Nia Long. Anderson Cooper. Iyanla Vanzant. Nikki Giovanni, and just about every other major celebrity with a life-changing message are clients of the Signature Media Group Speakers Bureau.
Founded by two sisters, Pamela and Agape Redwood (who are both way under 30 by the way), Signature Media Group (SMG) Speakers is a full-service operation that provides promotion, marketing, engagement booking and also event planning services for its A-list clientele.
SMG speakers are nationally recognized individuals who aim to build brand awareness through paid and donated appearances.
Pamela Redwood (the big sister) began her career managing talent. “I worked with a management agency that represented broadcast news anchors and reporters,” Pamela states. “I would get these clients who would say, ‘hey Pam I’ve got this speaking engagement, would you negotiate this deal for me?’ And that’s how it came about, you get these huge deals for your clients and you make them happy and you make the organization happy. It’s like you’re making everyone happy at the end of the day. That’s how we got started.”
Agape Redwood successfully matriculated in the talent side of the industry.
“I’ve been in this business since grammar school, when I did poetry and moved on to competitions, and speaking in different places,” Agape explains. “When I was in high school, I won a scholarship from Operation P.U.S.H. for oratory. In college, I studied journalism and mass communications and I worked for a talent agency that represented anchors and reporters. That really allowed me to see a different side of things.”
Agape continues, “That’s how we really connected to go ahead and work for speakers and to help them to have an outlet to colleges and universities and religious groups all across the globe. It’s very unique how we tied into each other and I think it’s a blessing from God.”
The sisters spoke to rolling out about SMG Speakers bureau and the business of branding.
Why form SMG Speakers Bureau? Did you feel there was a need for better speakers on the circuit?
Pamela: “We have a passion for individuals and one of the ways we can connect with individuals and impact their lives is to have experts go out and speak. We’re creating value, and bringing change into their lives, motivating and inspiring them to do something different. We sit behind a desk every day, but we’re impacting people’s lives from different places across the world by sending our speakers to all of these different organizations.”
Agape: “I think that when it comes to better speakers, we refer to people who are very passionate and have the expertise, to go along with the fact that they’re a speaker. It’s much more than to say, okay we have good speakers. That’s one of our taglines that we always use, there are speakers, and then there are SMG Speakers. And we would like to think of all of our speakers as people who impact lives, engage, inform, and empower. We have some of the best speakers. We don’t represent the most, but we’d like to think that we represent the best.”
What are you looking for in your talent?
Pamela: “They are not about just getting the check. They’re not about just trying to get on television, or getting in front of an audience, we want to create value in audiences across the world. And some of the people that we look at are people who are passionate about their message, who have the experience, and who really relate to individuals.”
With such major celebrities, how do you control rock star/drama queen behavior or no-shows when booking them for events?
Agape: “We like to cater to their needs. We cater to our clients as well as to our speakers.”
Pamela: “And we also do background checks. Like Agape said, we represent the best, not the most. Our people complement our organization.”
What are some things that you consider red-flags when people approach you for representation?
Agape: “There are people who have reached out that we honestly do not want on our roster. A characteristic that would not be complementary to our roster is negativity surrounding a particular individual, or certain behavior traits that are not necessarily a complement to their lifestyle is a red flag. Our speakers should be role models and empowering. If you’re not empowering people, if you’re not trying to create value, then we do not want you on our roster.”
How does one discover his/her platform?
Pam: “What is your experience? Know what you’re passionate about; that helps you to nail down who you want to target and the audience you’re trying to reach.”
Agape: “When you’re looking for your platform, and you’re really looking for a place to get started and to grow, it’s really tied into your passion. The more you’re really in tuned to what you’re passionate about, the more you can speak upon it; and you’ll have that excitement and enthusiasm for it.”
Pamela: “And understand your brand. Your brand is the way people perceive you. What is your brand? How do people recognize who you are? What is your flavor? People need to know that. A lot of times people are disconnected from their brand because they do something totally different than what they say their brand is. So people need to tie those two together.”
Agape adds that when developing your platform, “it’s good to have a focus; it’s good to have just one brand, like Batman or McDonald’s. Every speaker should have a strong brand.”
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