The Dogwood Media Solutions Podcast

#023 - What Does a Director of Client Relations Do?

November 07, 2023 Dogwood Media Solutions, LLC Season 1 Episode 23
The Dogwood Media Solutions Podcast
#023 - What Does a Director of Client Relations Do?
Show Notes Transcript

Instead of trying to explain all the things that Steve Robinson does for us here at Dogwood, we thought it would be easier to just have him sit down with our Owner and CEO and Brian Harris and talk all about it!

Links:
https://dogwoodmediasolutions.com/staff/steve-robinson
https://dogwoodmediasolutions.com/staff/brian-harris

Learn more about Dogwood at DogwoodMediaSolutions.com. At our site, you can learn more about our staff, and the services we offer. Don't forget to check out our blog full of information while you are there. You'll also find links where you can follow us on social media and become an insider to really see what it's like at Dogwood.

Learn more about Dogwood at DogwoodMediaSolutions.com. At our site, you can learn more about our staff, and the services we offer. Don't forget to check out our blog full of information while you are there. You'll also find links where you can follow us on social media and become an insider to really see what it's like at Dogwood.

On this week's podcast, we're talking to our special guest, Steve Robinson, all about what it means to be a director of client relations here at Dogwood. We're going to have all kinds of interesting facts you'll learn about his job, so definitely make sure you tune in for today's podcast. Hi, and welcome to the Dogwood Media Solutions podcast. I'm your host Brian Harris, and in today's episode I have Steve Robinson who's our Director of Client Relations, and we're going to be talking about what does a client relations director do. So Steve, welcome to the podcast. Well, thank you. Glad to be here. Alright, well, so I guess the first question, let me give I guess some more background. I try to jump the gun sometimes. So you came to us as you were the director of development at the Montgomery Area Food Bank, but even before that I've known you probably, I mean, I moved back to Montgomery in 2005 and I was working at Taylor Road starting in 2008. Yeah. That's when we first met. I said somewhere between 2005 and 2008 I met you because you were serving at a church at Eastmont Baptist here locally as their youth minister there at that point. And then you had a couple other jobs since then. So. Yeah, over at Eastmont, one of the things I had the pleasure of doing was the Citywide Youth Ministry Network. And so when we did large events like Disciple Now Weekend, we're all the time looking for places that had quality technical help. They came to Taylor Road a lot. I, I guess that was a good thing. There was a Brian Harris that was there and he was so good at what he did. You probably knew when he came over there I was going to get it done because. Absolutely, I. Took pride in what I was doing and I enjoyed doing it there. And it was part of my job. I was doing the marketing for the church but also doing the technical direction and I liked to keep things clean and I like to have a good time doing it. So it was. Well, you did an excellent job because as a youth pastor, I had own disciple now weekend at Eastmont Baptist, so I had all those duties that were going on and then trying to head up the larger big group event. And so when I had other people that were handling the technical things, I didn't have to, I came in, I knew the PowerPoint was going to be right. We knew the audio was going to be right, lighting was going to be right. I remember when Eric and then later Keaton, there were our two youth ministers at Taylor Road when I was there and they would come in and like, Hey, yeah, they wanted to do it at Taylor Road. And I said, sure. I was like, well you didn't think you needed to contact me and ask me if we could do this, and I could have had something going on. And he's like, do you have anything going on? I was like, no. I was like, I'm doing AD now That weekend now it was okay. I was fine. But once I got over the initial shock, I think I was I tech guy, you talked to your tech guy and they're like, oh man, now I got to do that. But then I always loved the weekends though because we normally had a really cool band in there. We had a good speaker that would come in and we have four or 500 students, sometimes more than that coming in and it was just a fun weekend. And so even if there was some additional stress of having to get the room ready and then the lead up to it and everything else like that, it was still fun in the end. And a lot of students, I mean a lot of lives are changed when those weekends happen. Absolutely. And people don't know what goes on behind the scenes. And what I did know was that what it took for you to set all that up, run the event for us on the technical side, but then you had to put everything back for Sunday morning. Oh yeah. That was my Saturday night and I was very particular about how Wired ran. And so everyone's like, oh, it'll only take you hours. No, it's going to take me four hours. I said, I tape everything down. I was like, I do not want anyone to get hurt up on this stage. And so my wire management was superb back then. I don't think I would do that nowadays. I don't have the knees to get down and tape floors like that anymore. So that was definitely for that season of life. But that's how we met. I met you. You were so excellent at. What you did. I appreciate that. So good. Look at you. Alright, so you're also later on you went to Center Point, which is another church here in town and you had many jobs