If you’re an entrepreneur, chances are you started your business because you love performing your service or making your products. Small business owners are great at offering a particular solution to their customers. But marketing their businesses? Not so much.
That’s where Creative Allies comes in. This certified, minority-owned, multicultural marketing agency focuses on content generation and much more for small companies.
“We deal with business owners who are excellent at their craft, but may not know how to market themselves,” said Amie Thompson, President and CEO of Creative Allies since 2018. “Small business owners often don’t know how to grow their businesses and meet potential clients through marketing; they want to be focused on their expertise. We know how to help them do just that.”
Headquartered in Raleigh, Creative Allies serves the entire U.S., with 70 percent of their clients being located in the southeast. The company offers a wide range of marketing services to grow business brands, including web design, graphic design, content marketing, podcasting, fan engagement, event marketing, videography, and market research.
This innovative company has represented some of the biggest entertainment and sports names in the business, including Eminem, Selena Gomez, and Twenty One Pilots, to name a few. Since 2015, they’ve put their name-brand experience to work for small businesses too. Their typical client is a small business with less than 20 employees that doesn’t have an in-house marketing department.
“Our entertainment marketing heritage has enabled us to work with the coolest brands in the world,” Thompson said. “We create best practices from the lessons learned over our 10+ year history. Our goal is to connect our clients with their buyers, fans, and followers to enhance their brand story. We can come in and help take the marketing and branding off their plate so they can grow their businesses.”
Creative Allies is partnering with the 2022 PrideLife Expo to provide live streaming of the event for people who can’t attend in person so they can take part virtually. They’ll be doing interviews with exhibitors and covering the speakers at the Expo, who will include Governor Roy Cooper, Secretary of State Elaine Marshall, and the City of Raleigh’s Director of Diversity Equity and Inclusion Dr. Aretina Hamilton.
Thompson explained why her company decided to provide its service at a discount for the Expo, “We do a lot of work with nonprofits, which are focused on helping people and don’t have a lot of money to do marketing. This is an exciting event that will give us an opportunity to help the community. Why would I not want to be part of that?” she laughed. “It’s always great to meet a new group of people. You never know when you’re going to meet someone interesting, so I’m delighted to be part of the Expo.”
Diversity and inclusion is a core value of the company, but rather than being an intentional practice, it’s just a natural extension of who Thompson is and what she believes, and it’s reflected both in her team and in the brands they promote.
“It’s so important to see people who look like you represented. And it’s important for us to use images in our clients’ marketing and branding that show a diverse audience. When we see something on a client’s website that isn’t diverse, we mention it,” she noted.
Thompson has an internal team of seven creatives, and uses a network of partners and freelancers on larger, specialized projects, enabling them to scale up when they need to. Because of their flexibility, their client partners see them as a one stop shop where they can get any of their needs met.
To learn more about Creative Allies and its services, visit https://creativeallies.com. To learn more about the 2022 PrideLife Expo and register to attend, go to www.PrideLifeExpo.org. The Expo will be held on April 2 at the McKimmon Center in Raleigh from 9 am to 3 pm, and is free and open to the public.