89: Fabiana Meléndez on Diversity, Digital and Client Expectations

Does every publicist have the glam life of Samantha on Sex in the City? No, says Fabiana Meléndez along with every other publicist in the world. How to implement diversity marketing? What is holistic account management? How can you manage your clients’ expectations? Fabiana Meléndez has the answers. A successful publicist, she considers herself as part of the new school of PR, martinis included. Listen to this episode to learn more about Fabiana Meléndez’s unique insights into the ever-changing industry. In this episode of the Social PR Secrets Podcast, host Lisa Buyer talks with expert publicist Fabiana Meléndez. When running accounts at the Austin-based boutique agency, she believes in a combination of PR and digital. She says that while some clients just sign for either one, she emphasizes the symbiotic relationship of both. Additionally, Fabiana Meléndez highlights the importance of diversity marketing and holistic account management. Listen to this episode to determine what those terms mean and why you should implement them in your work. Holistic Account Management 101 One of Fabiana Meléndez’s constant goals is to achieve the perfect implementation of holistic account management. She explains that PR professionals are often focused on their external role, on making the clients happy. In turn, they often forget about the internal running of their agency. To her, if you make sure that you put the same amount of attention and bring the same energy internally as you do externally, everything will run smoothly.  Here are Fabiana Meléndez's top 3 tips for implementing holistic account management! 1. Communicate, communicate, communicate While this might sound like silly advice, Fabiana Meléndez says that internal communication is hard to implement when there is so much going on. She advises you always double-check all your lines of communications to make sure no message is left unresponded.  2. Smile Bringing in a smile, even on the hardest days, allows you and your coworkers to be excited about the job. Fabiana Meléndez says, “Sometimes we get addicted to the stress. But take a step back, smile at yourself and others, and think about what you’re excited to accomplish.” We couldn’t have said it better! 3. Set boundaries Make sure you set boundaries with clients. Fabiana Meléndez advises not to answer after hours or on the weekend, except for actual emergencies. She explains that if clients feel like it’s okay to call you late, they will do the same with your entire agency.  Avoiding Diversity Marketing Mistakes Since the Black Lives Matter protests started in June, companies have all wanted to promote how diverse they are. Fabiana Meléndez makes diversity one of her priorities. She is one of few Latin women in PR. S