there because that was. When I first went there, I was the site pastor at Cloverdale, so they had multiple campuses around and I got to lead that for a year. All that was so much fun. Then they asked me to come up to the main site and take over their small groups. And. Enjoyed that. There's so many. When I first got there, we ran up to 43 groups. Wow. So I had different, got to have all those relationships with all of those couples who led those. And then in turn I got to spend time in those groups. And they're all also radically different, but they're all were disciple making groups. Well the things, the experiences you had as being a youth minister and then leading the groups or even a pastoring, those things kind of really tie into what you do for us now because your main position is to talk to people. And so you have to be a people person. You have to actually being with people and want to go out and be a people. That's not always my thing. Me personally, I recognize that I have to force myself. And I'm sure there's still aspects of yourself having to do the same thing, but you always have such a positive attitude and just matter what it is, and this is what I've seen from you, and you go in, you're like, this is going to be great. I'm going to have fun. It could be the most boring thing. And you're like, all right, let's do this. Let's walk in here. And even some of the weirdest things I've given you, you're like, all right, I'll take care of it. Well, life is about relationships and by understanding that I look back in my life, the best things ever happened in my life, the highest moments, it was in relationships. The. Lowest moments were in relationships. It was all based on those things that caused the highs and the lows. So life is about relationships. So how I approach it is from truly the positive, Hey, what can we learn here? And through that, I've gotten to know some great people. I really have, I've been blessed. I look back over my life of the people I've been able to meet and talk with. Been blessed living here in Montgomery for 20 years. I never imagined being in this city for 20 years. So where are you originally from? I was born in Foley, Alabama. My dad was a pastor, so we lived up in Huntington, West Virginia for about five years during my elementary year. So I got to do the snow and shoveling snow during the. Winter. I'm not jealous at all. I promise none. I'm Alabama all the way through. So that. And then sixth grade all the way through being a senior, it was in Baldwin County area. Okay. My dead pastor down there. And so had a unique background. Oh, just old country boy. All in all, I grew up fishing and hunting and doing all the country boy stuff, pitching watermelons, being paid on the side to do that, bailing hay. And now I found that I actually enjoy living in the city. And you got a nice little house with a pole and everything. You just living the high life over there. Also, you have two girls that are already grown. I do. My oldest is Jordan. She is 27, married, lives up in Alabaster. She's a school teacher up in the Jefferson County schools. And she has my first grandson who is four months old. Wow. That's very new. Still. Very much so He's developing every day. It's absolutely amazing. And you have another daughter also too? Yes, I do. jc she is 23 and actually she's 24. I apologize. 24. And she lives out in Dallas with her husband. And. She is an office manager for a dental group over there. Awesome. And then you have a son? I do. Little Joseph is four years old. That's always a very interesting story, but you don't have to go into details on that, but you have a 27, a 24, then a four year old. So you have to kind of reset your whole life, your whole personal life. When Joseph came around more than one ways, because in my notes I literally wrote down that you're an advocate for Down syndrome and so. Correct. And Joseph has been this special kid for y'all. He was. Our surprise blessing as my wife calls him. Yeah. And 2018 was such a walk of faith for us. It started with my sister-in-Law moving down with us and didn't realize that she was an addict at that time. And. To see her, matter of fact, in January of 24, she'll be six years sober. That's. Awesome. And we could not be more excited about what God's doing in her life and how she's a big advocate for Bradford here in Alabama. Man, it's just amazing. So she stayed here now too? Yeah, she lives up in Birmingham, has a great job up there and from sponsoring others and speaking at Bradford and other AA events all the time. And she is incredible the way she does. And so we started 2018 walking through being a pastor, I knew a lot about abuse of substances, but never have walked it personally before. And so it was a very eyeopening thing. And to go through that. And then all of a sudden my wife was sick for six weeks and she changed her diet three times and we finally went, she might be. Pregnant. Dunno. Then Joseph came in, he had Down syndrome you like, okay, how do we walk through life with a special needs child in her home? And we learned a ton of things and because of that I was like, God, I do not, I don't have the bandwidth to be able to have another group of friends that I'll need to get the support and things. And I really did through that. I've met some great families. And. My wife has been more active in that on a national level. So we've been very blessed with him. He keeps us on our toes. People say it'll make you feel young and that is incorrect because every time I get off the floor I'm like, yeah, I'm not young. Yeah. I mean I can believe me, I understand. I don't know if I can get on the