Central Florida Writer Wins Business Competition and $10,000 in Startup Funds

Contact:
Ashley Cisneros
Ashley Cisneros, Inc.
407.608.8765
ashley@ashleycisneros.com
www.ashleycisneros.com

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Monday, Feb. 27, 2012

Central Florida Writer Wins Business Competition and $10,000 in Startup Funds

Ashley Cisneros was the only entrepreneur selected from Southeast U.S. for national competition

Orlando, FLA. —UNITY: Journalists of Color, Inc. named Lake Nona resident Ashley Cisneros the winner of a national business competition. The only program Fellow selected from the Southeast and Florida, Cisneros wins a $10,000 startup business investment prize from the New U: News Entrepreneurs Working Through UNITY initiative, a competitive program for journalists of color who want to become entrepreneurs.

“I’m so appreciative of this incredible opportunity, and am excited to use the lessons I learned during the program to grow my small business,” said Cisneros, 29. “This seed money will help me hire more writers to meet demand.”

A former newspaper reporter, magazine editor, tech writer, marketing manager and PR practitioner, Cisneros helps individuals and companies engage their target audiences. Her company, Ashley Cisneros, Inc., produces communications products for clients around the world. In October 2011, Cisneros was honored as a Fellow at the New U national startup boot camp in Las Vegas, Nev. During the camp, Cisneros was mentored by Rod Colón, master networker, executive coach and weekly co-host of the “Your Career Is Calling” radio show. In addition, she learned from world class presenters Sumaya Kazi, CEO of Sumazi; Harry Lin, executive in residence at Idealab; and Mike Green, co-founder of The America21 Project, among others.

“Thanks to the generosity of the Ford Foundation, we were able to learn directly from seasoned entrepreneurs about strategies to strengthen our business plans and financial projections, about funding options, and about ways to build relationships with angel investors and venture capitalists,” said Cisneros, who earned a bachelor’s degree in Journalism and a master’s degree in Entrepreneurship from the University of Florida (UF).

One third of each Fellow’s score was determined by the number of online votes garnered for his or her business pitch. Cisneros captured 56.2 percent or 7,112 votes in her category, the National Association of Hispanic Journalists. She was the Fellow to attract the most votes in the competition. In addition, an independent panel of business experts judged the Fellows’ business plan and materials. Their rankings comprised the remaining two-thirds of each Fellow’s final score. In March 2012, Cisneros will be speaking at UF’s Women in Entrepreneurship summit and at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University.

About Ashley Cisneros, Inc.
Ashley Cisneros, Inc. helps individuals and companies leverage the selling power of words. The firm achieves this by delivering communication products such as advertorials, articles, speeches, annual reports, sales letters and more. These products save corporations, small businesses and magazines precious time and money while helping engage their target audiences. Ashley Cisneros, Inc. communication products have helped clients achieve key goals such as increasing brand awareness, more sales or earned media. For more information, visit www.ashleycisneros.com.

About Unity: Journalists of Color, Inc.
UNITY: Journalists of Color, Inc. is a strategic alliance advocating news coverage about people of color, and aggressively challenging its organizations at all levels to reflect the nation’s diversity. UNITY, representing more than 10,000 journalists of color, is comprised of four national associations: Asian American Journalists Association, National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association, National Association of Hispanic Journalists, and the Native American Journalists Association. In addition to planning the largest regular gathering of journalists in the nation, UNITY develops programs and institutional relationships that promote diversity and inclusion in news media. For more information on UNITY, visit www.unityjournalists.org, email info@unityjournalists.org or call 703.854.3585.

–Ashley Cisneros
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Ashley Cisneros is a co-founder of Chatter Buzz Media, an Orlando Internet marketing firm that helps companies and organizations engage with their target markets through inbound marketing via the Internet. Chatter Buzz Media, which won the Social Madness competition for the Orlando small business market, is a full-service digital marketing firm specializing in website design, search engine optimization (SEO), social media marketing and content creation. Prior to founding Chatter Buzz, Ashley worked as a newspaper reporter, magazine editor, technical writer, marketing manager, public relations practitioner and freelance journalist. To see Ashley’s content writing, visit www.ashleycisneros.com. You can also reach Ashley on her Google profile.