Cosmos

Welcome back to the show. My fellow extraordinary Americans, today’s guest is Gerri Melitz. Gerri Knilans is the president of Trade Press Services. She has a diverse professional background with over 40 years of experience as a sales and marketing expert, entrepreneur, consultant, author, and educator. ABC, CBS, NBC, and Fox have recognized her as a top marketing communications Professional. 

Since she was 19, her business has helped companies stand out. 25 Trade Press Services has helped clients establish themselves as recognized experts, industry thought leaders, and published authors. In addition to thought leaders, they’ve served dozens of immigration clients and have excellent references as writing experts. 

They handle all the details, pitch ideas to editors, and secure editorial commitments. Interviews, research, writing, editing, and project management. They create topical and engaging pieces and put clients in the best possible light. Gerri is an extracting American, and I’m glad and honored to have her on the show. Gerri, are you there?

Gerri

Much for having me on the show this morning.

Cosmos

Thank you, Jay. I’m honored and glad you took the time to do this podcast with me. So, Gerri, can you tell the audience more about yourself, your background, and how you got started?

Gerri

I am a native Californian, one of the few left, and I was raised in Los Angeles. My parents were college graduates, so I had the value of education growing up. My father told me when I was ready to go to college, the UC campus. Do you want to go to? So that was my only. Joyce, I went to Santa Cruz, UC Santa Cruz, when the school opened many years ago. 

So, you can see that I’m a dinosaur. At Santa Cruz, there was no focus on business. It was all traditional education. And so, I was left to my own devices after I graduated. And somehow, very early on, I discovered that I was not meant for the corporate world. I needed to be an entrepreneur. I needed more freedom. I needed more control. I wanted to be in charge of my destiny.

 So, at 23, I bought a nursery school and owned and operated a nursery school and kindergarten for About five years. I learned business there. I learned about management, and I learned about finances. I learned about marketing. From there, I was invited to join a marketing consulting practice, where I learned much about client servicing. And what do clients want? What do clients need? How do you build relationships? My senior partner mentor gave me a list of 40 guidelines on the first day we started working together on what customer service excellence meant. And that was even before computers. 

We worked together for about ten years, and in 1995, he had the idea for trade press services and asked me if I was interested in it. He said he had paid others thousands of dollars to get it off the ground, and nobody was successful. I had it up and running and profitable within two weeks.

Cosmos

Wow.

Gerri

So that’s my background. In addition to my work, I am an avid duplicate bridge player and world traveler. I love to read, exercise, and be with people.

Cosmos

So, Jay, one of my questions is, from your young age to the moment you started trade press services, what was your strategic vision and goal regarding your life and career, and how did it evolve over the years leading up to that moment?

Gerri

I think I always had a service orientation. I have one son who has become mentally disabled. Because of that, I’ve learned to be more curious, patient, loving, and kind. I wanted that to transfer to my business life, so anything I’ve ever done in business was to be of service. I want to help people accomplish their goals.

Cosmos

So, would you say that this is the motivational factor and the why behind what drives you to do entrepreneurship and business? Or is there something else that pushes you forward even in the face of setbacks?

Gerri

No, I believe in the American way, entrepreneurship, and less government as opposed to more government. So, I always support visionary, creative people looking to accomplish something outside the corporate world. And that’s something that’s very important to me.

 So, I believe that if you have a vision and start to identify the strategies for achieving that vision, you’ll be successful and not. You pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and try something different.

Cosmos

So, Gerri, what you mentioned about vision is so true. We must have a strong vision for our lives. Otherwise, we end up serving somebody else’s dream. But a lot of people never get to realize their dream. 

And during their lifetime because they feel like they cannot do it. Entrepreneurship is one way to do it. You have to start your own business, but many people are afraid to take that leap from the corporate world or the blue-collar world and start their own business. 

So, from your perspective, what mental traits do they need to push themselves and take the risks necessary to follow their dreams?

Gerri

Well, I think you said it. You cannot Be risk averse. You have to be willing to try and fail. And you, I think you need to be able to test concepts, ideas, products, and services, figure out what works and what doesn’t, expand on the ones that work, and discard the ones that don’t. I think you have to be able to see the big picture. 

