Wellons Communications: Helping More Companies Tell Their Stories
Digital Marketing and Public Relations Firm Growing with Assistance from FSBDC at UCF
May 7, 2019
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Hal Thayer, Communications Director, FSBDC at UCF, 407.420.4850 or hthayer@ucf.edu
Orlando, FL – Will Wellons didn’t start out as a small business owner. He’d distinguished himself as a newspaper journalist, then as an advertising and public relations executive for a prominent Orlando agency. Somewhere along the line, however, he got the entrepreneurial bug and decided to launch his own communications firm; Wellons Communications.
Wellons Communications is a 13-year-old marketing and social media firm, specializing in public relations. “We’re here to help you tell your story,” Will Wellons states proudly. “Our vision is that every business, no matter the size, needs great communications. We are committed to making that happen, and have done it for startups all the way to international corporations. That mix allows us to do some very, very unique things for our clients, including keeping our rates reasonable.”
As much success as Wellons Communications has had, it wasn’t always easy. It’s a big jump from agency executive to business owner. “There’s an old saying: You don’t know what you don’t know,” recalls Wellons. “While I know my stuff on the PR and marketing fronts, and had a strong management background, nothing prepares you for running your own business, putting your own money in the game, and making the final decisions.”
“So I listened when another small business owner raved about the Florida SBDC at the University of Central Florida (FSBDC at UCF), how good their services are and the wide variety of assistance available to someone like me who was looking to build my business, and take it to the next level.”
Wellons took advantage of a variety of the services offered by the FSBDC, including its expert, no-cost business consulting; seminars and workshops; and special programs for second stage companies. “Our business has thrived thanks to the FSBDC,” says Wellons. “The consulting has been extremely important; its brought focus, and a new and different look at our business with ways to improve and do things better. The seminars and workshops are outstanding; they’re bite-size energy pills of information that refresh and then add to what we know. And their special programs like CEO XChange and the Advisory Board Council, whether in my role as a client or a volunteer advisor, give you the chance to benefit from the expertise and different perspectives of other small business owners and professionals.”
“Owning a business is difficult,” Wellons remarked. “And there are always ups and downs. Thanks to the consistency of the FSBDC and their help putting a foundation of processes and procedures in place, we’ve been able to weather the bad times and now are moving ahead with very strong growth, seeing a 25% increase in revenues in just the last 12 months.”
“If I had to use one word to describe the FSBDC, it would be ‘Outstanding’,” concluded Wellons. “The business impact from their assistance is probably immeasurable. They are always there for you and ready to help propel the growth of your business. Every small business owner should take advantage of what they have to offer.”
For information about Wellons Communications, please visit www.wellonscommunications.com.
— FSBDC —
About the FSBDC at UCF
Hosted by the University of Central Florida (UCF), and with its main office in the National Entrepreneur Center located at the Fashion Square Mall in Orlando, the Florida SBDC at the University of Central Florida (FSBDC at UCF) is part of the UCF Office of Partnership & Innovation and the Florida SBDC Network.
The Florida SBDC at UCF provides aspiring and existing small businesses with no-cost consulting, low-cost training, and access to business data and research resources. In addition to its core service offering, the Florida SBDC at UCF also offers specialized services to qualifying companies, including capital access, market growth, government contracting, international trade, business continuation, cybersecurity, disaster planning and recovery, and more. The FSBDC at UCF serves an eight-county area that includes Brevard, Flagler, Lake, Orange, Osceola, Seminole, Sumter, and Volusia counties and maintains 10 service centers across Central Florida.
In 2017, the FSBDC at UCF served over 2,450 entrepreneurs in Central Florida with consulting services, resulting in more than 5,600 jobs created, retained or saved; $623 million in sales growth; $23 million in capital formation; $32 million in government contract awards; and 71 new businesses started.
About the Florida SBDC Network
For over forty years, the Florida SBDC Network, the state’s principal provider of business assistance [Fl. Stat. 288.001], has nourished a statewide partnership between higher education and economic development to provide existing and emerging small and medium-sized business owners with management and knowledge resources that enable overall growth, increased profitability, and economic prosperity for Florida’s economy.
In 2017, Florida SBDCs have provided professional business consulting to 11,750 client businesses, resulting in more than 28,800 jobs impacted; $3.2 billion in sales generated; $145.6 million in government contracts acquired; $135.4 million in capital accessed; and 335 new businesses started.
A statewide network of over 40 offices, the Florida SBDC is funded in part by the U.S. Small Business Administration, Defense Logistics Agency, State of Florida and other private and public partners. The Florida SBDC Network, headquartered at the University of West Florida, is nationally accredited by the Association of SBDCs and is a 2016 recipient of the President’s E Award for Export Service. Florida SBDC services are extended to the public on a nondiscriminatory basis. Language assistance services are available for individuals with limited English proficiency. For more information, please visit www.FloridaSBDC.org.
FSBDC at UCF | 3201 E. Colonial Drive | Orlando, FL 32801 | p 407.420.4850 | f 407.420.4862
sbdc@ucf.edu | www.sbdcorlando.com