floor at this point. It's like, I love you man, but come up here. So we've been blessed. Our time at CenterPoint was absolutely fantastic because we were going through that in 2018. That's where I was. And had so much support from just the members of the congregation, the staff, we were absolutely blessed. Got to see a lot of great things. Matter of fact, the new building that they have up there in Prattville. You were super involved in that. I. I think I slept through a staff meeting. Next thing I was a staff liaison. I'm like, I'm not real sure, but I got to learn a lot of wonderful things about construction. And. Craig Clement, who is one of the founding elders there, he and I got to work together on it. And such a great man. Just a great man of faith. And so to be able to spend time with some quality individuals, their elders or just people in the congregation who had the skillset to understand the blueprints, all the plumbing and the electric and the fire, all the things I had no idea go into a building and got to be on the front and center of those things and make some decisions, sometimes way outside my understanding God gave us credible understanding knowledge of things that we didn't even know. And so God was so into that. Well, I think. That it shows you literally because of your ability, like you talked about, just to be able to go and talk to folks. Because that's a lot of what y'all are doing as a liaison is you're having to keep up with all these different things happening there with the building being made. And then there's so many different contractors that come through and you're building relationships because that's a big deal because I've seen houses before where people never go and check on. And there's a difference between that person's house and then the one that the person's checking on their house every day being built. When we built our house, we were out there every two to three days. And there sometimes I'd show up at the house with a broom and I would come in there and even while the workers were there, and I'd go in there and start sweeping up trash because I was setting up the tone for this is what I expect this to be kept. And I've been in people's houses where they open up walls and there's trash piled inside there that's not inside my house because they kept, I stayed on top of it. And basically you were in that role, you were staying on top of it there. Excuse me. Yeah, absolutely. And through it, what we learned, what we got to see, and during that whole time I was, I'm not real sure how I ended up in it, but I was in charge of audio, visual and lighting. So we were set up Breakdown Church for 12 years there at Center Point. And so we were doing that. I would get there at the Marriott at four in the morning and we run three services and I'd leave a little after 1 1 30 and. You'll have to tear it down that same day. So we set up and take down. And so we were doing that while all that other stuff was going on out of it. I got to learn fly drone just because we did that was a ton of fun. So I look back on those experiences and so thankful that God allowed me to go through. And I'm still not really sure why I got to learn all about construction, but hey, I know that now. Well, tell us more about specific things you're doing now for Dogwood. As a director of client relations, my biggest thing is just delving into the relationships of those that we already have and finding other people that we can help. Because the ultimate goal for me in life is to help others. One of the things I enjoy doing, one side things I enjoy doing is officiating. I've been officiating since 2000 and Alabama High School, and it is fun. Matter of fact, I got some new guys that have been around the last probably two, three years, they've been able to pour into and develop and watch them grow as officials and I officiate football, basketball, and baseball. And. So to be able to watch these guys grow in that, and that's what I enjoy bringing to Dogwood is how can I help? I just don't want to go out there and build a website just to be building a website. I just don't want to sell just to sell. I want to go out there. I want to help people in their business do how they have goals that God's given them. How can I partner with them to help them achieve what God has shown them in visions of what their company can be? And that was one thing that was really important to me. I think when we first started talking, I was like, I don't want this to be a sales position. Meaning yes, there is some selling to it. I mean, ultimately that's how we are a business. We have to sell, but I want to build relationships and also want to make sure, I want to be able to sleep at night and make sure that we're actually putting people in the right things. And so if they need a website, then yeah, let's do a website. But sometimes we're not the right fit and we haven't been afraid to tell people like, okay, that's your budget. Well let us help you find the right solution for that. but we know where to send it to you and who to connect you with. And I think that's a big difference between us and a might try to shove you into a round hole in You're a square peg, I don't want to do that. I know where the square peg hole is. Let's go take you over there and get you into the right spot. And on the flip side, when you asked me to come on board with you, that was the important part. I didn't want just a sales job. I wanted to be able to develop relationships and needed help, to not force upon them, Hey, listen, you got to do all these things. And you come in, you're like, Hey, listen, if you need a website, we'll