Meet Your Small Business Instructor: James Andrews

JAMES ANDREWS
Social Media Expert, Founder, SocialPeople.tv
Black Enterprise Small Business University Instructor

The Process: James Andrews starts each day giving thanks to God and “chatting with Him” about daily goals.  Then he checks e-mails and all of his social media accounts including Twitter, SocialCam, Facebook

and Instagram. He preps his 17-year-old and 10-year-old for school  and then heads to his office to officially begin the work day at SocialPeople.tv.

The Vision: “I’ve always been entrepreneurial, even when I was working for other people,” says Andrews, who has an impressive resume that includes several large companies like Columbia Records and Ecko Unlimited.  “I recognized three years ago when I was working at Ketchum PR that there would be a hole in the marketplace to provide specific types of communication strategy and content,” Andrews adds.  “I invented some offerings, and I just went out sold it—no startup money needed. We did educational trainings and made a lot of money with that.”

The It Factor: Andrews says that what makes his company different is that they come with the focus of communication and experience. “We don’t tweet for people,” Andrews says. “We empower these people and companies to own their voice. For example, we helped #BeatCancer generate $70,000 in 24 hours.”

The Defining Moment: For Andrews, being an entrepreneur is a matter of more than just work—it’s in his blood. “My grandfather escaped Nazi Germany, came to this country, and started his own business.  It was normal for me to be around entrepreneurs who make money and lose money. It was natural for me,” he says.

The Life: In order to keep a sane and balanced life, Andrews has a couple rules he

abides by. “Dinnertime is at 6 p.m., and when we are having dinner, there are no gadgets allowed. My wife is a blogger and my kids are very active, so that’s a big deal to do that, but when we’re home together, we need to be present,” Andrews says.  “My job involves me testing out new innovations, so I’m kind of like the toy tester at FAO Schwartz, but I ‘play around’ with things that enhance my brand. I have a DJ on Ustream on Friday nights and I have people engaged for six hours,” Andrews says.  “In my line of work, attention is currency, so something like that makes the Grammys, for instance, take notice and understand what we can do for them.”

Register now at blackenterprise.com/sbu to see weekly video courses from Armstrong and other industry experts on how to build, grow and nurture your business. On top of that, you’ll have a chance to win more than $50,000 in prizes, including one-on-one consultations with successful entrepreneurs like Emerson, a small business makeover for your biz courtesy of Dell, and much more!

Visit blackenterprise.com/sbu for more details now!