And yet be able to delegate. An author named Michael Gerber wrote Enith Revisited. I’m not sure if you’re familiar with that book. Still, it’s a fabulous book for entrepreneurs because it discusses three different skill sets: the Visionary, the operational, and the management side. Most people don’t have all three skill sets within their personalities, so they must recruit others to help them achieve their mission and vision.

Cosmos

So, Gerri, there’s a saying, right? For example, when people were mentoring me, they talked about things in order. To succeed you. It would be best if you had discipline and trust among the people you’re working with to get a job done because you cannot do everything by yourself. So, many people are afraid of trusting or delegating because they feel they need to micromanage. 

So, from your perspective, what are the key traits needed to succeed in, like, growing and scaling your business from that point of view?

Gerri

Well, you said it. You have to trust in your people. I have a client who always says trust but verify. I think that if you hire good people, you create a culture of inclusion and engagement. You provide the training and allow them to fail, and that’s how they learn. You have systems and processes to monitor progress toward goals and tweak when necessary.

Cosmos

So, as the continuation of this, Gerri, back in 1995, this person came up to you with the trade press services, and then he said that others had tried and failed. But then, when you went, and you made. It is profitable. If I may ask, what did you do differently that there were others you didn’t do that made it successful?

Gerri

I think I’m a very organized person, so I outline processes and define steps. So, I created a five-step process that I thought would work to get clients’ articles written and published. I’ve tweaked it through the years, but it’s the same. And I think I just have that ability to organize.

Cosmos

So what? I’m getting that an organization with a step-by-step process is the key to success. Well, a lot of people don’t usually have a step-by-step process. They jump into the water when they’re starting a business and then try to figure it out.

Gerri

Oh, unfortunately, you’re correct. And most businesses—I won’t say most—when you’re working with entrepreneurs and solopreneurs, often they don’t have a written marketing plan. And you know, they have it in their head somewhere. The first thing we do when working with clients is ask them if they have a marketing plan. 

We get varying responses, but we encourage clients to follow an 8-step process for developing a marketing plan, including identifying their vision and mission. That’s the first step. The second step is to establish defined, quantifiable goals. The third step is creating the strategies to reach those goals, and under strategies under each strategy, you’re going to have a list of tactics. Do you know what kind of activities will support the strategies that you’re trying for? 

People then fall after that, even if they have a vision, mission, goals, strategies, and tactics, but they forget. About or the? The last four steps. Putting together a budget that supports the plan; if you don’t have the budget, it’s not going to have it and having a schedule. When are you going to do all? Of these things. Then, the responsibilities of the individuals in the organization are assigned to carry out these strategies and tactics. 

The last step is to have a monitoring plan so that you don’t get to the end of the year and realize, “Whoops. We’re not on Target, or it didn’t work, or we didn’t do what we said we were going to do.” So, I think that having a marketing plan is very important for all businesses.

Cosmos

Wow, Gerri. The way you put it down step by step is so interesting because it’s it seems so simple, and yet most people they don’t think in terms like a lot of people I would say not most they don’t think in terms of a step-by-step process to succeed in their business. 

They don’t put the metrics in place, or they don’t have like what you call a vision or a good plan like where. They have, like, they look at the strengths, weaknesses, the budget and all of that stuff, and it’s just like necessary things cause a lot of times like they get caught up in the idea of success or like they have this plan and like they’re in like the honeymoon stage or in the beginning stage. 

But then these are the essential steps you have to take.

Gerri

You’re right.

Cosmos

Yeah, it’s considered when you’re looking at the budget, and you’re looking at that. It’s like the boring steps, but it’s kind of like you’re doing it on a, it’s like the tedious, boring things.

 But it’s like the things that are necessary for large-scale success. And I think at that point you have, like, what do you call the visionary people, and then you have, like? What do you call the generals or the executioners who like make? These things help.

Gerri

Operational the operations staff.

Cosmos

What I noticed, Gerri, is that these are two different people. One person is the visionary. He creates the vision, kind of like Steve Jobs. Then, you have the operational people, and then it’s about these character types working together to make a business successful. People often want to do everything by themselves, and that’s one of the things I’ve noticed.

Gerri

Yes, that’s true. As an entrepreneur, you have to be able to let go and have a staff member who will support you and is interested in helping you achieve your vision. And they get rewarded for that.

Cosmos

So, Gerri, you mentioned that a lot of people, when you’re consulting them, reach step one, step two, and step three, where they have the vision, mission, strategy, tactics, and metrics, right? So, you said that many of them don’t reach step four. 

