Originally published on Forbes
Gesche Haas started Dreamers & Doers in 2013 almost by accident, when she noticed that there weren’t many resources or communities for female entrepreneurs like her. What began as a series of regular brunch meetings quickly grew into a thriving community of women enthusiastically going to great lengths to support and see each other succeed. Today, Dreamers & Doers has over 700 paying members (myself included for more than seven years), who hail the collective as the “OG community” that’s their secret weapon for business success.
Yet despite the surge in Dreamers & Doers’ membership interest and year-over-year growth, Haas felt like she wasn’t taken seriously in the early stages of the business. “I remember the many instances where friends, family, and people I met at networking events would ask questions like, ‘Oh, what else are you working on?’, or ‘How is that little project going?’, or ‘When will you get a real job?’” she says.
“Before founding Dreamers & Doers, I had been working at a hedge fund, where people immediately found me credible. But in the early stages of my business, one that was focused on women and community, and as a woman myself, I felt I was never really taken seriously. It got to the point where I wasn’t even taking myself seriously,” she adds.
But there was a distinct moment when things shifted. A friend and fellow founder interviewed Haas and published the Q&A on her company’s blog. “Even though it wasn’t a big publication, suddenly I was taken incredibly seriously, with friends and professional contacts congratulating me and wanting to learn more about my company,” she says. “Having an external endorsement out in the world was game-changing. It was a way to let others know what I was working on, and it was exactly what I needed to start showing up differently as a leader.”
It was a lightbulb moment: If one piece of PR could have this type of impact for her, what could it do for other women entrepreneurs? Could it also be their shortcut to credibility, confidence, and connections?
As she started thinking about the idea, two hurdles to securing media placements became immediately clear. One: the cost. Working with traditional PR agencies, which typically require multi-month retainers of several thousand dollars, was financially out of reach for many entrepreneurs.
Secondly, women are notably underrepresented in the media: According to a multi-year study conducted by UN Women, just 24% of people featured or mentioned on TV, radio, and newspapers are women.
It was her second lightbulb moment: Could Dreamers & Doers bridge that gap? Could it offer members press opportunities and shift the balance of women represented in media while doing so?
Enter: PR Hype Machine
The realization led to Haas’ creation of a new offering to the Dreamers & Doers community: PR Hype Machine.
Not having a traditional PR background, Haas took a novel approach to envisioning PR Hype Machine. Instead of pitching reporters and editors one-on-one (a time-consuming and labor-intensive process that contributes to the high cost and uncertain results of traditional PR), she explains, “We identified content partners that share our mission of amplifying underrepresented voices, then worked with them to create content collaborations featuring our members that align with their editorial vision and audience.”
These collaborations are a true win-win. “Given that we’ve secured these placements ahead of time, our members have a high likelihood of being featured, meaning they’re able to see real results with their time, energy, and financial resources invested,” she says. “Meanwhile, each publication is able to offer high-quality content featuring a diversity of voices at a fraction of the cost of hiring writers, while receiving invaluable exposure to the networks of all of our members. Furthermore, we have a seasoned in-house team of writers and editors that adheres to high standards for all content we produce, benefiting everyone—content partners, members, and readers.”
To date, Dreamers & Doers has fostered partnerships with content platforms such as Nasdaq, BlogHer, Thrive, Crunchbase, HearstLab, Create & Cultivate, and Motherly. Members have been featured more than 1,500 times in over 250 articles such as “AAPI Entrepreneurs and Leaders to Watch This Month and Beyond” and “Female Founders on Their Most Valuable Pitching Strategies.” Nivi Achanta, founder of Soapbox Project, notes that “within three months of joining Dreamers & Doers, I’ve gotten more PR than in the past three years of running my business combined.”
Changing Coverage, Changing The World
Haas explains that while PR Hype Machine isn’t a fast track to sales leads or user acquisition, leveraging a reputable media outlet can work wonders for momentum. “We’ve seen women founders come out of stealth mode far quicker than they thought possible with the PR we were able to get them. We’ve also seen members gain immediate credibility with potential partners, employees, and clients, as well as fast track their path to becoming thought leaders within their respective industries,” she says.
That social proof is crucial for female founders, Haas says, and there are countless studies to back this up. “Whether it’s raising capital, hiring high-caliber employees, attracting clients, establishing partnerships, men get rated based on potential, while women are based on proof,” she says. “We view PR as a shortcut to that proof.”
But the impact of Dreamers & Doers’ PR offerings goes far beyond changing the trajectory of individual businesses. As the oft-cited saying goes, you can’t be what you can’t see, and helping more women get featured in the media is a key ingredient in fueling the pipeline of women entrepreneurs.
“Media coverage ultimately creates systemic change,” notes Haas. “It influences who dares to strive for a leadership position or start a company, and it impacts the number of women-led businesses who can raise capital, see breakneck growth, and exit or IPO.”
In short, she says: “By changing who and what gets portrayed in the media, we are also changing the world.”
Looking To The Future
The addition of PR Hype Machine to Dreamers & Doers has come with organic and aligned growth for the community, as members will proudly share their PR wins with the world. The various topics Dreamers & Doers has been publishing articles on have also inspired new offerings for the community, including dedicated programming and masterminds segmented for six-, seven-, and eight-figure business leaders, plus events focused on industry specializations.
“Uncovering opportunities and addressing them from a completely unconventional perspective has always been part of the magic of Dreamers & Doers,” says Haas. “But everything we’re doing is an extension of our core mission: to help women entrepreneurs turn their dreams into reality. With this, we’re forging a business landscape that’s more inclusive and thereby a future that shines brighter for all.”
