Steffany Reeve recently joined the RLF team as a Director of Lifestyle & Consumer Brands. She previously served as the manager of marketing and advertising at the Greensboro Science Center.
To get to know her a little better, we asked her a few questions:

Tell us a little about your past work experience and what attracted you to RLF.

I have worked in a variety of leadership positions in marketing, public relations and advertising in both nonprofit and corporate organizations for the last 15 years. My career began in the field of market research where I was responsible for creating surveys, analyzing results, testing ad copy and provided consulting to clients in the tourism industry and in higher education. I left my position at D.K. Shifflet & Associates to join MCI WorldCom where I worked with the company’s in-house ad agency to improve ad creative and later joined the Gannett Corporation where I worked as a marketing consultant and researcher for the company’s Broadcast Division. In 2007, my husband and I moved to Greensboro and I found my skills in marketing, media relations and advertising a perfect fit for the director of marketing and community relations position at the Greensboro Children’s Museum. In this role, I was responsible for developing and implementing marketing campaigns that rebranded the organization, rolled out a new website, launched the Edible Schoolyard and increased awareness of the Museum.
Most recently, I served as the manager of marketing and advertising at the Greensboro Science Center where I developed and executed strategic marketing campaigns for the organization.  This position was both rewarding and challenging, in that it required working with a variety of teams and partners, managing multiple projects and tapped into my skills and experience in creative design, advertising development, writing, media buying, public relations and social media outreach. While I worked on multiple campaigns in this role, my favorite was the launch of the Carolina SciQuarium that attracted a record number of visitors and garnered national media coverage.
My passion for developing marketing and public relations strategies to help businesses grow and strengthen their brands ultimately led me to RLF Communications. Having worked with Monty and several of the other staff while at the Science Center, I was impressed with the team’s pool of talent and the level of expertise and commitment RLF offers clients. As a new member, I look forward to adding to the staff’s arsenal of knowledge and experience and to working with the company’s Lifestyle and Consumer clients.

Why do you enjoy working in public relations?

I enjoy helping organizations discover better ways to connect with their target audience, identify ways to grow and improve their brands and get recognition for things they are doing right. Whether this involves working with companies to enhance their social media outreach, improve media coverage, develop creative messages and collateral pieces, assist with rebranding or to plan special events, I like it all. Additionally, I enjoy being a counselor to companies and take this role very seriously. I feel privileged to be entrusted with this role and always have client’s best interests in mind. It’s rewarding to help others reach their goals and an exciting challenge to find creative, resourceful and out-the box ways to do to this.

What is your favorite way to spend your free time?

Free time….ha!  What’s that?  No really, I have free time, but it is just classified differently now that I have three amazing, but very active children ages 5 and 2 1/2 (twin boys). I love spending time playing with all of them and capturing photos of their precious moments, but I also love to travel, scuba dive, hike, run, read and go on romantic dates with my husband David.

Are you involved in any community organizations, nonprofits or industry associations? If so, which ones and in what way?

I am a member of the PRSA Tarheel Chapter and belong to several online advertising and marketing groups such as ADPRO, Marketing Directors Support Group and the Content Marketing Support Group. I believe it’s important to be knowledgeable of current trends and stay connected with others in the field who can be great resources, potential partners, collaborators and clients.

What is the last book you read?

The last book I read was The Glass Castle by Jeanette Walls. It is a fascinating memoir that recounts the unconventional life of the author and her deeply dysfunctional family. I admire Walls for sharing the details of her poverty-stricken and eccentric life and think she is an inspiration to anyone who seeks a better life.  Instead of letting the multitude of challenges she faced take her down, she used these experiences to make herself a stronger person and a successful businesswoman. The book is a powerful and heart-wrenching story of triumph against all odds and a wonderful read. I would highly recommend it to anyone.  You won’t think your family is dysfunctional after reading this story!

If you had a theme song, what would it be?

Picking just one theme song is difficult, but I would say U2’s “Beautiful Day” is a good one.  Every time I hear it, it makes me smile and brightens my day no matter what has happened. I would classify myself as an eternal optimist, which is a trait that can work for and against me – but I wouldn’t have it any other way. Life is too short not to cherish every moment. Other possible them songs could be ABBA’s “Dancing Queen” (I love to dance) and Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believing” (I have faith that life gets better with each passing day and if something gets you down, you can’t stop believing that things will improve).

If you could have dinner with any one person, dead or alive, who would it be and why?

This is a hard question to narrow down, so instead I’d like to tell you my top three choices. If we were all together at once, it would make for one fascinating and memorable evening!

• Albert Einstein – to get a sense of how his mind works and to ask him what he thinks of the world today.
• Dr. Seuss – to tell him how much I enjoy his brilliance and the creativity of his books that I read to my children every night.
• Ellen Degeneres – I find her such a fascinating and hysterically funny woman; I know she would keep me laughing the entire dinner. There is something to be said for a woman who believes in the power of laughter and dance to lift your spirits.