Media Strategist and Entrepreneur Lisa Williams was recently selected to open an authority media agency in Los Angeles that will serve women in business and female entrepreneurs in the U.S. market. Williams’ new division, AvantGardeWomen.com, will help women business owners to position themselves as authorities in their market by using different forms of media, and will help women entrepreneurs to grab market share by using the power of positioning. The intent is to stop women business owners from being best-kept secrets and to become viable contenders in crowded industries.
AvantGardeWomen will help women in business to stand out among their competition without having to choose between their roles as a business owner and as a woman. “Times are changing and to attract attention to a brand, business owners, especially women, need to not only promote their business, but also promote themselves as a brand. People are moving away from liking a brand and more onto liking people,” said Williams.
Williams went on to say, “though some women enjoy competing, especially in male dominated industries, many would prefer to carve out their piece of the market, to be established as an authority or a subject matter expert, and have a successful business without trying to compete with others in their industry. This is a phenomenal approach that women business owners can implement whether they are professional women in law, medicine, real estate and mortgage, social entrepreneurs, African American women entrepreneurs (the fastest growing segment), or virtually any type of business, so I’m honored and privileged to serve this segment of the market.”
Authority marketing tactics are being talked about more and more in business circles, and are gaining mainstream appeal. Long-established business leaders are speaking out about the power of authority marketing. John Jantsch, author of the best seller “Duct Tape Marketing,” said in an article for Entrepreneur magazine, “Building personal brand authority is perhaps the most important element of marketing today for a brand, business or individual trying to gain an edge. It doesn’t matter how big or little an audience you might command; it’s all about the right people believing in your point of view or way of doing business. ”
A story on Fox News stated, “The simple truth is, if you aren’t deliberately, systematically, methodically — or rapidly and dramatically — establishing yourself as a celebrity, at least to your clientele and target market, you’re asleep at the wheel, ignoring what is fueling the entire economy around you, neglecting development of a measurably valuable asset.”
Brian Horn, authority marketing expert and contributor to Entrepreneur.com, recently said, “You can no longer be a purely direct response company that just asks people to buy — there are no more ‘one-hit-wonder’ campaigns. You need to have a branding aspect to balance out your direct response efforts. The most powerful form of branding a person can do is authority branding.”
Daniel Newman, a contributor for Forbes magazine, wrote in a June article, “Influencers may be marketing’s next ‘golden goose,’ as people no longer trust ads, but they do trust people. More accurately, they trust a voice of authority.”
The demand for authority marketing and positioning services is growing exponentially, and this is especially true among women business owners because the number of women-owned businesses is growing. According to the 2015 State of Women-Owned Businesses Report, “the number of women-owned businesses grew by 74 percent between 1997 and 2015. That’s 1.5 times the national average of business growth to be exact,” and Avant-Garde Women will service that market and need.
“I have a passion and a purpose for helping women who are in business for themselves because we are one and the same. It is already difficult as a business owner, and there are additional challenges that many women in business face; one of those being a lack of exposure. That is where we help them bridge that gap.”
For more information on Lisa Williams and AvantGardeWomen.com, please visit www.avantgarde.com or call 866-386-2636.
About Lisa Williams
Lisa Williams is president of Authority Book Consulting, LP and its new division, AvantGardeWomen.com. Williams is a best-selling author, speaker and media strategist who helps professionals stand out among their competition by leveraging media platforms and becoming a published author to grow their businesses. She specializes in helping women become doyennes — women who are the most respected or prominent persons in a particular field.