do a website for you. If you need help with social media, we'll do that. But if we don't think you need that, then we're not going to do it. Case in point, we had someone contact us, a church in the local area, and they came in and said, listen, we got the money to do this. And we're like, yeah, we could take your money, but that's not what's going to be best for you. And so we took them somewhere else outside of our own company here at Dogwood to assist them because that was the best thing for them. And that's something I pride myself on. And so I hope when people hear that, that's a real thing. We don't just say that we actually do it. So that part of your job also kind of goes into some of the other things you're doing with us here at Dogwood. So you're involved with the Lions Club? Yes. I've been a part of the Montgomery Lions Club for a year now, and Lions Club's all about service, so I enjoyed that. That's easy. It ties right together. Absolutely. And there's a smorgasbord of people in there from retired judges to current judges to all kind of other business owners. And so it's an impressive conglomerate of great individuals who just love giving back. But the Montgomery Chamber is something that we've had you getting more and more involved in with all the different coffee talks they have going on and ribbon cuttings. And just recently we had Brittany on the podcast from Brittany Bradley from Montgomery Catholic, and that was a big thing for them, the hundred 50th anniversary. And that's been another community thing that you've been doing also too, in this role. It goes back to just the relationships. I enjoy meeting people. So I go to the coffee, the 60 minute coffee, I don't go to everybody. In. The room. No. And that's. Not the point. Some people go in there and they're trying to change and hey, if that's what you want to do, that's fine for me. I just want to get to know people. We had somebody in here the other day that I got first. As soon as I walked in the door, he and I had a 10 minute conversation and we had him in the office the other day talking to us. Ended up in a two hour conversation then. Yes. And we learned a lot about each other out of that too, out of that conversation. Because again, we didn't sell a product on that day on Friday, but none. That was never our goal. It was literally to find out what he's doing And what we could do. And then we walked away from that. Then we didn't sell anything to that gentleman that came in here, but we built a relationship with him. And I feel like even if we're not the right person for him, he's going to go around and tell other people about us. And that's exactly what I wanted you to do. And so that's what came out of that coffee talk was being able to go in and have that 10 minute conversation, which turns into a bigger conversation. Then down the road, hopefully it turns into business. I'd love it to. But I mean, it is one of the byproducts of doing that versus the actual goal, I guess you could say. Yeah. In a relationship based life that we live, you earn a reputation. And so I know what you desire your reputation to we want to come and assist people. We're not trying to come out there and just make money because you could, but you're not doing it that way. I mean, you're going out there to assist. I mean, there's some things that you do that I know about that cost you money, but you're okay with that because you know that it's helping. I know some other things that you do here and how you give back to other people do not know. And that's why I like being here. That's the reason why you and I have always clicked wherever we've been. Because. We're very similar in how we approach people. It's not about what I can get from you, it's what I can help you with. I've struggled with that too, because I've had some of our people here, they're like, why aren't you telling people who do this? And I was like, it's not for everyone to know. That's right. And I'm okay with that. And that's a biblical approach. Don't let your right hand know what your left hand's doing. Yep. B and I, that's another thing that you've been getting involved into. This is a recent one that, yeah. It's the Business Network International. And I didn't realize a whole lot about it until we had a friend of ours get me in, and basically it's just a network to be able to help each other with business because everyone in their circle of influence, they'll find people, there's somebody on there that does mortgages, there's somebody that does sprinklers. There's all kind of different areas within this one chapter of BNI, and it allows them when they run across someone that needs help with a website, Hey, we need to call Steve so we can help our friend out or someone we know about this. And if I know there's somebody that needs help with handyman services, there's somebody in there that does that. There's somebody that sells insurance. There's someone that does wealth management, a wide variety of, we even have a personal chef that's in there. That's. Cool. So yeah, there's all kind of things that we got to do. And I'm thankful Dogwood for allowing me to be a part of this as I get to, again, it's about relationships. And so matter of fact, one of the ladies takes a lot of photography. Matter of fact, at the Down Syndrome, yearly walk we do over at Faulkner, she came over and took a ton of pictures for us, and I would not have had that relationship if I hadn't have been a part of B and I. That's awesome. So that was one of the things I was going to say, because B and I is so closely aligned with the things we're already doing here at Dogwood, because you go