Media Mavens: In conversation with Sabina
A PR Pro that makes it look easy, Sabina Wex connects with her online audience by being her true, hilarious, authentic self. Taking a new route to making a name for herself and getting leads through social, she not only shares helpful tips and tricks but also pokes fun at the world she inhabits. She brings this sense of realness and not taking herself too seriously to the client realm, where she is honest with each and every person she works with before locking down the story, producing the podcasts, and getting talented influencers airtime.
We chatted with Sabina about how she continuously comes up with new content ideas, how she uses it as a tool to keep her business strong, what can make it difficult some days, and what tips she has for others looking to carve a space out for themselves online in the field of PR.
Cleo: Your social media account, which makes us laugh on a daily basis, is used as a way to showcase who you are but with a lens on the media and the public relations work you do. Do you find this has been a good way to showcase to your clients how they can present themselves? And what responses have you received from this method?
Sabina: Wow, what a compliment, coming from two of the funniest people I KNOW! Thank you.
The videos I make for Instagram and TikTok - which are all mockeries of PR - just make my clients laugh. They love that I don’t take my job too seriously. A lot of PR pros deal with very sensitive matters - crisis communications, big pharma companies - but because I specialize in tech, education and thought leadership, I already have a more chill client base than a big agency. So they love when I’m making fun of Doug Ford or Elon Musk’s PR plays because it makes them see that everyone screws up PR and at least they’re not as bad as these guys!
I don’t know if my clients find my videos useful for their actual PR, but I think it does make them realize that presenting yourself is really hard and really scary. But if you add some humour to it, people are usually a lot nicer and cut you a lot more slack. The videos I make highlight that! PR pros tend not to use humour, so I set myself apart by making a fool of myself for others’ entertainment.
Cleo: What kind of community have you been able to build through your social media channels?
Sabina: I’ve mainly connected with people I already know on a deeper level. You don’t realize how many people are watching you on social media until you run into someone at the grocery store and they start telling you how much they’ve been loving your content! So a lot of those people - old high school and university friends, colleagues from previous jobs - have become my biggest referrers. They often send my content to their business owner friends and that’s how I get a lot of clients! Don’t underestimate the power of the network you already have.
Cleo: How do you plan your social media content? What do you use as inspiration to come up with ideas?
Sabina: It’s both super hard and super easy to come up with ideas. Because the ideas are all about PR, they’re often about things I talk and think about every day, but forget that they aren’t things that most people know about!
Some of the best videos I’ve made - like the one called “How to get on Oprah” - literally came out of me goofing around one night by myself, thinking I’m hilarious. Others, like a video I did with my roommate and fellow PR colleague about a Zoom witch burning for Halloween, took FOUR HOURS to come up with and create. All for a 1-minute video!
I wish I had a good system down, but I just don’t. I’m a Pisces, so I’m a very annoying artiste who can only create WHEN INSPIRATION STRIKES!
That said, Blair and Irina have some pretty amazing content spreadsheets they’ve shared with me that I really should use (and you should too - subtle plug ;)).
Cleo: What do you find works best on your social media channels to engage your audience and of course, sell your products and services?
Sabina: People love super straightforward content. The blog posts I’ve written about around topics like how to write a press release or how to know if it’s the time to invest in PR are the ones that directly send new clients my way. But the more obscure, fun stuff - like a video of me pretending to be sponsored content - builds up my rep as a hilarious PR gal who you want to hang with. Those videos may not get me clients immediately, but over time, they connect with people who keep watching and call me a year later asking me to work with them. So it’s a long and short game!
Cleo: What’s your biggest challenge when it comes to social media?
Sabina: I actually have recently taken a bit of a break from content at the moment because it was burning me out to keep making videos and content. I even deleted Insta and TikTok off my phone because I found them both so draining!
Social media is exhausting. Keeping up with every trend and news item is exhausting. I think taking breaks and being conscious about my social media use is my biggest challenge. I don’t just want to pump out content that isn’t fun for me and my audience.
I’ve been very offline lately, and to be honest, have been loving it! I love making content, but this whole break has made me want to create a system for myself where I’m still making content but without burning myself out or being obsessed with likes. Let me know if you have a solution for that because that is the actual DREAM.
*Note: we’ll be releasing tips on how to avoid social media burnout later this month, follow @cleo.social to stay up to date.
Cleo: What advice would you give to a fledgling public relations pro about growing their social media accounts?
Sabina: Be consistent and be you. I am not consistent (lol), so I definitely need to take some of my own advice.
PR is all about reputation and credibility, so don’t try to be something you’re not. You may fool everyone because, being a PR pro, you’re likely a natural master of disguise. RESIST the urge to people please! You’ll end up working on things you hate, then you’ll burn out and then you’ll suck AND hate yourself. Trust me, been there!
Cleo: And a fun one to finish off, what’s your favourite way to take a break from work!?
Sabina: Obv, hanging out with Blair and Irina. We have the best book club because we just laugh and laugh and laugh, but also have some very deep and smart conversations between the cackles.
But also: outdoor spinning classes have been super fun lately. I have not exercised ONCE during the pandemic, so it’s been really great to get my fitness on (ew, did I just say that? Guess I’m one of those “exercise” people now).