Carla Williams Johnson is a Media Marketing Specialist based in Trinidad & Tobago. Her 13+ years of experience in creating innovative advertising campaigns, developing creative media executions and advising global, regional and international corporations on where to adequately invest their funds to ensure significant returns, has produced millions of dollars in revenue for companies like Caribbean Bottlers, Unilever, Moo! Milk, Angostura and other innovative start-ups.
She is also a passionate writer having contributed pieces to The Catholic News, Youth Voices Trinidad & Tobago, ET&T Magazine and Abstract Magazine. In 2014, she started a blog, which she has since renamed ‘Carli Speaks’ on her website, where she offers advertising and marketing advice to entrepreneurs and business owners who are interested in promoting themselves in the real world focusing mainly on methods to identify ideal clients, online and offline approaches to boosting visibility and the creation of marketing campaigns designed to increase revenue. Her philosophy is to help you M.A.P out your business through (M)arketing, (A)dvertising and (P)romotion in order to A.M.P up your business through (A)ction, (M)otivation, (P)rogress.
After experiencing both agency life and corporate she realized that there was a need for a true advocate for business men and women who were desirous of promoting themselves. She founded Carli Communications, a boutique agency that gives sound, unbiased advice as to where to invest to truly maximize the advertising dollar with innovative ideas to authentically connect with customers in an ever changing market. Carla provides assistance with development of marketing and advertising strategies, social media management, development and execution of media plans, copywriting and both online and offline approaches to connecting with customers which has resulted in her serving more than 30 clients, companies and personality brands.
She currently serves hundreds of business owners and entrepreneurs from across the globe on her Facebook group “The New SMS: Strategic Marketing Specialists” and provides helpful and actionable tips on advertising and promoting a business. She’s been called ‘The Media Guru’ and her clients are in awe of her warm, friendly personality and her ability to ‘think of innovative, out of the box ideas’ for their business. Her education includes an Associate Degree in Business Administration from The University of the West Indies School of Business and Applied Studies Limited Trading as ROYTEC
and a London Chamber of Commerce and Industry Group Diploma in Advertising, Marketing & Public Relations. She also holds various certificates in Effective Marketing and Sales Management Skills, Multi Media and Human Resource Management.
Carla also gives back to her community by mentoring and using her gifts, talents and abilities to assist where she can. She was recently asked to share her wealth of knowledge at Santa Rosa Lion’s Club, and with the Malabar Secondary School through the World of Work initiative which assists students with preparing themselves for the working world. She has also volunteered with the Roman Catholic Archdiocese through the Archbishop Appeal in assisting with raising hundreds of thousands of dollars to restore the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, a local historic monument.
Carla logs a minimum of five (5) hours per month on personal and professional development education to keep her fresh and motivated in her business and her life and is always on the hunt for fresh, new experiences where she can flex her intuition and common sense. When she’s not working, she can usually be found in the company of her one and only teenage daughter, who is exactly like her mom in looks, personality and tenacity.
We must understand to always come from place of service and never be afraid to truly put ourselves out there.
RB: What are some of the challenges you have faced building a marketing business?
CWJ: I have fallen into trap of trying to give people what they wanted. Sounds crazy I know but it’s true. You will ask people what they want and when you give it to them, they don’t want to pay. I learned that the hard way. I will never forget the call I made to my coach that December morning, crying my eyes out, because I came to the realization that I doing everything right but for the wrong target audience. Marketing to persons who did not have the right mindset and would arbitrarily ask for things that they thought they want but not really ready for. I’ve dealt with persons I affectionately call ‘time wasters’ who are people who keep calling or messaging for advice but won’t actually pay.
I’ve dealt with persons who are actually able to afford my services but aren’t looking for a partner but an employee. My silver lining is that I’ve dealt with many people and the more I put myself out there is the better I became at knowing who I wanted to work with. That’s the trick every business owner and entrepreneur must understand – the more you interact with people, the easier it is to spot the ones who are genuine and who you truly want to work with.
RB: Can you give our readers some basic marketing hacks?
CWJ: Be consistent when putting yourself out there. It’s important to be visible so that people don’t forget you. With so many options out there, you want to be sure that people see, hear and remember you. Share valuable content each and every time. People don’t want to know what you sell, they want to know why they should buy from you. Show them that you understand what they need. Use both online and offline approaches. Use live streams, videos, blogs, posts, etc to get noticed and join groups that are aligned with your brand to share your knowledge and expertise. Truly interact and engage with others and forge real relationships in a virtual world. Also remember to use traditional media, email marketing and even a simple phone call to make contact with persons to get them to know who you are and what you do. Lastly, get a bit of advice: It takes time to build momentum so enjoy the process, learn the lessons along the way and don’t be too hard on yourself.
RB: What direction do you see your business going in?
CWJ: Onwards and upwards is what I always say. In as little as three years Carli Communications will be a global phenom and will be top of mind for business owners and entrepreneurs who want to build their brand. The name would be synonymous with quality, reliability and business owners will be 100% certain they are in good hands. Mark my words……..the sky is the limit.