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Welcome to Brandma’s housea consulting company where personal brands find out how to “grow up”.
These are sensible words Phyllis Williams-Strawder, affectionately called “Brandmother from the Ghetto. She is a visionary branding consultant on a mission to transform business branding practices for her “brand children” around the world. She shared her amazing story and views with Influential restaurateur host Shawn Walchef With California BBQ Media.
In this episode, the psychological marketing specialist and “HBIC” shared her unique—and caring—approach to building a brand through bookssocial media and A show at Brandma’s house. “The ghetto brandmother is a part of me, not the whole of me,” Williams-Strawder wrote on her website. “He takes a bold approach to showing self-aware solopreneurs how to build a scalable brand without changing the code. GCB perseveres where Phyllis says “fuck it.” He cares when Phyllis says “fuck it.” But what we share is our ability to be empathetic and sensitive.”
After a decade of running the popular Bigmista’s Barbecue restaurant with her husband, Neil Strawder, the charismatic “Bigmista” behind the grill, Williams-Strawder has dedicated herself to helping others turn out to be brand leaders.
But years later she began to “drown in my husband’s dreams.” She knew she had a more vital role to play in life than being Mrs. Mista and selling barbecue.
“I felt like I was lost. “Being Mrs. Mista gave me an identity crisis,” Williams-Strawder recalls how in 2018 she decided to leave her role as a restaurant owner. “I assumed, ‘You know what? This is”. I.”
With extensive experience as a former restaurant owner, she has a special interest in helping people realize how much greater their business may be with higher branding.
“Yes, we were a multi-million dollar business. But now when I look back, I see how many hundreds of thousands we left on the table. It’s a hard lesson,” Williams-Strawder said.
“I see people still doing the same things. And while they make money, they can generate revenue… baby… trust and believe you are leaving millions on the table because you are not leveraging your branding and marketing.”
Williams-Strawder understands the critical role that good branding plays in creating lasting customer relationships and building loyalty.
He believes that effective brand building is not only about presenting tasty food and attractive visuals.
“People don’t want your recipes. They want something built on goodwill and longevity,” she explained on the show. “That’s what people tend to buy. And that’s actually the greatest asset you have.”
According to Williams-Strawder, brand loyalty is built by rejecting traditional sales tactics and incentives. Instead, he advocates authentic conversations and authentic connection with prospects to build deep connections.
“It doesn’t have to mean constantly selling or keeping offers in your back pocket,” she said. “I don’t believe in throwing anymore. I believe in conversation.”
In her role as a certified brand strategist and life/business coach, Williams-Strawder encourages people to “own your crazy,” a nod to transparency and authenticity. By owning their unique identity and spreading it around the world, business owners can proceed to build trust with their audiences and create a working balance between personal and business branding.
“Having madness means saying, ‘You know what? We have some character flaws here,’” Williams-Strawder explains. “That’s what you bring to your personal brand.”
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