Meet Allie Davis of Artful PR

Today we’d like to introduce you to Allie Davis.

Thanks for sharing your story with us Allie. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
While I do own my own PR company, I am also an actress. And I believe that is where my true story begins. My story begins in a small classroom decorated with stickers and whiteboards and velvet rainbow rugs. I was six years old. And painfully shy. My first-grade teacher had us do an exercise where we’d act out a storybook. And I immediately fell in love. It sounds cliche I know, the shy girl tries acting and it sets her free, gives her a voice, etc. But it really did. I felt more alive than I ever had and shortly after told my parents I wanted to do plays, and then by middle school was training in LA at places like Playhouse West and Margie Haber Studios. Amid my years of acting and auditioning and working on independent films and some guest star work, I knew I always wanted to continue my education at a university and learn other skills. I’m a big believer that nobody should be pigeon-holed to any one thing. I think nowadays more and more people are finding they work in two or three different areas and have more trouble defining exactly what it is they “do.” We as humans are infinite and versatile and should fire as many parts of ourselves as we can.

So I attended Chapman University. Where I honed and even discovered more of those parts of myself, I’d like to utilize. I entered into the BFA Screen Acting program which accepts about 4% of applicants and did some internships to see what I might want to add on as a minor. While still focusing on my craft as an actor, I interned for a talent management company where I found I was addicted to artistic acceleration. Not only that of myself but of all artists around me. I can’t even describe the thrill I’d get drafting a pitch for an actor I believed was right for a role and helping them get auditions. I found I love strategizing how to get artists to the next level in their careers. So, I soon became a PR minor. And it felt like the perfect supplement to my major, as I not only was learning how to promote others but myself. And beyond promoting, PR is storytelling. Just like acting. It is communicating a story that will reach and deeply impact an audience.

So, I found I easily fused the two artforms to help craft and share stories that would engage the public on behalf of another artist or organization. I made a promise to myself that I’d do all I could to amplify as many creative voices as I possibly could. And thus became the mission behind my own company, Artful PR: to amplify the creative voices heard in society. I work to help others share their story and widen the audiences that will hear them. Because there are too many voices and stories out there that go unheard. I came up with the idea to start my own company about a year ago after I had been doing freelance work for many musicians and actors, crafting their press kits, helping them brand themselves, and pitching them to the media. I kinda just realized like, hey, I can do this myself. I should start my own company. And as soon as quarantine hit, I knew there were no more excuses to put it off. So I got to work on developing my company while still a full-time student, an auditioning actor, a part-time employee for a publicist and a guest journalist for a newspaper. Come summer 2020, I had my first paying client who was promoting an amazing film that sheds light on the LGBTQ+ community with many LGTBTQ+ crew and cast members.

Congrats on the first paying client, espeically during the Covid-crisis, that’s fantastic. So let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Oh the road is far from over and anything but smooth. As I mentioned, I’m still a full-time student, finishing up my last year at Chapman University, an actor busy with auditions and developing my own career, an employee for another publicist, a guest writer for a newspaper, and just a human living in the middle of a global pandemic. I think for me, the biggest struggles that arose was constantly feeling like I needed to already have the company started, my website polished and up, and always be ten steps ahead of the game, when I didn’t always have the time for it. I tend to do that to myself. Load on side projects and tasks for my future that I think I need to do now and if I don’t have them all already finished then I just feel anxious. Or unsettled. It’s something I struggle with. The feeling that I need to be doing something productive every second of the day.

While this is still something I struggle with, what really helped me while I was trying to get my business off the ground was ironically not letting myself work on it every day. I had to literally tell myself you are not allowed to work on your website today. Or work on accumulating clients. Or spend your day brainstorming the perfect name. Like, you can’t. You’re not allowed. And it gave me this crucial space to just breathe. And remind me that doing nothing can be productive. That having fun is productive. Because without that time to recharge and recenter, we often sacrifice our own mental health. And if we don’t have that, we can’t have much. If I lost that then I in no way would have been able to start my own business.

And honestly, even as I’m writing this I know this is something I still have to work very hard to try and remind myself of. It’s a work in progress, but I’d say one of the biggest steps in achieving finally starting my own business was letting myself take it baby step by baby step. The other struggle is just facing that it will take a long time to build up a clientele and that I may need to supplement income with other jobs for many years while I build this baby of a business up. As of right now, I’m still a student, still working for another PR company while working on my own, still freelance writing for additional income, still pursuing my own acting career while dedicating myself to the growth of others, and working with a team to develop an idea for a book-adapted mini-series.

Like I said, kinda bad at the whole “giving yourself room to relax” thing. What I’ve come to realize is, many of these plates are spinning on their own even if I am not giving them attention that day. They are all there and won’t disappear if I have to only work on each in increments until I’m graduated and can give more time to them. Right now, I’ve had to prioritize. And I know that auditioning, working, and finishing school has to be my top priority. Growing my business follows just behind. I am still working on it, still ready to dedicate myself to a client at any moment, and still committed to amplifying creative voices. I just know that I need to get through school before I can dedicate all my time to Artful PR.

Please tell us more about Artful PR.
Artful PR is a boutique PR agency that amplifies creative voices in society by helping artists and businesses tell their stories and widening the audiences that will hear them. We specialize mainly in the entertainment industry, working heavily with actors, musicians, influencers and films/shows. Through, we are ready to help clients from a wide variety of industries whether they be a clothing brand, restaurant, etc. We offer a wide variety of services to help promote you as an artist or company including press releases, media pitching, full and mini PR campaigns, social media management, bio writing, and more. Whether a client is looking for these services on a more regular, monthly basis or a more temporary, individual basis, we offer flexible and affordable options for all. One very special service we have is geared towards new actors where we give guidance and help set up headshots, reels, casting sites, IMDb, bios, etc. We then pitch the artist to agents and managers and will continue working for them for no additional charge until they get at least one meeting with an agent. That’s something I really love about this company. It is so hands-on and personal.

Anytime we take on a client, they become part of the Artful PR family really. I’m not one for doing work I am not passionate about. Like I mentioned, helping strategize and bring others to the next place in their career is a thrill for me. So as a client of Artful PR, you are guaranteed to not only gain a PR rep but a biggest fan. We will be putting in the extra hours, anything it takes to ensure your success because we truly care about you. We care about every single individual, brand, or business with a story to tell because the world can never have too many stories. I’m a story addict. There can never be enough. And as I mentioned earlier, I’m an acceleration addict as well. These addictions are engrained in Artful PR. We, quite honestly, can’t stop until we amplify your story to as many people as we can.

Do you look back particularly fondly on any memories from childhood?
My favorite memory from childhood is probably my annual neighborhood trips to Bass Lake. Everything about those trips encaptures childhood innocence, freedom, and fun. I had the rare luxury of growing up on a street with four other girls my exact same age. And beyond the 4 of us growing up like family, our families were like family. I don’t really think of them as neighbors, I think of us all as the individual parts to one collective whole. And this whole encaptures love and care and community. And beyond how special the people are to me, the place became (almost) as special. From barefoot walks to the ice cream shop on the dock to screaming, bumpy rides on the boat-pulled intertube to the rush of water that flowed out behind the jetski to the warm tortilla chips at our favorite local restaurant–this place became home. But, only, the summertime home where nothing bad could ever happen and any worries would float away as we did on the lake. And so, yeah. That would be my favorite childhood memory.

Contact Info:

• Email: artfulprfirm@gmail.com
• Instagram: @artfulprfirm My personal/acting account: @allienicoledavis
• Other: My IMDb: imdb.me/alliendavis

Image Credit:
For headshots: Chris Wood Pictures

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