And if I may ask, what stops them from doing this? Doing steps four and five, and then getting the budget and everything.

Gerri

You know. I think sometimes it comes from a lack of being realistic. Or not being well funded, or trying to do something on a shoestring. And sometimes, it just doesn’t work. You could have grandiose ideas unless you put the funds behind it. It’s not going to be successful.

 People use various formulas to determine how much of a company’s revenue or profits should be devoted to marketing. The formula depends on the industry, whether it’s B2B or B2C. But I’ve heard anything from 5:00 to—20 %. 

It would be interesting to survey small businesses to see what they spend on marketing. My guess is it’s nowhere near that amount.

Cosmos

I see. So, Gerri is on a different note. What do you think was the greatest lesson you learned during your entire career span regarding entrepreneurship, marketing, or anything else? Anything else?

Gerri

It’s a. It’s a really good question, and being as old as I am, I have many years of experience in business, but I think the answer is integrity. With transparency, we strive to do our best for clients, associates, and writers. We tell them we’re not the right fit for everyone or the company. And if we’re not right for you, I will tell you. Because. Whether you use me or my company, I’m interested in your success. And I guess in some ways it’s. It’s that orientation towards service that I talked about earlier.

Cosmos

So Jay, one of the things I noticed right during my life, like whatever limited lifetime I’ve had myself, is that there are businesses that are service-oriented, and they’re service-oriented, like how you are. 

And then there are other businesses, especially when what you see in the copper is all about profits. But at the expense of a lot at the expense of integrity and transparency, like if you look at a lot of big businesses and everything and see these two different worlds in America where on one side you have like the businesses that transparent. 

They have integrity, and then you have narcissistic businesses. You have these two different cultures that are created due to these two ideologies. Is this something that you noticed during your time, or is this just a minority on the other side from your perspective?

Gerri

Most of my career has been spent working with entrepreneurs and small businesses, and while I’ve worked with companies as large as Capital One and Three M., It’s not the same kind of relationship. You don’t get to know them inside out because so many departments and people are responsible for standard operating procedures. 

We started working with a very large technology company last year, and we had an agreement for services. We did what we said we would do, and they came to us and said, sorry, we can’t fulfill the terms of our agreement because of corporate Policies. 

And you know, we understood that because it’s a huge company and there are so many standard operating procedures and so many silos, and I just, I don’t enjoy working in that environment. I enjoy working in an environment where we know we’re contributing to somebody else’s. Success.

Cosmos

that is Amazing; you do that, Gerri because that’s what we need more of, like a culture of cause. When more people start doing things like small businesses and entrepreneurship with integrity and transparency, it also affects everything else nationally, like they make the backbone of the economy. All together.

Gerri

That’s correct.

Cosmos

So, Gerri, from your perspective, what was the greatest challenge you had during the span of your career, and how did you overcome it?

Gerri

Well, there was a time when we never knew where our next assignment would come from. So, we did a lot of B-to-B outreach and never gave up. So, we always had a proactive approach to bringing in new business. In recent years, we’ve been much more fortunate to get a steady stream of introductions because we developed a niche market. Place. And we have grown more than 100% in the last two years. And that’s because of that niche marketplace.

Cosmos

That is amazing, Gerri. Many people grapple with scalability in their businesses because they reach a certain point where they make a certain amount of revenue. Then, the idea of scaling becomes an issue. So, from your perspective, if they have to grow their businesses. What is the key thing they need to do to grow and scale their business?

Gerri

Well, it depends on their business model. If you have contracts where you get paid every month, that’s great, but if you have a business model where you get paid on a project basis like we do, that was more difficult. However, I believe in a performance-based business model. 

And so when we bring on a new client, we perform. Or we’ll refund their investments and never have to refund anybody’s money in 29 years in business. We do have a 100% accessory. That said, we have to be agile because we don’t always know how many projects we will do every month. Bringing on new associates to help fulfill the terms of our contracts.

So, having a steady stream of writers, marketing support staff, and other administrative people who can help with client servicing, media outreach, and project management is an important part of our business model.

Cosmos

So Jay, if there is one piece of advice you could give somebody who is new to your industry and wants to enter it and start a business there, what would that advice be?

Gerri

Be interested in and curious about the marketplace. Find out as much as possible about your target audience’s pain points, challenges, goals, and priorities—excuse me—and work to fulfill them.

