Crystal Washington
Crystal Washington is the owner of a Houston-based marketing firm, organizer of several business organizations, and is a consultant and speaker that teaches entrepreneurs how to leverage image marketing and business networking to supercharge business growth!
What makes Crystal unique is that she not only shares knowledge that she gained as a result of her education, but she literally built her business empire from the ground up using these techniques. In other words, SHE ALREADY PRACTICED WHAT SHE IS NOW PREACHING.
Crystal’s journey started several years ago when she decided to leave corporate America to pursue her dream of owning a marketing business that would encourage and inspire business owners in Houston’s urban communities.
So what did a young entrepreneur whose very part-time business was just breaking even do to not only survive, but also thrive? She started building her network! Crystal began networking with business owners at networking events and online. She began the task of recreating her marketing business’ image to attract her target clientele. She built a business empire and network of thousands of businesses owners without a single loan, grant or investor. She leveraged her network and business image.
Where did she get the knowledge?
Crystal simply referred to the two fundamental truths that she had come to embrace in early childhood.
- Packaging influences perception.
- It’s all in whom you know.
Crystal realized early on that oftentimes teacher’s graded her work according to the elaborate packaging of her projects. She observed other students with better-written papers receive lower grades than her own reports that “looked” better or were professionally bound. She also realized early on that by making a point to visit with teachers and counselors she was afforded opportunities and benefits that other students were not.
In high school, she stayed in touch with counselors and made sure that her scholarship applications were as attractive as they were expressive of her academic efforts. Ultimately, Crystal went on to receive well over $60,000 in grants and scholarships. Many of these opportunities were never presented to students at large.
After purchasing a computer and car with part of the overflow of her scholarships, she secured a job as a secret shopper for an alumnus of her college. Unlike her friends that spent evenings busing tables and working in bookstores, Crystal was paid to sample fine cuisine, evaluate hotel stays and even shop at the Galleria for an additional company. She became acquainted with several individuals in the medical industry and participated in non-invasive hospital surveys.
Prior to graduation, Crystal secured her first management position through connections at her university. She then secured her next management role through university and past work connections. She knew that she did not have the prior experience to be granted this new position, but the hiring manager was great friends with her references.
In her position as Corporate Sales Manager, she quickly went on to dominate her market boasting key clients such as Exxon, Hewlett Packard and Shell. Crystal leveraged common connections to gain introductions and made a point of delivering proposals and contracts with “custom goodies”- everything from an elaborately decorated trashcan packed with gourmet goodies for a waste services company to a remote control eighteen-wheeler with contract and goodies attached for a trucking company. All in the packaging…
When Crystal started her own marketing firm, she had very few contacts in Houston’s urban business community; the market in which she desired to reach. She immediately began building an image that catered to her desired market and utilized both physical networking events as well as online social networks and tools to grow her network.
Deborah Hardnett interviews Crystal Washington on Wealthy Sistas®
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