Today we’d like to introduce you to Randi Skinner.
Randi, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I graduated from the University of North Texas with a B.B.A. in Entrepreneurship. From that point on, I threw myself into the Denton business and nonprofit scene. When I’m not chasing my daughter around or hanging out with my husband and a glass of wine on the patio, you’ll probably find me volunteering some time to the town I love the most – Denton. Here are a few of the things I’m involved in with my fellow Dentonites:
Denton Chamber of Commerce Board Member
Member of Denton Rotary
Denton Parks Foundation Board Member
Denton Young Professionals Past President
University of North Texas Alumni Committee Member
Denton Community Development Advisory Committee
Wellness Alliance for Total Children’s Health, Social Committee Co-Chair
As a Rotarian, service above self is just what we do, and there’s no better place to make an impact than in your own community. As a third-generation entrepreneur, I was inspired to one day own my own business. I just wasn’t quite sure what it looked like.
In the early part of my career, I honed in on my sales and business development skills. My first “real job” was working for Cutco knives (literally the best knives in the world). I could cut a penny with their famous super shears like a champ. Cutting a penny was part of the sales pitch y’all. This is where I first learned about the importance of referrals and how to build a business based upon relationships and focused sales goals. Who knew that the skills I first learned here would impact the trajectory of my entire career? It taught me to be a connector to forge those relationships that mattered and to learn how to get people what they need and not just what I want.
Over the first ten years of my career, I focused on business development. Building relationships with clients and helping find the right solution to solve their problem was my day-to-day. I first learned about my love and nack for marketing when I was working for a local marketing agency as their business development rep. See, back in my day (lol). There wasn’t a degree for social media, email marketing, or website design. But what I discovered was that my ability to build relationships with clients allowed me to tell their story through their marketing efforts.
My first love when it came to marketing was social media. The way a business could build community on social platforms and how individuals could use it as a tool to become a subject matter expert just by sharing content… well, it just rocked. A lot has changed over the years when it comes to social media and marketing. It can be hard to keep up, but the potential is endless.
During my time as a business development expert, I began to take on more project management and marketing initiatives for clients, and my love for creating a stellar strategy for small business owners grew. It was like I was able to take everything I had learned over the course of my career and apply it throughout each project. So fun, right?!
I had become a connector over the years. I am literally the person that people call when they have a problem or a need of any sort because they know that, if I can’t help them with it, then I find someone who can. I was solving problems and making marketing awesomesauce like a champ. I spent years doing this type of work for other people’s businesses and had been thinking about my roots and that entrepreneurial spirit, trying to determine what that path looked like for me.
The catalyst for taking the leap to start my own business came after I had my daughter Easton. Wanting to really take advantage of having more flexibility gave me The boldness I needed to step out and launch RS Consulting. So here I was with a four-month-old, a new puppy, and a burning question: why not now?
A year later, I’ve filled my book of business and am typically only taking on clients on a case-by-case basis as a project finishes. It’s been a whirlwind of epic wins, a few setbacks, and an uphill climb toward that dream empire of mine. It’s coming!
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I can’t imagine any business owner using the word “smooth” to describe their journey. But what it has been is a welcomed challenge, fulfilling, and a ton of fun. I have found a sense of gratitude for what I’ve been able to build over the course of this business-owner journey, and I couldn’t have done it without the support of my community and my tribe.
In the beginning, one of the greatest struggles was knowing when to say no or even “fire” a client, lol! See, the thing is, as business owners, we really shouldn’t work with just anyone. There are certain folks we’re going to mesh with better than others, folks who need us the same way we need them because we can create the greatest impact for them. Defining the scope of a project and learning more about the business before I ever take on a project has been a great growth opportunity. Not just taking on any project because I am trying to build my book of business, ya know? The thing is, we all know that those small accounts take up just as much time as the big ones, so being intentional about the people and projects I work with has allowed me to be more effective as I grow my business. I love how I get to help business owners, and I have the best clients!
Sometimes I feel like one of my greatest challenges is just getting in my own way – who can relate? I always joke that, about once a month, I start to question if this is the work I should be doing, then I go pull a campaign report and see all the data that confirms yep, you’re in the right place, lol! Data and I have a love-hate relationship, y’all.