in there and I believe I've been there a couple of the meetings, I haven't been as consistent as you have been because this is what you get to do. But you literally sit down and get to know people at your table, and they're very intentional on getting to know them. So you have those 10 minute talks where you get to learn about their business and about their personal life. So again, when we run into other people that we run into and they're like, I don't know who to trust to do this. You're like, oh, I actually know someone. He's part of my group. He does financial planning and you need to go talk to him. And so that's great about being yesterday, y'all played in a golf tournament. That's part of your job. You get to go play golf. It's part of your job. And that was for one of our clients for Trek International. They had a great golf tournament helping them to raise funds for some of the mission work. And so you and Mr. Bob and Brett and Jesse went up there and played some golf yesterday. How'd it go? We did. Well, Brett and Jesse played some golf. I'm not real sure what I did in the process up. Oh, I drove your dad around. That's exactly what I got to do. I chuffed him all over the course. Well, at least y'all had fun and y'all got to go out there and again, meet people and do a community. And the great. Thing about it is I knew probably half the people that were there. Just. From ministry over the years and things. And now they know you're of Dogwood too. So maybe it helps open up some conversations. On that. Absolutely. And again, it's all about relationships, learning to understand people, and when they get to trust you, when you go somewhere they want to, oh, wow, okay. Steve's doing that. If he's doing that, it's going to be a good thing. But I know right now one of our new things we're getting in place just ordered the T-shirts for it and everything else. We have a day of service. And you're coordinating that as part of your job. Also too. I think it's important to give back. And. When I talked to you and I brought this up to you and say, Hey, listen, do we do this? You're like, we have over the time. And. So for us to be able to organize this, where, and I'll just go ahead and say this is that you're going to do it during work hours? Oh, yeah. So our employees, when we go out to a nonprofit and we volunteer on that day for three to four hours, they're actually being compensated for that. So technically, Brian, you're losing money on that day. I know. But you're giving back. And so I'd love the opportunity to give back. And the whole hope here is that people take that as a life mission to serve and that so many people get involved in churches and they never give all, they go in there is a take, and then they wonder why their experiences isn't the same as others. It's like, well, you get what you put into it. Right. Well, as part of this role that you're doing for Dogwood, have you set any goals for yourself for this next year. Long-term goals? Honestly, I want to walk away and in 2024 at the end of it, I would like to look back and see not the sale numbers. As. Many companies and individuals have been able to help watch them grow. Case in point, the one relationship we've had of late with a local company to watch, I want to see them in 2024, how successful they're able to become. I know the goals they have. And they have a lot of potential in this company if we're talking about the same one. It's a growing company that's got all kinds of things they're doing, and we're just at the very beginning of that relationship with them, so. Correct. And then there's another individual that we're going to help with the whole shebang for social media and website and all. And I know the goal he has, he's told me this is what I want to do with my business. And to know that we're able to come beside them to help him grow. And then we can see too, hey, how did we assist him to reach and attain what he feels that God has given him for him and his family to reach as far as a financial goal? And I want to be able to help people do that. And we do more than just help local businesses. We help nonprofits. We help a lot of churches as well. And so when I walked in to know how much you give back, because you don't charge us the nonprofits as much as you charge a regular business. I know. I know. But the truth is, is that you have a huge heart and you give, and I've seen that for years, and to be behind the scenes with you at Dogwood to see how you invest in your employees, how you're kind and gracious to them oftentimes when it, which is what Grace is. But I've also watched how you invest in other people as far as outside the company, to have someone that you've done a podcast recently with someone who came in. I mean that relationship, to have that conversation with you guys and see how close y'all were, even though she's no longer with us here at Dogwood and at a local organization, it's just great to see. That's a personal pride for me. Truthfully, this sounds weird. Most people don't want to see their employees leave, but when I have an employee leave, I'll go ahead and say, it was Brittany from Montgomery Catholic when she left, and I talked about this in the podcast. I was super proud for her beyond just the making money or her doing graphic design, her career furthered. It got her back into the spot that she was supposed to be in, and that's bigger about what we're doing here to me than making money. That was cool. And she'll tell you, there was things that she learned here at Dogwood that she didn't have before because she was a graphic designer. She had ran her own business before, but