choose your buddy carefully as they will play a significant role in your life.
Leading in times of flux
In addition to her independent communications services at Chadnick Communications, Eileen Chadnick is also a coach. Through Big Cheese Coaching, she offers leadership development and career transition services.
Rather than present on a specific topic, Eileen offered to address any career or leadership questions participants had. This was a non-recorded portion of the event to allow Eileen to tailor her feedback to each person in the privacy of a small group.
The questions were varied and pertained to what Eileen calls “times of flux.” Here are some of the tips she offered:
- Where different expectations coexist, leaders must have the conversations to work better together and acknowledge challenges. These conversations are not about the business but about hope.
- Become comfortable with the uncomfortable.
- Be transparent and ready to pivot as things are continually shifting.
- Create connections with your team and with the individuals in your teams.
- Stay on your toes while honouring as many of your values as you can.
At the end of the event, participants shared their enthusiasm for the speed learning experiment and unanimously hoped it would be repeated. Stay tuned!
Members, if you’d like to offer your talents for something similar in the future, or if you’d like to write up an event for The Buzz, please let Arlene Amitirigala know at toronto-sig@iabc.to. Our thanks to event organizers Brent Artemchuk, Maureen Hosein, ABC and Christopher Trotman.
3.
3x3: Narrow your niche to spark success
By Sue Horner
If you’re new to being an entrepreneur, you might start as a generalist. But as you gain experience, specializing in a specific niche can have benefits. (Note that a niche could be in what you do, like crisis communications, or further divided in who you do it for, like crisis communications for small to medium-sized businesses.)
To learn more about the value of a niche, we asked 3 questions of 3 PIC members: Charlotte Davis of Verve Communications; Nkiru Asika of Women Building Authority; and Nancy Miller, PhD, of InsightEd, who recently took a full-time role with learning non-profit Rumie.
What’s your niche?
Charlotte: I offer communications for professional services – architects, engineers, lawyers, real estate and property management firms. I’ve also fallen into a sub-niche, working with sustainability consultants and clients primarily in commercial real estate who have multiple regulatory, stakeholder and investor requirements and expectations. So I’ve been doing a lot of sustainability and ESG (environmental, social and governance) reports. Note to PIC members: This is a growing area!
Nkiru: I help female entrepreneurs, coaches and consultants fix their brand messaging, position themselves as an authority and grow their visibility online. Many of my clients are newish to marketing themselves online and need help. Women especially focus on the work and think that will speak for itself, but if you’re selling services, you’re selling your advice, knowledge and expertise. You have to position yourself as an authority, and that’s where I help.
Nancy: I help bridge social innovation and technology ventures to the education sector and act as a consultant for “edtech” products and systems. I also work as a mindfulness-based and evidence-based coach specializing in experiential learning to help individuals to overcome trauma.
How did you decide on (or fall into!) this niche?
Charlotte: I started my career as a lawyer and transitioned into communications when my partner got a job teaching law in Australia. I never loved law so I saw the move as a good opportunity to change careers. My first jobs were in the not-for-profit arts sector, and after a brief time in business development for a Bay Street law firm, I took on a role as Director of Communications for a building engineering company. Deciding what to do next and ending up where I am was pretty organic. I asked myself, what did I know and like and what were my interests? It came back to law and buildings (architecture, engineering, real estate).
Nkiru: I wanted to work with people rather than companies, and I became interested in this niche basically because I am my target market! I struggled to put myself out there. So I recognized the challenges of learning how to market online, build an email list, and so on.
Nancy: It’s more like I settled into it. I had worked as an educator and lecturer for most of my career, with a little freelance writing on the side. Although I love teaching, I wanted to do less teaching and more writing. So I concentrated on making a living in communications and marketing. I was all over the board at first – writing for an agency, creating content for the financial industry, designing whitepapers for responsible tourism. But I had all this experience in education; was it just going to waste? So I deliberately looked for work in education, and found it satisfying to be able to draw from my experience.
What’s the value in having a niche?
