Melanin Marvel: Drew Church
Melanin Thriving is dedicated to shining a light on individuals who are deeply passionate about uplifting our community. Through our Melanin Marvel series, we highlight those making a real impact. This time, we had the pleasure of sitting down with the talented and inspiring Drew Church, whose commitment to creating opportunities in marketing led him to launch his own company, Solid Marketing. With an authentic approach to storytelling, Drew and his team have collaborated with major brands like BET, Red Bull, and Mastercard. Get to know the visionary behind this powerhouse agency and the journey that brought Solid Marketing to life.
Melanin Thriving X Drew Church
MT: What inspired you to start Solid Marketing Group? Was there a defining moment that made you take the leap into entrepreneurship?
DC: My initial reason why I started was to get more into sports agency realm of things as far as working with talent. I wanted to build a table of my own rather than, trying to pull up a seat to a table that they didn't really want me to have. I was having different interviews with different agencies before and they were just focusing in on my already established connections. They were more interested in who can I bring rather than my actual skill. So I decided to use my own relationships and build my own company, rather than try to go on board with somebody who don't see the value. I decided to walk on faith and start my own thing rather than giving it to somebody else who really doesn’t necessarily care about me.
MT: I love that you built your own table. What's a myth about marketing or entrepreneurship that you think needs to be debunked?
DC: I would say a myth would be “If you build it, they'll come”. You think if you build a business, people would just start coming out of nowhere. So I think a lot of times people looking to start their business get excited and get that high from launching something that’s all their own. But, I think once that excitement kind of dies down and you're in the thick of it, you realize all the unglamorous parts are still things you have to do, to keep your business going. A lot of times people think “I'm gonna just build this business”, without maybe considering all the elements it takes. That's why a lot of businesses fail, because they had this mindset that success will happen overnight. And honestly social media perpetuates that narrative, when people are only sharing their highlights. The reality is a lot of things go on behind closed doors and people aren’t being transparent about that. The reality is it's continued journey.
MT: What do you think makes Solid Marketing stand out in an industry that's constantly evolving?
DC: I think for us it’s the relationships. We differ from competitors as far as relatability. We have brand relationships that certain clients want to partner with in order to access a particular audience. For example, whether that's in sports, entertainment, business, or financial literacy, we've been part of the culture in the sense of already having a partnership and allyship in those areas. That makes us different than our some of our competitors, even some of the large agencies that just really don't know what's really going on. We also are intentional about not using the same type of people as as it relates to talent.
MT: How does Solid Marketing approach diversity and inclusivity in branding and market strategies?
DC: Diversity is a main point of ours as far as our foot in the door with some of these bigger companies. We're seeing larger companies interested in that area. But I think that a lot of companies aren’t doing it right. They seem performative and just “checking off the boxes”. A lot of our strategies have always been think outside of the box. So we aren’t using the same strategies for every client. When they do that, it can come off as disingenuous, like you’re not really trying to connect with that audience authentically. For example, when working with a particular school, more specially HBCU’s.
A lot of brands are saying, “Hey, we want to work with HBCUs, but they always use the same predictable list of well known schools such as Howard, Morehouse, Spelman, you know what I mean? But there are about 100 other HBCUs and out there. So we make it known that we have relationships with some of those other schools.
MT: Have you ever had to challenge a client's perspective on diversity in their branding? And if so, how did that conversation go?
DC: Yes, with an old employer of mine. This was after I had moved on from working with them, I still followed them on LinkedIn. I noticed that they were advertising their diversity initiative and were giving HBCU students these opportunities. It kept on bugging me, because I kept on seeing it. I got to a point where I actually emailed the CEO of this very large company. My email was very respectful and transparent. I shared with the CEO that I used to work for his company and as the only black person on a large team. I let him know that I saw how he was advertising an environment of inclusivity within his company. I just want to make sure you guys are doing it right. You guys can help a lot of people out. I let the CEO know my experience was totally different from what they were putting out there. Once I sent the email, I didn’t think anything of it. The CEO actually emailed me back and wanted to have a meeting with me. The meeting with him confirmed that I was right for branching out, doing my own thing, and also standing up and saying something.
MT: That leads me to my next question. What is it that you're trying to achieve with Solid Marketing? What is the end goal, if there is one? What do you want Solid Marketing to be known for?
DC: I think the end goal, for Solid Marketing would be to give some of the people that are underdogs, passed up, or never had opportunities, a chance to see what different roles can be had in the marketing world. A lot of what I do in working with creatives and other different industries, especially in our culture, involves giving more knowledge about the opportunities in the event marketing space and content creation space. I want other creators to learn from me. Even for those working with us, encouraging them to branch out and do their own thing. Be your own boss and be your own business. That's why I emphasize not putting my name on Solid Marketing. I might be the owner and CEO, but I want them to feel like they’re also a part of this and we’re building something together.
So the end goal for me is just being the umbrella for somebody else to branch out and do their own thing. I want them to be able to say, “Hey, I got my start at Solid Marketing and they weren’t trying to get me to work 10-15 years”. Hopefully, they can learn from me in the mean time, until they’re ready to start their own business. Even if they decide owning a business is not for them, I'm fine with that as well. So ultimately, I just want to create opportunities.