it was all in graphic design. But as a full rounded marketing person, hopefully, and I think she would say yes, that she was able to learn things here, that she was able to apply there at Montgomery Catholic, and she's continued to grow. They're doing some really cool things over there too, and it's because she's over there with them, and she was absolutely the best fit for that. That makes me so excited when to see her succeeding. So. Yeah, you and I had this discussion a couple of weeks ago about where people who have come through Dogwood and where they're at today, and it was a, you look like a dad. They were so proud of their kid for excelling in something because you began to name names and what they did here and what their growth was and then what they were able to accomplish after they left Dogwood. Yeah, sometimes it does feel like a dad thing, I guess maybe. I don't know. Well. That's. True. It's been fun. I will say. So I'll go back to questioning you instead of talking about me, but this is so much fun. It is. I'll say this, when I came as a director of development over at the food bank, when I walked in, they didn't have a development department really. So we set all that up. So I walked in and I was so busy doing so many other things that I didn't know what SEO was. I didn't know what SEM was. When I began to hear all those things, my mind was boggled. I'm trying to hear it all. People are coming in, they're doing all these sales pitches, and it didn't really help me. I bring from a different viewpoint, not that I am a guru when it comes to all the digital marketing, but I can explain it in a way that people understand it because I've been in their seat where they're trying to make a good decision. They have a budget they're trying to stick with without the same time they're trying to get on the first page of Google. Right. Has that been the biggest challenge, learning our terminology and learning about the different things that we have here, or has there been other challenges in this role so far? The challenges really is how do we take what we do and craft it into what people need? Because it's not a cookie cutter approach. That's not how Dogwood is. And so now how do I help this? When they come in, they sit down and they talk to me. I got somebody that's going to be calling me this week and they need a video. Well, the video could be two different ways, so what is going to be the best for them? How. Do they really want to approach this? And so learning to ask the right question so we'll know which way to go. So far, you're still very new in this position. Has there been a big win so far that you would say that you're just like, oh, that was a good day. There's been many good days. Okay. Yes, they playing golf is great. I'm not sure it was, I'm not a golf player or I would've loved to have been out there, but I'm sure still to be able to go out there and be with folks, that's a lot of fun. Well, for me, even this morning when I walked in, now I have a relationship with Brett and Jesse and your dad that I didn't have before and because I got to spend five hours with them yesterday. And. That's one thing I do enjoy about golf. It's not always about whether you do well or not, it's about spending time with people. So to go through and walk through with people to see what we can help them accomplish through digital media. Because nowadays in our society, before they go out to a restaurant, before you go out to anywhere, the first thing you do is you open up the browser or an app or something and you look, Hey, tell me the ratings on this place. Where do they rank? How are they? And the first thing you do is you want to look at their website. You want to know what you're getting into. It. Tells a story, and it can make your brand look good, or it can make it look bad all at the same time. Correct. Correct. Well, I know we've definitely ran over time this week, but that's okay. I think this has been a great conversation. I've enjoyed it. So I do want to say it. If you like what you're hearing here on our podcast, you can definitely head over to our website@dogwoodmediasolutions.com. You can check out all of our podcasts there. Also, we also blog content there that we talk about a lot of these different subjects we're talking about here on our podcast every week. We give it all away there on the blog pretty much and tell you about everything we do and how you can do it yourself. Of course, we definitely would love to help you with that in any way possible. But check out the blog when you're looking for any kind of resources there. We've tried to classify it where it's easy to find different things there. If you're wanting to connect with us, if you want to basically make a call or you want to email us, go to our website. That Dogwood Media Solutions or the short version is DOG wd.com, which is just all good about the O'S in the wood. You can go there and you can also find out ways to contact us through our website. If you haven't already, definitely please so you'll get automatic notifications every time we post a new one. Also, if you could leave a review and tell us what you think about the things we're talking about in our podcast, you can find us on all of your favorite podcast platforms no matter where you're listening to it now. Basically, you can go to any other one. You're going to be able to find it just by typing in Dogwood Media Solutions. Again, I'd just like to thank Steve for joining me here today. Enjoyed having you on the podcast. Well, I love being here. Well, thanks for tuning in for the Dogwood Media Solutions podcast, and until next time, happy marketing.