Erika Taylor Montgomery is the founder and CEO of Three Girls Media Inc., an award-winning content marketing, social media marketing and public relations firm based in the greater Seattle area. As a full-service marketing agency, Three Girls Media provides a wide variety of services with the goal of raising brand awareness and name recognition for companies nationwide and internationally.
Erika shares her 30-plus years of experience in public relations, marketing and the media below:
Tell us about yourself and your story before joining Three Girls Media Inc.
My first career was in broadcasting. I spent 20 years on-air in San Francisco on both radio and television. I ultimately decided to transition to marketing and public relations, going to work for a major Silicon Valley agency where I managed campaigns for NBC and the Knight Ridder newspaper group. Eventually, I joined the California State Legislature as a press secretary. I remained there for a few years before ultimately deciding to launch my own agency, Three Girls Media, Inc., in 2005. We’ll celebrate our 17th anniversary this year.
Tell us more about Three Girls Media Inc.
In 2005, I was at a crossroads. Following an award-winning 8-year public relations career, preceded by more than 10 years as a popular radio and TV host in the San Francisco Bay Area, I was torn. Should I dive into another stressful corporate public relations job with endless hours and thankless employers that only talked about families being first, or should I take another major career leap into something more rewarding?
It didn’t take me long to choose. With nothing more than a rough idea, a notepad and a $3,000 loan from a friend, the marketing and public relations agency, Three Girls Media, Inc., was born. I would never again be told that I couldn’t leave work early to attend one of my son’s cello concerts or soccer games or to do volunteer work at a children’s hospital with my Certified Service Dog.
Three Girls skyrocketed from its inception. With a la carte services and satisfied clients who return for campaign after campaign, Three Girls Media completely broke the mold of “traditional” public relations and marketing.
Three Girls Media, Inc. is a full-service marketing and public relations agency. We specialize in social media management, blogging for SEO, media relations, website design and build, advertising, email marketing, copywriting and more. We have a dedicated and talented team of 10 employees who help our clients raise their brand awareness and name recognition through their marketing.
Our mission is to provide world-class marketing and public relations services for organizations of all sizes, raising their brand awareness and name recognition through both traditional and digital tactics, all while providing top-notch customer service. Rather than relying on cookie-cutter packages or hefty monthly retainers, we design a one-of-a-kind marketing or public relations campaign with each business’s specific goals and budget in mind.
Contrary to popular belief, Three Girls Media was not started by three women. When I was launching the marketing and PR business, I was sure of one thing: If you want to spread the word about something quickly, who should you tell? Three girls, and the news will spread like wildfire! The name was catchy, and the signature logo photo of girls gossiping enhanced the message perfectly.
Why did you choose to become a marketing and branding expert?
I wanted to be in a career where I could utilize the skills I’d learned as a member of the media. I also love that marketing and branding are ever-changing, ever-growing industries, so there is always something new to learn. I love ongoing education and staying on top of the latest trends. I also love helping businesses put their best faces forward and shine with their marketing efforts.
What are your responsibilities as the CEO of the company?
I oversee the management team and am involved in the high-level strategy for each of our projects. I am also responsible for all of our sales, advertising, hiring, interfacing with vendors and networking.
What have you failed at and how do you overcome challenges?
I’ve failed at many things in my life. One area that’s new to us as a business is government contracting. We’ve submitted several responses to RFPs that we haven’t won, but we learn from our failures and keep on trying. The key to overcoming challenges is to never give up. As a leader, you can’t just turn around and run; people are looking to you for solutions. I like to start by taking a step back and making sure I’m calm and have a clear understanding of the problem. Then I consider all my options and sometimes discuss issues with my management team before I ultimately make a decision.
Kindly describe how you will specifically know what success looks like for you. And what has been the best recognition that you have received as a professional?
Success, to me, means having a happy team and satisfied clients. A happy team is a more productive team, and they do a better job of keeping our clients pleased in turn.
I’m humbled to have received quite a few accolades in my career, but one of the most meaningful was when I was awarded “Boss of the Year” by the Thurston County Chamber of Commerce. I was nominated by my team who were also interviewed by a committee. Knowing that my staff thought so much of me was really heartwarming.
What advice would you give to the next generation of leaders?
Learn to be an excellent communicator. Most challenges can be overcome with great communication, and having those skills will help you serve your team, clients, partners and vendors well.
What are your future plans to sustain the company’s and your success?
We just completed our biggest year yet in annual sales and are working to continue the growth trajectory by investing in our team and ongoing advertising and networking efforts. I’ll look at success as meeting or exceeding our gross sales this year, as well as closing more new clients and ideally growing our team by a couple of members.
Website: www.threegirlsmedia.com