Charlotte: A niche makes it easier for people to recognize you as the go-to person for that specialty rather than try to remember a laundry list of things you might do. A narrow field helps you get clients, repeat business and more referrals. Your business development almost takes care of itself. With a niche and specialist knowledge, you bring more value and a more strategic lens, and that helps you create a better product for your client. And, on the financial side, that often allows you to justify higher fees.
Nkiru: There’s an old saying, if you’re marketing to everybody, you’re marketing to nobody. Having a niche makes it easier to create content for that subsection of industry you’re targeting. It’s also easier to position yourself as an authority; people automatically assume a person focused on that niche day in, day out will be better than a generalist. Plus, in sectors like tech or healthcare, there’s no way you can compete as a generalist.
Nancy: When you specialize, it helps you clarify your branding and messaging and it’s clearer how to target your audience. You also tend to get paid better for your specialized knowledge. Also you want to enjoy what you’re doing and draw from your experience, including any volunteer work you’ve done. I’ve been able to apply skills I developed further in my role in communications for PIC – interviewing, brainstorming, exploring design tools and researching how best to present information digitally.
We launched this column to bring the voices of more PIC members into The Buzz. If you’d like to suggest a topic, or want to volunteer yourself as one of the three “voices,” please contact Sue Horner at getwrite@sympatico.ca. Our thanks to Gary Schlee, ABC, MC, for suggesting the name “3x3.”
4.
PIC Personality: Meet Meredith Adolph
By Maureen Hosein, ABC
Meredith Adolph is a content marketing and communication strategist who helps businesses and organizations inspire trust and drive growth through powerful storytelling and impactful campaigns. Connect with her on LinkedIn or visit her website.
When did you launch your independent business?
I launched my business in June 2021, so it’s still early days for me as I find my independent identity.
How did it come about?
A few reasons. First, as a parent of school-age children in the time of COVID-19, I needed to reclaim some time and energy. I wanted flexibility to step away from my desk whenever needed to deal with the lack of child care and changing school conditions. The second reason was part of a longer-term career change. I started school this year and am training to become a psychotherapist, so I needed to create some space for that as well.
The final reason was because as a content marketing and communication strategist, I have straddled both the communications and marketing worlds for some time. In my last role as an account director at a PR agency, I found that my PR and communication muscles were getting overworked and my content strategy muscles were underused. I saw the move to independent status as an opportunity to stretch out and flex my content muscles again.
What do you enjoy most about being an indie?
So far it’s been really liberating to just take the opportunity to explore. I’ve been working in this field for more than 15 years and I’ve held leadership roles, which I found to be very rewarding. However, you lose you connection to the hands-on work when you take on leadership and management roles. It’s been lovely to reclaim my identity as a writer and to get my hands into the content again for the first time in many years.
There’s also the opportunity to bring strategic value to the table. Even on small projects, like writing a small batch of content for a newsletter, I can still bring that experience and strategic lens to it. It’s been so enjoyable to bring those two parts together.
What don’t you like about being an indie?
During the pandemic, everyone was working remotely. Now that restrictions are changing and people are going back to offices, I’m starting to feel a little wistful being at home as I see others getting dressed in nice office clothing and meeting up for coffees. I’m feeling a little lonely in my home habitat.
What advice would you give someone new to independent life?
There are two things. One is trust. My biggest fear in going independent was that the work would not come. I had pulled the chute and didn’t have much of a plan other than to take a break, do a lot of networking and see what happened. Based on encouragement from other independents, I trusted that the work would come, and it did. I’m excited and happy to say I’ve got a full plate for the foreseeable future and that feels like a really big win for me.
The other piece of advice is, don’t feel bound to define yourself too tightly at an early stage. For example, my offerings on my website are pretty open-ended to relay I can do anything. As a content marketer with roots in PR, I’ve dabbled in most communications and marketing disciplines. The nice thing is I’m coming back around to refining my service offering and how I describe myself on the website to start to hone that type of work.
What value do you get from your IABC and PIC member membership?
