Today we’d like to introduce you to Aaron Gordon.
Hi Aaron, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers.
I’m an endangered species by Miami standards: a third-generation native who left town for college in St. Louis and returned home four years later. After serving as creative director for a marketing and advertising shop in Miami, I joined the public relations firm Schwartz Media Strategies in 2008.
Since then, I have helped expand the firm’s service lines, recruited and retained top talent, and grown our client roster to include best-in-class brands across Florida. Today, Schwartz Media Strategies is one of the largest integrated communications firms based in Florida, according to PR Week.
We counsel clients in five sectors critical to Florida’s economy: commercial and residential real estate, banking and finance, law firms and professional services, municipalities and public affairs, and nonprofits — with an emphasis on education, and arts and culture.
Our current and past clients include City National Bank of Florida, law firm Bilzin Sumberg, the University of Florida, education nonprofit Achieve Miami, Walmart, real estate development firm Terra, law firm Podhurst Orseck, the Miami Downtown Development Authority, Pérez Art Museum Miami, Miami World Center, Lotus House shelter, Inter Miami CF, the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts, Mount Sinai Medical Center, and the Institute of Contemporary Art, Miami.
Aside from my day job, I also have the privilege of serving on two nonprofit boards which are making a tremendous impact in our community. Florida Foster Care Review is a nonprofit that ensures every foster child in Miami has a loving family, a safe place to call home, and a path to greatness in their adult life. We’re celebrating our 35th anniversary in 2024!
I also recently joined the Board of The Miami Foundation, which is one of the nation’s most prolific community foundations. Since 1967, The Miami Foundation has been building our city’s philanthropic, civic, and leadership backbone, with more than half a billion dollars invested in the community to date. Many people are familiar with one of the Foundation’s signature events, Give Miami Day, which unites more than 1,000 nonprofits to inspire generosity across Miami each November.
Alright, 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?
Building and sustaining a small business has been incredibly rewarding, and that’s largely because of the challenges that we’ve overcome as a team. Within six months of my joining the company, we were in the throes of the Global Financial Crisis, with Miami considered to be the epicenter of the housing boom-turned-bust. We managed through that — and actually grew our business — by helping clients navigate the recession and position themselves for the eventual rebound.
There was a realization among companies that marketing and communicating during a down cycle was just as important — perhaps even more important — as marketing during a period of growth.
That experience prepared us for the unimaginable, which was the COVID-19 pandemic. Like many companies, we had no idea what the future would be like in March of 2020. We were in uncharted waters, and we found ourselves balancing the needs of our clients’ businesses with those of our own company, and our employees.
There was an immediate shock during the early days of the pandemic, but things soon stabilized and our role as communications counselors took on added significance as clients wrestled with health and safety protocols, the shift to remote work, economic volatility, and projecting strength during uncertain times. We were playing triage most days, but looking back, it’s clear that living through a pandemic reinforced the value of strategic communications for companies, governments, and nonprofits.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Schwartz Media Strategies?
Schwartz Media Strategies is an integrated communications firm that counsels clients in three areas: public relations, digital media, and content marketing. Our clients are fueling Florida and moving Miami.
My specific practice focuses on advising executives and organizations in the real estate, legal, finance, municipal, and nonprofit industries, all to advance clients’ business goals, raise their profiles, and connect them with their target audiences in a meaningful way.
Throughout my career, I have led campaigns for real estate developers, economic development agencies, governments, major law firms, banks and finance firms, public companies, professional sports franchises, museums and cultural organizations, hospitals and healthcare providers, destinations, and everything in between.
If you had to, what characteristic of yours would you give the most credit to?
One of our firm’s core values is “listen carefully, counsel thoughtfully.” Delivering strategic counsel means really understanding a client’s business and what they’re trying to achieve. I find the more you get people talking, the more you learn, and that’s critical to providing sound advice.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.schwartz-media.com
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/aaron-gordon-095390a/
