Today we’d like to introduce you to Claudia Santa Cruz.
So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
I graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism, with emphasis in Public Relations in 1991 from Cal State University Northridge, in Los Angeles, California. My first entry into the Public Relations career was at Univision’s local station, KMEX, where I joined as Public Relations Coordinator. A year later I was offered a position at Telemundo’s L.A. station, KVEA as Public Relations Manager, becoming the youngest manager at the station. During my five-year tenure at KVEA, I managed Media Relations, Community Relations and I produced two public affairs shows, which included a political show titled “Contrapunto,” that was launched to address a difficult period for the city, that included Proposition 187 and an increasing anti-immigrant sentiment. The work that we did to make our viewers aware of these important issues and promote citizenship and voting garnered the station its first Congressional Record.
Following KVEA, I relocated to Florida in 1997 for a position as PR Manager at Telemundo, to promote the network’s programming and activities at a national level. After my second year at Telemundo, the dot.com era was booming and I was offered a position at Ritmoteca.com, a musical website. I have learned that in life one must learn to take risks, and therefore I made the leap. The job lasted a year as Ritmoteca.com was one of the many dot.coms to close its doors; however, the experience was invaluable. With 10 years behind me in the corporate world, and my experience working at a start-up, I felt it was the right time to launch my own business, and Santa Cruz Communications was found in February of 2001.
A great key to the success of the agency was the reputation that I had built throughout the years. I worked very hard, and I delivered. Nothing is as valuable as the reputation the precedes us; it is how people know you and remember you, and what makes them take a chance on you. Thanks to this, I was able to start the business with three clients, and the rest, as they say, is history. 17 years down the road, and with a great team at its helm, Santa Cruz Communications is recognized as one of the top Hispanic PR agencies in the U.S.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
In business, there are always going to be challenges, both professional and personal that one must overcome. On the professional side, our reputation allowed us to garner all our clients through referrals. However, there was one year when things slowed down, and for the first time, we had to utilize marketing skills to make sure that we continued to increase our portfolio of clients. Today, the challenge is to keep up with the times, making sure that the agency has the skills necessary to provide clients with the services they seek which now include digital marketing, influencer relations, social media and more. We can’t see these as struggles, but as challenges that become opportunities. It is an opportunity for us to grow, and to utilize our expertise and creativity to develop strategies that will take the agency to the next level.
On the personal side, I’ve also had to face many challenges. One major one was when I unexpectedly lost my husband of 10 years in December of 2008, leaving me and my 4-year-old daughter in a state of grief. When you own and run a business, you don’t have the luxury of taking a long break. The business has to continue, and when you go through such a devastating loss it is critical that you find the strength to carry on. This is easier said than done since there is no way of getting around the pain. One just has to go through it. I utilized all the resources that were available to make it through and started by focusing on making it one hour at a time. A few months before my husband passed away, we had begun working with a new client, national non-profit organization Teach For America. Needless to say, this tragedy delayed our P.R. efforts for this client, but soon I informed them that we would be putting additional resources to make sure that we achieved all our goals – and we did. Having known what I had just gone through, and the way that we managed their project, they offered me a position at their organization. I did not take the offer, but I was flattered and grateful that they appreciated the great effort it took to achieve during that difficult period of my life.
So let’s switch gears a bit and go into the Santa Cruz Communications story. Tell us more about the business.
Santa Cruz Communications is a leading independent communications firm driven to deliver solutions for companies seeking to engage with the coveted U.S. Hispanic market. Our clients represent all types of industries, including entertainment, education, health, automotive, lifestyle, fast-food, financial, beauty and fashion and have learned to expect the best from us: We have a passionate team of highly experienced and creative bilingual and bicultural professionals that are based in Miami and L.A., spanning across time zones to cover all major U.S. Hispanic markets. Our strengths are strategy and creativity. We develop and implement compelling campaigns that impact clients’ business goals, with engaging content that connects with target audiences across various channels. We boast a proven track record for producing and executing PR campaigns for prominent events including the Billboard Latin Music Awards, Premios Tu Mundo, the Latin American Music Awards. We were recognized with a 2015 National BRAVO! Award for Media Event Campaign of the Year by the Hispanic Public Relations Association (HPRA) for work on Telemundo’s 2015 Billboard Latin Music Awards.
Has luck played a meaningful role in your life and business?
I don’t believe in luck. I feel that each one of us is capable of tracing our own destinies. Even if the worst circumstance happens, there are lessons to be learned that make us better individuals and that has a huge impact on our professional and personal lives. I believe in attitude. Having a positive attitude will assure that you get from one place to the next because no matter what hardships are thrown your way you will always have faith and belief that you will overcome them. The only thing that can stop anyone from reaching their goals, is their own self. Time and time again people from all walks of life have proven that it’s never impossible.
Contact Info:
- Address: 10773 NW 58th St. #753, Doral, FL 33178
3579 E. Foothill Blvd. #776, Pasadena, CA 91107 - Website: santacruzpr.com
- Phone: 305-592-4473 and 626-538-4330
- Email: claudia@santacruzpr.com paola@santacruzpr.com; danixa@santacruzpr.com
- Instagram: SantaCruzPR
- Facebook: SantaCruzPR
- Twitter: SantaCruzPR
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