MT: What do you think brands often get wrong when they're trying to be inclusive in their marketing?
DC: I think not looking and not doing their research. I think most times a lot of companies are looking towards their black or diverse hire and say “Hey, oh you’re black! What do you think about this or that?” Instead of doing some research and getting somebody who knows the culture or knows the audience that they’re trying to work with. They think they can go to their black employee who works in tech and ask him about HBCUs, not knowing that they might not have attended one, so they won’t understand the landscape. And that's fine, but don't automatically assume or take the shortcut route. I think a lot of brands have made that mistake and it ultimately costs them time or more money. Instead of saying, let’s tap into the people who know this particular audience and know this particular strategy, they have a tendency to look at the black experience as a monolith.
MT: What role did attending an HBCU have on you starting a business if any?
DC: I actually attended two HBCU's first Saint Paul's College and transferred to North Carolina Central which both played significant role in shaping my entrepreneurial mindset and approach to business. I think first it gave me the confidence by being in an environment that encourages Black excellence, leadership, and ownership instilled in me the confidence to build something of my own. I think in particularly within my line of work attending an HBCU also gave me a deeper understanding of trends, and black consumer behavior, which gave me a competitive edge in marketing, branding, and storytelling. Lastly HBCUs has created a deep sense of family that goes beyond just friendships; they have built a community of people for me who genuinely support and uplift one another. This same energy translates into business for me whether it’s through alumni connections, referrals, or partnerships.
MT: So how do you ensure authenticity in your marketing campaigns when you're representing diverse communities?
DC: It goes back to research. Research things and ask the questions that need to be asked, even within my circle. If I don't know certain things, I feel like I have enough connections to point me in the right direction of a particular audience that I may not understand. I think an important element of being a boss, a leader, and owning your own business is being comfortable enough to say, “Hey, I don't know this. Let me ask.” A lot of people look at leaders and think they have it all figured out. One of the qualities that you need to have as a leader is understanding that you don’t know it all. This is what my team is for. Be open to have discussions rather than thinking like, you have to know everything.
MT: That leads me into your leadership role. How do you cultivate a company culture that encourages creativity and inclusivity?
DC: I think being understanding, being transparent as possible, and open communication is important in making sure everyone feels comfortable. But I also feel within leadership, you have to give off the kind of energy that makes people feel comfortable to come and talk to you. Because even if you say, the door is always open, but your employee doesn’t feel comfortable enough to talk to you, the communication aspect doesn’t work. Your energy enters the room before you do. So having conversations that allow you to get to know the people you work with, can make them feel more comfortable in coming to you.
MT: So what are the biggest leadership lessons you've learned while growing?
DC: Learning everyones motivational language! For instance, I may know I can motivate this person one particular way, maybe by speaking to them and getting them pumped versus someone I may need to sit down with and say “Hey you got to tighten up”. So again the communication part is huge for me. It’s important to understand your team players. Sometimes I view it from the lens of a coach. I have a team, I know what gets my my players ticking, and what gets them motivated to do their best work. So I think a lot of leaders mess up in thinking they can speak to one person a particular way and then use that method of communication for the whole team rather figuring out what gets somebody going as an individual.
MT: So as a leader, how do you handle tough decisions, especially those that impact your team?
DC: I have conversations with other people within my team to also get their input. Especially if there’s a big decision to be made. I like to have other people's thoughts rather than making a big decision without even speaking to somebody, because it affects the whole operation. It's not just me. I can't solely rely on just my feelings. In instances when my team feels the same way about it I say let's go ahead and do it the agreed upon way. If my team doesn't feel the same way and not on the same page, we can have a conversation about it. I also like to pray about it first, because I think some discernment can give me insight that makes me feel better about the actual decision. Sometimes, we can act out of impulse about a certain decision that you may need to sleep on or take a day.
MT: Speaking of teams, if you could build your dream leadership team with any three people alive or historical, who would they be and why?
DC: I would say the most important and best leader ever is Jesus Christ. He's the CEO of all mankind. While here on earth, exemplifies servant leadership, wisdom, humbleness and unwavering purpose he’s definitely number one on my roster. With two, I'm going with Barack Obama. I still think he’s the coolest person. He never really got rattled. We can all learn something from his calm demeanor, even when he was in charge of making the most important decisions in the whole world. He always remained cool, calm and collected. Number three is Dame Dash, it’s random, but he’s one of my favorite Entrepreneurs. He was responsible for breaking one of my favorite artists (Jay Z) produced my favorite movie (Paid in Full) . I like that he’s an out of box thinker, but he’s also very brash and controversial. Sometimes that attitude is needed to break some barriers as it relates to certain industries.
MT: Lastly, what projects are you looking forward to executing this year?
DC: I’m not going to say the brands, but I, would say like some upcoming projects in our community. I’m also excited for this collaboration and interview and getting to know more of your audience. A lot of the projects we’re getting off the ground and that are in the works push the culture forward in terms of financial literacy and also storytelling in art. I’m excited about any and all projects that can help my community.
If you are interested in reaching out to Mr. Church, you can contact him at:Email: drew@solidmarketinggroup.com
Website: Solid Marketing Group
Instagram: @solidmarketinggroup