Why I Launched "Find An Expert"

I’ve very proud of our Find An Expert service, which FKB Media Solutions launched this year. I actually consider it to be one of the most important aspects of my business. To me, it has always been about more than just providing media appearances for clients, because it means more than that to them. The process of navigating the media industry is intimidating to those without experience, and finding diverse voices to speak on topics not related to race has apparently been a challenge for many outlets. I purposely left out the word “diverse” or “racialized” or “Black” from the title of the service because that’s not what defines these experts - their expertise is what they are offering.

Find An Expert gives individuals that would normally be overlooked by producers and editors a chance to gain media exposure. It also provides news and entertainment outlets with a consistent source of knowledgeable, experienced and media-trained experts that are relevant to the conversation. To that end, I believe it has been incredibly successful. 

Watching my roster of talented professionals and small business owners grow in the past three months has been exciting. What has been even better though, is getting to watch as each and every one of them progress and establish themselves within their respective industries, and knowing I played a small role in that. Last month I welcomed three new additions to the FKB Media Find An Expert team: 

•  Danny Stone - Best-selling author, coach and motivational speaker.  

•  Roxanne Francis - Keynote speaker, social worker and psychotherapist  

•  Ayanna Sealey -  Mental performance coach and elite performance expert 

Danny just did an interview with CBC Radio’s Here and Now about how teens and young adults can get started in the workplace during COVID-19. Roxanne was interviewed by CTV News Channel about the mental health of children and teens after a year in lockdown - she, along with Find An Expert’s Richard Miller (Community Activis) and lawyer K. Paul Erskine (Canadian Association of Black Lawyers, who received media training from us) also did an interview with CBC radio about the triggering of trauma for the Black community as the Derek Chauvin murder trial begins. We’re prepping Ayanna for media appearances about the Olympics and elite athlete preparation for a Summer Games with limited fans.

The addition of these experienced and gifted individuals makes me even more positive about the future of FKB Media Solutions. My mission statement is “to make media accessible, understandable and give small and medium business clients the tools to present their story and brand to a wide audience.” As the formidable FKB Media team of experts continues to expand, the excuse that racialized or Black experts are difficult to find is holding less and less weight, not that it should have in the first place.

CTV News Channel Anchor Akshay Tandon and Psychotherapist Roxanne Francis (click photo to see interview)