Helping to define and navigate the digital space as a creative force for brands and influencers, while becoming a recognized and sought-after business innovator and global digital architect — and balancing that with motherhood…

Kendra Bracken-Ferguson, Entrepreneur, Innovator, Transformative Brand Builder, Founder/CEO at BrainTrust, and former Chief Digital Officer at CAA-GBG, shares her story with George Manley (CEO & Co-Founder SOULER) in the MouthMedia Network studios. Presented by SOULER.

In this story:

How Kendra knew she wanted to be in PR from the time she saw the Press Secretary in the 6th grade.
Purdue and her internship at FleishmanHillard PR
Receiving her Master’s in Sports Management and working with the Indiana Pacers
Leaving the Pacers Organization after the “Malice at the Palace” to join FleishmanHillard PR full time
Taking Cingular (AT&T) into the social sphere with MySpace
Creating a Mobile Music Studio with MySpace and Cingular
The birth of Digital PR, before it became Social Media and Digital Marketing
How PR Practitioners are always the best storytellers
Being a leader in the evolution of social media marketing
Leading the Digital and Social teams at FleishmanHillard
Landing at Ralph Lauren after realizing her desire to get into fashion and beauty
Going from being an “Agency Girl” to the Brand Side of the business
Realizing the need to shift advertising budgets into social
Looking at social thru the lens of E-commerce
Can you get an influencer to bring someone to your website, have them stay long enough to make a purchase, and sign up for an emailer?
Starting a business to manage bloggers, DBA
Ralph Lauren’s invention of “Merchantainment”
Creating a symbiotic relationship between brand and blogger
Picking the right influencer based on the ethos of your brand
Starting a business without a business plan
The first time asking “Am I an entrepreneur?”
Launching a new product for bloggers
Having blogger parties with Kenneth Cole
Leaving DBA to work with brands again.
Realizing your flaws and finding your strengths
Building brands, connecting people, seeing the future, and being innovative
Surrounding yourself with people smarter than you
The busy life of PR
What is it that drives people to be serial entrepreneurs.
Wanting to write a book about being an Intrepreneur vs Entrepreneur
Can you hire a COO, to handle things from management on down, and still be a great leader?
The humanity of CEOs, from meltdowns to successes.
What is it that makes Elon Musk and Steve Jobs so unique?
How being an entrepreneur to psychologically damaging, the most positive way.
Can anyone be a brand builder, install the infrastructure needed to grow and support a new brand?
Having night sweats about being under capitalized.
Starting a company young with no “risk” versus starting a company with a family
Having a sense of destiny, Preparedness plus opportunity equals success
Balancing work life with family life
Kendra on being the best role model she can for her daughter and encouraging an entrepreneurial mind
How becoming a mom was a bit of a wake up for her health, both physical and mental
The best advice for being a successful mother and entrepreneur
Creating generational wealth for her family, it should be easier for the next generation.
Influencers are the new driver’s of commerce and pop culture trends
Her latest company, Talent Venture Fund
Bridging brands and influencers.
Increasing the valuation of brands to make them more commercially successful, and to help boost their relevance based on the partnership ownership with the talent

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