Mary Tan

About Mary Tan

Bark Loud and Purr Smart!I am a public relations professional who knows how to get messages across to people in this crazy non-stop digital world. As the founder of a pet focused public relations agency called Whisker Media, I help animal welfare nonprofits and for profit pet businesses get the publicity or buzz they need. My firm is a mix of my passions: helping animals while telling the stories of animal rescuers, pet entrepreneurs and brands. My skills in storytelling and media relations developed when I was a broadcast journalist for more than 13 years. I worked as a general assignment reporter and/or anchor in television markets across the country, including Minneapolis, Las Vegas and Atlanta. I also did reporting stints at many of the major national networks, including CNN, Fox News and NBC News.My experience also includes working as the public relations manager for the third largest animal shelter in the United States and being the communications manager for the fourth largest city in Minnesota, where I led government public relations, employee communications and crisis communications for the city of Brooklyn Park and its police and fire departments.I know that not everyone can afford to hire my company, so each week I co-host a podcast called the Whisker Report, where each week we give tips and tricks for getting publicity for your nonprofit or pet business. Yes, you can do it yourself!Everyone on my team also has an animal rescue background, and some of us even run our own rescues, which gives us access to sick and healthy animals of all kinds. That makes it easy for us to vet pet products and research claims. Most of my clients are for profit pet companies and I always have veterinarians or behaviorists help us vet products, because I won\'t represent a product unless I know it is safe for the pet. The safety of an animal always comes first, even if that means Whisker Media has to turn down a well-paying client. It\'s because of this vetting that I personally believe I represent some of the highest quality pet products on the market. I am extremely proud of the companies I represent and have represented in the past.Transparency and honesty is always key to a public relations strategy and it\'s the way I run my business. Whether dealing with clients, the news media, or a pet influencer, the truth will always prevail.

Experience

1. Principal Chief Storyteller

   Whisker Media

   Mar 2013 — Present · Buffalo, MN, US

   I began Whisker Media began in 2015 as a creative outlet to do something related to my love of animals, especially cats. In late 2014 a light bulb went off in my head and I decided I had to go after my dream of trying to do something related to animals. That\'s when a light bulb went off and I decided to mix what I did for a living with my passion for animals. I knew how to do public relations thanks to my journalism background and I knew pitching animals to members of the mainstream media is a pretty easy sell.The company began as a video production company focused on businesses and non-profits, but eventually pivoted to public relations and influencer marketing in the pet space. I love helping pet nonprofits and businesses create stories and I love the thrill of the hunt getting my clients the publicity they deserve. We currently represent animal welfare nonprofits and for-profit pet product companies across the globe. Every one of my clients has a heart of gold to help animals and I think I have the best job in the whole world!

Education

• University of Wisconsin-Madison

  BA, Music Performance, Political Science

• University of Minnesota

  BA, Broadcast Journalism

Skills

• Storytelling
• Video
• Publicity
• Video Editing
• Social Networking
• Multimedia
• Speech Writing
• Social Media Marketing
• Copy Editing
• Marketing
• Public Speaking
• Social Media
• News Writing
• Online Journalism
• Ap Style
• Public Relations
• Internal Communications
• Media Relations
• Feature Writing
• Radio Broadcasting
• Event Planning
• Radio
• Newspaper
• Crisis Communications
• Broadcast
• Newspapers
• Facebook
• Strategic Communications
• Html
• Producing
• Microsoft Office
• Interviews
• Video Production
• Enps
• Photoshop
• Investigative Reporting
• New Media
• Feature Articles
• Copywriting
• Journalism