Lilliston, Julie

Julie Lilliston is Founder & President, Julie Lilliston Communications, a certified Women’s Business Enterprise (WBE) by the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC) and a Women-Owned Small Business (WOSB) by the Small Business Administration. Julie Lilliston Communications is a public relations agency specializing in business-to-business communications and thought leadership located in Nashville, Tenn. Julie is an award-winning professional with more than 20 years of experience helping businesses and nonprofits enhance their reputation, build their brand and grow market share.

She cultivated her expertise at Weber Shandwick and MSLGroup in Austin and Chicago as a Vice President and served clients including Archer Daniels Midland, Bayer HealthCare Animal Health Division and Mars, Inc. Her work on the GoDirect public education and engagement campaign for the U.S. Treasury and Federal Reserve Banks earned numerous awards including a PRSA Silver Anvil and PRWeek Award.

Julie founded her company in 2014 and has worked with clients such as BluWave, Qualifacts, Nashville Software School, Impact100 Nashville, PALCO, DevMar Products and WBEC South. Julie Lilliston Communications ranks as a “Top 15 Public Relations Agencies in Nashville” by Up City and “Best PR Firms in Nashville” by Expertise.

She is a global media strategist and placed stories in USA Today, PBS NewsHour, Marketplace, American Dream TV, CBS News, MBE Magazine, PRWeek, Reader’s Digest, PARADE, Essence, Enterprising Women, Professional WOMAN’s Magazine among others. She has launched technology companies in Middle East North Africa and Southeast Asia. She coordinated a women’s entrepreneurship panel discussion in Nashville on behalf of the U.S. Department of State for 18 foreign journalists.

Julie is a member of the PRSA’s Counselors Academy and served on the National Corporate Communications Section Executive Committee. She is a recipient of the Hercules Award on behalf of PRSA Nashville in 1997. She served on the board of the National Association of Women Business Owners, Nashville Chapter, as Corporate Partners Chair and Past President. She served on the board of directors for Dismas House as Marketing Chair and a member of the Executive Committee. She is a graduate of the Women’s Advantage Forum at Pathway Women’s Business Center and serves as a business mentor. She is an active member of the Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce and a graduate of the 2020 Leadership Connect class and Co-Chair, Growing Together Women’s Committee. She was a 2020 ATHENA Award nominee and a recipient of the Nashville Business Journal’s 2020 Women of Influence Awards. Julie is a member of BrainTrust, a graduate of the executive education program WeTHRIVE by WBENC, and the Inner City Capital Connections program. She serves on the national Women’s Enterprise Forum with WBENC. Julie is an alumni of the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses program in May 2021. She serves on the board of directors for the oldest continuously operating African American owned bank in the U.S., Citizens Savings Bank and Trust Company.

Julie has presented on brand building at Mastermind Groups, International Coach Federation, Tennessee State University and the Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce. She has a Bachelor of Arts degree in English from The College of Wooster in Wooster, Ohio.