Cosmos

That is true, and I would also have to add, Gerri, that they should also get the right mentors and have a community of people in that field because that reduces the timeline of the mistakes they will make. Once they understand the market, their chances of succeeding increase much more.

Gerri

Right.

Cosmos

So Jay, on a different note, I wanted to talk about all this nationally. You know, America has an entrepreneurial immigrant identity, and entrepreneurship was the spirit in which America was founded. 

So, from your perspective, do you think most people should have an entrepreneurial spirit when going about their everyday lives and have that entrepreneurial mindset as Americans?

Gerri

It’s hard for me to say what most people should or should not do. But I believe in personal responsibility. I believe you’re responsible for your happiness. Dennis Prager wrote a book called Happiness is a Serious Problem, and he said we all have a moral responsibility to be happy, and happiness is different from pleasure. 

So, happiness has to do with a sense of gratitude, spirituality, and being of service. And I believe in that; I believe in entrepreneurship. But I also know that not everybody is considered an entrepreneur. I think you have to have a risk tolerance. You have to have the big picture. You have to want something for yourself. Not just to go to a nine-to-five job and perform mundane tasks or do a job and then turn around and come home as an entrepreneur; I think you know it’s 24 by 7, and people talk about a work-life balance. I’m not so sure. There is one when you’re an entrepreneur.

Cosmos

No, I mean this is saying, right, like entrepreneurs have to work 80 hours a week for a certain period so that they don’t have to work for the rest of their lives. But that time becomes very, very intense altogether. And if they don’t have a life during that period.

Gerri

You know, when I first started trade press services, my partner at the time. He used to do what he called to run a set of numbers, and of course, he did it by hand or Excel way back then, and now some programs do that. You have to figure out if something will be profitable and worth it because if you sell if you sell, $100,000. It’s worth of business, and it costs you $102,000 to deliver that there’s something wrong. 

You really have to understand finances, and I think that’s a shame because you will not talk about finances at a young age, and unless you are in Business School, you won’t learn finances. I think we’re missing that kind of knowledge in entrepreneurship, finances, taxes, and pricing.

You know, cost of business, supply chain issues, these are all, you know, critical parts of delivering products and services in a global economy. And we don’t always have the. The skill sets internally to do that, so you have to find people who can help you and knowledgeable experts in the Deal. You called the mentors and coaches earlier. They serve the same role: your accounts, your attorneys, and your financial planners; they serve the same role.

Cosmos

Jay, one of the reasons I started extracting America is that I realized that traditional education does not give you the financial education, the right financial education, to become self-sufficient. It just teaches you how to be an employee for other companies, but it doesn’t teach you how to do your own business—or anything like that. 

But American identities are about freedom and the pursuit of it. How will you be if you’re not free on the financial front? How are you going to be happy ultimately? Right now, this country’s direction is toward consumption and materialism.

In your own words, you’ve mentioned that you can only truly find a sense of Happiness through service and spirituality. I would also say financial education is central to that in today’s world. But I don’t know what your opinion of that is.

Gerri

Well, you know, there are a lot of parts of the educational system that I think are lacking. The curriculum is not what it needs to be. We’re not teaching practical skills, which people will need in their careers and adult lives as they transition to middle age and senior citizenship. 

To prepare for that, we don’t teach people about relationships. We don’t teach people about it. There is no budgeting and finance, and we don’t teach people about healthcare, and I don’t mean the cost of healthcare. I mean just your mental and physical health, you know, throughout your life. As you know, these are important things that we just don’t address. We don’t teach people how to resolve conflicts ethically. 

So, the educational system is not addressing many issues, and it’s not as relevant to the 21st century as it could be.

Cosmos

So, Gerri, let’s say you’re an American watching this who loves your identity as a person of freedom, and you want to do something about getting the right financial education or getting the right mentors. So, how would you go about doing that in today’s world?

Gerri

I think it depends on their age and their position in life there. There are courses you can take, books you can read, advisors you can contact, and, you know, begin exploring what it takes for me to be. Successful; however, you define success in five, ten, and 20 years. What do I need to prepare for my future to feel secure and content?

Cosmos

Yeah, that’s one of the reasons it’s so relevant. Gerri, it’s because the world of the 1950s and 1960s and the world of 2024 are two different worlds, right? Because of inflation and all the money printing, the monetary system became a Fiat system. Then, because manufacturing jobs are being put outside, the standard of living has been reduced, or it can only be maintained through consumer debt. 