I have dipped in and out of IABC membership throughout my 15-year career. At various points I’ve gotten a lot of value from attending networking events and being connected to a community of practice. I only joined PIC last fall and some of the resources provided some helpful guidance when I was setting up my business. I am looking forward to attending in-person events and making more 1:1 connections to build up my network of other independents – from a practical standpoint to give referrals to others but also to feel part of a community.
Welcome new members
Catharine Heddle - Lamplighter Communications
Toronto | LinkedIn | Twitter | Website | catharine@lamplightercommunications.com
Catharine Heddle specializes in strategic corporate communications, internal, external and change communications and workplace culture. With a velvet manner and razor-sharp insight, Catharine deftly navigates the complexities of organizational behaviour to craft communications strategies that inform, engage and inspire.
She helps clients forge meaningful, trusting connections with the people whose opinions, actions and support matter to them. She supports leaders by building powerful communications that simplify complex issues, build engagement and support, and help people adapt to and embrace change.
Laura Dunkley - L. Dunkley Communications
Mississauga | LinkedIn | Twitter | Website | laura@lauradunkley.com
A communications professional specializing in digital marketing with skills and experience in the area of business development, omnichannel marketing and public relations. Laura has supported entrepreneurs, service professionals and organizations of all sizes in the development of their communications strategies.
Rucsandra Saulean - DamaPR
Brampton | LinkedIn | Twitter | Website | Facebook | contact@damapr.com
Public relations and communications specialist with over a decade of achievements in strategic planning, media relations, web and digital content creation, event management and community building initiatives. Best known for helping remarkable non-profits and women-led ventures reach their potential. Passionate about:
- Video and photography, digital content creation, human interest storytelling, event design & promotion
- Human and animal rights causes, music and arts, environment, immigration, volunteering, progressivism.
Also: publisher & editor-in-chief of the Romanian-Canadian e-zine “Ca Romanii,” musician and former ESL teacher.
Happy 80th, IABC/Toronto!
It’s IABC/Toronto’s 80th anniversary! To help celebrate, post a photo or video on Twitter or LinkedIn, using #IABCTO80. Tell the world why you joined, what keeps you coming back, what makes you proud to be part of this community. Find more details online. You can also volunteer to be part of IABC/Toronto’s 80th Anniversary Celebration Committee. Email Toronto-volunteers@iabc.to.
Changes to the PIC member list due March 31
As a PIC member, you can gain visibility on the PIC member list on the IABC/Toronto website. Send your updates to PIC’s Director of Membership, Maureen Hosein, ABC, at maureenhosein@yahoo.com, by Thursday, March 31. For new profiles, send your:
- Name
- Company name
- City (to help us know who’s in our neighbourhood)
- Email address
- Telephone number (optional)
- Website and LinkedIn URLs
- Social media accounts, if any
- Business description (up to 80 words).
If you are already on the list, does your listing include your LinkedIn profile? Have you earned an OVATION or Gold Quill award you can brag about?
See you on social media!
Build and strengthen your connections, advance your business and network with other PIC members on social media. In case you missed them, recent posts shared on our social media channels include:
- 5 Steps To Find Your Perfect Niche Market by Caroline Castrillon for Forbes.
- Benefits of a niche and a 5-step process to find yours, including reflect on your passions and identify customers’ needs, via HubSpot.
- A niche doesn’t have to be a straight line from your past experiences. For the writers in our group, here are ways to switch up your niche, via Contently.
Who we are
Professional Independent Communicators (PIC) is a special interest group of IABC/Toronto. PIC's mission is to support independent IABC/Toronto communicators through professional development, networking and marketing. The Buzz informs members about upcoming events, shares professional development tips from past meetings and keeps us connected.
IABC connects communicators from around the world with the insights, resources and people they need to drive their careers and their professions forward.
Editor: Sue Horner | Designer: Austine Fischer
Executive team
Chair: Arlene Amitirigala | Past Chair: Nkiru Asika | Membership: Maureen Hosein, ABC | Marketing & Sponsorship: Brent Artemchuk | Communications & Social Media: Austine Fischer, Sue Horner | Programming: Gaby Moreno, Christopher Trotman