Finding a balance between work life and personal life as a mom, wife, and business owner can also be challenging. Setting boundaries for time to myself or my family has been critical for ensuring I have that good mental health vibe going on. That’s where making sure I only take on those clients I want to work with comes in handy too so that I’m not wasting my energy somewhere that I shouldn’t be.
RS Consulting – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
RS Consulting is the go-to for small business owners who have a limited budget and either don’t have time to handle their own marketing efforts or just aren’t quite sure how to get started. My mission is to help my clients go from hot mess to industry success one marketing initiative at a time. We are known for bringing ideas that don’t suck to the table.
The foundation of marketing success for our clients is built on two key areas: using data to support decisions and strategically prioritizing initiatives to maximize results within a limited marketing budget. Our favorite clients are the ones who have a great idea but just aren’t sure where to start or how they are going to implement it. We love to get in there and get to work building up that awesome idea. Our services include everything from developing social media and email marketing campaigns to creating a lead generation process, designing a website that works, and developing a digital marketing strategy that is scalable. Check out our services here to learn a bit more.
Taking on branding projects has been a focus lately. We love building a brand. The content, the visuals—it’s just exciting! Helping our clients tell their story and defining not just their vibe (AKA their brand persona) but also identifying their tribe (their target customers) is where we start. Marketing can feel overwhelming for a lot of business owners, but the reality is that there are only certain solutions and tools that are the right fit for your business. Focusing in and defining who you want to work with, your ideal client is one of the essential steps in determining which marketing tools would be the right fit for your strategy.
One of our niche areas is business events. I mean, who doesn’t love a good party, right? We believe that every event your business hosts or attends is filled with marketing opportunities. Brand awareness, lead generation, and relationship management are just waiting to be tapped. Whether you’re hosting a grand opening or ribbon cutting and need to add a fun branded experience for attendees (including those virtual attendees), or you’re planning for a tradeshow, we can handle preparation and planning all the way to post-event wrap up. Right now, we’re working on putting together some creative virtual events to accomplish these goals for clients. We can’t wait to launch the drive-by ribbon-cutting one of our clients will be hosting. We’ve definitely found ways to get creative throughout COVID.
These are the types of projects where we’re doing all the heavy lifting, but for some of our clients, they have the ability to implement marketing strategies internally but need a little cheerleading, brainstorming, or direction along the way. For those clients, we provide one-on-one marketing coaching where we can be a sounding board, helping a business owner walk away with actionable next steps.
A bonus area for our clients is that we specialize in connection. We pride ourselves in finding solutions for our clients, but sometimes, we’re not the right fit, or what they’re looking for just isn’t something we can provide. After more than a decade in the Metroplex, I’ve worked hard to connect to as many people as I can. I love being the bridge between people who need each other, and I’m always super stoked to see introductions turn into big wins for both parties.
What moment in your career do you look back most fondly on?
The proudest moment of my career was celebrating RS Consulting’s one year anniversary. Since COVID prevented the party, we had planned we had a blast with a birthday photoshoot. I am proud I was bold enough to take the leap to become a business owner. I am grateful for the personal and professional growth that the first year brought and I am looking forward to the opportunities ahead.
Who else deserves credit – have you had mentors, supporters, cheerleaders, advocates, clients or teammates that have played a big role in your success or the success of the business? If so – who are they and what role did they plan / how did they help.
I’ve definitely had a ton of supporters and cheerleaders along the way. I have to give a big shout out to my husband Aaron who helped me find the confidence to launch RS Consulting. He’s my biggest fan and cheerleader, and I couldn’t build the empire without him.
Someone who stepped up and mentored me as I was planning on taking the leap is fellow business owner Heather Steele. Heather runs her own marketing shop: Blue Steele Solutions. Not only did she encourage me, but she also shared her knowledge and resources to help me get things off the ground. Because of that support, I feel like I was able to skip a couple of steps along the way and have more direction as I built my business.
The list of folks is endless, and the number one thing I work hard to remember is to keep paying it forward. I will always step up to help support my fellow start ups and mompreneurs as they are launching their businesses or coming up with their Big Idea.
Contact Info:
- Website: ideasthatdontsuck.com
- Email: randi@ideasthatdontsuck.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ideasthatdontsuck/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ideasthatdontsuck
- Other: https://linktr.ee/ideasthatdontsuck
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