Back in the 1960s, the take tactics were that people could live off one person’s income. But now, in today’s world, we need two people to work in the same household to do the same thing, so the right education is very important, from my point of view.

Gerri

Absolutely.

Cosmos

Yeah, and Gerri, on a different note, can you tell me the audience a little bit more about your company, the trade press services, and what it does on the premise of how you started it?

Gerri

For trade, press Services is a marketing communications firm, and our vision is to be the marketing partner choice for companies that want to grow and thrive in any marketplace. So that’s the vision. That means when we are successful. We will have achieved that vision, and until then, we keep striving. For it, our mission is to provide professional writing, media outreach, and marketing support services. To help clients increase visibility, credibility, and name recognition in their marketplace. 

So what does that all mean? We provide free services, one of which is writing or content development. We help clients produce engaging and relevant bylined articles, White Papers, case studies, books, blogs, newsletters, e-mail campaigns, and corporate presentations. Any type of written communication keeps a company or an individual connected to its target audience. So writing is one service we offer. The second service we offer is media outreach. 

So what that means is we generate editorial opportunities for clients to get published in magazines read by their prospects and customers. We help them identify podcast opportunities, webinar opportunities, and speaking engagements. We do press releases, distribution, earned media coverage, and social media coordination for clients. The third service, and this is what distinguishes us from other marketing communications agencies, is we provide general marketing support, which can range from creating a marketing plan to reviewing a marketing plan. 

The three services are writing, media outreach, and general marketing support. They help implement a client’s marketing plan or help with marketing tactics that are falling through the cracks because people are either overloaded or don’t have the right staff to implement the projects they have included in their marketing plan.

Cosmos

That is amazing.

Gerri

With. We’ve worked with hundreds of companies and produced over 2,500 articles, dozens of white papers, and customer success stories. Six books, our work has appeared in more than 950 publications. 

So, we have excellent credentials and are guaranteed to clients. If we can’t get you published in the magazines you target, we’ll refund your investment. We’ve never had to refund any investments. We have 100% success, right?

Cosmos

That is amazing, Gerri. If anybody in the audience is interested in services, I highly recommend them because you’re good at what you do. Do you know? I would recommend this to anybody listening to this. And Gerri, are there any other projects you’re doing right now that you want the audience to glimpse?

Gerri

We don’t have any new products on the drawing board because we’ve developed this niche that I alluded to earlier; we are working with hundreds of individuals seeking immigration visas. In most cases, they are people who went to who got their undergraduate degrees in their home countries but came to the United States for postgraduate work and are working here, and they want to stay and work and live in this country. The volume of work keeps us so busy that we don’t have time to focus on new products or services. 

However, we’ve explored the possibility of helping clients with personal branding efforts so that they can do so. They advance in their careers, but it’s just in the drawing board stages.

Cosmos

That is amazing. Gerri and Gerri, how can our audience connect with you and learn more about you, your work, your company, and everything you do?

Gerri

Thank you for asking. Our website is tradepressservices.com. I’m on LinkedIn. My e-mail address is Gerrigerri@tradepressservices.com, and our phone number here in California is 805-496-8850.

Cosmos

That is amazing, and I really appreciate it, Gerri, that you took the time to do this podcast and share your knowledge regarding how to succeed in business and entrepreneurship. We all need this type of education, this basic understanding, and I do hope that you will take the time to come to this podcast at a later time.

Gerri

Well, thank you very much for having me as a guest, and I want to say how much I appreciate you and the work that you’re doing. I believe in America, the American dream, and freedom. I know you do, too. Freedom of choice, certainly. And the Constitution. I’m grateful for the opportunities that we, as Americans, have.

Cosmos

I’m grateful as well. It’s part of why I started this in the first place: I know that who we are, our identity, is a mindset, right? It allows us to move forward no matter what, and we must apply that not only to the financial front but, as we were talking about earlier, to spirituality because that’s where we would ultimately find true freedom.

Gerri

I agree with you. Thank you again so much for having me as a guest.

Cosmos

Thank you for taking the time. I want to conclude this episode by letting my fellow extraordinary Americans know that, hey, look, there’s an extraordinary thing within each of us, and we must awaken it and unleash it until next time. Bye for now.