Awards the Start of Something Big for Mt. Kisco PR, Social Media Firm
When Kris Ruby graduated college in 2009, the economy was in tatters and the employment outlook for her was bleak. There weren’t many jobs to be had for professionals with decades of experience let alone recent college grads.
So Ruby, a public relations major at Boston University, made the decision to open her own company.
If by some chance she had any lingering doubts about whether her career decision was the right choice, this month should have quickly erased that thought. Her company, Ruby Media Group, a social media and public relations agency, captured 34 Advertising Club of Westchester Big W Awards, an eye-opening accomplishment for a three-year-old company competing against many established organizations.
“I feel like the work that we did over the past year has been recognized for what it should be and there’s really a lot of interesting cutting edge technology that is not very typical Westchester, I would say,” Ruby said. “It looked more like New York City. People would comment on certain videos that we did that it looked like national ad work.”
The Big W Awards is the largest competition of its kind in Westchester, recognizing creative and technical excellence for close to 40 years. Ruby Media Group’s awards included seven gold, 11 silver and 15 bronze awards as well as the 2012 People’s Choice Award.
Ruby, 25, who operates out of an office in Mount Kisco and in Greenwich, credited her creative teams that she builds with making the difference in not only winning the Big W Awards but in providing her clients with winning strategies. Graphic designers, web designers, photographers and copywriters, among others are the creative talent behind much of the work her company does, Ruby said.
“I think that that’s where the magic happens, when you build teams out to make the best possible product for the client,” she said.
What has been equally impressive is Ruby Media Group’s versatility both in the types of clients it represents as well as its ability to offer traditional public relations and advertising campaigns and the latest strategies in social media connections depending on individual needs. Ruby’s awards, which were handed out on June 6 at Abigail Kirsch at Tappan Hill in Tarrytown, ranged from clients such as the Stacy Knows and Westchester Magazine blogs to the American Heart Association and LV2BFIT, a Rye women’s clothing and accessory store. The People’s Choice Award was for Advanced Dentistry’s public relations campaign.
Three years into her run, Ruby describes her business as a social media public relations company.
“We have people coming to us just for PR, some just for social media and now we have some that are just coming to us for our ad campaigns because they want that for their business,” she said.
While Ruby’s success may appear sudden, she certainly paid her dues with intense preparation. During college, she had 13 separate internships, including working one semester in Los Angeles at CBS and another semester in London. Ruby also interned at diverse types of organizations such as Morgan Stanley, PBS and Sirius Satellite Radio.
She encouraged today’s college students to gather as much internship experience as possible while they’re still in school. After college, if the right opportunity doesn’t come along, then create one for yourself.
“Don’t just focus on what’s not out there,” Ruby said. “If someone’s not hiring, you do what you love and create it for yourself. If you work really hard and stay strong, then three years down the road you can have your own business, too.”
In the future, Ruby is aiming to have her company continue to evolve and expand. With some connections to Southern California and Florida, she hopes to open locations in Los Angeles and Palm Beach as well as New York City.
“This is a time when I feel like our business is just going to take off,” She said.
Martin has more than 30 years experience covering local news in Westchester and Putnam counties, including a frequent focus on zoning and planning issues. He has been editor-in-chief of The Examiner since its inception in 2007. Read more from Martin’s editor-author bio here. Read Martin’s archived work here: https://www.theexaminernews.com/author/martin-wilbur2007/
